Bill Akins
New member
I looked online for years for an extended bolt handle for my two old Browning A5's bolts, as well as for my two Remington model 11's bolts, without success. The bolt handle on all the old Browning auto five's (and their clones) is so small that you can only get the tip of one finger on it to operate it. It is amazing to me that in over a century no bolt handle extensions were ever made by a manufacturer for sale to the public. I have found only one instance and even that requires disassembly of the bolt from the gun and removal of the handle from the bolt, where Cotton Branch Custom Firearms will custom make a steel extension and will weld one on for you, but that's all I could find after years of looking into this. Of course I (or you) could disassemble our own gun and make our own steel bolt handle extension and weld it on. But that's not something I believe the average owner would do. Do'able but not without a lathe or mill for forming the bolt handle extension and not without welding equipment nor easily nor fast nor reversible back to factory condition without disassembling the bolt from the gun again and replacing the factory bolt handle that was welded on to. Also no one should weld on a steel bolt handle extension without first taking the bolt out and removing the bolt handle from the bolt. Because welding one on with the bolt and bolt handle still in the gun could very likely un-temper springs in the bolt due to the heat of welding. So welding an extension on without removing the bolt and bolt handle from the gun, is not an option.
That tiny factory bolt handle I don't like on my 1940 & 1948 old auto five's and even older two Remington model 11's has inspired me to make my own bolt handle extension that doesn't require any disassembly of the gun at all. After much thought on the matter, I came up with two basic idea methods to consider that don't require any disassembly of the bolt handle from the gun. I started out with four basic idea methods that included making a two piece clam shell mold to create a clamp on extension but have since discounted that idea as too involved and complicated, so I trimmed my idea methods down to the two simplest ones that the average person could easily understand and do quickly and easily and that are also both reversible back to factory condition without buying new parts.
(1.) This is my idea/method for extending the bolt handle on my 1940 Belgium Browning A5 I have done. I placed a nickel plated .45 acp empty shell casing over my old A5's bolt handle and it fit snugly. I actually could very lightly tap it over the bolt handle and it stuck without deforming the case. So the next thing I did was to put some pieces of Handiwrap cellophane pressed tightly into the bottom of the case because I didn't need to fill the entire case with J&B Weld Epoxy and didn't need the weight nor volume of the J&B Weld epoxy for the entire case volume, I just wanted the area around the factory bolt handle to be encased by the J&B Weld Epoxy that would also hold the .45 acp case to the factory bolt handle. I measured the bolt handle for how far it would fit into the empty cartridge case and kept adding handiwrap pieces tightly pressed into the bottom of the case until I got the exact depth I needed within the case for the J&B Weld Epoxy to encapsulate my factory bolt handle without using unnecessary epoxy. You have to make sure you do this with the bolt retracted to the rear, because you need to eyeball the clearance you need between the cartridge case and the receiver to prevent the case from scratching up your receiver when the bolt handle reciprocates in that slot in the receiver.
Next I put J&B Weld epoxy into the empty case but not all the way to the top because I had to allow for the bolt handle displacing some of the epoxy as I lowered the bolt handle into the case and didn't want that displacement to overflow the epoxy from my cartridge case. I did this by putting the shotgun on a flat surface and placing magazines under the fore end and receiver until my bolt handle would enter the proper depth into the upright cartridge case. This is necessary because the flat area on the bolt handle has to be clear to reciprocate into the slot on the receiver. and also so the case mouth won't scratch up your receiver as it reciprocates. Then I let the epoxy dry overnight and for a few days thereafter. Working the bolt handle back and forth it seemed to work just fine, even with letting the bolt "fly" forward and not riding it forward. It is a LOT easier to use now. This is an easy and cheap solution. And there's no down side because it is reversible because J&B Weld Epoxy can be liquefied again by a propane torch and wiped off with a rag without heat damaging any springs in the gun. Just heat up the cartridge case with your torch, grab the case with some pliers and pull it off the factory bolt handle once the epoxy liquefies and then wipe the liquefied epoxy off your factory bolt handle (wear thick gloves to protect from the heat). A little messy, but totally reversible to factory condition.
If someone wants their old A5 (or a clone of the A5) to have a longer bolt handle extension (I don't), then just J&B Weld Epoxy on a Colt .45 case like I thought about doing in this below photo of mine where I put the Colt .45 case over the factory bolt handle to see how it would look. Of course I'd use a nickel plated one (looks better) if I did that, but all I had was a brass empty one at the time. It was a big "NO!" to me and I went with the shorter .45 acp case instead. No need for a bolt handle that long in my opinion. But if someone has a physical or handicap issue, it may be an option.
