WO2019172771A2

WO2019172771A2 - A bolt action system, a firearm and a bolt action system operating method

Info

Publication number: WO2019172771A2
Application number: PCT/NL2019/050159
Authority: WO
Inventors: Pim DE WAARD
Original assignee: Hanson Uitgevers B.V.
Priority date: 2018-03-09
Filing date: 2019-03-11
Publication date: 2019-09-12
Also published as: WO2019172771A3; NL2022721A; NL2022721B1

Abstract

This invention relates to a bolt action system comprising: - a receiver having a receiver bore extending therethrough, said receiver bore defining a bore axis; a bolt moveably supported in the receiver bore to slide along the bore axis between a loading position and a firing position, said bolt having a bolt axis parallel to the bore axis; and a bolt handle connected to the bolt, wherein the bolt is further moveably supported in the receiver bore to rotate about the bore axis between an open position, in which the bolt is free to move along the bore axis between the loading position and the firing position, and a closed position, in which a position of the bolt along the bore axis is locked relative to the receiver when the bolt is in the firing position, wherein the bolt handle is pivotably connected to the bolt to pivot about a pivot axis between a normal position and a retracted position, wherein preferably the pivot axis is perpendicular to the bolt axis, and wherein the bolt handle is configured to directly or indirectly engage with the receiver at an engaging location, such that when the bolt is in the firing position seen along the bore axis and in the open position relative to the bore axis, moving the bolt handle from the normal position to the retracted position results in direct or indirect engagement between the bolt and the receiver and movement of the bolt from the firing position towards the loading position.

Description

TITLE OF THE INVENTION

A bolt action system, a firearm and a bolt action system operating method BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a bolt action system and a firearm including such a bolt action system. The invention further relates to a bolt action system operating method.

A bolt action system is the part of a firearm configured to handle the loading and unloading of a cartridge into and out of the chamber. A known bolt action system comprises:

a receiver having a receiver bore extending therethrough, said receiver bore defining a bore axis;

- a bolt moveably supported in the receiver bore to slide along the bore axis

between a loading position and a firing position, said bolt having a bolt axis parallel to the bore axis; and

- a bolt handle connected to the bolt,

wherein the bolt is further moveably supported in the receiver bore to rotate about the bore axis between an open position, in which the bolt is free to move along the bore axis between the loading position and the firing position, and a closed position, in which a position of the bolt along the bore axis is locked relative to the receiver when the bolt is in the firing position.

A recent example of such a bolt action system is disclosed in US patent publication no. US2017/0198999A1. The disclosed bolt action system is described as being manually operated, but the invention also relates to bolt action systems for semi-automatic or automatic rifles such as the AR-15 in which the bolt has a bolt handle often referred to as bolt cam pin. In such applications, the hand of a user for manual operation is replaced by a bolt carrier that is moved by gas tapped from the barrel as the bullet passes a gas port. As the bolt carrier moves towards the butt of the rifle, the bolt cam pin, i.e. the bolt handle, riding in a slot on the bolt carrier, forces the bolt to rotate and thus unlocks it from the receiver. Once the bolt is fully unlocked it begins it rearwards movement along with the bolt carrier.

A known disadvantage of bolt action systems is that due to the high pressure resulting from firing the cartridge the cartridge may be stuck and pulling the bolt from the firing position towards the loading position while simultaneously retracting the cartridge from the chamber may be very difficult if not impossible at some occasions. A known solution to this problem for manually operated bolt action systems is to provide a camming action in primary extraction so that rotating the bolt about the bore axis from the closed position to the open position simultaneously results in movement of the bolt from the firing position towards the loading position.

However, such camming action is very sensitive to fabrication tolerances so that either such camming action needs to be very accurately fabricated using complex fabrication processes or the camming action is not accurate enough and the firearm may still suffer from stuck cartridges. In case of the latter, an additional drawback may be that when the bolt gets stuck before reaching the open position, the bolt is also not allowed to move towards the loading position so that pushing on the cartridge from the barrel side, i.e. muzzle side of the chamber to release the cartridge is not feasible.

A further disadvantage of the camming action in primary extraction is that this solution is not available for the (semi-)automatic bolt action systems.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the above it is an object of the invention to provide an improved bolt action system that at least partially solves one or more of the mentioned disadvantages.

