MG42 bolt locking

Anything MG42 related.
Post Reply
Cliffside
Hauptgefreiter
Hauptgefreiter
Posts: 6
Joined: Fri Oct 05, 2018 12:29 am
Anti-spam: Mg42

MG42 bolt locking

Post by Cliffside »

Hello All,
new to the site. Have just purchased MG42 and have problem with the bolt. I have read all I can from here about the problem and when it locks I am able to release it by taking off the flash hider and pushing the barrel inwards which I can do by hand, not having to bang it on the floor.
My first question, is it normal that I cant push the rollers in by hand with the bolt out. They are really stiff, so I took out the bolt catch which of course makes them really loose. But when I put the bolt into battery it locks up again even with the bolt catch out, so I am not sure where to look next.
Barrel is original German I believe, has "dfb" marking, appears used but not excessively so.
Any ideas out there?
Thanks
Richard
SturmHead
Obergefreiter
Obergefreiter
Posts: 21
Joined: Tue Apr 15, 2014 4:06 pm
Anti-spam: Mg42

Re: MG42 bolt locking

Post by SturmHead »

Sounds like you need one of John Baum's manuals on the MG42. He is a member here, and goes by JBaum, and has translated about 180 German manuals to English with a bunch on the MG42.
Just from reading your post, it sounds like you may have a weak barrel recouparator, but I can't be certain from your description.
Just click on the "German Manuals translated to English" tab at the bottom of the page.
User avatar
JBaum
Administrator
Administrator
Posts: 3123
Joined: Sat Mar 12, 2005 8:41 pm
Anti-spam: Mg42
Location: NE Ohio
Contact:

Re: MG42 bolt locking

Post by JBaum »

To Cliffside:

Are you're saying that by pulling back on the charging handle, you can't get the gun to unlock? Full auto gun? or semi? Have you tried taking out the recoil spring, and does pulling back on the charging handle then let the bolt go rearward?

With the bolt catch in the bolt housing, the rollers are supposed to be difficult to push in. What type of charging handle do you have? There are two types, so take a picture of yours and post it.

So far, you haven't actually described any type of problem. I suspect that you're expecting the MG42 to act like other guns, which it does NOT.
John@German<remove this>Manuals.com

http://www.GermanManuals.com
Post Reply