Same here, quickly becoming my favorite of the four I’ve owned and I never thought anything would top my AT-LE.
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And just like that I’m on the hunt for a axsa again
Ok... anyone who has an AXSA can you take off the little plastic handguard and take a side profile picture. Then with a depth micrometer see how deep the screws are and show it on the outside of the bolt hole? I'm trying to see if I can mill some of that BS out
I will say I did not expect the bolt on a $6,000 rifle to sound like a Ruger American 
. AT is so much smoother feeling @250 rounds on it. Bolt lift (off feel alone) goes to the XC though IMO.
. AT is so much smoother feeling @250 rounds on it. Bolt lift (off feel alone) goes to the XC though IMO.It gets better and I personally don't understand the desire to have a slicker than goose shit bolt like so many desire. You run an AI in an agricultural way, it becomes second nature and you don't think twice about it after a few hundred rounds. You'll like that larger bolt handle too.
I haven't had an AT side by side to the XC to do a direct comparison and I sold my AT-LE a few years back so I am operating off of old memories but I don't recall it being all that different. The other advancements in the chassis mean a lot more to me than the bolt feel but I realize I might be in the minority there.
You’re absolutely right about the chassis improvements among others as well. Since my scopes aren’t here I couldn’t shoot them and was just cycling them trying to figure out the best way to manipulate the bolts and such. I’ve been running 2 lug 90 degrees both impact and lone peak for so long was just curious as to the “feel”.
My new AT doesn't feel great either.
After a bit of dry fire and grease it feels OK but still feels considerably worse than my Tikkas.
I watch videos if guys running AI bolts and wonder how that could be possible with the rifle in current form.
What year? If I tip my 2014 AT’s forward with the bolt open the round chambers itself
23 is written on the action, was told it was from the last run of rifles (2024).
Bolt binds a little when pushing forward, amd bolt lift is pretty damn heavy.
It is improving with dry fire though, still haven't shot it yet.
My 2014s are stupid smooth. And yeah, it does matter when the rifle is 4K.
I don’t know about all that.
My OG Atx bolt throw is halfway rough / sticky.
The second one I bought is only 2 serial numbers away. And it is much much smoother. It only has a few hundreds rounds on it
What do I need to do to the high round count one to smooth it up.
I don’t know what AI did to the AT-X and newer series but not being smooth was never a complaint about AI rifles before the AT-X was released.
Having a heavier than 90deg action bolt lift was an often seen comment from new AI owners but not that the action wasn’t smooth.
Having a heavier than 90deg action bolt lift was an often seen comment from new AI owners but not that the action wasn’t smooth.
It's almost as if a rifle originally designed to be used by the military via rapid bolt manipulation under life or death conditions didn't consider smoothness as a primary requirement.
Snark intended.
-Stan
P.S. My 2024 AT is smooth as hell.
Snark intended.
-Stan
P.S. My 2024 AT is smooth as hell.
What solvents are safe to use on bolt and action
Cause my one is gummy af feels like a rpr
I'm probably the wrong dude to ask but I use anything I'm cleaning my gun with and have on the bench at the time. Hoppes, clp, eliminator, brake cleaner (bolt only). Not sure anything will hurt the finish, the only 2 things I worry about is using something that will break down the epoxy bonding the action or the plastic skins.
What helps if you need a deep clean is pulling the barrel and going to harbor freight and getting the assortment of cotton swabs on the sticks. There are sizes that perfectly fit in the action and inside the bolt. I soak those and go to town on the parts.
Just sell that gun; you’ve never been happy with the way it feels.
You’re talking about the two bolts that hold this plate on?
I’ll definitely send you pics of my holes, but I don’t have a way to measure their depth at the moment.
No clue, can honestly say I've never had one feel rough or sticky. Have you ever tried a dry film lube on the bolt body?
Yes that I beam piece that plate is bolted to. I'm wondering if I could mill that I beam down to almost nothing.
I wondered how long it would take any of y’all to pick up on that! Was beginning to get concerned when nobody here thought that was weird…
In the AI thread here all my weird needle did was shiver....
Might even break out some epoxy too!
Compared to my SRS A1 I can't complain about any AI bolt.
