.45-70 conversion

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    As a further follow-up, the .45-70 rim appears to be completely compatible with the unmodified No.4 bolt head and extractor.

 When I ordered the bolt (I started this project with a barreled receiver) the extractor just flopped around.  I knew I needed to buy a new spring for it.  It turns out that Wolff makes a replacement spring.  Which was nice to find out, because I was just getting ready to order some springs for my 1911.  Shipping for the SMLE spring would have been more than the cost of the spring itself, otherwise...

 Also, I just noticed that the firing pin doesn't stick out the end of the bolt head.  It appears to be broken off.  They can be repaired by welding, but I'm just going to order a replacement and put the broken one aside for a later/someday repair job.

 The stock bolt came in. It was only $4, but if I had known, I have a whole box of Oldsmobile head bolts out in the shop that are the exact same length and thread.  Turn the hex round on the lathe, cut a screwdriver slot with the Dremel, and Bob's your uncle.  I never thought to measure the stock to see how long the bolt needed to be...

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TRX Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Groupie Joined: November 20 2009 Location: Arkansas Status: Offline Points: 86	Post Options Post Reply Quote TRX Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: July 04 2013 at 5:58am
	As a further follow-up, the .45-70 rim appears to be completely compatible with the unmodified No.4 bolt head and extractor. When I ordered the bolt (I started this project with a barreled receiver) the extractor just flopped around. I knew I needed to buy a new spring for it. It turns out that Wolff makes a replacement spring. Which was nice to find out, because I was just getting ready to order some springs for my 1911. Shipping for the SMLE spring would have been more than the cost of the spring itself, otherwise... Also, I just noticed that the firing pin doesn't stick out the end of the bolt head. It appears to be broken off. They can be repaired by welding, but I'm just going to order a replacement and put the broken one aside for a later/someday repair job. The stock bolt came in. It was only $4, but if I had known, I have a whole box of Oldsmobile head bolts out in the shop that are the exact same length and thread. Turn the hex round on the lathe, cut a screwdriver slot with the Dremel, and Bob's your uncle. I never thought to measure the stock to see how long the bolt needed to be...

TRX Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Groupie Joined: November 20 2009 Location: Arkansas Status: Offline Points: 86	Post Options Post Reply Quote TRX Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: July 07 2013 at 11:50am
	Right at eight hours to inlet the forend. At least for now. The edges along the sides of the barrel are much neater than I expected. I imagine Gibbs/Navy arms did one, then used that as the pattern for a stock duplicator... The metal around the magazine well doesn't touch the wood by about 2mm. I have good contact on the recoil surfaces by the trigger. The No.1 receiver and forend I have on hand don't meet by the same amount, so until I get some stock screws I'm goingto leave it alone for now.

TRX Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Groupie Joined: November 20 2009 Location: Arkansas Status: Offline Points: 86	Post Options Post Reply Quote TRX Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: May 21 2014 at 3:02am
	I acquired a magazine for a 1885 Remington-Lee .45-70. This is one of the predecessors to the SMLE, and it was designed around the then-current Army cartridge, which was the .45-70. Rounds feed smoothly out of the magazine, without flipping up or falling out. The mag is narrower and shorter than the SMLE box, so it shouldn't be a big problem making an adapter. I'll modify the magazine latch to mate with the new magazine. Watching grass grow would be much more exciting than most of my projects, but progress does happen...

TRX Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Groupie Joined: November 20 2009 Location: Arkansas Status: Offline Points: 86	Post Options Post Reply Quote TRX Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: May 21 2014 at 10:31am
	I got home tonight and had a bit more time to play with the magazine. It DOES snick into place with the Enfield magazine catch. And, with just that, no trigger guard metal, and the front of the magazine touching the front of the receiver, there's a smooth ramp out of the magazine and into the chamber. The bolt slides the cartridge forward, the nose lifts up into the chamber while the rim is still guided by the mag lips, once the first 3/4" or so of the cartridge is in the chamber, the back is guided up from the lips by the stamped-in side ramps, and the now-level cartridge slides straight into the chamber. I knew it could be made to work; I wasn't expecting all it would need is a little filler in the magwell to keep it from rattling around...

chopaz Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: February 01 2012 Location: Alberta Status: Offline Points: 2	Post Options Post Reply Quote chopaz Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: May 03 2015 at 2:14pm
	Have you made any progress on the project?

Billythepoet Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: April 12 2015 Location: Texas Status: Offline Points: 5	Post Options Post Reply Quote Billythepoet Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: May 08 2015 at 9:03am
	I'm also interested. It would be great if you could update the original post with a list of all modifications needed. The Remington-Lee magazine is a great idea!