According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a bolt action system comprising:

a bolt moveably supported in the receiver bore to slide along the bore axis between a loading position and a firing position, said bolt having a bolt axis parallel to the bore axis; and

- a bolt handle connected to the bolt,

wherein the bolt is further moveably supported in the receiver bore to rotate about the bore axis between an open position, in which the bolt is free to move along the bore axis between the loading position and the firing position, and a closed position, in which a position of the bolt along the bore axis is locked relative to the receiver when the bolt is in the firing position,

wherein the bolt handle is pivotably connected to the bolt to pivot about a pivot axis between a normal position and a retracted position, wherein preferably the pivot axis is perpendicular to the bolt axis, and wherein the bolt handle is configured to directly or indirectly engage with the receiver at an engaging location, such that when the bolt is in the firing position seen along the bore axis and in the open position relative to the bore axis, moving the bolt handle from the normal position to the retracted position results in direct or indirect engagement between the bolt and the receiver and movement of the bolt from the firing position towards the loading position.

The invention is based on the insight that the bolt should be moveable from the closed position to the open position without initiating primary extraction and that subsequently movement of the bolt handle in another direction, e.g. comparable to a lever, allows to provide sufficient force for the primary extraction even in case of a stuck cartridge. A further advantage may even be that in case the movability of the bolt handle about the pivot axis is not able to provide sufficient force, the situation can be resolved by pushing on the cartridge from the barrel side of the chamber resulting in movement of the bolt from the firing position towards the loading position which is possible as the bolt is in principle able to reach the open position.

In an embodiment, the bolt comprises lugs and the receiver comprises corresponding shoulders such that in the open position of the bolt, the lugs are able to pass the corresponding shoulders and such that in the closed position of the bolt, the lugs engage with the shoulders to lock the position of the bolt along the bore axis in the firing position.

In an embodiment, the lugs are arranged at a side of the bolt opposite to the side where the bolt handle is connected to the bolt.

In an embodiment, the bolt comprises a ring-shaped element surrounding the bolt, which element is configured to be engaged by the bolt handle to engage with the engaging location on the receiver. This is an embodiment in which the bolt handle is configured to indirectly, i.e. via the ring-shaped element, engage with the receiver at the engaging location. An advantage of this embodiment may be that the engaging location is effectively enlarged compared to a direct engagement between bolt handle and receiver.

In an embodiment, the bolt handle defines a handle axis, wherein the pivot axis is perpendicular to the handle axis, and wherein preferably the handle axis is perpendicular to the bolt axis when the bolt handle is in the normal position. In an embodiment, the receiver comprises an ejection port, wherein in the loading position of the bolt the ejection port is open to allow the introduction or removal of a cartridge, and wherein in the firing position of the bolt the ejection port is closed by the bolt.

In an embodiment, the receiver comprises a mounting location for a trigger interface to connect a trigger system to the receiver. Preferably, the trigger system is connected below the receiver.

In an embodiment, the receiver comprises guiding elements to guide movement of the bolt along the bore axis with the bolt in the open position, such that the bolt is only able to rotate to the closed position when the bolt is in the firing position along the bore axis.

In an embodiment, the bolt comprises a firing pin, which bolt and firing pin are preferably configured to be cocked upon moving the bolt from the closed position to the open position.

In an embodiment, the bolt comprises a firing pin, wherein the bolt and firing pin are configured that the firing pin can only be released to fire a cartridge when the bolt is in the firing position along the bore axis and the closed position relative to the bore axis.

In an embodiment, one of the lugs on the bolt comprises an extractor to pull a cartridge along the bore axis when moving from the firing position to the loading position.

In an embodiment, the bolt action system comprises a bolt carrier configured to manipulate the bolt handle upon movement of the bolt carrier. An advantage of this embodiment is that the bolt action system is suitable for semi-automatic and automatic firearms using energy produced when a cartridge is fired to move the bolt carrier. This replaces manual manipulation of the bolt handle although many semi-automatic and automatic firearms also have the possibility to manually operate the bolt carrier so that the bolt handle is also manually operable indirectly via the bolt carrier when needed.

In an embodiment, the bolt action system comprises a trigger, and preferably a trigger guard, connected or connectable to the bolt action system to interact with the bolt action system in order to fire a cartridge. Preferably, the trigger is connected or connectable to the receiver and configured to interact with a firing pin in the bolt. In an embodiment, the receiver of the bolt action system has an upper side, a lower side opposite the upper side, a front side, a back side opposite the front side, a left side and a right side opposite the left side, where left and right are directions seen from a shooter’s perspective. The front side corresponds to the barrel side of the receiver.

