Should it be difficult to pull the bolt on a carbine

[euchoreo]

I just bought some snap caps for my highpoint 995 to practice drying firing and noticed that I'm not actually strong enough to easily and consistently eject the shells by pulling the bolt back.

I'm not strong, but not super weak (bench 185 lb, chinups/pulls no problem), should it be that hard for me to operate the bolt on my carbine? It seems like it would mean that I might have trouble unjamming a defective round in an emergency.

Would I have to disassemble the gun to fix this issue?

 

[Skipjacks]

No.

It is a precision machine. Everything should glide relatively easily.

Something seems wrong.

It doesn't need to be "friction free" so a baby could do it. But it shouldn't be so stiff that an in shape adult finds it difficult.

 

[Fester60]

Those Hi-Point carbines don't have a big charging handle. Does the bolt work freely when no snap caps are in it? Some guns can be kind of hard to pull the bolt back fast enough to simulate operation and get the extractor to tear out the snap cap. My guess is it will work fine when fired for real. No one takes apart those guns either because you have to punch pins out. Make sure you apply enough lube on the bolt to work all around the action. Be pretty liberal with the application.

 

[GuitarmanNick]

No.

It is a precision machine. Everything should glide relatively easily.

Something seems wrong.

It doesn't need to be "friction free" so a baby could do it. But it shouldn't be so stiff that an in shape adult finds it difficult.

Although they will throw projectiles downrange, this is a Highpoint and nothing about it is in any way related to a precision machine.

Lube it, shoot it, and hope you never have to take it apart. They are a pain in the arse! Chances are that the rough finish on the internal parts is making it stiff. Pretty normal but if you want it to be smooth, you will have to take it apart and do the finishing work that Highpoint skips to produce a cheap firearm. Much easier just to shoot a few hundred rounds through it and let it "wear in".

 

[Skipjacks]

this is a Highpoint and nothing about it is in any way related to a precision machine.

My bad. I missed that important detail.

 

[euchoreo]

I shot 50 rounds through it a few months ago and it worked just fine. I oiled the barrel afterwards, but didn't do anything specific for the bolt, which operates the same with and without snap caps in. I can chamber a round without any issues, but it takes take a second or two, which is too slow to manually eject a round if it's a dud.

I also somehow managed to get the bolt stuck open when messing with snap caps (even when the mag was removed) and wound up having to fiddle in open chamber with my finger for about a minute before it closed. I've never had a bad round before, but I read somewhere that I should be able to easily clear it if that happens.

 

[euchoreo]

Much easier just to shoot a few hundred rounds through it and let it "wear in".

Sounds like a fun way to fix the problem.

 

[erwos]

The Hi Point is a straight blowback carbine, and, to my understanding, it has a pretty stout recoil spring and a heavy bolt. Give it some lube on the bolt, but realize it's never going to be as easy as an AR-15.

 

[wilcam47]

Does it hold the bolt open on last round? If it doesnt it will be a bit harder to charge the bolt the first time

 

[Fester60]

I shot 50 rounds through it a few months ago and it worked just fine. I oiled the barrel afterwards, but didn't do anything specific for the bolt, which operates the same with and without snap caps in. I can chamber a round without any issues, but it takes take a second or two, which is too slow to manually eject a round if it's a dud.

I also somehow managed to get the bolt stuck open when messing with snap caps (even when the mag was removed) and wound up having to fiddle in open chamber with my finger for about a minute before it closed. I've never had a bad round before, but I read somewhere that I should be able to easily clear it if that happens.

The charging handle has a primitive bolt hold open function. If you pull the bolt back then press the bolt handle "in" it slides in a cutout and will hold the bolt open. That's probably what you accidentally did when it was "stuck" open.

 

[gre24ene]

I'm wondering if he has a primer or something in the chamber

 

[euchoreo]

The charging handle has a primitive bolt hold open function. If you pull the bolt back then press the bolt handle "in" it slides in a cutout and will hold the bolt open. That's probably what you accidentally did when it was "stuck" open.

That sounds likely

Does it hold the bolt open on last round?

yes. I shot it a few months ago and recall that it held bolt open after the last round was fired.

 

[j8064]

Operating the bolt on a Hi-Point carbine shouldn't take excessive pull. I'd start with cleaning the rifle and lubing the bolt and the tracks. If that doesn't solve the issue Hi-Point has a lifetime warranty. And their CS is definitely excellent.

Earlier models did not have a last round bolt hold-open feature. As has been said it was a primitive design. Pushing the bolt handle into the round cutout on the receiver held the bolt open. The TS models were upgraded to include a last round bolt hold-open feature where the bolt engages the empty magazine.

I'd also recommend getting an extended bolt handle like the one in the pic below. They are much better than the originals and are inexpensive ($15 on Amazon).

Monkey guns are fun to shoot. Good luck on getting yours running correctly.

 

[euchoreo]

Cool I'll try that.