My uncle bought a very nice early Pre A with the crack but the piece still in tact like yours. We both think that a really good tig guy could fix it. With the way the receiver is configured I think this area could be dressed afterwards and the repair would not be noticeable. He has a friend that is a master tig welder and when he gets a chance to do it we are going to see how good we can dress it up.

 

I have never heard of a M52-A with the Crack of Doom? The "A" was made to alleviate that problem. Are you sure it's an "A"? What is the serial number? The crack cannot be fixed without going through procedures that will cost as much as the rifle. It will shoot safely and as accurate as they come, just do not use the safety. I use Red Box Eley in all my M52's and all are extremely accurate at 100 yards. Lets have the serial number as I don't think any "A"s were cracked. Thanks, Big Larry

 

I was thinking the same Larry. Maybe someone converted this rifle to a speedlock

 

Apologies. The Serial No. is 26760, definitely no "A."

 

Probably a Pre A, but does't that bolt cap look like it has the speedlock conversion? If so, would an A trigger with safety work on this rifle?

Bob

 

Speedlock trigger/safety and A trigger/safety basically the same thing, in terms of operation, just a few dimensional differences in the A version to deal with the thicker locking lug wall(the whole reason there is an "A"). But, because of the difference in the locking lug wall, pre-A and A safety parts are not swappable. Pretty sure the pre-A speedlock trigger and A trigger are the same, since the safety and trigger are completely separate functions, until the B came out.

To partially answer the question, the right way to fix it is to weld it up and re-machine the surfaces and holes. Not an easy proposition. I'm sure someone has done it over the years, but I've never heard of it.....
DPSTX

 

Wow!! I thought we had found the first cracked "A" model. No cigar here. Thanks, Big Larry

 

Saw one at Tulsa last year, only one I've ever seen. Was definitely an A with thicker lug and A serial number suffix. The hairline crack was obvious and I did look closely to make sure it wasn't a scratch.

 

Maybe a Speedlock from 1933 or 1934. I don't have my book handy. Lyman 48-J with target knobs. Is it a standard or heavy bbl.? Big Larry

 

According to my book it's a very early 1932 Speedlock.

While none of mine - all Pre-A Speedlocks and Slowlocks - have the CoD, it's a non-issue for me. I never use the safety.

 

Why do people call the OP's problem the "Crack of Doom" if it really isn't? Shouldn't it be called "The Crack of Inconvenience" or "Crack of Don't Use Your Safety Anymore"? Obviously Model 52 owners with this same problem are still using their rifles without any issues as long as they don't engage the safety. To me when someone says "Crack of Doom" that means stop shooting the rifle immediately and put it on the wall or else!!! If I had an early Model 52 with this issue I would call some of the better gun repair shops and see if they could actually repair the crack and how much it would cost to do so.

Rick

 

LOL. I think the "doom" refers to collectors, not shooters. I think it is a heavy barrel, but am not home right now and can't swear to it.

I won't say never on a sale, but no plans to. It is too much fun.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

 

maybe cause Doom is easier to spell than inconvenience.

 

My sense as a multi-discipline hobby welder is that the Win 52 pre-A Crack of Doom (CoD) can indeed be repaired, but if the repaired area is not left built up a bit to strengthen the original weak area the very same crack will probably reappear with renewed usage of the safety. So, you are pretty much caught between a rock and a hard place. The CoD turns off the collectors, as would a non-standard appropriately built up and strengthened safety mount repair area. A nicely done welded repair leaving the cracked safety mounting surface thickness the same could be made to look awfully close to original, but owing to the flawed original design you would probably not wish to ever use it as functioning safety again for fear that it would again crack. In any event the collector value is never going to be there again like that of a pristine model without the CoD. I would save myself all of the hassle and potential expense and just use the rifle without using the CoD safety.

 

My sense as a multi-discipline hobby welder is that the Win 52 pre-A Crack of Doom (CoD) can indeed be repaired, but if the repaired area is not left built up a bit to strengthen the original weak area the very same crack will probably reappear with renewed usage of the safety.

The only welding I've ever done was with acetylene so forgive me if I'm being ignorant here.

Couldn't a shallow groove be cut along the line of the crack to expose more surface area for the tig weld to attach to? Then the contour could be made original without compromising strength.

 

Had a preA with the crack a few years ago. Was a great shooter. Talked to a tool and die / weld shop and the said they could micro weld or plasma weld it. Never had it done, sold tge gun for other projects (kimber 82g).

 

So admittedly I do not have nor do I have any plans to purchase an early Model 52 that could fall victim to this "COD" issue. I don't have access to one either as no one I know owns one. After reading the information in the sticky on this subject if someone did have one of these rifles and just had to put the safety "ON" would it be beneficial for them to retract the bolt first and then engage the safety lever and close the bolt thereby eliminating putting any side thrust on the firing pin? Or is it not possible to do this on this specific model and forgive my ignorance if it is not possible to close the bolt with the safety on? From what I read there are many potential causes for the crack to occur in the receiver, but the ones that seem to stick out is headspace wear and firing pin wear. I am not so sure I buy into hardness of the receiver being the fault or cause of the crack taking place as I would think the problem would have shown up quite soon once the firearm was put into use. Perhaps even installing a new, or relatively new firing pin would alleviate this problem to a certain extent, but good luck finding one.

Rick H.

 

You can retract the firing pin and engage the safety, though pulling back on the pin is difficult due to the spring tension. You would not be able to retract the bolt itself and then set the safety, because the safety also locks the bolt and vice versa. When the safety is engaged you can't open the bolt and when the bolt is opened, you can't engage the safety. The whole problem with the crack of doom is that when wear has occurred in the mechanism, the safety begins bearing against the side of the firing pin/safety boss and its leverage works radially against the safety's shaft instead of axially applying rearward force to the the firing pin as it's intended.

DPSTX

 

Thank you for the explanation DPSTX. Forget most of what I said.

Rick H.

 

Several years ago a friend of mine had a pre-A with the crack of doom. Unfortunately it was I who examined the rifle and pointed said COD out to him. He had never noticed it and it obviously had not affected the rifles shooting ability or accuracy. He took it to the range often. About a month later we meet again. This time he asked me to inspect the rifle and check the COD. The COD had been repaired. With a 10X jewelers glass I could find no evidence that the COD had ever been there. He told me a machinist friend of his had welded the crack, hand dressed and reblued the receiver. Again, this was several years ago, my friend has moved away and we have lost touch. I can’t tell you if the receiver ever cracked again. Bob

 

I own a pre a 52 not cracked but completely fractured and gone. Rifle shoots fine.