In an embodiment, the ejection port is arranged at the left side or the right side.

In an embodiment, the mounting location for the trigger is arranged at the lower side.

In an embodiment, a loading port, and preferably a mounting location for a cartridge holder, is/are arranged at the left side or the right side, preferably at a side opposite the ejection port.

In an embodiment, a mounting location for a telescopic sight or other targeting aid is arranged at an upper side.

In an embodiment, the bolt has a chamber end to engage with a cartridge, wherein the bolt handle is preferably arranged at or near an end opposite the chamber end.

In an embodiment, the bore is delimited by two opposite first wall portions and two opposite second wall portions, with each first wall portion being arranged between the two opposite second wall portions, and each second wall portion being arranged between the two opposite first wall portions, i.e. the first and second wall portions are alternatingly arranged. The first wall portions define a first diameter while the second wall portions define a second diameter, wherein preferably the second diameter is larger than the first diameter, so that the second wall portions form two opposite recesses to receive and guide the lugs on the bolt for a predetermined length. Although this is described for an embodiment with two lugs, any number of lugs may be received and guided in corresponding recesses in a wall of the bore. At the end of the recesses, the first wall portions may define respective shoulders for the lugs to engage with and fix a position thereof.

The invention also relates to a firearm comprising a bolt action system according to the invention.

In an embodiment, the firearm comprises a barrel connected to the receiver such that a chamber is formed to hold the cartridge for firing. In an embodiment, the firearm is a semi-automatic or automatic firearm preferably comprising a bolt carrier configured to manipulate the bolt handle upon movement of the bolt carrier caused by energy produced when the cartridge is fired.

In an embodiment, the bolt action system and the barrel are supported by a forestock.

In an embodiment, the firearm comprises a grip for the hand also configured to operate a trigger, and a stock, preferably including a butt too engage with a shoulder of a user.

In an embodiment, the firearm has an upper side, a lower side opposite the upper side, a front side, a back side opposite the front side, a left side and a right side opposite the left side, where left and right are directions seen from a shooter’s perspective. The front side corresponds to the barrel side of the receiver.

In an embodiment, the ejection port is arranged at the left side or the right side of the receiver of the bolt action system.

In an embodiment, a trigger, and preferably a trigger guard, is/are arranged at the lower side. Preferably, the trigger is connected below the receiver.

In an embodiment, a loading port, and preferably a mounting location for a cartridge holder, are arranged at the left side or the right side, preferably at a side opposite the ejection port.

The invention further relates to a method for operating the bolt action system according to the invention, starting from the situation that the bolt is in the loading position seen along the bore axis and in the open position relative to the bore axis, said method comprising the following steps:

a) translating the bolt along the bore axis to the firing position; and

b) rotating the bolt about the bore axis to the closed position.

The invention yet also relates to a method for operating the bolt action system according to the invention, starting from the situation that the bolt is in the firing position seen along the bore axis and in the closed position relative to the bore axis, said method comprising the following steps:

a) rotating the bolt about the bore axis to the open position;

b) pivoting the bolt handle towards the retracted position to initiate movement of the bolt towards the loading position; and

c) translating the bolt towards the loading position.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will now be described in a non-limiting way with reference to the accompanying drawings in which like parts are indicated by like reference symbols and in which:

Fig. 1 schematically depicts a firearm according to an embodiment of the

invention;

Fig. 2 schematically depicts a receiver of a bolt action system according to an embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 3 schematically depicts a cross-sectional view of the receiver of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 schematically depicts a trigger interface to be mounted to the receiver of

Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 schematically depicts another cross-sectional view of the receiver of Fig. 2;

Fig. 6 schematically depicts a side view of a bolt to be used in combination with the receiver of Fig. 2;

Fig. 7 schematically depicts a perspective view of the bolt of Fig. 6;

Fig. 8 schematically depicts a cross-sectional view of the bolt of Fig. 6;

Fig. 9 schematically depicts a perspective view of the bolt action system of Figs.

