Need Help with Type 38 Head Spacing

[Deano41]

Whew! I thought maybe you were teasing us. Anyway, Don Schlickman bends bolt handles and also make repro parts for Japanese rifles. So maybe he can help you.

Good luck!

[psteinmayer]

My T-99 sporter has a bent handle... although my dad (who sporterized it) had the handle cut and welded with a down turn - for what it's worth.

[fguffey]

1mark, there are at least 3 different ways to determine the length of the chamber from the shoulder to the bolt face, because you have a Type 38 6.5mm50 I would suggest you use fired cases, Problem: You fired cases in the chamber and the cases did not form to the chamber. Meaning: Pressure was too low, pressure inside the chase should have expanded the case to seal the chamber. You do not have enough pressure to seal the chamber.

When I test Type 38 rifles I cover the receiver with a white towel/rag, after firing I look to see if escaping gas stained the towel, the last rifle I tested left to black stains on the towel.

If I wanted to check the length of a type 38 chamber I would neck up a few 6.5mm50 cases first, after necking them up I would start sizing them by adjusting the die off the shell holder with a feeler gage. I would start with .015" gap to increase the length of the case from the shoulder to the head of the case. If the case does not chamber reduce the gap to .010" and try again.

F. Guffey

[randy langford]

Keep in mind if you reload you can correct headspace problems by just neck sizing. This works just fine as long as you only use these rounds with this rifle and is perfectly safe.

[fguffey]

Keep in mind if you reload you can correct headspace problems by just neck sizing. This works just fine as long as you only use these rounds with this rifle and is perfectly safe.

"If you reload"? a reloader that know what they are doing would know the length of the chamber before they left for the range. Not sure about the neck sizing, I have neck sizing dies, I do not use them but JIC. I have threads on my dies and in my presses. Threads allow me to adjust the die to, or off and or below the shell holder to control the length of the case from the shoulder to the head of the case.

F. Guffey

[cowboybart]

If you don't reload, you could have the barrel set back and chamber cleaned up. This is not as easy as on a Mauser or modern Rem 700. Metric threads, coned breech and extractor cut are a few of the hurdles.
The other option is to re chamber it to 6.5x57 or 6.5 Roberts. Mine was done in 6.5 Roberts and shoots wonderfully. Other options are 6.5x55 or 260. More work, but another option is 6.5 Rem mag.

[madsenshooter]

I got fed up with the woefully undersized Norma brass a long time ago. Other makes share some dimensions with it. I make brass for my 6.5 Jap rifles from 30-40 Krag or .303 British. .303 has been the go to lately, as it's easier to find. I turn down the rim to .480 and that leaves enough for the cartridge to headspace on the .060" thick semi-rim like it's supposed to. Since I'm making them from a larger case, I get to set the shoulder where I want it also. I form them before trimming the rim down, then modify a 41 magnum shellholder to take the case for subsequent reloadings. If I was going to rehamber one, 6.5x57 would seem to be way to go, Sellior and Bellot is making ammo. With some added force and a bit of sizing die wax on the shoulder, it'll form down to 6.5x257 in the rifle using the bolt with innards removed. Some 6.5x257 rifles will be harder than others in this regard.

[cowboybart]

Bolts are hard to find and ebay "asking" price is $100. There is no guarantee that a different bolt will headspace better (longer). You could spend $100 and have the same problem. I have a bare receiver that I would like to put together but I will not spent $100 on a bolt.
I'm not familiar with the 7.7 bolts, but can a Type 99 bolt be modified for use in a Type 38??

[Guamsst]

but can a Type 99 bolt be modified for use in a Type 38??

Not no, but HELL NO! The recoil lugs on the Type 38 are monsters compared to those on the Type 99. I can visibly distinguish between the two just by looking at the recoil lugs even if they aren't side by side. A 99 bolt will rattle around in a 38. You could probably cut down a 38 bolt and make it work in a 99. Granted, the lugs aren't double or triple the size, but from a machinist standpoint on a part measured in thousandths of an inch......it is a massive difference. It can be done theoretically, but it is not in any way practical.

You can mix and match firing pins and safeties if you use both and usually a hammer and maybe a dremel. I just parted out a rifle that had a 99 bolt and firing pin with a 38 safety. I had to use 3 hands, a vice and a screwdriver to get everything to line up right to get it apart. They had ground the back of the firing pin to make it all work. I had no heartache parting out that Bubba'd POS.

[cowboybart]

Well, now I know why Type 38 bolts are so expensive. I have never shot or even handled a Type 99. If I see the one hole in the front ring of the receiver, I pass it by.