AWA Longhorn bolt problem

or else they took up knitting.
Anyway, I determined the problem and came up with a solution. And it works. Here are the details:
The split end of the bolt was not snapping up over the cam on the trigger when the hammer was let down. Therefore, the bolt would not be retracted the next time it was cocked. So... you couldn't cock the hammer because the bolt was still locking the cylinder.
I couldn't see anything wrong with the hammer cam or the bolt, but I noticed the split spring end of the bolt was quite sharp on its edges. So, I pulled out my handy-dandy ceramic polishing stone from Brownell's and gave some very light licks on the edges. Just enough to reduce the sharpness so the bolt wouldn't scrape the hammer. Then, I used the same stone to polish the hammer cam. Just enough to smooth it without changing any angles.
When I put the old Longhorn back together, it worked perfectly - fast or slow.
So, the guy my son bought the gun from sold it because he couldn't make it work, and he couldn't figure the solution. That makes the third good gun I've bought cheap and fixed for nothing or practically nothing.
By the way, the fit and finish on the gun is beautiful as is the color case hardening on the frame. Nice one piece grips, too.
We'll see how it shoots soon.
 

Nice touch. Great where a little craftsmanship turns a boat anchor into a nice gun. Congrats....

Way too often we run across bargains or "maybes" that need a little tlc from an oldtimer to correct a few imperfections and stuff that a bunch of newborns couldn't clear up, but we eventually get it done and that is all that matters. Glad your gun is working great. Chris

Just for interest, the other two easy deals were:
1) A really nice Model 24 Remington 22 semi-auto. This, of course is now made by Browning at a rediculous price. I found it in a pawn shop in Billings, MT. The guy wanted $35 for it because it wouldn't eject. When I got it home, I disassembled it and looked it over. The ejector stud had been put in bacwards so that it didn't reach far enough for the rim of the spent case to hit it and get flipped down. Five minutes later, it was working like a Swiss watch. (Not a Rokex, though, they only work until the warranty expires.) 35 years later, I'm still using it. My grandson loves it, too. He claims he can't miss with it.
2) About ten years ago, a local crank bought a 45 ACP Llama Minimax Duotone from Big Bear Sports in Great Falls, MT. Two days later, he brought it back as a bag full of parts. He wanted his money back because it "blew up in my hand". They didn't argue, and just refunded his cash. I looked at the parts and found that the slide stop was seriously bent. It appeared as if he had disassembled it, but on reassembly had not inserted the slide stop all the way so it was only braced on one side by the frame. I asked the manager what he was going to do with the gun. He guessed he would take it to a gunsmith to see if it could be repaired. I countered that he wouldn't be able to get a good price for it as a repaired gun plus the smith would charge for parts and work. I offered him $100 and promissed he would never hear about it again. He refused. In a couple of weeks, the bag of parts was still sitting on the back counter. He offered to sell it for $150. I told him no dice. If I was going to take the risk of repair, I was limited to $100. He coughed it up. I took it home and tried a Colt slide stop I had on hand. Worked great. So, I bought a new slide stop from Llama for $6.00, slicked up the slide with some fine valve grinding compound and oil, and have been packing it and shooting it for ten years now. As far as I can tell, it was the first of the all steel short 1911's. It's heavier than the aluminum framed knock offs such as the Kimber, but when you're out of shells, it is a fine knuckle duster.
 
 

This is kind of a neat topic. I love the stories about good deals on un-working guns.
I was debating a kind of scruddy, but original, Chilean Mauser carbine at  a shop for $240, as a truck gun, knock around. It was a bit too high for its condition so I was trying a bit of haggling. I spotted a Marlin 36 "Mountie" on the back rack with it's lever sort of just "dangling". I ask about it and the owner said "It's broken, we don't have a gunsmith in this town and I don't have the time to mess with it. If you take the Mauser, I'll let you have the Marlin for $200 as is".   
Having liked that particular Marlin a lot, from a distance, for years, the deal was made. I got home, the Mauser went in the corner as I got out my "kit" and started to examine the Marlin. When I separated the two takedown halves the problem was so simple a had to stop laughing before I could fix it. There is an "S" shaped spring that tensions the lever. Someone had taken it out and put it back in---backwards. That was it. Five minutes, one screw and reversing a spring and I had the Marlin I wanted for years, for the sum of $200.

Mike, with luck like that you might consider playing the lotto!
I posted a small write up in the rifle section of my wall hanger returned to a shooter, a lil Marlin 60.
Love those rimfires!