(2.) If the J&B Weld Epoxy doesn't hold up over long term firing and comes loose, I have another solution. Replace the epoxy with silver solder also known as "hard solder". Not solder like used to solder electronics, but solder like is used for soldering on front sights and antique Lyman Cutts compensators on shotgun barrels or soldering on barrel ribs or two barrels together on double barrel shotguns. That kind of solder. The ATF has even stated that silver soldering or hard soldering they consider to be permanent welding even though yes, it is reversible using a torch. The ATF recognizes that barrel extensions and flash suppressors silver soldered or hard soldered to a barrel, would count as being part of the barrel itself. So if a person had a barrel under legal length but could be made legal by the addition of a silver soldered or hard soldered barrel extension or flash suppressor or compensator, then it would then become a legal length barrel again. Just a little FYI there for you folks that may not have known that.
So proceed just like I did in #1. above except omit the Handiwrap cartridge space filler because the hard solder would melt it and instead use another filler like sand. If you de-cap the primer out of the (Boxer primed bigger center hole than two smaller Berdan primer holes) .45 acp case before you use it, then later you can pour the sand out to decrease extended bolt handle weight and if you want, even drill out the Boxer primer hole more to further decrease weight. Now fill your .45 acp case with sand up to just below where your bolt handle will fit into it, and set the case onto a thin piece of steel. The sand won't come out the primer hole until you lift the case back up. You might even want to very lightly clamp the case with a vice grip so the force of the torch flame hitting it won't knock it over.
Now set your thin books or magazines under the right side of the receiver and fore end of the Browning A5 or Remington model 11, so that the bolt handle will project downward the correct distance into the .45 acp cartridge case. Once you've checked your measurements like that to make sure the flat area behind the factory bolt is free to reciprocate in the slot of the receiver, then heat the cartridge case with your torch and fill it with the melted silver solder/hard solder making sure to not fill it up all the way so it doesn't spill out when you lower your bolt handle into it so that the melted silver solder/hard solder encapsulates the factory bolt handle just like if you had used J&B Weld epoxy. Now let it set up and cool. I recommend letting it cool naturally without pouring water on it. Then later after it is cooled, lift the gun up and pour the sand filler out of the boxer primer hole in the cartridge case, even drilling out the de-capped primer hole to make it larger and decrease even more weight if you prefer, (but not really necessary).
Once the sand is out, you could even wrap some asbestos around the mouth of the case where it is close to the receiver and then heat up the case again and put your silver solder/hard solder through the primer hole to hard solder even more inside the cartridge case if you feel it is necessary or think you may not have encapsulated the factory bolt handle completely with your silver solder/hard solder as much as you would have liked. The asbestos wrapped around the mouth of the case would prevent any silver solder/hard solder from your first soldering from exiting the mouth of the case onto your receiver and spilling into your bolt, since the asbestos would hold it in while it cooled along with the new solder you just did through the enlarged primer hole. But if you measured correctly you shouldn't need a second soldering. If my J&B Weld Epoxy method in #1 above doesn't hold up, this is the method I'll use and it should be stronger than the J&B Weld Epoxy method. Hopefully I won't need to. See my pictures, they are pretty easy to understand.
(update after test firing).
Yesterday (11-2-22) I went out to my shooting berm on my back acre and fired six #8 light load, 2&3/4's shot shells, and the .45 acp case stayed nice and tightly attached to my old factory bolt handle. Then I switched to heavier loads. But being my old 1940 Belgium Browning auto five has a Lyman Cutts comp on it, I didn't need to change the friction ring settings. That the beauty of the old (corncob) Cutts comp on an A5, you set it once for no friction and never have to change it no matter what load you fire. The extra weight of the Cutts comp plus its gas dissipating slots makes for less recoil than an old A5 without a Cutts comp. See this diagram for friction ring settings with and without a Cutts comp. As you can see, with a Cutts compensator, it stays at the no friction setting for all loads and you don't have to change the friction ring settings. As long as your barrel recoil spring is still good that is. If your barrel recoil spring becomes weak you might change the friction ring setting to light loads, until you can get a new recoil spring. I find that my Cutts comps on my various antique shotguns (A5's, Remy 11's, Win 12, etc) aid in my swing on clays and I use the spreader choke most of the time on clays. They are antiques for sure, but operate just as good (if not better) and with my antique semi autos with softer recoil with the Cutts comp on it than the modern inertia operated shotguns. All my semi auto (except for one modern Fostech gas operated Origin 12) and slide action shotguns are antiques. I find their milled all steel and wood quality to be better than most modern shotguns with few exceptions in my opinion. Some find the Lyman Cutts compensator to be ugly. I see it as just the opposite and as a beautiful antique piece on an antique shotgun that does its recoil compensating and choke job excellently.
