Remington 581 locked up

[MilitaryCollectorMark]

My Dad has a Remington 581S, was sighting it in a little while ago and the bolt doesn't want to cycle.
Was using winchester wildcat, high velocity ammo.

Not sure what to do to cycle the bolt to eject the fired shell.

 

[TungstenJohn]

Either bring it to a gunsmith or what I would first try would be to spray some wd40 or hoppes down the barrel, let it sit overnight and see what happens- pushing a cleaning rod GENTLY down the barrel may dislodge the shell which I presume is either stuck from gunk or from a ruptured case- pounding on the bolt wouldn’t be smart at this stage - and remember I am not a gunsmith

 

[MilitaryCollectorMark]

Either bring it to a gunsmith or what I would first try would be to spray some wd40 or hoppes down the barrel, let it sit overnight and see what happens- pushing a cleaning rod GENTLY down the barrel may dislodge the shell which I presume is either stuck from gunk or from a ruptured case- pounding on the bolt wouldn’t be smart at this stage - and remember I am not a gunsmith

Ok, I poured some gun oil down the barrel, try the cleaning rod in the morning.

 

[trevj]

I think I would look at dropping the action from the stock, and possibly, removing the trigger group, to see if it frees up.

Those actions are hells for strong, guys have been buying up old 5mm guns and converting them to centerfire actions.

Diagram. https://www.gunpartscorp.com/gun-manufacturer/remington/rifles-rem/581s

 

[Lodi]

... the bolt doesn't want to cycle.

Are you saying that the bolt is stuck in the closed position?

 

[MilitaryCollectorMark]

Are you saying that the bolt is stuck in the closed position?

Yup.

 

[Lodi]

If the bolt handle lifts...the case may be stuck to the chamber walls or the chamber is damaged and prevents the case from moving to the rear.

If the bolt handle won't lift it may be a damaged Cocking Piece.
If the the bolt handle won't lift the Striker Assembly may be binding. Note that the Striker is not the firing pin.

And the usual inspection may reveal gunk or lack of lubrication that is causing issues. Keep in mind that there may be more than one cause.

 

[MilitaryCollectorMark]

If the bolt handle lifts...the case may be stuck to the chamber walls or the chamber is damaged and prevents the case from moving to the rear.

If the bolt handle won't lift it may be a damaged Cocking Piece.
If the the bolt handle won't lift the Striker Assembly may be binding. Note that the Striker is not the firing pin.

And the usual inspection may reveal gunk or lack of lubrication that is causing issues. Keep in mind that there may be more than one cause.

The bolt handle lifts a little bit, then stops. I also notice the rear bolt plug doesn't move with the handle/bolt. Possibly the cocking piece is damaged? I'm going to be taking it to a local gun guy to see if he could figure it out? Possibly removing the trigger assembly might help? Would be one less thing for the bolt to disenguage?

 

[Donny Fenn1]

is there a scope mounted? if so did screws get inserted too far and are now binding the bolt?

 

[MilitaryCollectorMark]

is there a scope mounted? if so did screws get inserted too far and are now binding the bolt?

Yes their is a scope mounted. I'll check to see if that might be a problem!

 

[MilitaryCollectorMark]

is there a scope mounted? if so did screws get inserted too far and are now binding the bolt?

Just checked, it's a grooved receiver.

 

[savagelh]

I would remove from the stock and place in the deep freeze overnight. In the am I would do some gentle taps upward on the bolt with a large rubber mallet.

 

[Lodi]

I'm going to be taking it to a local gun guy to see if he could figure it out?

This is probably the best move, let your gunsmith perform the repairs. Taking parts off generally makes it harder for the gunsmith rather than easier. Diagnosing the issue first helps to determine a proper course of action.

 

[guntech]

The bolt handle lifts a little bit, then stops. I also notice the rear bolt plug doesn't move with the handle/bolt. Possibly the cocking piece is damaged? I'm going to be taking it to a local gun guy to see if he could figure it out?

Stop doing anything to this malfunction. Take it to your gun guy and let him figure it out...Any else you do may just cause more problems for him.

 

[MilitaryCollectorMark]

Looks like it wasn't anything major
Had to pull of the trigger.

Looks like the bolt froze/locked up due to no lub on the cocking piece. Had to lightly sand to smooth and added a bit of greese. Mucho better now!

 

[Potashminer]

It would have made that job much easier if there was a tool or technique to pull that cocking piece back into the bolt shroud - once the bolt was out of the receiver - to unscrew from the bolt body - does anyone know what such a tool might look like - or how to "easily" do that, in order to screw that thing back on? I would guesstimate that the Rem 581 is a miniaturized version of the Rem 788 - not sure if any parts are interchangeable - but system at rear end seems very similar.

I am not sure that removing the trigger was absolutely necessary - but it let us look into the sear hole in the receiver and see what was going on in there. Once that cocking piece / striker assembly was removed, the "bare" bolt body appeared to cycle normally in the receiver; then we installed the bolt shroud and it still seemed to function fine - so that left that "cocking piece" / striker assembly contact surface - at that point we discovered the roughness and total lack of lube on the cocking cam of the bolt body. Once polished and lubed, we could not reproduce the "bolt lock-up" - we even fed that fired cartridge into the chamber and "pulled the trigger" - got a second firing pin strike on the casing - and the bolt seemed to open and cycle fine.

I have no clue if that cocking cam on the rear of the bolt body was hardened at factory - as if it might have "galled" - visibly, and by "feel" was very rough - a few passes with 320 emory wrapped around a small diameter rod and then small dab of lithium grease made it feel much different. To be seen if that "fix" works, and how long that will last.