If a rifle freezes, does it matter what type of extractor or trigger or firing pin assembly or 600 trick moves it had / That's the point I was trying to make, but I understand why you would think that's where I was heading. In actuality, in this case, my point was that any rifle can freeze rendering inoperable and the topic here is how to prepare a rifle for extreme conditions. You and I could walk hand and hand in utopia if a 700 had the old style mod 70 trigger...............
(and a timed safety and a repined, reground trigger and new mag box and a new follower and a rebuilt bolt release and a new polished Williams extractor...........
)
I was the "third man" that evening. The only rifle that would go bang was my pre war M70 with that simple old trigger.The rifle was just as snow clogged and frozen as the others but it still worked.
That said I think the bottom line with all this is if hunting extreme cold, make sure the rifle is "clean" inside and out,free of old oil and debris,try to keep it that way (not always possible),and run it dry except for a very thin application of lube that you trust to provide protection and not congeal at low temps.
Try to keep the thing free of snow and moisture that might turn to ice at the wrong time. This just might avoid little snafus.