Okay, enough about the Cutts comp. Next I fired nine heavy load 00 buck 2 & 3/4's shot shells. (I don't own a magnum shotgun) and since I was TRYING to make the epoxied .45 acp case loosen from the factory bolt handle, I fired them rapidly from the hip as fast as I could function the trigger. First five. "BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM" almost like a burst of auto fire from a Bofors or Oerlikon anti-aircraft cannon https://youtu.be/6EmXbStCssY, (who's recoiling barrels inspired me to invent and patent "Bump fire stocks" A.K.A, "Bumpstocks") and then four more of the same rapid "booms" all with 00 buck heavy loads. All 9 rounds fired flawlessly and the nickel plated .45acp case stayed tightly epoxied to my old factory bolt handle. 15 shells fired in all counting 6 light and 9 heavy loads. So the test firing proved my #1 method works to very cheaply and with no special tools nor any disassembly of the bolt, to extend the tiny factory bolt handle just using an empty .45 acp case and J&B Weld Epoxy if you will follow my method #1. How will it hold up to hundreds of rounds fired in the future? That remains to be seen. But if it ever does come loose, then I'll just use my #2 method of replacing the J&B Weld epoxy with silver solder/hard solder as I have already described to make sure that doesn't happen again. But for now at least, my #1 method of J&B Weld Epoxying a .45 acp case to the factory bolt handle for extending it has held up to light and heavy loads so far.
Below pics with spent shells after test firing.
Well there you have it. I've shown cheap and easy ways for you to extend your old A5, Savage 720, Remy 11 or any of the old Browning Auto Five clones to have an extended bolt handle with no disassembly of your gun, nor bolt, without sending it off to a custom shop and just using an empty .45 acp cartridge case and some J&B Weld Epoxy or possibly silver solder/hard solder. All you have to do is follow my instructions in this thread. It was easy to do and I really like my new homemade .45 acp case bolt handle extension. You won't believe the difference it makes in ease of cocking the bolt now. So if you're like me and don't like that tiny tip of your finger bolt charging handle on your old Browning Auto Five or its clones, here's an answer for you that anyone can do without disassembly of your gun and without any special tools and is reversible later back to original factory condition if you want.
You're welcome
.
P.S. If you use my instructions, drop me a post here with some pics showing your bolt handle extension. I'd love to see how others did using my method.
.
That tiny factory bolt handle I don't like on my 1940 & 1948 old auto five's and even older two Remington model 11's has inspired me to make my own bolt handle extension that doesn't require any disassembly of the gun at all. After much thought on the matter, I came up with two basic idea methods to consider that don't require any disassembly of the bolt handle from the gun. I started out with four basic idea methods that included making a two piece clam shell mold to create a clamp on extension but have since discounted that idea as too involved and complicated, so I trimmed my idea methods down to the two simplest ones that the average person could easily understand and do quickly and easily and that are also both reversible back to factory condition without buying new parts.
(1.) This is my idea/method for extending the bolt handle on my 1940 Belgium Browning A5 I have done. I placed a nickel plated .45 acp empty shell casing over my old A5's bolt handle and it fit snugly. I actually could very lightly tap it over the bolt handle and it stuck without deforming the case. So the next thing I did was to put some pieces of Handiwrap cellophane pressed tightly into the bottom of the case because I didn't need to fill the entire case with J&B Weld Epoxy and didn't need the weight nor volume of the J&B Weld epoxy for the entire case volume, I just wanted the area around the factory bolt handle to be encased by the J&B Weld Epoxy that would also hold the .45 acp case to the factory bolt handle. I measured the bolt handle for how far it would fit into the empty cartridge case and kept adding handiwrap pieces tightly pressed into the bottom of the case until I got the exact depth I needed within the case for the J&B Weld Epoxy to encapsulate my factory bolt handle without using unnecessary epoxy. You have to make sure you do this with the bolt retracted to the rear, because you need to eyeball the clearance you need between the cartridge case and the receiver to prevent the case from scratching up your receiver when the bolt handle reciprocates in that slot in the receiver.
