Hello all. Thanks for the opportunity to be a member of this fine association.
I have purchased an 81 DL that really shoots straight. I got it for $70. Figured it was a great deal until it stopped chambering rounds from the tubular mag. So being the pretty confident gun guy that I am I took it completely apart except I left the barrel on the receiver. Cleaned everything up and put it all together. Or so I thought...I HAVE A SPRING LEFT THAT I AM NOT SURE WHERE IT GOES!!!!! It is about .735" in length (could have changed over the years). Is this the mainspring? If so where does it go? The only other spring I remember taking off was on the trigger assembly - and it was a smaller one. Where does this spring go?
By the way I made the mistake of taking the bolt apart. I learned my lesson. Finally got the smaller bolt component in and the pin in but now I have to get the larger bolt component in (with the little black screw). I have read elsewhere about how to do this using a vise. Man that spring on the bolt is a strong one!!!
Another problem. The deal that holds the magazine to the barrel - the cylindrical piece that is also used to mount the rifle to the stock - is loose. I cleaned out the gunk and it looks to be an allen bolt in there. Is this correct? If it is I can't find the correct size allen wrench to fit. Can I tighten this bolt up or is it another type of fastener? It is possible the previous owner stripped it out.
Would it be possible that I have a microgrooved barrel? How would I be able to tell?
Thank you all in advance for your help.
81 DL This will make you laugh PLEASE HELP.
Moderators: Regnier (gunrunner), JohnK, Sure-Shot
Re: 81 DL This will make you laugh PLEASE HELP.
I fixed it!!!
Getting the bolt together is a real bummer to say the least. I have a pointer or two for anyone disassembling the bolt. First--
DON"T DO IT UNLESS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY! Cleaning with a spray solvent will probably be all of the cleaning it needs.
If you do decide to disassemble to bolt and don't have a schematic parts list like I didn't then remember to put the front (face) side of the bolt back on last. Also. when aligning the screw hole with the threads don't pry on the middle section of the bolt and the gray sliding deal. Clamp the bolt in a padded vice and use another clamp to compress the black bottom piece tight. Then, while having the threads aligned with the threaded hole in the bolt pry up on the section of bolt at the rear where it mates with the springed deal. I learned the hard way following another guys advice on a forum like this one that the aforementioned place of prying on the bolt is the ONLY way to do it. My Marine gunsmith friend helped me discover this. Furthermore it helps drastically to have a friend to help you to pry on the part (using a screwdriver) while you thread the screw in. Lastly put the bolt face in the carrier and finagle it to get the pin in. I had to file the bolt to get rid of the pry marks from prying it in the wrong location. Hindsight is 20/20.
I cleaned the rifle really well and took every part apart that I could. I could not get the barrel off. The pin holding it was too tight. Probably better that I didn't anyways after all of the problems I had. After the thorough cleaning I got it to feed rounds from the magazine again - which is why I took it apart in the first place. Praise the Lord!
This gun shoots really well. Under 2" groups at 50 yards with irons using Federal "Auto Match" ammo. Better than I expected. All in all $70 seems a great buy to me. I may blue the steel and resurface and finish the stock. Other than that good to go.
Getting the bolt together is a real bummer to say the least. I have a pointer or two for anyone disassembling the bolt. First--
DON"T DO IT UNLESS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY! Cleaning with a spray solvent will probably be all of the cleaning it needs.
If you do decide to disassemble to bolt and don't have a schematic parts list like I didn't then remember to put the front (face) side of the bolt back on last. Also. when aligning the screw hole with the threads don't pry on the middle section of the bolt and the gray sliding deal. Clamp the bolt in a padded vice and use another clamp to compress the black bottom piece tight. Then, while having the threads aligned with the threaded hole in the bolt pry up on the section of bolt at the rear where it mates with the springed deal. I learned the hard way following another guys advice on a forum like this one that the aforementioned place of prying on the bolt is the ONLY way to do it. My Marine gunsmith friend helped me discover this. Furthermore it helps drastically to have a friend to help you to pry on the part (using a screwdriver) while you thread the screw in. Lastly put the bolt face in the carrier and finagle it to get the pin in. I had to file the bolt to get rid of the pry marks from prying it in the wrong location. Hindsight is 20/20.
I cleaned the rifle really well and took every part apart that I could. I could not get the barrel off. The pin holding it was too tight. Probably better that I didn't anyways after all of the problems I had. After the thorough cleaning I got it to feed rounds from the magazine again - which is why I took it apart in the first place. Praise the Lord!
This gun shoots really well. Under 2" groups at 50 yards with irons using Federal "Auto Match" ammo. Better than I expected. All in all $70 seems a great buy to me. I may blue the steel and resurface and finish the stock. Other than that good to go.
Re: 81 DL This will make you laugh PLEASE HELP.
I don't know how to post pictures otherwise I would. 
Re: 81 DL This will make you laugh PLEASE HELP.
Load your pictures on your computer and then upload them to a photo site. I use Tiny pic. http://tinypic.com/Jimboman wrote:I don't know how to post pictures otherwise I would.
Tiny Pics will resize and show the photos in several formats. Use the one for Forums and Message Boards. When you post copy and paste the [IMG]http:// *** [IMG] link from Tiny Pic into your post.