6 ARC Tikka Failure To Extract?

[TX_Diver]

I had a .223 bolt opened up to use in a tikka 6 arc. Preferred prefit barrel.

Got to the range today to shoot it and in 24 rounds I had 2 failure to extract with what looks like very heavy primer strikes. Other brass looks fine.

The first time I was able to close the bolt, dry fire, and extract the brass. The second time I had to get a cleaning rod to knock it out.

Any ideas?

Bolt was opened up by a competent smith who has done a lot of these (not local). Prefit was installed by a local smith who is also very competent. I’ll check with both for ideas when they’re open again next week.

Not thrilled with the accuracy either but hard to say this is as good as it gets until the other issue is solved. Factory hornady match 108 eld-m.

 

[TX_Diver]

6.5cm shot at the same time, conditions, shooting positions, etc. groups were shot 3 rounds at a time alternating between rifles.

 

[Juan_ID]

My 6 arc tikka did not shoot factory 108s well either while 108 hand loads shot really well.

As far as failure to extract could it be that the headspace is a little long and after firing the shoulder of the case is not “pushing” the brass back enough to be grabbed then extracted?

 

[HandgunHTR]

I had a .223 bolt opened up to use in a tikka 6 arc. Preferred prefit barrel.

Got to the range today to shoot it and in 24 rounds I had 2 failure to extract with what looks like very heavy primer strikes. Other brass looks fine.

The first time I was able to close the bolt, dry fire, and extract the brass. The second time I had to get a cleaning rod to knock it out.

The look of heavy primer strike was most likely due to the fact that you hit the primers again when trying to extract them.

You don't need to pull the trigger to extract brass that jumped the extractor. Just ram the bolt home and open it again.

I assume that when using the cleaning rod it just pushed right out, or was their hard bolt lift on those two rounds?

Any ideas?

Any other marks on those two pieces of brass? Any visible differences in the rims? Hornady brass is not know for being the best quality stuff out there.
What I would suggest is taking your fired brass, or if you want to go outside and do it with loaded ammo you can, and run it all through the chamber, checking extraction on all of it. See if those two particular pieces of brass have a similar issue, or if any others do. If you can narrow it down to particular pieces of brass, then it is a brass issue. If it is random, then I would say the extractor spring should get replaced, or you may need to tweak it for function.

 

[TX_Diver]

The look of heavy primer strike was most likely due to the fact that you hit the primers again when trying to extract them.

You don't need to pull the trigger to extract brass that jumped the extractor. Just ram the bolt home and open it again.

I assume that when using the cleaning rod it just pushed right out, or was their hard bolt lift on those two rounds?



Any other marks on those two pieces of brass? Any visible differences in the rims? Hornady brass is not know for being the best quality stuff out there.
What I would suggest is taking your fired brass, or if you want to go outside and do it with loaded ammo you can, and run it all through the chamber, checking extraction on all of it. See if those two particular pieces of brass have a similar issue, or if any others do. If you can narrow it down to particular pieces of brass, then it is a brass issue. If it is random, then I would say the extractor spring should get replaced, or you may need to tweak it for function.

Good point on the primer strike. I’ll take a piece of 1x and throw it in there and try to recreate that. The first one I couldn’t get to extract with a few tries then it did extract on the first dry fire. Maybe just coincidence though as it’s a sample of one.


Brass fell out no problem with the rod, was barely stuck. Other brass looks fine. No heavy bolt lift.

 

[TX_Diver]

My 6 arc tikka did not shoot factory 108s well either while 108 hand loads shot really well.

As far as failure to extract could it be that the headspace is a little long and after firing the shoulder of the case is not “pushing” the brass back enough to be grabbed then extracted?

That’s a bummer… cheap factory ammo that the kids could hunt with was half the point of this. The second 10 round group was shaping up better so we’ll see what happens once everything is up and running

 

[waspocrew]

Agreed with the above - the primer looks that way since it was struck at least twice.

Regarding accuracy, etc: I wouldn't give up on the factory ammo until you have about 100 rounds down the barrel. You may find it actually works well once broken in.

 

[HandgunHTR]

Good point on the primer strike. I’ll take a piece of 1x and throw it in there and try to recreate that. The first one I couldn’t get to extract with a few tries then it did extract on the first dry fire. Maybe just coincidence though as it’s a sample of one.


Brass fell out no problem with the rod, was barely stuck. Other brass looks fine. No heavy bolt lift.

Then it is most likely an extractor spring issue or an issue with the extractor itself. Did the smith that opened your bolt up mess with the extractor at all? If he tried to open it up as well, he may have taken a bit too much off of it. Taking it out, replacing the spring, and bending the extractor ever so slightly inward should fix your issue. If you don't feel comfortable doing that yourself, taking it back to your smith and describing what is happening should give him enough to go on so he can fix it.

 

[TX_Diver]

Loaded a piece of 1x brass and was able to recreate the primer issue.

Any issue shooting at the range til I chat with the gunsmith next week? Would like to shoot a few more groups and see what happens.

unless the ejector is a DIY fix?

 

[Lawnboi]

Tikka uses the same extractor for every bolt face. Unless your smith changed it. Lumley sells kits at a semi affordable price, worth a shot to try a new extractor. Also worth it to have one laying around in the event one breaks.

Measuring brass growth will quickly sort if it’s a headspace problem. If the brass isn’t growing too much and it’s just an extractor I’d shoot it more.

 

[TX_Diver]

Tikka uses the same extractor for every bolt face. Unless your smith changed it. Lumley sells kits at a semi affordable price, worth a shot to try a new extractor. Also worth it to have one laying around in the event one breaks.

Measuring brass growth will quickly sort if it’s a headspace problem. If the brass isn’t growing too much and it’s just an extractor I’d shoot it more.

Growth being length?

I just have factory loaded ammo and 1x brass? Any reliable way to measure brass length on the factory ammo?

 

[Lawnboi]

Growth being length?

I just have factory loaded ammo and 1x brass? Any reliable way to measure brass length on the factory ammo?

Comparing virgin to fired with a headspace comparator. If that’s out of your wheelhouse I’d let your gunsmith look at it first

 

[TX_Diver]

Comparing virgin to fired with a headspace comparator. If that’s out of your wheelhouse I’d let your gunsmith look at it first

Measured 10 of each.

10 virgin.
First one I grabbed was 0
6 - 0
2 +.001
2 +.002

10 1x based on 0
5 +.0045
2 +.005
2 +.0055
1 +.006

I measured the 2 that didn’t extract and they were both +.003

 

[HandgunHTR]

unless the ejector is a DIY fix?

It is the extractor you want to tweak. The ejector is the little rod that sticks out of the bolt face that pushes on the back of the brass to "fling" it out of the action when the bolt is pulled all the way back.
The extractor is the little bar that is on the side of the bolt that grabs the rim of the brass and allows the bolt to pull it back out of the chamber.

The tweak that may need to be done is performed by removing the extractor from the bolt, putting it in a non-marring vise and then bending it ever so slightly inward. This will ensure that it is grabbing the rim of the brass every time.

This can be a DYI fix, but if you are not very mechanically inclined it may be best left to your gunsmith. If you bend the extractor too much, it could break or be bent too much that it won't go over the rim anymore, preventing your bolt from closing on a round in the chamber.

 

[Lawnboi]

Measured 10 of each.

10 virgin.
First one I grabbed was 0
6 - 0
2 +.001
2 +.002

10 1x based on 0
5 +.0045
2 +.005
2 +.0055
1 +.006

I measured the 2 that didn’t extract and they were both +.003

That’s not all that bad. I’d try a new extractor