Next I put J&B Weld epoxy into the empty case but not all the way to the top because I had to allow for the bolt handle displacing some of the epoxy as I lowered the bolt handle into the case and didn't want that displacement to overflow the epoxy from my cartridge case. I did this by putting the shotgun on a flat surface and placing magazines under the fore end and receiver until my bolt handle would enter the proper depth into the upright cartridge case. This is necessary because the flat area on the bolt handle has to be clear to reciprocate into the slot on the receiver. and also so the case mouth won't scratch up your receiver as it reciprocates. Then I let the epoxy dry overnight and for a few days thereafter. Working the bolt handle back and forth it seemed to work just fine, even with letting the bolt "fly" forward and not riding it forward. It is a LOT easier to use now. This is an easy and cheap solution. And there's no down side because it is reversible because J&B Weld Epoxy can be liquefied again by a propane torch and wiped off with a rag without heat damaging any springs in the gun. Just heat up the cartridge case with your torch, grab the case with some pliers and pull it off the factory bolt handle once the epoxy liquefies and then wipe the liquefied epoxy off your factory bolt handle (wear thick gloves to protect from the heat). A little messy, but totally reversible to factory condition.
If someone wants their old A5 (or a clone of the A5) to have a longer bolt handle extension (I don't), then just J&B Weld Epoxy on a Colt .45 case like I thought about doing in this below photo of mine where I put the Colt .45 case over the factory bolt handle to see how it would look. Of course I'd use a nickel plated one (looks better) if I did that, but all I had was a brass empty one at the time. It was a big "NO!" to me and I went with the shorter .45 acp case instead. No need for a bolt handle that long in my opinion. But if someone has a physical or handicap issue, it may be an option.
(2.) If the J&B Weld Epoxy doesn't hold up over long term firing and comes loose, I have another solution. Replace the epoxy with silver solder also known as "hard solder". Not solder like used to solder electronics, but solder like is used for soldering on front sights and antique Lyman Cutts compensators on shotgun barrels or soldering on barrel ribs or two barrels together on double barrel shotguns. That kind of solder. The ATF has even stated that silver soldering or hard soldering they consider to be permanent welding even though yes, it is reversible using a torch. The ATF recognizes that barrel extensions and flash suppressors silver soldered or hard soldered to a barrel, would count as being part of the barrel itself. So if a person had a barrel under legal length but could be made legal by the addition of a silver soldered or hard soldered barrel extension or flash suppressor or compensator, then it would then become a legal length barrel again. Just a little FYI there for you folks that may not have known that.
So proceed just like I did in #1. above except omit the Handiwrap cartridge space filler because the hard solder would melt it and instead use another filler like sand. If you de-cap the primer out of the (Boxer primed bigger center hole than two smaller Berdan primer holes) .45 acp case before you use it, then later you can pour the sand out to decrease extended bolt handle weight and if you want, even drill out the Boxer primer hole more to further decrease weight. Now fill your .45 acp case with sand up to just below where your bolt handle will fit into it, and set the case onto a thin piece of steel. The sand won't come out the primer hole until you lift the case back up. You might even want to very lightly clamp the case with a vice grip so the force of the torch flame hitting it won't knock it over.
Now set your thin books or magazines under the right side of the receiver and fore end of the Browning A5 or Remington model 11, so that the bolt handle will project downward the correct distance into the .45 acp cartridge case. Once you've checked your measurements like that to make sure the flat area behind the factory bolt is free to reciprocate in the slot of the receiver, then heat the cartridge case with your torch and fill it with the melted silver solder/hard solder making sure to not fill it up all the way so it doesn't spill out when you lower your bolt handle into it so that the melted silver solder/hard solder encapsulates the factory bolt handle just like if you had used J&B Weld epoxy. Now let it set up and cool. I recommend letting it cool naturally without pouring water on it. Then later after it is cooled, lift the gun up and pour the sand filler out of the boxer primer hole in the cartridge case, even drilling out the de-capped primer hole to make it larger and decrease even more weight if you prefer, (but not really necessary).
