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Cartridge expansion
neacpa
Member Posts: 2,702 ✭✭✭
A friend of mine has a Browning ABolt 7 rem mag. Couple of weeks ago he shot it and could not get bolt to slide back to eject empty cartridge. The bolt would move up to open, but not slide back. He asked me if I could get it out, so I lightly tapped on it with a rubber mallet and it popped back. I cleaned the rifle for him, returned to him and told him to get another box of ammo to shoot. All factory ammo.
He tells me today that he shot it to make sure scope was still on and it did the same thing, so he tapped on the bolt handle and it slid back. The cartridges load into chamber just fine and bolt will slide back and eject just fine with a loaded cartridge.
Any ideas on what may be causing cartridges to expand?
He tells me today that he shot it to make sure scope was still on and it did the same thing, so he tapped on the bolt handle and it slid back. The cartridges load into chamber just fine and bolt will slide back and eject just fine with a loaded cartridge.
Any ideas on what may be causing cartridges to expand?
This discussion has been closed.
Comments
There could be other issues, such as bolt set back from a way to hot load. Is this a new rifle or a used one? When you cleaned it, you used a good fitting chamber brush, not just patches in the bore.
Have him get hold of a different brand of factory ammo, to see if the problem persists. If it does? Follow Charlie's advice, about through cleaning and inspecting bolt and chamber.
The first thing you have to establish is if this is a new rifle or he has used it before?
If it's new, the chamber needs to be inspected carefully and adjusted or polished. This should be handled by a gunsmith with a borescope and proper gauges. If he has fired it before with no incident, you need to discover what has changed since the last fully functioning extraction then fix that.
Sitting here guessing on the internet only gets you a list of possible suggestions. Take it to your gunsmith to to get it debugged.
Best.
On a side note, I'd also check the chamber for any brass left there as well. I had a rifle years ago that was hard to get into battery. The last 1/2" of bolt turn was real difficult. Turned out, somewhere along the way, a small complete ring (but just a sliver) was in the chamber basically near the end of the brass itself. It took a good light to illuminate from the muzzle, a mirror for reflection, and a camera so I could zoom in to find the problem.
If in question after checking all the suggestions here and trying different ammo, I would recommend a gunsmith as well. I hate to, because to me it feels like I concede defeat when I go to one. But, if it turns out the brass is swelling that much it could be the sign of a much bigger problem such as head space issues.
Why? Because you think you should have the answer to every problem which may occur with a firearms?
Do you solve your own dental problems and avoid the dentist?
If your child is sick or hurt, do you avoid the hospital and try to cure them yourself?
Using an expert who has more knowledge, experience, and expertise is not admitting defeat, it's exercising intelligence on how to handle a situation beyond your experience.
Best.
Something to look at is a rifle that has been fired a lot may burn a slight groove in the chamber, normally very near (slightly in front of) where the bullet meets the case. A case slightly longer than what has previously been fired my expand into this groove. Just an idea if normal causes aren't found like a pitted, dirty or fouled chamber.
Maybe check the case length with a micrometer and compare it to another case from a different manufacturer or even a different batch number.
Valid points. I am just one of those guys that if I have something in my hands, I can almost always figure it out. Granted, there are a few things I would not do regarding firearms, adjusting timing on revolvers for instance. Sometimes I figure out the problem, but still take it in. I used to do all my own mechanic work too but with a very bad back, I have had to pawn most of it off. I almost always have it diagnosed before taking it in through. I do go to the dentist, but maybe just because I can't see in there very well. LOL I do my own podiatry stuff though including pulling ingrown toenails.
No kids to worry about. These are my babies.