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Eddystone Actions Safe?


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I am just scratching a curiousity itch. I have read a lot of different opinions on Eddystone P17 and P14 and I was just wondering if there is somewhat of a concencus on the use of these actions. Should they be used and are they safe? Safe if they are magnafluxed or the problems,if they exist, were limited to a few odd actions and they are usable with a visual inspection? Whats the scoop?

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I am just scratching a curiousity itch. I have read a lot of different opinions on Eddystone P17 and P14 and I was just wondering if there is somewhat of a concencus on the use of these actions. Should they be used and are they safe? Safe if they are magnafluxed or the problems,if they exist, were limited to a few odd actions and they are usable with a visual inspection? Whats the scoop?

 

I would feel comfortable shooting one in original condition, with the original barrel. If I was going to invest alot of money into buiding one I would spend a few bucks having the receiver ring magnafluxed. The problems I've heard about are with re-barrel jobs going bad. Let me emphasize heard about, I've never experienced or had a problem myself.

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If you dip them in gas it will seep into any cracks making them visible when the rest evaporates off the surface.

 

If you're considering buying one Bob's advice according to what I read on the net is a very effective method of determining a bad one. You might be able to to a search in rec.guns and find it. The poster claimed it saved him from buying one with a few hairline cracks.

 

I don't know what magnafluxing costs. I have a friend that owned a small shop that rebuilt automotive heads and he checked a few receivers for me no cost. It only took a few minutes so I don't think it will be real expensive. My friend is no longer capable, he is totally disabled after a motorcycle accident.

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The dumb farmboy in me has been shootin one for more than a year!!!! Very typical example, but w/ a J/A Barrel on it.. Works just fine ,but perhaps I should do some investigating!!!

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Well as an owner of a cracked Eddystone, I've taken note of all of the opinions.

 

Follow Bobs advice or go the magnaflux route.

Bottom line everyone seems to agree that if it isn't already

cracked, don't worry about it cracking in the future.

 

I wish I'd have known all of this before I bought my Eddystone.

I guess I can't complain too much It came with a sporter stock

and the bottom metal had allready been straightened. I quit shooting

it once I realized it was cracked. Too bad because it was a sub MOA

shooter.

 

I got a Winchester action with some fixable issues from a fellow board

member. One day from the two guns I should have one good 1917 Enfiled.

 

Tinker

 

P.S.

If you are going to remove the barrel / rebarrel I'd follow Gun Nutty's advice too.

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Guest Guest_karlunity_*

If it still has the 1918 barrel, the odds are it has no crack.

But if the barrel has been removed, as I must assume it has since we are speaking of "Actions"

I would have it checked just to be safe

 

karl

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I was using the word action as this is a sporterizing board and it might be useful info rebarrel or not.I do not at present have a Eddystone action but have seen them for sale from time to time(certainly more common than Win or Rem) and wanted to know the poop.More curiousity than anything. Seems the general concensus is that if it has not cracked up to now it is unlikely to and it would be safe to use. The over tight barrel theory is only one of the possible explanations for the cracking I have found on the net. To much sulphur in the steel is another as is the foreman who believed in heat treating by color instead of using the furnace thermometer and any fancy engineered spec .Another is that the thermometer was used to spec but that the spec was too hot and overhardened the steel. Probably no one knows for sure.

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  • 10 months later...

Eddystone receivers are made of the same nickel-steel as pre-war M-70s.Pre-war M-70 receivers sometimes have steel questions,or at least two gunsmiths I highly respect have said so. So it would be expected Eddystone could have some problems as well. They were building 6,000 a day.They made well over a million of them. My Eddystone ,if anything, is likely soft.

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