symmetrical 120 degree
pattern. A bolt turndown of
60 degrees allows enough
extra rotation to overlap the
cam bevels and thus centre
the actual contacting faces for
optimum bearing efficiency.
Besides fitting close to the
bolt, the barrel’s chamber
mouth has only a very slight
chamfer. These factors all
combine to give a cartridge
head protrusion barely in
excess of 3.175mm (0.125")
depth of the bolt-face
counterbore itself.
The extractor is a small steel
hook pinned inside one of the
locking lugs and urged into
engagement by a round spring
recessed in a circular groove
between the bolt head and bolt
body. A spring-loaded plunger
ejector recessed in the
opposite side of the bolt face
ejects cases on about a
30-degree trajectory out the
loading port of the receiver.
Because of the full-diameter
bolt the interior of the
receiver ring is a perfect
cylinder, save for the locking
seats broached (or hammer-
forged) in the receiver ring.
Although the forward receiver
walls which surround the
barrel shank are relatively
thin, the wall thickness
around the lug seats is not
compromised resulting in a
very strong locking system.
The way both Haenels
handle escaping gas is different
too. The De-Luxe has a hole in
the right side of the receiver
ring, while the Basic vents gas
through two holes in the bolt
body behind the receiver ring.
The bolt handle is a separate
piece inserted through a hole
in the bolt body. The handle on
the Basic is longer and has an
integral pear-shaped knob,
while the De- Luxe’s handle is
bent back and fitted with a
wooden knob. The root of the
handle turns down into a
notch in the receiver to act as
an auxiliary locking lug. As
the handle is raised to cock the
action, the root of the bolt
handle contacts a an angled
surface on the bridge to
provide primary extraction. A
rocking bolt stop on the leftside of the bridge runs in a
longitudinal groove the full
length of the bolt body to act
both as a guide and an
anti-bind device.
Unlike many other rifles
with one-diameter tri-lug
bolts, the Haenel has very
efficient cams which make the
bolt handle easier to lift
without taking the rifle down
from your shoulder for a fast
follow-up shot, and sufficient
cam geometry to engage the
extractor; this results in a
pistonlike bolt with smooth
and reliable functioning.
The two rifles share the
same modular single-stage
trigger but the two-position
safety is different. The unit is
attached to the underside of
the bridge and with the
De-Luxe when the knurled
button is thumbed to the rearto engage the safety, a white
dot appears and a concealed
lug is revealed that can be
pressed down to allow the bolt
to be opened and a loaded
round removed from the
chamber in safety. While this
feature has been left off the
Basic rifle, the bolt handle is
locked down by both triggers.
When the Basic is cocked and
the button is pushed forward,
two red dots become visible –
one atop the shroud, the other
on the side of the tang; the
De-Luxe doesn’t have the dot
on the shroud.
Both models have an angled
bolt shroud, but the Basic's is
steel while that of the De-Luxe
is alloy. Also, the rear end of
the cocking piece protrudes
from the centre of the De-Luxe
shroud when the rifle is
cocked; the shroud on the
Basic, is solid to mechanically
entrap rearward firing pin36 | SPORTING SHOOTER _ APRIL 2015
TEST
REPORTThe Haenel
has very
efficient
cams which
make the
bolt handle
easier to lift.”
4
5
ON THIS PAGE
4
The Basic’s bolt head has
three solid locking lugs in a
single row and a two large gas
ports; the Jaeger 10 De-Luxe has
two rows of lugs and no gas ports.5
Five shot groups shot with
Sellier & Bellot 150gn load
measure 0.975 and 1.24 6. High
shot in the largest group was
shooter error.