To satisfy customer requests, we now offer the new JP EnhancedBolt™ with great life expectancy while utilizing a standard configuration extractor.

The truth is, the standard Mil-spec 8620 bolt has a number of factors limiting its performance, not the least of which is that the life expectancy of such bolts is only about 6,000 rounds. In fact, standard bolts will start to show stress cracks on the locking lugs adjacent to the extractor cut after only 3,000 rounds. Cracking at the cam pin hole and weak extractor spring tension only add to the problems of the Mil-spec bolt.



Typical bolt failure mode next to extractor cut.
The material used in these standard bolts is also not the best choice by today's standards, but if you remember the old story that explains why “Mil-spec never dies,” that applies here as well; they make them this way because they’ve always made them this way.

The latest edition JP EnhancedBolt™ is made from SAE 9310 high-grade steel. This material makes for an extremely hard surface with a tough, ductile core resistant to structural failure and a life expectancy far exceeding Mil-spec 8620-type bolts. SAE 9310 is the same type of steel used in the transmission gears of Formula One racecars, and the high-load application of a bolt assembly is ideal for this state-of-the-art material; the results of actual full-auto endurance torture tests prove it.

The design of the JP EnhancedBolt™ addresses many other fine points, the most important of which is the utilization of a standard configuration extractor. Most users want the ability to replace extractors and other parts with commonly available Mil-spec parts instead of being dependent on proprietary parts that can be difficult to acquire. Therefore, this new bolt will accept standard extractors, pins and springs.