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2,975 Posts
I have one in 22 Short. It's similar to a Browning SA22 in some ways and very different in others. The general shape is similar, the magazine and feeding is similar. The fire control is completely different. The Ralock fires from an open bolt. The bolt is like a huge hammer that pivots from the bottom. It's a take down like an SA22, but the mechanism is different, there's a lever on the top of the receiver that is lifted and the barrel comes out. Fired casings are ejected out the bottom, but are captured in a steel cup in front of the trigger guard.
It's not surprising that the Ralock is rare. It has some significant issues. Because the shell catcher cup covers the breech, there's no way to tell if a round is chambered, which is a safety issue. Like most open bolt guns the trigger pull is heavy because the trigger is under the pressure of a spring stiff enough to handle recoil forces, not a much lighter trigger spring as is the case with closed bolt rifles. BSA can't possibly have made money on them; there is a TON of machining on the bolt alone. There is no adjustment mechanism on the takedown. When it wears, you're out of luck. Finally, on early models the fired casings are trapped in the cup with no ventilation, so the gun gets dirty in a hurry.
All that said, it's a neat little gun even if it does make you scratch your head why it's made the way it is. Mine's not for sale.
Here's a video about them, there's pictures of the fire control and bolt at 2:30
It's not surprising that the Ralock is rare. It has some significant issues. Because the shell catcher cup covers the breech, there's no way to tell if a round is chambered, which is a safety issue. Like most open bolt guns the trigger pull is heavy because the trigger is under the pressure of a spring stiff enough to handle recoil forces, not a much lighter trigger spring as is the case with closed bolt rifles. BSA can't possibly have made money on them; there is a TON of machining on the bolt alone. There is no adjustment mechanism on the takedown. When it wears, you're out of luck. Finally, on early models the fired casings are trapped in the cup with no ventilation, so the gun gets dirty in a hurry.
All that said, it's a neat little gun even if it does make you scratch your head why it's made the way it is. Mine's not for sale.
Here's a video about them, there's pictures of the fire control and bolt at 2:30