2-8 with the bolt in the firing position seen along the bore axis and in the open position;

Fig. 10 schematically depicts a perspective view of the bolt action system of Fig. 9 with the bolt in the firing position seen along the bore axis and in the closed position;

Fig. 1 1 schematically depicts a cross-sectional view of the bolt with the bolt handle in the retracted position; and

Fig. 12 schematically depicts a cross-sectional view of the bolt action system with the bolt handle in the retracted position. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Fig. 1 schematically depicts a firearm 1 according to an embodiment of the invention. The firearm comprises a barrel 50 with a muzzle 70 at one end of the barrel 50 and a chamber 60 at an opposite end of the barrel 50. A bolt action system 100 is arranged next to the chamber 60, which bolt action system 100 is configured to handle the loading and unloading of a cartridge (not shown) into and out of the chamber 60.

The bolt action system 100 and the barrel 50 are supported by a forestock 40. A trigger 80 surrounded by a trigger guard 90 is provided to interact with the bolt action system 100 to fire the cartridge in the chamber 60. To hold and aim the firearm 1 , a grip 20 is provided for the hand also operating the trigger 80, and a stock 10 including butt 30 is provided to engage with a shoulder of a user.

The bolt action system 100 comprises a receiver 1 10, a bolt 130 moveably supported in the receiver 1 10, and a bolt handle 120. The bolt 130 is visible in Fig. 1 through an ejection port 140 configured to allow the entry or removal of a cartridge. The bolt action system 100 is a bolt action system according to an embodiment of the invention and will be described in more detail below by reference to Figs. 2-12.

Fig. 2 schematically depicts in more detail the receiver 1 10. Fig. 3 depicts a cross- sectional view of the receiver 1 10 of Fig. 2.

The receiver 100 comprises a receiver bore 200 extending through the receiver 100 from a bolt handle side 201 to a chamber side 202 of the receiver 100. The receiver bore 200 defines a bore axis 203.

Also shown in Fig. 2 and 3 is the ejection port 140 and a mounting location 204 allowing to mount a trigger interface 300 as shown in Fig. 4 to the receiver 1 10. In this embodiment, the receiver 1 10 comprises a set of recesses 205 to receive a corresponding set of protrusions 301 of the interface 300 in a direction towards the receiver 1 10 perpendicular to the bore axis 203 until a contact surface 302 of the interface 300 engages with a contact surface 206 of the mounting location 204. The interface 300 can subsequently be moved in a direction parallel to the bore axis 203 towards the chamber side 202 of the receiver 1 10 so that the protrusions 301 of the interface engage with the elements 207 preventing the interface from being moved away from the mounting location in a direction perpendicular to the bore axis. The position of the interface can be locked using screws or bolts extending through holes 303 in the interface 300 into the holes 208 of the receiver An advantage of the trigger interface 300 is that it is easier to exchange the trigger system and use different trigger systems with the same bolt action system.

Fig. 5 depicts another cross-sectional view of the receiver 110 of Fig. 2 somewhere halfway the receiver 1 10 to show the cross-sectional shape of the bore 200. The bore 200 is delimited by opposite wall portions 210 and opposite wall portions 21 1 , wherein each wall portion 210 is arranged between the two opposite wall portions 21 1 and each wall portion

211 is arranged between the two opposite wall portions 210. The wall portions 210 define a first diameter D1 while the wall portions 21 1 define a second diameter D2 where D1<D2. As a result thereof the wall portions 211 form two opposite recesses 212 in the bore 200 allowing to receive and guide corresponding lugs on the bolt as will be explained below and thereby prevent unwanted rotation of the bolt about the bore axis 203. The wall portions 210 do not extend over the entire length of the bore, but over a length L1 as clearly indicated in Fig. 3 to form a shoulder 212 at the chamber side 202 and a shoulder 213 at the bolt handle side. It is to be noted explicitly here that in Fig. 5, reference numeral

212 refers to the recesses in the bore and in Fig. 3, the reference numeral 212 refers to the shoulder at the chamber side 202.

Figs. 6-8 depict the bolt 130 of the bolt action system 100 that can be used in combination with the receiver of Figs. 2-5. Fig. 6 depicts a side view of the bolt, Fig. 7 depicts a perspective view of the bolt and Fig. 8 depicts a cross-sectional view of the bolt.

The bolt 130 includes a middle portion 400 having a diameter smaller than D1 of the receiver to be able to pass the wall portions 210. The bolt 130 has a bolt axis 401.

At one end of the bolt 130, the bolt handle 120 is connected to the bolt 130 such that rotating the bolt handle 120 about the bolt axis 401 results in rotation of the bolt 130 about bolt axis 401. At an opposite end of the bolt 130, two lugs 402 are provided at a diameter smaller than D2 but larger than D1 to be able to pass wall portions 21 1 and to be guided in the recesses 212.

