A Buffalo Newton

[waterman]

For several years, can't remember where or why I got it, but I've had a 1925-era Buffalo Newton, luckily (?) in .30-06 caliber, with Newton ratchet rifling. Iron sights, commercial Marble's receiver rear, nice thick flat topped blade front sight. Typical Newton reversed double set triggers, a treat to shoot. I took it along on my "light loads" experiment. 25-yard range was in use, so I shot big black targets at 50. 82-year old eyes, incipient cataracts and iron sights do not give MOA accuracy.

Didn't get my Speer Plinkers loaded, but I've several boxes of cast stuff. I found 3 boxes of cast loads marked Lyman 311299, hard cast, type of lube & primer marked, but no powder charge marked. I suspect the powder is H4895. Boxes say "MV 1900-2000", dated Jan. 1993. I tried them in my suspect Remington 03A3. 3-inch groups, everything OK, so I tried them in the Newton.

The Newton shot even better than the Remington, no complaints on accuracy. But it's a standard Newton, so the recoil of every shot unhinges the floorplate and empties the magazine. Functionally, it's a complicated single shot. Now it's time to clean it. How do I get the bolt out? Does anyone remember?

[King carp]

I found this on the innerweb. Hope it helps.
Newton Bolt removal
Turn up the bolt handle and draw backwards on the bolt at the same time pressing back on the front trigger. The backwards pressure on the front trigger causes the forward portion of the sear to rise up and engage a detent finger on the lower side of the bolt stop, which is located under the rear receiver bridge. This prevents the bolt stop from rising and permits withdrawing the bolt completely from the rifle. This pressure must be applied before the bolt stop has entered into the notch of the lower side of the bolt, as the trigger has no power to draw the bolt stop down once it has risen, but merely holds it down if caught before it has risen at all.

I got this info from the NRA guide to Rifles and Shotguns, page 111. If you have access to this book, it gives complete disassembly instructions for this rifle.

[ebruce]

The American Rifleman Magazine had an article on the Buffalo Newton. I remember the photograph on the front cover. Might do a search and see if it turns up. Possibly helpful to your situation. Also The Rifle in America by Phil B. Sharpe has a chapter on the Newton rifle. HTH. Sincerely. bruce.

[waterman]

Many thanks. I've had it a long time. Once upon that time, I had the bolt out. That's when I discovered the ratchet rifling. But time and my interest in single shots and Krags replaced those memory units. I ordered a copy of the original Newton catalog & manual from Cornell Publications. Abby ran her copy machine and says it's in the mail. $25, so I'll try not to lose it.

While this thing is an attractive hunting rifle of early 1900s design, not quite Germanic, it has horrific headspace. IIRC, a gunsmith friend once put both a "no go" and a "field" headspace gauge in the chamber. The bolt closed both times. It probably should not be fired at all, but I used low powered lead bullet loads. Primer backed out of every case.

I think the only reason the firing pin strikes the primer is that the extractor holds the cartridge in position. If I keep those cases separated, neck size them only, will the shoulder eventually expand forward?

[butlersrangers]

Waterman, it would be fun to see some photos of your Buffalo-Newton rifle.
I did not know it was ever manufactured in .30-06 caliber.

I imagine cartridge cases could be formed and fire-formed to properly fit your rifle's chamber.
A chamber-cast would probably be a very helpful step in the process.

Attached are some pages from a "Guns of the World" chapter on the Newton rifles.

[waterman]

My Buffalo Newton looks like the rifle marked "4" in the photo from the magazine, except that it has no externally-fitted recoil lug. The multi-lug bolt looks like the exploded drawing of the bolt and its component parts. Exceptions are that my rifle has a filler piece (Marble's?) in the dovetail where the barrel sight would be, and a 1920s vintage Marble's adjustable peep sight.

I seem to recall reading a book about Newton rifles many years back. Newton declared bankruptcy before many Buffalo Newton rifles were made. Whoever (maybe 2 successive firms) got the leftover machinery & parts assembled as many rifles as they could, with no concept of safety standards or much knowledge of metallurgy. I think several shooters were hurt. A late friend told of hearing an African hunting story where some chap shot a dangerous critter (elephant, Cape Buffalo?) with a .35 Newton, only to have the magazine pop open and dump the remaining cartridges on his feet.

If used at all, it is suited for offhand practice at 200 yards or less, with light cast bullet loads. It really handles well. 160 grain bullet at about 1400 fps would be safe. I shot some 200 grain hard cast gas checks at about 1900 fps. Probably pushed my luck.

[butlersrangers]

IMO - The slope of the Buffalo-Newton stock-comb appears that it would give a vicious 'hit' to the shooter's cheek with powerful recoiling loads.

A friend once had a 'sportered' 1903 Springfield rifle, chambered for ".35 Apex", with a similar stock.
He invited me to try firing it from the bench.
I fired it twice and that was enough! My cheek felt like it was struck by a hard thrown Frisbee, after I would squeeze-off a shot.
The 1903 magazine floor-plate popped off the rifle, with each round fired, and my teeth felt funny. No thankee, that's enough!

You have an interesting rifle.
If it was mine, I would measure some of the cases that have been fired in the Buffalo-Newton chamber and see how they compare with .30-06 specifications.
A chamber cast could reveal a lot.

I would try chambering some 'fired' .30-06 brass from another rifle, like my M1 Garand.
If it 'chambered', without moving so far forward, I would anneal the case neck and neck-size about 1/2 the case-neck and try some cast bullet loads, with the bullet seated farther out of the case, touching the rifling.

Some brass that fits the chamber would open more possibilities with your Newton.

I am curious, if your Marble's receiver-sight is something like the one in these photos?