Conquered Another Frozen Remington 700 ML Bolt

Welcome to the website with the only conversion kit you'll ever want on your Remington 700 ML or Ruger 77/50.    I've been writing and updating this blog for years.   If an internet search brought you here, you will find what you are looking for by reading through these articles or finding the topic you are interested in along the right hand side.

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The Remington 700 ML and Ruger 77/50 are our specialty.    They both came from the factory with the same fatal flaw:  blow-back coursing backwards through the bolt from each firing.    The Remington and Canadian 209 mods didn't improve this.   If anything they only made blow-back worse.

If not quickly and properly cleaned after firing the bolt will corrode and freeze up.   Our kits correct this fatal flaw by sealing up the breech.   But not everyone has our kit yet, and seeing these rifles are all 10 to 20 years old,  it's all to common for some one to have shot and then put it away without a proper cleaning.  Be thankful if the bolt was at least removed!   Getting a frozen bolt out of a rifle is a nightmare!


I was contacted by a Remington 700 owner who admitted he shot his rifle a few years ago, removed the bolt but never cleaned.  He had soaked the bolt in penetrating oil for a couple of days, but he couldn't get it to budge.    I recommended he buy our 209 conversion with installation, send me the bolt, and if it wasn't too much additional work I wouldn't bother him.  He was on a tight budget and couldn't afford our 209 conversion.  So, I told him to purchase our legacy mainspring replacement service and ship me the bolt.   We'd go up from there as my time and replacement parts required.   We sometimes have new bolt bodies, and essentially always have new mainsprings, and more!

Once I got the bolt in my hands, it looked like any other Remington 700 bolt with the Canadian 209 mod, but indeed I couldn't compress the mainspring nor get it to move when I put it in a rifle.    I proceeded to soak it a couple of days in penetrating oil as well.    After the penetrating oil bath it still wouldn't budge, so I put it in the jig I made for these bolts and pushed on the firing pin with my 12 ton press.     That worked!

Remington 700 ML bolt so badly corroded it wouldn't budge in any way: I had to press the firing pin out from the front

The firing pin finally gave way and "protested" a little as it protruded.    From there I had to cut the firing pin off at point where it threads into the cocking piece.   I removed the remnant threaded end from the cocking piece.    Then I reversed the bolt in the jig and pressed out the pin from the back:

Fring pin pressed out from the rear after cutting it near the cocking piece. The brown crud isn't grease: its penetrating oil soaked rust and crud

Because it was corroded through in multiple places: most of the mainspring came out (in 3 pieces) with the firing pin, but not all of it.    The bolt plug wouldn't unscrew, even after I cleaned it up.   I realized the back end of the mainspring had fused itself to the bolt plug, so back into penetrating oil for another night.  

The next day I managed to get the bolt plug to break free of the body.   Removed the  mainspring that had fused itself to it, and cleaned up all the pitting.   After a lot of cleaning, scrubbing, and gingerly re-freshening of threads: the cocking piece, bolt body, and bolt plug ended up being serviceable.    As I had to sacrifice the original firing pin to get it apart, I pulled an old used Canadian firing pin out of my junk bin.   All I needed was a new mainspring to put it all back together.     The client made my additional trouble 'right' with a few more dollars and it all went back in the mail.

While the customer is always right, and he is very happy...  I have to admit it didn't sit right with me to do so much work just to leave the bolt with a leaky setup that will likely fail even if properly cared for... and if neglected it will totally lock up again.  I really felt this rifle needed our sealed breech 209 conversion.  But the customer is always right.

Hope this has helped you.   If we can help you in anyway (perhaps with a Ruger 77/50 or Remington 700 ML)  please use the Contact page to reach out.   We usually reply within 24 hrs.  Be sure to mention what type of muzzle loader you have!

Badger Ridge Sealed breech 209 converted Remington 700 ML bolt

Badger Ridge Ruger 77/50 converted bolt with new breech plug and accessories

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