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Desert Tech reliability?

deersniper

Protecting the Sheep
Banned !
Minuteman
  • Feb 22, 2007
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    19,922
    Northeast
    How have the srs a1s been in terms of reliability?

    Any problems with the trigger or with the firing pin freezing up in cold weather?

    I know if you don’t run the bolt right you can have misdeeds/ empty’s back in the port etc.

    Thanks.
     
    I've run a DT since the A1's first came out. The only problem I ever had was the ejector spring getting cooked when a primer pocket let go and let hot gas out, and it lost it's spring force. I've run thousands of rounds of 338 Lapua and 6.5 Creed through the same gun in rain, sun and snow even swapping barrels at the range. It's been an extremely reliable rifle for me.
     
    No experience in the cold, but my A1 has had no issues running several different chamberings over the last 5 or so years. Generally, the only caveat to that is that it doesn't seem to like to be single fed, but if I run the rounds out of the magazine like you're supposed to, I haven't had any problems.
     
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    Been shooting an A-1 since they first came out. I have six conversions for it and between them have put about 4000 rounds through it. No issues what so ever. Feeds and ejects just fine. Trigger has been 100% reliable. I've shot it in sub freezing weather dozens of times with no issues. The rifle still looks and runs like new.
     
    Been shooting an A-1 since they first came out. I have six conversions for it and between them have put about 4000 rounds through it. No issues what so ever. Feeds and ejects just fine. Trigger has been 100% reliable. I've shot it in sub freezing weather dozens of times with no issues. The rifle still looks and runs like new.
    That is good to hear. I’m just starting to full commit the DTA A1 system this pass 6 months. Have not shot very much yet but will this month.
     
    Bought a used a1 covert here in the px from a member who put an unknown number through it and I myself have put over a thousand on the 16" 308 barrel, 150 or so on the 22" 308 and about a 100 rounds in the 18" 338lm. Best rifle I've ever owned, I love it!
     
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    Had one for years. Never had any issues! Hunted in 5 degree weather last year and shot nice 10 pt. No probs!
     
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    Superb rifle.
    Extremely reliable and efficient.
    I wouldn’t even hesitate to grab it in an emergency.
     
    I'm fully bought into the dt srs system...accurate and innovative.

    However, if you happen to eject a round that you have in the lands and get powder in the chamber, you will eventually have to take the full trigger and seer assembly out and clean. I've done it 3 times now bc I'm an idiot, and each time I've had to fish out powder from under the seer/linkage to allow the gun to work again. It's all fairly "open" in the mag well area, so I imagine the same thing could happen with sand or dirt.

    It's not a huge deal, but does require taking the whole rifle apart. I'm not sure I'd be willing to bet my life on the system because of that, but since I'm just a regular dude who goes to the range every once in a while, I don't really need to bet my life on it!
     
    How is DT’s accuracy vs. other higher end factory rifles? Namely AI

    B
     
    Accuracy is as good if not better .
    The system is inheritly accurate
    Accuracy is there, reliability is not. I have owned both. There is no platform I wanted to like more than the SRS. The truth is they can't figure their mags out. AI all the way...
     
    Accuracy is there, reliability is not. I have owned both. There is no platform I wanted to like more than the SRS. The truth is they can't figure their mags out. AI all the way...

    I'm not sure what your getting at ?
    Its a platform designed around 338 lap.
    Yeah I'd love a double stack mag , but it's not a deal breaker ? Many platforms running AICS single ...
    They feed and load fine , haven't had any issues with mine and around 8 mags .
    The newer Black ice coating ones are much better then the older style grey paint ones i will admit
     
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    I’ve been shooting DT since 2013 and have never had an issue. This includes late season hunts and even January cow elk hunts that we regularly see below zero temps.
     