Once the sand is out, you could even wrap some asbestos around the mouth of the case where it is close to the receiver and then heat up the case again and put your silver solder/hard solder through the primer hole to hard solder even more inside the cartridge case if you feel it is necessary or think you may not have encapsulated the factory bolt handle completely with your silver solder/hard solder as much as you would have liked. The asbestos wrapped around the mouth of the case would prevent any silver solder/hard solder from your first soldering from exiting the mouth of the case onto your receiver and spilling into your bolt, since the asbestos would hold it in while it cooled along with the new solder you just did through the enlarged primer hole. But if you measured correctly you shouldn't need a second soldering. If my J&B Weld Epoxy method in #1 above doesn't hold up, this is the method I'll use and it should be stronger than the J&B Weld Epoxy method. Hopefully I won't need to. See my pictures, they are pretty easy to understand.
(update after test firing).
Yesterday (11-2-22) I went out to my shooting berm on my back acre and fired six #8 light load, 2&3/4's shot shells, and the .45 acp case stayed nice and tightly attached to my old factory bolt handle. Then I switched to heavier loads. But being my old 1940 Belgium Browning auto five has a Lyman Cutts comp on it, I didn't need to change the friction ring settings. That the beauty of the old (corncob) Cutts comp on an A5, you set it once for no friction and never have to change it no matter what load you fire. The extra weight of the Cutts comp plus its gas dissipating slots makes for less recoil than an old A5 without a Cutts comp. See this diagram for friction ring settings with and without a Cutts comp. As you can see, with a Cutts compensator, it stays at the no friction setting for all loads and you don't have to change the friction ring settings. As long as your barrel recoil spring is still good that is. If your barrel recoil spring becomes weak you might change the friction ring setting to light loads, until you can get a new recoil spring. I find that my Cutts comps on my various antique shotguns (A5's, Remy 11's, Win 12, etc) aid in my swing on clays and I use the spreader choke most of the time on clays. They are antiques for sure, but operate just as good (if not better) and with my antique semi autos with softer recoil with the Cutts comp on it than the modern inertia operated shotguns. All my semi auto (except for one modern Fostech gas operated Origin 12) and slide action shotguns are antiques. I find their milled all steel and wood quality to be better than most modern shotguns with few exceptions in my opinion. Some find the Lyman Cutts compensator to be ugly. I see it as just the opposite and as a beautiful antique piece on an antique shotgun that does its recoil compensating and choke job excellently.
Okay, enough about the Cutts comp. Next I fired nine heavy load 00 buck 2 & 3/4's shot shells. (I don't own a magnum shotgun) and since I was TRYING to make the epoxied .45 acp case loosen from the factory bolt handle, I fired them rapidly from the hip as fast as I could function the trigger. First five. "BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM" almost like a burst of auto fire from a Bofors or Oerlikon anti-aircraft cannon https://youtu.be/6EmXbStCssY, (who's recoiling barrels inspired me to invent and patent "Bump fire stocks" A.K.A, "Bumpstocks") and then four more of the same rapid "booms" all with 00 buck heavy loads. All 9 rounds fired flawlessly and the nickel plated .45acp case stayed tightly epoxied to my old factory bolt handle. 15 shells fired in all counting 6 light and 9 heavy loads. So the test firing proved my #1 method works to very cheaply and with no special tools nor any disassembly of the bolt, to extend the tiny factory bolt handle just using an empty .45 acp case and J&B Weld Epoxy if you will follow my method #1. How will it hold up to hundreds of rounds fired in the future? That remains to be seen. But if it ever does come loose, then I'll just use my #2 method of replacing the J&B Weld epoxy with silver solder/hard solder as I have already described to make sure that doesn't happen again. But for now at least, my #1 method of J&B Weld Epoxying a .45 acp case to the factory bolt handle for extending it has held up to light and heavy loads so far.
Below pics with spent shells after test firing.
Well there you have it. I've shown cheap and easy ways for you to extend your old A5, Savage 720, Remy 11 or any of the old Browning Auto Five clones to have an extended bolt handle with no disassembly of your gun, nor bolt, without sending it off to a custom shop and just using an empty .45 acp cartridge case and some J&B Weld Epoxy or possibly silver solder/hard solder. All you have to do is follow my instructions in this thread. It was easy to do and I really like my new homemade .45 acp case bolt handle extension. You won't believe the difference it makes in ease of cocking the bolt now. So if you're like me and don't like that tiny tip of your finger bolt charging handle on your old Browning Auto Five or its clones, here's an answer for you that anyone can do without disassembly of your gun and without any special tools and is reversible later back to original factory condition if you want.
You're welcome
. P.S. If you use my instructions, drop me a post here with some pics showing your bolt handle extension. I'd love to see how others did using my method.
.
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