One of the lugs 402 is provided with an extractor 403 configured to engage with a rim of a cartridge to pull the cartridge out of the chamber after being fired.

Inside the bolt 130, a firing pin 404 and a spring 405 are provided, which firing pin 404 is in this case cocked on opening with the aid of member 406 extending from the middle part 400 and a camming action. The trigger will then be used to release member 406 which in turn releases the firing pin 404.

In use, the bolt 130 is inserted into the receiver at the bolt handle side 201 of the receiver 1 10 such that the lugs 402 are received in the recesses 212 and with the member 406 being provided at the mounting location side of the receiver. The bolt 130 is then moveably supported in the receiver bore to slide along the bore axis between a loading position, in which the ejection port is free to allow a cartridge to be introduced into the bore or to remove, i.e. eject a cartridge from the bore, and a firing position, in which the bolt has been moved towards the chamber side 202 of the receiver to close the ejection port allowing to push a cartridge into the chamber. This firing position corresponds to the situation as shown in Fig. 9.

Fig. 9 depicts the receiver 1 10 with ejection port 140 and trigger interface 300 connected to the mounting location of the receiver 1 10. The bolt 130 has been pushed completely into the bore of the receiver 1 10 to close off the ejection port 140.

Referring to Figs. 6-8 again, the bolt handle 120 is pivotably connected to the bolt 130 to pivot about a pivot axis 407 between a normal position as depicted in the Figs. 6-8, in which the bolt handle 120 extends perpendicular to the bolt axis 401 , and a retracted position, in which surface 120a of the bolt handle 120 engages with surface 408 of the bolt.

The bolt 130 is provided with a ring-shaped element 409 at the bolt handle side of the bolt In this embodiment, the element 409 comprises a hole 410 to receive a protrusion 120b on the bolt handle 120 such that pivotal motion of the bolt handle 120 results in a translation of the ring-shaped element along the bolt. In the situation as shown in Fig. 8, a length L2 of the middle portion 400 is similar to the length L1 of the wall portions 210 so that when the bolt is in the firing position, the lugs 402 have just passed the shoulder 212 in the bore 200 and the element 409 engages with the shoulder 213, which shoulder 213 may alternatively be referred to as engaging location.

When the bolt is in the firing position as shown in Fig. 9, the bolt is moveably supported in the receiver bore to rotate about the bore axis between an open position as shown in Fig. 9, in which the bolt is free to move along the bore axis between the loading position and the firing position, and a closed position as shown in Fig. 10, in which the lugs 402 of the bolt lock the position of the bolt along the bore axis preventing the bolt from moving towards the loading position. In the closed position, a cartridge can be fired while keeping the bolt in place.

Due to the engagement between the element 409 and the shoulder 213 the bolt is also prevented from moving beyond the firing position.

Upon moving the bolt to the closed position, the firearm is ready to be fired by pulling the trigger which eventually releases the firing pin 404 to the situation as shown in Fig. 8.

After firing or when the cartridge needs to be removed to prevent any firing of the cartridge, the bolt is rotated back to the open position by manipulating the bolt handle 120. Hence, the bolt action system is transferred from the situation as shown in Fig. 10 back to the situation as shown in Fig. 9. In this embodiment, this cocks the firing pin 404 as shown in Figs. 1 1 and 12.

As the bolt is now in the open position, the bolt is free to move towards the loading position. This movement is initiated by pivoting the bolt handle to the retracted position as shown in Fig. 1 1. Pivoting the bolt handle from the normal position to the retracted position results in a movement of the element 409 along the bolt towards the lugs thereby reducing the length between lugs 402 and element 409 to length L3, which length L3 is smaller than L2.

The embodiment currently described has the advantage that distance A2 between free end of the bolt handle and the pivot axis 407 is much larger than distance A1 between the protrusion 120b and the pivot axis 407 so that the force exerted by the element 409 on the engaging location at shoulder 213 is much larger than the force exerted on the free end of the bolt handle 120 by a user. As a result thereof it is relatively easy, even when the cartridge is stuck in the chamber, to initiate movement of the bolt towards the loading position. This situation is shown in Fig. 12. When a cartridge is stuck or difficult to remove, the initial movement is the hardest, after moving the bolt over a distance as shown in Fig. 12, the cartridge is released sufficiently so that further pulling the bolt to the loading position can easily be done.

