Firing pin "cratering" on a Stevens 66-B

[Regolith]

I think I've posted about this before on this forum when I was looking for a tool that would keep the brass from sticking in the chamber because of this issue (I eventually got a chamber iron that has worked well).

However, now I'm wondering if it would be possible for a gunsmith to fix it permanently.

Here's a picture of what I'm talking about:

I'm wondering if a gunsmith could machine the breech back to get rid of the "crater", and then maybe re-cut the extractor grooves if necessary. You can see two to three threads for the barrel sticking out of the receiver, so I think there MAY be enough room to get the headspacing right. The firing pin would also need to be shaved down so that it didn't impact the metal during a dry fire.

So, would this be something a gunsmith could do relatively easily, or would it be too much to be worth it?

 

[oneoldsap]

A round file is all that's needed . Just remove the lip on the inside , that was created by dry firing ! I've fixed a bunch of .22s in this manner , mostly Ithica 49s . Is your firing pin peened over too ?

 

[Regolith]

The pin looks fine. I'm guessing its made of much harder steel than the breech, or it's been replaced fairly recently.

But I was talking about removing the cosmetic damage and preventing it from happening again. The ironing tool works well enough to keep it functional.

 

[Bailey Boat]

Since you already have the chamber ironing tool, round the chamber back out and STOP dry firing it!!!
Very few rimfires can be dry fired without eventually causing damage. If you MUST dry fire this gun, insert a fired case into the chamber before hand.

 

[Regolith]

I don't dry fire it on purpose. It's usually when I'm firing fast and I find out the mag's empty when the gun goes *click*.

 

[g.willikers]

It's a pity that all rimfire semiautos don't have a cross pin to prevent the firing pin from hitting the barrel in a dry fire, like Rugers.
Even if the back of the barrel is machined like you suggest, it's bound to happen again.
Just keep your handy tool handy.
On one of mine, that suffered from this problem, I filed a notch just deep enough so the firing pin can't peen the back of the barrel enough, any more, to interfere with a round chambering.
And narrow enough so the rim of the case is still well supported, so the firing pin sets it off.
So far, so good with it.

 

[Fleet]

The real fix is for you to get a gun that will support what you're wanting to do with it, because if you keep on doing what you're doing, all you'll have is scrap.

 

[oneoldsap]

That's the only time I've ever heard the word cosmetics used in reference to a Stevens firearm !

 

[James K]

Those guns do have a firing pin stop but with wear and battering the pin can protrude too far. The bolt has a countersunk area that encloses the case rim; the non-countersunk part of the bolt face butts up against the barrel face and the firing pin should not protrude past the end of that countersunk area; it should stop in the countersunk area so it never touches the barrel.

A quick and dirty fix is just to grind a bit off the front of the pin so it doesn't protrude beyond the countersunk area. That is a pretty old gun and probably just about everything is worn; might I suggest retiring it and getting a more modern plinker, like the Ruger 10/22.

(I am not sure how well I explained that, but I don't do drawings well. If still unclear, I will try again.)

Jim