Savage Axis heavy bolt lift fix-

[5whiskey]

The OP so kindly drew a picture for us, and I am just wondering if this is a safe thing to do?

Polishing the ramp and even the cocking roller is perfectly safe... so long as you don't go crazy with it. Honestly, you're not gonna remove enough metal from simply polishing to make the bolt unsafe from this.

Anyway... I tried this with a couple of my rifles and honestly could never tell a phenomenal difference with any but 1 of them. One of them was especially bad and a polish (along with a little bit of grease applied to the ramp and cocking roller) made a huge difference. Don't expect a miracle.

[blink]

now i'm interested in the ramp mod alone,perhaps a slight reshape and polish would work well?
any other views on this?

[bwiggins1985]

So I just got my Axis in 22-250 and the bolt lift is quite heavy. What all options do I have to reduce the lift weight?

[DrThunder88]

Not a whole heck of a lot. The most sure-fire solution is to get a TTT job from SSS or another smith. The next best solution would be to polish the cocking ramp. Really that just smoothes the cocking action, but I find that a smoother bolt lift feels lighter. Carefully adjusting the geometry of the surfaces, the way a knowledgeable gunsmith does, is the way to decrease the amount of effort it takes to open the bolt.

[drybean]

A longer bolt handle will help

[bwiggins1985]

I emailed sss today. Hopefully I will hear back from soon! I am looking at the Glades bolt handles.

[foxx]

If Fred can work you in, he's the best. I would not send it anywhere else.

I like Glades' bolt handles, too.

[Predator53]

Ive noticed it when my 243 was new and thought it was just the bolt lugs....cycled the bolt a few hundred times and 500 rounds later it's smooth.