The last time I shot my M44 I had a hell of a time getting the bolt to function properly.  

I was shooting the 174 grain surplus.

The bolt would close just fine, but opening it and extracting were a different issue.  Opening it took 2 hands and beating the round part of then bolt handle upwards with the palm of my hand.   After about 10 rounds I just gave up.

Is there something I can do to smooth this up?  Are your experience with the M44 bolts this rough?  

BTW:  The bolt does match the rifle so it's not a mismatch.

FWIW it sounds like it may have a headspace issue.  Have you had it checked?

Quoted: FWIW it sounds like it may have a headspace issue.  Have you had it checked?

What are the common symptoms of such a problem?

Quoted: Quoted: FWIW it sounds like it may have a headspace issue.  Have you had it checked? What are the common symptoms of such a problem?

No

Probably ought to check that out.

What are the symptoms of it and what are the problems it causes?

The rifle was from AIM in excellent condition.  Since the bolt matched the rifle and everything was clean I took it for granted and shot it anyways.

Headspace problems are common in old military guns. A quick and easy check is as follows, Take a piece of common masking tape, about 3/8 inch in diameter, a put exactly 1 thickness of the tape on the casehead of an unfired cartridge covering up the primer. Insert the cartridge in the chamber and carefully attempt to close the bolt. If the bolt closes you probably have excessive headspace. If the bolt is resistant to closing the HS may be OK. DO NOT TOUCH THE TRIGGER AND BE SURE THE SAFETY IS ON WHILE YOU DO THIS.

If the HS appears to be OK check a fired case for rough spots on the exterior of the case. Many M44's have pitted chambers that can cause rough extraction and difficult bolt openeing. The trick with the masking tape DOES NOT replace properly stripping the bolt and using the proper HS gauges. It merely gives you an idea of what MAY be going on. E-mail if ANY questions. Charles the Gunsmith.  

My dad's did this. He took it home and reached into the locking lugs and felt a bunch of crap in there. He cleaned it and greased it, now it's smooth.

try this

Quoted: try this

Will do.  Thanks!

The chamber cleaning routine in the SurplusRifle.com article really helped with my M44. The same article has been floating around russian-mosin-nagant.com for a while but few people have heard of it. Now that it's on SurplusRifle maybe the myth about lacquered ammo causing  jams will finally die off.