IOF Does it again - IOF .30-06 rifle giving problems

[Mayankjaiswal]

Hey guys this is my first post….I just bought a new IOF 3006 rifle from J Biswas Kolkata. When he showed me the weapon I could not believe it was an Indian ordinance made weapon. The polish was superb. Safety and bolt remover buttons appealed me a lott. So did the detachable mag which I had hardly seen in a 3006 as most that I have seen is top loading. I bought it with a happy heart.
Back at home after doing some 20 rounds in a week or so the problems began. The magazine did not give away the rounds to the feeder easily. I had to pull back the bolt 2-3 times to push the round into the barrel. Moreover at times when the round is being pushed into the barrel it stops halfway and the round is stuck half out of the mag and half in the barrel. The whole thing is a mess and I don’t know what to do. Shall I sell the rifle and get an imported one. I had seen a .22 BSA sportster in a good condition. They are asking for 1.5 lakhs. How is the weapon at that price??

[mundaire]

Sounds like a minor issue - most probably the magazine follower spring is faulty - an easy enough fix, just replace it! You can either import the required spring from overseas (ask for the Sauer 202 3-round magazine spring, it's a drop in fit) OR you could try and source one locally.

Cheers!
Abhijeet

[dr.jayakumar]

hi friend,
as Abhijeet said,it should be a minor problem.iof larger calibre seems to be crude.i just sold my315 and bought a Bsa sportman5 for 1.25lac.
regards.

[winnie_the_pooh]

Back at home after doing some 20 rounds in a week or so the problems began. The magazine did not give away the rounds to the feeder easily. I had to pull back the bolt 2-3 times to push the round into the barrel. Moreover at times when the round is being pushed into the barrel it stops halfway and the round is stuck half out of the mag and half in the barrel. The whole thing is a mess and I don’t know what to do. Shall I sell the rifle and get an imported one. I had seen a .22 BSA sportster in a good condition. They are asking for 1.5 lakhs. How is the weapon at that price??

It seems that the round is getting stuck in the magazine.Check to ensure that there are no dings in it.Remove the floor plate and polish the inner walls of the magazine,the feeding lips as well as the follower( 400,600 grit sandpaper followed by a higher grit one like 1000-1200 ). Should take care of the feeding issue

[Mark]

When the rounds hang up, does it do it from both sides or just one particular side? Does the bolt ride up over the case rim? If you can take a picture of a hung-up cartridge it would be helpful. I suspect Mundaire has the proper suggestion in that the magazine spring is probably the main culprit but polishing the follower will probably help too.

[Katana]

I've had similar problems too. The culprit is not the spring, but the follower plate and the magazine lips.

What I did is remove the follower plate and file off and smoothened the edges on all sides but especially where the bullet tip and cartridge rim would be. Next I filed off and mildly expanded the magazine lips to enable the cartridges to slide in and out smoothly. To test it I would push the follower plate right down with my finger and leave it. It would bounce back in a flat manner, not get stuck on any of its sides.

It now works like a charm.

A similar problem is the bolt movement. That too is hard to work in new rifles. To overcome this the bolt may have to be lapped.

[TwoRivers]

When the rounds hang up, does it do it from both sides or just one particular side? Does the bolt ride up over the case rim? If you can take a picture of a hung-up cartridge it would be helpful. I suspect Mundaire has the proper suggestion in that the magazine spring is probably the main culprit but polishing the follower will probably help too.

It's a single stack magazine.

[Kittu]

hi the follower in iof 30-06 rifle magzine is made of aluminium and body is made of steel and the follower spring is only half of magzine body so you will always have some issue with magzine not feeding well.i have also ancountered with similar issue if you dont want to file some edges of follower like katana mentioned then use petrolium jelly(vasline) it will give more lubricacy then gun oil and when it comes steel with aluminium vasline will always give you better result thanks

[miroflex]

Hey guys this is my first post….I just bought a new IOF 3006 rifle from J Biswas Kolkata. When he showed me the weapon I could not believe it was an Indian ordinance made weapon. The polish was superb. Safety and bolt remover buttons appealed me a lott. So did the detachable mag which I had hardly seen in a 3006 as most that I have seen is top loading. I bought it with a happy heart.
Back at home after doing some 20 rounds in a week or so the problems began. The magazine did not give away the rounds to the feeder easily. I had to pull back the bolt 2-3 times to push the round into the barrel. Moreover at times when the round is being pushed into the barrel it stops halfway and the round is stuck half out of the mag and half in the barrel. The whole thing is a mess and I don’t know what to do. Shall I sell the rifle and get an imported one. I had seen a .22 BSA sportster in a good condition. They are asking for 1.5 lakhs. How is the weapon at that price??

