wapitiaddict
Well-Known Member
I have a Ruger Predator in 6.5 creedmoor. I run a suppressor. Shooting factory Hornady Hunter Precision 143gr eldx. Shooting temperature is 75 degrees.
I started getting heavy bolt lift shooting my rifle last fall. Coincidentally, it actually seemed to be worse the colder it was. That didn't seem to make sense. I probably should have worried more about it than I did, because I just kept on shooting it and dealt with the sticky bolt. Although, it wouldn't do it every time.
Fast forward to today, I decided to do something about it. I realized I hadn't cleaned it for a while...but groups still seemed to be good and I hadn't noticed any performance issues. However knowing that suppressors create even more fouling, I figured it was well past time to clean it and maybe that was causing the excessive pressure. Also, I know suppressors can cause pressure issues, but I just kept on forgetting to test fire it without the suppressor. So yesterday I cleaned up the rifle real well, left the suppressor off, and then stepped out back to give it a test fire to see if the heavy bolt lift resolved itself. However - to the contrary...the heavy bolt lift was even worse. This time I almost didn't think I would be able to get the bolt open. Also, when I would lift the bolt handle up it would give a "click at the top" where it would click back down at the top of the lifting stroke if I let off pressure. (By the way, I didn't realize this was a thing until I just google what I was experiencing.) Could this indicate a headspace issue?
One other thing that I've noticed, I've got a small nick in the metal on the corner edge of the breach/chamber where the case goes in (sorry, don't know the best terminology of how to explain it). Maybe its from a round that didn't go in straight and was jammed or got caught against this edge and created a nick. Also, my brass has a scrape line that goes all the way around it about 2/3 up from the case head (1/3 way down from the mouth). Is that normal?
What else could be going on? Ironically, I haven't tried a different ammo since I always just kind of dealt with the sticky bolt thinking it was just the suppressor, and I didn't notice any accuracy performance issues. I'm going to go buy a box of different stuff and see if that helps. But just was wondering if anyone had any other ideas.
I started getting heavy bolt lift shooting my rifle last fall. Coincidentally, it actually seemed to be worse the colder it was. That didn't seem to make sense. I probably should have worried more about it than I did, because I just kept on shooting it and dealt with the sticky bolt. Although, it wouldn't do it every time.
Fast forward to today, I decided to do something about it. I realized I hadn't cleaned it for a while...but groups still seemed to be good and I hadn't noticed any performance issues. However knowing that suppressors create even more fouling, I figured it was well past time to clean it and maybe that was causing the excessive pressure. Also, I know suppressors can cause pressure issues, but I just kept on forgetting to test fire it without the suppressor. So yesterday I cleaned up the rifle real well, left the suppressor off, and then stepped out back to give it a test fire to see if the heavy bolt lift resolved itself. However - to the contrary...the heavy bolt lift was even worse. This time I almost didn't think I would be able to get the bolt open. Also, when I would lift the bolt handle up it would give a "click at the top" where it would click back down at the top of the lifting stroke if I let off pressure. (By the way, I didn't realize this was a thing until I just google what I was experiencing.) Could this indicate a headspace issue?
One other thing that I've noticed, I've got a small nick in the metal on the corner edge of the breach/chamber where the case goes in (sorry, don't know the best terminology of how to explain it). Maybe its from a round that didn't go in straight and was jammed or got caught against this edge and created a nick. Also, my brass has a scrape line that goes all the way around it about 2/3 up from the case head (1/3 way down from the mouth). Is that normal?
What else could be going on? Ironically, I haven't tried a different ammo since I always just kind of dealt with the sticky bolt thinking it was just the suppressor, and I didn't notice any accuracy performance issues. I'm going to go buy a box of different stuff and see if that helps. But just was wondering if anyone had any other ideas.
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