Yeah man, compared to herpes I can’t complain about the flu.
Might have been answered before - but what’s the key difference which makes say, the Sako TRG bolt lifts soooooo smooth compared to those on AIs?
Along the same lines - what makes the Sauer STR 200’s bolt so Stangskyting smooth?
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@Edsel trg bolt lift really is easier to lift. The bolt though i wouldn't say it's smoother, it's different though. The TRG feels like gliding velvet, smooth as butter but not slick. The AI is like sliding ice on glass.
I've always liked factory remingtons though so maybe my opinion doesn't mean much.
I've always liked factory remingtons though so maybe my opinion doesn't mean much.
I measured the difference on my AT-X and TRG A1 bolt lifts with a trigger pull gage. The AI was 11.5lbs, and the TRG was just over 9. Obviously other models of the AI would narrow this gap.
I don't notice any advantage one way or another over the rest of the cycle, but they do feel and sound different enough that you could tell them apart blindfolded.
Where the TRG is crazy slick though is in feeding the next round (my sample of 1). My first few mags I had to keep checking to see that I actually picked up a cartridge and didn't go bolt over. It is easily the smoothest rifle that I own in that regard.
The AI has several advantages though that make it a step above IMO...but I'm still glad that I have my Sako too.
I don't notice any advantage one way or another over the rest of the cycle, but they do feel and sound different enough that you could tell them apart blindfolded.
Where the TRG is crazy slick though is in feeding the next round (my sample of 1). My first few mags I had to keep checking to see that I actually picked up a cartridge and didn't go bolt over. It is easily the smoothest rifle that I own in that regard.
The AI has several advantages though that make it a step above IMO...but I'm still glad that I have my Sako too.
@diggler1833 100% agree on feeding. If it's quiet I can hear the rounds strip from the mag but if not it's really hard to tell if you got a round or you are empty. I can't think of another gun I've ever owned that feeds that smooth.
My old 2014 AT that belonged to my SS friend is so unbelievably slick that I would stick it up against almost anything. You almost don't feel the weight of the bolt lift but that is because it is so smooth, not because the bolt lift is light.
Does anyone know what the purpose of this is? I have gone through one of my maintenance manuals and in the exploded diagram, it doesn't seem to have any particular function, yet in the bolt disassembly instructions, you are instructed to depress this when removing the FP+shroud assembly, even though you can do this without pushing the thingy in.
Generic picture below, but FWIW I have an AW bolt and there are no notches for this location pin to slot into.
Generic picture below, but FWIW I have an AW bolt and there are no notches for this location pin to slot into.
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That's what I gathered from some videos I just watched. I can disassemble my bolts without pressing that at all. To me it just seemed like another spring making it harder to close the bolt. Weird.
Wanted to run a barrel contour question by you guys. Anyone ever put a #5 contour on their AI?
Background:
This will be a coyote and pdog barrel (22-250, I don’t reload), so with coyotes that means a bit of walking. I could go with a lighter #5 contour or a M24/M40. Going 20”-ish, so not sure how much weight I’d save at that length.
@Frank Green implies the M24/M40 is either identical or quite close to the current so-called “2018” contour. I might be reading too much into his statement.
But I don’t have a feel for the #5. Never seen one, or if I did I didn’t know it at the time.
I do know that the 20” factory 308 that came on the rifle definitely has a slimmer contour than the 6br prefit I bought from Mile High.
Thanks for your help.
Background:
This will be a coyote and pdog barrel (22-250, I don’t reload), so with coyotes that means a bit of walking. I could go with a lighter #5 contour or a M24/M40. Going 20”-ish, so not sure how much weight I’d save at that length.
@Frank Green implies the M24/M40 is either identical or quite close to the current so-called “2018” contour. I might be reading too much into his statement.
But I don’t have a feel for the #5. Never seen one, or if I did I didn’t know it at the time.
I do know that the 20” factory 308 that came on the rifle definitely has a slimmer contour than the 6br prefit I bought from Mile High.
Thanks for your help.
I don't think you would be saving a whole lot of weight between a 5 and m24 at 20". Not enough to notice at least. A medium or heavy palma would cut (estimating) a good 1lb off the setup but still leave a lot of meat by the chamber and throat.