    Never hand a single issue with my SRS A1. I have to be at or more than 10,000 rounds total on it shooting 223rem, 308win, 6.5CM and 338LM. Accuracy is better than I have ever experienced in any other rifle I have owned.
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    I'm not sure what your getting at ?
    Its a platform designed around 338 lap.
    Yeah I'd love a double stack mag , but it's not a deal breaker ? Many platforms running AICS single ...
    They feed and load fine , haven't had any issues with mine and around 8 mags .
    The newer Black ice coating ones are much better then the older style grey paint ones i will admit
    Not getting at anything, really. I’m glad to hear the newer mags (at least yours) are better than the old ones. I ran mine in competition for awhile, but gave up due to the unreliability of the mags in the moondust we have around here. I cycled through at least 8 different magazines with zero luck. Back then the 10 rounders were just a dream, which was also a disadvantage, but the magazine reliability was the deal breaker. Was a shame too, I really liked everything else.

    Also, I don’t believe I mentioned anything about single- vs double-stack...
     
    Not getting at anything, really. I’m glad to hear the newer mags (at least yours) are better than the old ones. I ran mine in competition for awhile, but gave up due to the unreliability of the mags in the moondust we have around here. I cycled through at least 8 different magazines with zero luck. Back then the 10 rounders were just a dream, which was also a disadvantage, but the magazine reliability was the deal breaker. Was a shame too, I really liked everything else.

    Also, I don’t believe I mentioned anything about single- vs double-stack...


    It was more the Get your mags sorted out thing " Ai all the way " which i thought you were referring to the double stack thing. All good but
     
    The magazine in my 6.5 creed conversion kit needed the lips cleaned up. It would visibly scratch the brass and took significant force to load. Haven't had an issue since that was straightened out. Need to run the bolt with authority...
     
    It was more the Get your mags sorted out thing " Ai all the way " which i thought you were referring to the double stack thing. All good but
    Yeah, "AI all the way" refers to overall reliability. Pretty widely recognized as being super reliable.
     
    I have a AI AEII it is a great rifle. I almost bought an AI AT but I wanted to shoot 6.5 CM and .300 PRC. The big advantage to DT SRS is you can switch between short and long action. DT has some foreign military contracts for the SRS A1 is my understanding. Both companies make a great product if I was jumping out of airplanes or being inserted by helo I would get the AI. But for the range and hunting, I like the versatility of the DT SRS.
     
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    Resurrecting a very old thread. My magnum magazine is having issues. Doesn’t insert hard anymore and it sags a bit now and won’t load unless I use my off hand to keep the mag pushed in.
    Anyone else have issue with this?
    It’s an older SRS A1 mag
     
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    Buddies have had feeding issues, trigger issues, and safety issues. That being said, once resolved I don't think any of them have had issues return apart from the magazine situation which is just a design compromise due to the modularity IMO. Those were early A2s I believe.
     
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    Pull the skins off and flip the spring loaded mag release on the right skin
    I’m still not following you. There is no up and down adjustment on these things. This is what @Kickin45 seems to need. As far as I can tell, there is no adjustment of any mind at all. Sure you can unscrew the spring loaded button a bit but I don’t think that would do anything.
     
    Did they do refinements to the S2 magazines, or is it the exact same roll over from the A1?
     
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    Had an A1 and now have an A2 and an HTI and all three have run pretty much perfectly. I was really skeptical about a bull pup rifle at first, but quickly changed my mind after getting some time on one.
     
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    I just received an SRS A1 brand new (lefty from desert tech) and after installing the barrel with bolt group, following instructions, etc, it seems like the firing pin is following when lowering the bolt handle. There’s an anemic click when pulling the trigger but when watching from the rear of the rifle, the square cutout on the back of the bolt rotates when dropping the bolt handle instead of staying stationary like my HTI does until the trigger is pulled. HTI has a familiar positive sound when pulling the trigger that the SRS does not. Haven’t tried firing as there’s not a range nearby and seems unsafe to load should the firing pin follow the bolt handle drop with enough force to activate the primer.

    Has anyone experienced a similar issue?