Dear Mayank,

I have been facing similar feeding problems with my IOF .315 and am planning to replace it with an imported weapon which will hopefully enable me to avoid this problem. Many members on this have advised me to buy a new .30-'06 from IOF instead of an old weapon of unknown history and with possible difficulties in sourcing ammunition for most calibres.

The problem being presented before you is forcing me to have second thoughts about acting upon this advice. I wanted to know whether you have been able to solve the issue and if so how. Have you retained the rifle or sold it and bought an imported one instead? I look forward to your reply.

Regards.

[TwoRivers]

[quote="miroflex]

Dear Mayank,

I have been facing similar feeding problems with my IOF .315 and am planning to replace it with an imported weapon which will hopefully enable me to avoid this problem. Many members on this have advised me to buy a new .30-'06 from IOF instead of an old weapon of unknown history and with possible difficulties in sourcing ammunition for most calibres.

Regards.[/quote]

Being made for a smaller diameter cartridge, the .303, the Lee-Enfield's magazine requires even more care when being loaded with the .315 than it does with the .303 round. The rim of the cartridge has to be ahead of the rim of the cartridge below it, or feeding troubles can and will result. I think your feeding troubles will disappear when you load the magazine carefully. Rimmed cartridges and staggered feed magazines are not a good match.

[miroflex]

[quote="miroflex]

Dear Mayank,

I have been facing similar feeding problems with my IOF .315 and am planning to replace it with an imported weapon which will hopefully enable me to avoid this problem. Many members on this have advised me to buy a new .30-'06 from IOF instead of an old weapon of unknown history and with possible difficulties in sourcing ammunition for most calibres.

Regards.

Being made for a smaller diameter cartridge, the .303, the Lee-Enfield's magazine requires even more care when being loaded with the .315 than it does with the .303 round. The rim of the cartridge has to be ahead of the rim of the cartridge below it, or feeding troubles can and will result. I think your feeding troubles will disappear when you load the magazine carefully. Rimmed cartridges and staggered feed magazines are not a good match.[/quote][/quote]

Dear Two Rivers,

Thank you very much for explaining the problem and suggesting a solution. I will keep it in mind when I load the magazine next.

Regards.

[addict]

A similar problem is the bolt movement. That too is hard to work in new rifles. To overcome this the bolt may have to be lapped.[/quote]

Sir the bolt of my new iof 3006 is not smooth especially when i compare it with Brno 7 mm.
How exactly is lapping done ? can it be done by me without the gunsmithing tools at home ?
Regards

[TwoRivers]

A similar problem is the bolt movement. That too is hard to work in new rifles. To overcome this the bolt may have to be lapped.

Sir the bolt of my new iof 3006 is not smooth especially when i compare it with Brno 7 mm.
How exactly is lapping done ? can it be done by me without the gunsmithing tools at home ?
Regards[/quote]

Lapping is done by means of very fine abrasive suspended in oil/grease. "Lapping in a bolt" usually means lapping in the locking lugs to assure full contact - done before the action is barreled, as it would change headspace. In your case, with stiff bolt movement, you would coat the bolt, taking care to keep the lugs free of lapping compound, and slide the bolt back and forth until it slides freely. After this is achieved all traces of the compound are removed and the bolt and receiver are cleaned and oiled. However, this is really a job for some one with the mechanical know-how and experience.
Some toothpastes contain an abrasive and make good lapping compounds, with less chance of overdoing things. The slickest 1903 Springfield rifle I ever came across had been lapped by its owner with toothpaste.
Machine shop suppliers would carry lapping compounds, Brownells in the US has them, formulated for gunsmiths.

[winnie_the_pooh]

Two Rivers,

I would not try to lapp the bolt of the IOF 30-06.The receiver is aluminium alloy and the bolt is steel with a very rough hard chrome finish. If it were me and I was concerned about a rough bolt I would i) remove the chrome and ii) polish the bolt taking care not to touch the bolt head.

[TwoRivers]

Winnie: My comments were intended to be more general in reference to lapping, rather than specifically for a chrome-plated bolt and aluminum receiver combination. Is the IOF receiver anodized?
Stripping the chrome, depending on how thick the plating, may leave things a bit sloppy. I'd have second thoughts there, too.