Turning AR7 into a bolt action rifle ?

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AManWithAGun

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Any idea how this can be done ?

I have this AR7 with an add-on all steel heavy bull barrel. Compared to the thin factor barrel, it has major feeding/jamming problems, but when it does shoot it's very accurate. I also noticed when I manually cycle the action it always fed fine.

So I'm thinking it'd be great if I can change it to a (straight-pull) bolt action rifle. I know I can replace the recoil springs with stronger ones, and maybe add weight to the bolt by replacing the bolt handle with a bigger and heavy metal rod. The idea is prevent the bolt from travelling backward more than half an inch so the case stays in the chamber for manual cycling.

A bigger change is drill/cut a 0.5 inch slot on the left side of the receiver, replace bolt handle with a longer one that can stick out thru the new slot, so when a round is fired, the bolt will travel backwards under spring tension for half an inch, and then get stopped by the bolt handle against receiver wall. But is this a safe modification ? The receiver is made of aluminum and wall is pretty thin.
 
Not worth it!

You have answered your own question. The receiver is made of aluminum and wall is pretty thin.

It would be a lot cheaper and better to simply buy a more suitable rifle.
.
 
+1

The solution is simple: 1. Replace the barrel with the original thin one and hope the gun functions properly. 2. Sell that POS. 3. Buy a good bolt gun.
 
AManWithAGun said:
Any idea how this can be done ?

I have this AR7 with an add-on all steel heavy bull barrel. Compared to the thin factor barrel, it has major feeding/jamming problems, but when it does shoot it's very accurate. I also noticed when I manually cycle the action it always fed fine.

So I'm thinking it'd be great if I can change it to a (straight-pull) bolt action rifle. I know I can replace the recoil springs with stronger ones, and maybe add weight to the bolt by replacing the bolt handle with a bigger and heavy metal rod. The idea is prevent the bolt from travelling backward more than half an inch so the case stays in the chamber for manual cycling.

A bigger change is drill/cut a 0.5 inch slot on the left side of the receiver, replace bolt handle with a longer one that can stick out thru the new slot, so when a round is fired, the bolt will travel backwards under spring tension for half an inch, and then get stopped by the bolt handle against receiver wall. But is this a safe modification ? The receiver is made of aluminum and wall is pretty thin.
Click to expand...

Another option would be found in the design of the STEn gun. (In that application, it was designed to prevent bolt movement to prevent inadvertent loading - and firing - of the SMG.)

You might be able to replace the AR-7's bolt handle with a longer (two-position) one that could protrude through a newly drilled hole in the left side of the receiver. This would effect a locked breech. When you wished to operate the bolt, or to allow semi-automatic operation, the bolt handle is pulled outward, clear of the (left-side) receiver hole.

Unlike the STEn, you have a firing pin to contend with, but it still could be made to work, I think.
 
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"You might be able to replace the AR-7's bolt handle with a longer (two-position) one that could protrude through a newly drilled hole in the left side of the receiver."

You'll have an elongated hole in the first couple round's.
 
You can hold the bolt closed with your thumb, if you want to. I don't think that there is nearly enough energy there to pose a problem with shear.

Only one way to find out...
 
Even the lead idea is a dead end. You can't fit enough in there to be useful for this purpose.

I know that holding the bolt shut with a thumb is easy enough, if a PITA to maneuver to carry out while actually trying to hit anything. BTDT, years back.

I'm with the 'Flog it and buy what you actually wanted in the first place' camp. If you want a bolt gun, buy one. Hell, buy one and keep the AR7, if you want. I sold mine. I skimped and saved to buy it, too. Was glad to see it gone, PITA thing that it was. First gun I bought after I got a FAC, that one was.

Sooooo, back to the subject at hand.

Figure out WHY it feeds like crap and hangs up. Fix that. Radius sharp edges, make the mags all the same, try as many different ammos as possible, and swallow hard when you find out that it really really likes $15 per box target stuff, eh :).

As far as the slot idea, having the bolt travel back any distance and hit part of the receiver is a really bad idea. The pot metal in there is crap to begin with, and thin. Pounding on it won't make things better. If you figure out a way to lock the bolt shut, do it so that the bolt does not move. That would be preferable to having it pick up momentum and pound into the rest of the gun to stop it.

Cheers
Trev
 
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