It is noted that the invention also provides the same advantages even for smaller values of A2, because during movement of the bolt handle 120 as described above, the bolt handle 120 substantially pivots about the protrusion 120b, so that the distance A1+A2 is always larger than the distance A2 and thus a larger force can be applied to the bolt than is applied to the free end of the bolt handle 120.

Although the above invention has been described using an embodiment in which the bolt handle 120 is configured to indirectly engage with the receiver at the engaging location (in this case formed by shoulder 213) using element 409, it is explicitly noted here that direct engagement is also envisaged, e.g. when the protrusion 120b is allowed to directly engage with the shoulder 213 of the receiver. Additionally, or alternatively, when for instance oblique contact surface 408 is provided at the opposite side of the bolt, the bolt handle can be pushed directly against the receiver at the free end side of the pivot axis to initiate movement of the bolt from the firing position towards the loading position. An advantage of the embodiment of Figs. 1-12 is that pivoting the bolt handle from the normal position towards the retracted position is in the same direction of movement as the bolt which allows to continue in the same direction to pull the bolt towards the loading position.

A further advantage of using the element 409 is that this element can be used to align the bolt axis to the bore axis and ensure that the bolt axis is substantially parallel to the bore axis. As a result thereof, an end face of the bolt can be maintained perpendicular to the bore axis without having to use tight tolerances along the entire length of the bolt which may cause the bolt to get jammed when dirt or particles get between the bolt and receiver.

Although the embodiments have been described in relation to a manually operated firearm in which the bolt handle is manually operated, the invention can also be used for semiautomatic systems or automatic systems. Manual operation may then be replaced by a bolt carrier configured to manipulate the bolt handle upon movement of the bolt carrier caused by energy produced when the cartridge is fired.

Although the invention has been described above using a ring-shaped element 409, it will be clear for the skilled person that the element 409 may form a complete ring, but can also be formed by one or more ring segments.

Claims

C L A I M S

1 . A bolt action system comprising:

a bolt handle connected to the bolt,

characterized in that

the bolt handle is pivotably connected to the bolt to pivot about a pivot axis between a normal position and a retracted position, wherein the pivot axis is perpendicular to the bolt axis,

and in that the bolt handle is configured to directly or indirectly engage with the receiver at an engaging location, such that when the bolt is in the firing position seen along the bore axis and in the open position relative to the bore axis, moving the bolt handle from the normal position to the retracted position results in direct or indirect engagement between the bolt and the receiver and movement of the bolt from the firing position towards the loading position.

2. A bolt action system according to claim 1 , wherein the bolt comprises lugs and the receiver comprises corresponding shoulders such that in the open position of the bolt, the lugs are able to pass the corresponding shoulders and such that in the closed position of the bolt, the lugs engage with the shoulders to lock the position of the bolt along the bore axis in the firing position.

3. A bolt action system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the bolt comprises a ring- shaped element surrounding the bolt, which element is configured to be engaged by the bolt handle to engage with the engaging location on the receiver.

4. A bolt action system according to claim 3, wherein the bolt handle defines a handle axis, wherein the pivot axis is perpendicular to the handle axis, and wherein preferably the handle axis is perpendicular to the bolt axis when the bolt handle is in the normal position.

5. A bolt action system according to any of claims 1-4, further comprising a bolt carrier configured to manipulate the bolt handle upon movement of the bolt carrier.

6. A firearm comprising a bolt action system according to any of claims 1 -5.

7. A firearm according to claim 6, further comprising a barrel connected to the

receiver such that a chamber is formed to hold the cartridge for firing.

8. A firearm according to claim 6 or 7, wherein the firearm is a semi-automatic or automatic firearm preferably comprising a bolt carrier configured to manipulate the bolt handle upon movement of the bolt carrier caused by energy produced when the cartridge is fired.

9. A method for operating the bolt action system according to any of claims 1 -5, starting from the situation that the bolt is in the loading position seen along the bore axis and in the open position relative to the bore axis, said method comprising the following steps:

a) translating the bolt along the bore axis to the firing position; and

b) rotating the bolt about the bore axis to the closed position.

10. A method for operating the bolt action system according to claim 1 , starting from the situation that the bolt is in the firing position seen along the bore axis and in the closed position relative to the bore axis, said method comprising the following steps:

a) rotating the bolt about the bore axis to the open position;

c) translating the bolt towards the loading position.