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Do I need to repair my bolt face?

YotaEer

Montani Semper Liberi
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Full Member
Minuteman
Nov 3, 2019
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Pittsburgh
Recently had a primer blow out badly and looks like the bolt face is now damaged.

Do I need to get this repaired or replace my bolt entirely?

I will be reducing my powder charge, rework seating depth etc regardless
 

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I would probably only shoot that bolt another 100-150 thousand times with the face cut like that.

So you’re saying it’s not a problem?

I’m about to switch barrels on this tikka and worried this will impact head spacing.

I’m still fairly new to all of this so I’m genuinely trying to understand what I need to do here.
 
So you’re saying it’s not a problem?

I’m about to switch barrels on this tikka and worried this will impact head spacing.

I’m still fairly new to all of this so I’m genuinely trying to understand what I need to do here.
Not going to affect headspace. As someone else mentioned. It looks like you’ve had leaky primers for a long time. Picture is blurry though.
 
Not going to affect headspace. As someone else mentioned. It looks like you’ve had leaky primers for a long time. Picture is blurry though.

Yes they may have been leaking but haven’t had any pierced primers except for one recently.

Main reason I’m switching barrels back to a stock tikka is the pressure issues I’ve experienced
 
I’d suggest paying more attention to the reloads and how to read pressure. That bolt looks like it’s been gassed quite a bit.

I’d also Chuck that brass.

Thanks for the advice. I’ve chucked all brass that had any black rings, even if primers weren’t blown.
 
Yes they may have been leaking but haven’t had any pierced primers except for one recently.

Main reason I’m switching barrels back to a stock tikka is the pressure issues I’ve experienced
Those issues tend to get worse after you pierce one. check the tip of your firing pin, it is probably etched too.
 
You mind elaborating on what the barrel is as well as the load you were running?
 
depending on how etched, it might leave marks in the headstamp of the brass that can effect reloading headspace. other than that I would shoot it as is, maybe take a little sand cloth to smooth it out. its not a safety concern.

On a side note, my 18" CM is guaranteed to pierce primers anywhere near 2700. 2550 is my high end for 18".
 
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That's really fast for that load and it's really not that hot of a load either. I use about the same components except for Wolf primers and the load have been around 41.7-42.5gr of H4350 with the ELDMs. For perspective, my last barrel was a 20" running 41.7gr of H4350 and it was going around 2705FPS.
 
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That's really fast for that load and it's really not that hot of a load either. I use about the same components except for Wolf primers and the load have been around 41.7-42.5gr of H4350 with the ELDMs. For perspective, my last barrel was a 20" running 41.7gr of H4350 and it was going around 2705FPS.

My thoughts exactly. Previous barrel was a 20” PVA and 41.5gr with same components listed above got me 2710. Shot that barrel out over 2500 rounds with no issues.
 
My thoughts exactly. Previous barrel was a 20” PVA and 41.5gr with same components listed above got me 2710. Shot that barrel out over 2500 rounds with no issues.
The velocity was telling you something in the 18” barrel. You should have been loading at 39-39.5 area and low 2600 fps range.
 
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The velocity was telling you something in the 18” barrel. You should have been loading at 39-39.5 area and low 2600 fps range.

Lesson learned. Thank you to everyone who chimed in.

I’ve already found a replacement bolt from another member. Will use that to headspace the “new” barrel to be safe.
 
Is the 18” barrel toast?

No, it only has about 480 round on it. Still shoots fine and I’m in the process of giving it a deep clean.

Plan to put it on the PX once I have it off. It’s just too erratic compared to the steel barrels I’ve tried previously. It sped up 150 fps and I’ve continually backed down the charge. Just had enough.

Would be perfect for a low volume gun.
 
So you’re saying it’s not a problem?

I’m about to switch barrels on this tikka and worried this will impact head spacing.

I’m still fairly new to all of this so I’m genuinely trying to understand what I need to do here.
Absolutely, not a problem.

If the jetting doesn’t stand proud of the boltface, it doesn’t matter. If it does, sand it down.

  • Check your brass- discard, if necessary.
  • Lower your load moving forward.
  • Also moving forward, pay attention to pressure signs, this has gone on a while.
 
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Does Greg Tannel do bushing jobs on Tikkas? If he did that would be a win (you'd have a good spare and the price used to be pretty good). At least you'd have a spare bolt. It also would make your firing pin a more snug fit.
 
WLR primers had a problem several years ago. Notably when they went from the chrome plated version to the brass ones. I etched the crap out of my 6.5 Remington Magnum at a match before I realized the problem. This batch would pop with mild loads. I wound up pulling and throwing away several hundred.
 
I've since pulled the carbon six barrel. Put on a lightly used CTR barrel as a backup for summer/fall and have had no problems with 42.1 gr of H4350. Same WLR and brass. Velocity is around 2685 this summer.

something was goofy with that C6 barrel. I won't get another one. Lessons learned all around.
 
I've since pulled the carbon six barrel. Put on a lightly used CTR barrel as a backup for summer/fall and have had no problems with 42.1 gr of H4350. Same WLR and brass. Velocity is around 2685 this summer.

something was goofy with that C6 barrel. I won't get another one. Lessons learned all around.
I hope I have better luck with it and the Peterson brass I run. I will start low and work up with Rl16 in it. It will strictly be a deer season barrel for me.
 
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