Coating or smithing advice to slick up a worn out action.

[McNamara0851]

I bought a used LH Stiller TAC30 last year and had it built into a 6XC. The more I shoot my defiance and run other people's guns the more I realize that the Stiller runs like shit. It binds something terrible, making it nearly inoperable on positional stages where you can't run the bolt completely square. I'm looking for a solution to this problem. The gun shoots extremely well so I would rather fix it than sell it off. It is not currently coated with anything. I don't expect to get it to run like a new $1500 action, but I'd like to get it running like a normal un-dicked used action. What are my options? Any input is appreciated.


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[padom]

Send it off to be polished and DLC coated and it will be slick as snot. It's not coated?? Every Stiller TAC30 I've owned and The ones my buddies have are all salt bath nitrided (melonite) from the factory and had zero operational issues. There site and www.bugholes.com says all actions are salt bath nitrided...

why wasn't yours?

 

[McNamara0851]

I should rephrase that. I haven't tried coating it with anything and the barreled action hasn't been cerakoted. The bolt body and the inside of the action look like someone attempted to polish them, but never recoated them.


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[308pirate]

The black color that is a by product of salt bath nitriding wears off. The surface hardening that is the point of salt bath nitriding does not just wear off with normal use and is there regardless of whether the black residual color has worn away.

Salt bath nitriding (or any other form of nitriding) is not a coating.

If your bolt is so loose that it binds up hard, DLC and other surface coatings are just lipstick on a pig.

I suppose a good machinist could EDM an insert for inside the rear bridge, heat/freeze shrink it in there then fit it up to the bolt to take away radial slop. But I cringe at what that would cost.

 

[jetmd]

Have you called Stiller and discussed your dilemma? That would be my first action to take.

Typically they are responsive to customer service and/or issues with their actions.

 

[padom]

Yea never heard of any of these issues with Stiller TAC30's and Ive had a bunch and seen a bunch.

 

[kthomas]

Sell it and get a different action. At this rate, I doubt you will be satisfied with the Stiller no matter what you do with it. I haven't been impressed with any of the Stiller actions I've handled.

 

[McNamara0851]

Have you called Stiller and discussed your dilemma? That would be my first action to take.

Typically they are responsive to customer service and/or issues with their actions.

I thought about it, but figured it would be like calling GM to gripe about a pickup that needs a tuneup because it has 200,000 miles. Also, I'm the not the original owner so I figured I'll be paying for whatever service I get. I will call them after the holidays before I send it off, but I don't expect them to do much, mainly because I don't consider it to be a manufacturers defect as much as just plain old wear.

I see some people claim coating is a waste of time and money. Has anyone had a similar action DLCd with great success? If so, who would you recommend doing the coating?




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[McNamara0851]

Sell it and get a different action. At this rate, I doubt you will be satisfied with the Stiller no matter what you do with it. I haven't been impressed with any of the Stiller actions I've handled.

I'm sure I will regret not taking this advice in the near future, but I like the gun the way it is enough to put up with a little grief.


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[Sheldon N]

Lame advice but it's free so take it for what it's worth. This has been my approach to getting actions smoother, have done it with a Stiller and others before.

Clean the action spotless with dry patches,then apply a nice thin coat of grease on the bolt, raceways, lugs, basically any friction surface. Then cycle the crap out of it. Find the spots that feel like they catch and drag and work the bolt back and forth through them a bunch. Basically trying to wear off all the sharp edges and polish the surfaces that matter most. Then combine that with cycling and dry firing the gun in the positions you'll shoot from. That helps not only wearing off the rough spots in the action but also in building muscle memory that steers you clear from them.

Cleaning and greasing alone makes a pretty noticeable difference in my experience, but my Stiller never got super slick like my Defiance or Bighorn.

 

[NWnewguy]

Let me know if you get ahold of someone from Stiller. I'd call it a Christmas miracle if you do. I've been politely and patiently trying to get someone there for over a month and haven't had any luck. It's a really annoying issue I'm having with a $1350 rimfire action but I'd rather not air the details until I either get resolution or just give up!

 

[McNamara0851]

I spoke with Dale and Russ and will be shipping them the barreled action so they can diagnose the issue.


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[jetmd]

^^^^ Best answer ^^^^

 

[Tazman308]

I look forward to hearing more. I have a Tac 30 in my 308. I have 3000 rounds through a Begara barrel. Rifle shoots perfect and I love shooting it but lately the action has become increasingly hard to cycle without breaking my shooting position. I cleaned the snot out of it and lubed it up, cycling the action about 100 times. I then removed all the excessive lube and cycled it more. Seems better but not perfect. I usually use a small amount of Breakfree CLP on the locking lugs and any shines areas. Maybe that is the problem? What do others do?

 

[Xander3Zero]

I look forward to hearing more. I have a Tac 30 in my 308. I have 3000 rounds through a Begara barrel. Rifle shoots perfect and I love shooting it but lately the action has become increasingly hard to cycle without breaking my shooting position. I cleaned the snot out of it and lubed it up, cycling the action about 100 times. I then removed all the excessive lube and cycled it more. Seems better but not perfect. I usually use a small amount of Breakfree CLP on the locking lugs and any shines areas. Maybe that is the problem? What do others do?

What I do is clean/wipe the entire bolt down. Apply a very light coat of oil to the bolt body, and apply a little bit of a heavier grease (like Mil Comm TW25B) to the rear faces of the locking lugs and also the cam surface of the bolt. It also helps to remove the firing pin assembly and clean that as well, then apply some of the TW25B to the threads of the firing pin assembly and the cocking piece/ramp. I think this is the preferred method; as you want a nice grease on the rear face of the lugs and other high pressure contact surfaces, but just a very thin film of oil on the rest of the bolt. Too much oil or grease on the bolt will only attract more dirt and debris.

Edit: I guess its worth noting that the above is more of a general bolt maintenance guideline, and probably won't cure the issues your having with your action if it is really binding up that badly.

 

[Gray Squirrel]

I have handled/shot a bolt gun that had the bolt Cerakoted with their Micro Slick coating. It was a custom job built on a Remington 700 action. It was probably the smoothest action I have ever worked. I just kept cycling the action because of how smooth it was. To my understanding, Cerakote designed that coating to basically be a permanent dry lube.