Pressure Issues Causing Bolt Damage

[bsween8]

Loading ammo the same way for 3 of 4 different rifles is far less than ideal but should not create an overpressure condition with full length resizing to SAMMI specs and reasonable loads and SAMMI COAL. It should be like buying factory loads that can be used in any rifle.

One possibility is that some foreign material was still in the barrel after the cleaning process. Have you scoped the bore?

This load is just for this specific rifle. The bore was clear after cleaning.

 

[bsween8]

I ran the load through quickload. It’s saying 2850fps at 47350psi. Doesn’t seem too hot. 92% fill on the case. I would be suspect of those primers. Any chance they are pistol primers, not rifle?

We also do not believe this load is too hot and have been using the same load for a while with this gun. We are also skeptical of the primers, but they are definitely large rifle primers.

 

[ResearchinStuff]

It's the primers. 100%. Bad lots happen, often with Winchester, occasional with federal, and apparently sometimes with Remington. I've had this exact thing happen, the solution was to trash that lot and use different primers.

 

[kevlar88]

Not in this same exact load, but a very similar one using the same powder and grains, same bullets, but with brand new Hornady brass and CCI primers. We did not have the same issue with this load.

With the pressure being somewhere in the neighborhood of 47k, there is no way that a lot to lot variance in the powder is causing this issue. Potentially if you were already in the 64k range and picked up a different lot # you could see an issue but that's not the case here.

 

[kevlar88]

It's the primers. 100%. Bad lots happen, often with Winchester, occasional with federal, and apparently sometimes with Remington. I've had this exact thing happen, the solution was to trash that lot and use different primers.

Agreed. As hard as primers are to come by these days I'd at least test in a different rifle to confirm before I tossed them into a campfire.

 

[gman82001]

Agreed. As hard as primers are to come by these days I'd at least test in a different rifle to confirm before I tossed them into a campfire.

It's the primers. 100%. Bad lots happen, often with Winchester, occasional with federal, and apparently sometimes with Remington. I've had this exact thing happen, the solution was to trash that lot and use different primers.

Are you 100% sure it’s a Remington primer? I just had the same thing happen when I was shooting my Christensen mpr 308. a couple weeks ago started researching and it was a know issues with quite a few lots of Winchester lrp from 10 years os so ago.

My load is 44gr varget 168 eldx in brand new prime brass

Once I saw that I went and looked and sure as hell my Bergera 243 bolt and my scar 17 bolt all have some pitting now. I shit canned all the lots of primers that I found had been compiled on any old posts I could find online.
I will not buy anymore Winchester primers too much money in rifles to be jacking around with junk primers

 

[bsween8]

Agreed. As hard as primers are to come by these days I'd at least test in a different rifle to confirm before I tossed them into a campfire.

Are you 100% sure it’s a Remington primer? I just had the same thing happen when I was shooting my Christensen mpr 308. a couple weeks ago started researching and it was a know issues with quite a few lots of Winchester lrp from 10 years os so ago.

My load is 44gr varget 168 eldx in brand new prime brass

Once I saw that I went and looked and sure as hell my Bergera 243 bolt and my scar 17 bolt all have some pitting now. I shit canned all the lots of primers that I found had been compiled on any old posts I could find online.
I will not buy anymore Winchester primers too much money in rifles to be jacking around with junk primers

Yes, 100% sure they are Remington primers. I contacted their customer service today, but I am waiting to hear back.

Did you do anything with the damage to any of your bolts or see any negative effects from the damage? Are you still shooting the guns with the bolts damaged?

Thanks.

 

[ResearchinStuff]

Op said rem. I've seen it with federal first hand and read it about winchester

 

[gman82001]

Yes, 100% sure they are Remington primers. I contacted their customer service today, but I am waiting to hear back.

Did you do anything with the damage to any of your bolts or see any negative effects from the damage? Are you still shooting the guns with the bolts damaged?

Thanks.

I’ve sent emails to Christensen and Bergera I know fn will tell me to pound sand because I’ve ran the scar suppressed so they don’t care about what happens at that point lol.

I honestly didn’t even notice the Bergera until after I saw what was happening to the Christensen I went to my bucket of fired brass and saw the primers had done the same thing so I dug the rifle out and sure enough and I know they were the same pack of primers because I was doing work up for both rifles this winter.

None are any worse really than yours I just have a couple more pits in the CA because I was shooting and felt something hit me in the face and was looking around as I ejected the brass and saw the primer scorched otherwise I wouldn’t of noticed till I started brass prep to reload those few

 

[bsween8]

Thanks everyone for all of the feedback!

 

[A382DWDZQ]

You said you chambered the round, ejected it, and then rechambered it? When it ejected, did it go into your hand or on the bench or ground? Was the round inspected before rechambering?

 

[bsween8]

You said you chambered the round, ejected it, and then rechambered it? When it ejected, did it go into your hand or on the bench or ground? Was the round inspected before rechambering?

It ejected into my hand and was checked before rechambering.

 

[Laelkhunter]

I might have missed it, but was this the only round fired? Did any other rounds fired at the same time show the primer problem or was this the only one?

 

[Maidenfan539]

I have had the same issue with Winchester Magnum primers in a 6.5PRC. The brass was once fired (same rifle) hornady brass. Was waiting on the Lapua brass to arrive and was doing a break in procedure. The second I pressed the trigger I had a small blast of gas in my face. Ditched the primers and switched to CCI's.

 

[long hunter]

Sure, they weren't magnum primers.

 

[bsween8]

For anyone wondering, I heard back from Remington. They have recommending disposing of these primers.

We reloaded a similar load, using the same powder and bullet, but different primers and brass and did not have any issues and the gun is shooting as good as ever.

Thanks again to everyone that provide feedback.