Savage (or Cooey) model 64 charging handle

[johnnyc14]

I've got an old Cooey 64B that I bought when I was 16 (1970), my first rifle. Savage now produces pretty much the same rifle with a few minor changes. The charging handle on my Cooey is too short to use comfortably with gloves on in winter and the Savage is not much better. After all these years I made up a few longer charging handles using my friends Jet 12 X 36 lathe. Starting with a 5/16" grade 3 bolt I rounded off the hex head then used a 1/8" parting tool to machine a groove with a base diameter of .190", then machined the part that rides inside the bolt to .248" to fit into the 1/4" hole in the bolt. The handle portion is 1/2 inch longer than the original and is much easier to use with gloves on. I have shared the ones I made with some other Cooey and Savage 64 owners. I couldn't stop with the new charging handle so I re-finished the old stock as well and it turned out great. Looks like a new rifle again. Here's some pics of the original and new handles .

 

[keltg]

that charging handle looks really good, you did a real nice job of the entire rifle. Thanks for sharing

 

[greenhornet-1]

That looks good! Iv'e ben thinking about a side charging AR. I'm sure someone over here has done it.

 

[n3480h]

Nice work!

Tom