How to tighten up action on a Smith Carbine

[threepdr]

I've just purchased a well used Smith Carbine. According to the date code it was made in 1991, so it has been around awhile. It was used by a mounted reenactor so it looks its age, but for $300 I could'nt go wrong.

My only concern is that there seems to be some loosness between the barrel and the reciever. First, how much will this affect accuracy, and second can it be tightened up? Does the looseness happen at the hinge or at the catch on the top of the barrel/reciever? Anyone fixed this issue before?

Thanks for any ideas

Mark Hubbs

[Eric A. Savickas, 08663V]

Either point, or both could be the problem. Both are fixable. There can be some slop as long as it tightens up when loaded, but most likely the looseness can cause accuracy problems.

[Kurt Lacko 7862]

When you get it repaired pretend its a $5k shotgun. When closing the action bring it together gently and then muscle it closed. Please don't slam it shut like alot of shooters. It only takes a second longer to load this way and will stay tight much longer. I know you will take care of it but this is how it probably got into that condition to begin with. Bob Hoyt in Fairfield, PA does those repairs as many others here on the BB. Good luck, Kurt.

[Bob Eschbach, 3380v]

Mark I have an origional Smith that had play in the receiver and I took it to Hoyt to repair. He told me that he put the portion of the breech that had two prongs ( the front portion I believe) in a vise and squeezed the prongs toward each other until it tightened up. Made sense to me. I imagine. that a large powerful vise and a lot of patience would be needed to do this kind of work. I have shot many, many rounds since then and it is still tight. He also advised me to lubricate the joint between relays with 3n1 oil. Bob E

[J Weber 4114V]

Another thing to look at is the fit between the locking lug and the latch bar.
I have seen many that were buggered up by shooters trying to loosen up the force required to open the action.
With the action closed try flexing the barrel back and forth against the receiver.There should be no slop at the locking lug.

I think the method of tightening depends upon the type of looseness. They can be loose side-to-side, front-to-back, or a combination of the two.
For side-to-side looseness, squeezing the frame or shimming it can work.
For front-to-back looseness, beefing up the top latch can work, or sometimes the problem is the hinge pin (which can be replaced with a larger one).

[threepdr]

Thanks guys, good suggestions. I squeezed the hinge on the frame and that help quite a bit. I also lightly peened the two knobs on the top so they better fill the catch spring. It still has a tiney bit of slack but is significantly improved now.

In the mean time I won a new reciever off Gunbroker.com. It is a stripped Artillery reciever that came from Navy Arm's odds and ends sales that they put on Gunbroker. I think it would cure all my problems but I cannot remove the buttstock screw from the old one. It has been in since 1991 and refuses to twist. If anyone has any ideas on how to get that bad boy out without detroying the stock, I'd love to hear it!

Thanks

[Southron Sr.]

Sometimes the hinge screw can be a bit undersized and this will cause a "loose joint." IF this is part of the problem, you could have someone with a lathe make you up a slightly larger (in diameter) hinge screw and carefully fit it to your Smith.

As for "loosening" an overly tight stock bolt screw-you are going to need a long screwdriver with a bit that EXACTLY MATCHES THE SLOT IN THE HEAD OF THE BOLT. With any blade tip smaller, and you will just "bugger" up the bolt head.

Have the Smith solidly clamped in a vise (with the vise jaws covered with sheet lead or copper sheet to keep from marring the finish of the Smith) and clamp a good size pair of Vise-Grip pliers on the end of the screwdriver shaft that protrudes from the end of the stock. The Vise-Grip will give you a "mechanical leverage" for loosening the screw.

CAREFUL, and this is a "two man" job-one to hold the carbine steady in the vise and the other to turn the stock bolt.

Another possibility, (if all else fails) it to drill out the head of the stock bolt and then slide the stock off the carbine. This, obiously, will require you to make a punch mark in the cneter of the bolt head, drill a small pilot hole and then use a larger drill. On both those drills, you might have to silver soider a drill bit on to the end of a long shaft to get a drill that is long enough to go down into the Smith stock.

After the bolt head is drilled off, and with the stock off, then you could drip some penetrating oil in the stock bolt where it enters the receiver. Give the penetratiang oil a while to work it way down into the threads and then try to turn out the bolt using a pair of vise grip pliers.

GOOD LUCK-JUST GO CAREFULLY AND SLOWLY