You ever do something stupid....

[Va_Gentleman]

Geez.... Fairly good with firearms... mounting bases,...30 years shooting, hunting, and fairly smart (i have been told) etc...

A 20 MOA base has different screw lengths for the back...did yall know that? (I await my beating.)

X-mas day, I got so excited, I did not take the time to go through my usual routine. Mounted my new base and scope on my 300mag. Yesterday went to the range and no go boom. Firing pin would not bust the primer.

Had to be something I did, I worked up some tape over spent shells and taking one step at a time..discovered that I had the longer screws up front (both of them.. I had a least a good chance of discovering at the time.. )

Reversed them.. worked through each step, checking the shell casings at each and then shot a primed casing after completing..

Boom. What do you know... I guess x-mas this year was like years past when I was young... I was excited.

 

[exhogflyer]

Re: You ever do something stupid....

It's funny but not as bad as you think it is...it's easy to overlook as some bases countersink the holes so all screws are the same length.Glad you shared it....

 

[Gregch44]

Re: You ever do something stupid....

At least it wasn't something that caused damage, then it hurts more than just your pride.

 

[Va_Gentleman]

Re: You ever do something stupid....

Thanks ExHog.

Yeah.. I got a laugh out of it too.

Not as much as the wife.. to top it out she put better groups on the paper with her Howa 1500 than I did. (I definitely married up)

 

[SDWhirlwind]

Re: You ever do something stupid....

Does your title mean today or every day??????? I have so many brain farts I cannot be 'day' specific nor past, present or especially future specific cause I know my 'dumb shit' attacks aren't done yet.

As for screw length if this is on a 700 most generally the screw length is always different between front and rear bridge as the rear bridge is considerably thicker! Unless as stated by exhogflyer the manufacturer actually countersink the rear deeper.

 

[Va_Gentleman]

Re: You ever do something stupid....

That woman is a better cook than me too. LOL. I just do.. well.. what I am told.

 

[Sackett]

Re: You ever do something stupid....

Could be worse that's not too bad. At least you figured it out pretty quick.

 

[J-Ham]

Re: You ever do something stupid....

Hey thanks. Now I can learn from your mistake because I can see how someone could make that one.

 

[kill_goose]

Re: You ever do something stupid....

At least you had the scope mounted facing the right way.

Yup. Seen it done.

 

[Kells81]

Re: You ever do something stupid....

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: VA Gentleman</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Geez.... Fairly good with firearms... mounting bases,...30 years shooting, hunting, and fairly smart (i have been told) etc...

A 20 MOA base has different screw lengths for the back...did yall know that? (I await my beating.)

X-mas day, I got so excited, I did not take the time to go through my usual routine. Mounted my new base and scope on my 300mag. Yesterday went to the range and no go boom. Firing pin would not bust the primer.

Had to be something I did, I worked up some tape over spent shells and taking one step at a time..discovered that I had the longer screws up front (both of them.. I had a least a good chance of discovering at the time.. )

Reversed them.. worked through each step, checking the shell casings at each and then shot a primed casing after completing..

Boom. What do you know... I guess x-mas this year was like years past when I was young... I was excited. </div></div>

Maybe I am not following what your talking about here? I mean if the screws are to long on an R700 the bolt will not close creating an obviouse problem. I would bet there is more to the problem on this. I.E. One of my 223's will not bust a CCI primer but will bust any other primer 100%.

 

[Va_Gentleman]

Re: You ever do something stupid....

Bolt closed normal, the firing pin would shoot forward, but would not hit the primer.

1. Removed scope - tested - still the same
2. Removed the new base - popped the tape
3. Noticed the screws, reversed them - remounted - popped the tape
4. Mounted the scope - tested popped the tape
5. Loaded a primed case - boom.

That's all I know. Over torque on the action? I don't know. I do know with the test casings with the tape over the drilled primer, the bolt was very difficult to close... the real casing was fine.

 

[Dirty D]

Re: You ever do something stupid....

You diagnosed your own problem and no one got hurt and it sounds like you learned from it. Sounds like a win to me.

and you shared it so others could learn.

 

[Va_Gentleman]

Re: You ever do something stupid....

Thanks Wheels.. I do feel pretty good about figuring it out... Hope it will be useful.

 

[Heat]

Re: You ever do something stupid....

My buddy did the same thing when he bought his girlfriend a .243. I gave him some leupy 2 piece bases and he put it all together. He called a couple days later and said the thing wouldn't fire so I went over there and immediately noticed the bolt wasn't closed all the way but enough to still let the firing pin move forward when the trigger was pulled. I looked it over and at first told him something bad was wrong and then the light bulb lit up over my head. Got a flashlight and looked in the action and started laughing. Long screws were in the front base. No injuries other than a slap in the face by the common sense fairy lol. Good times good times.....

 

[Unknown]

Re: You ever do something stupid....

Nope...not me, but let me tell you what a friend did (that's my story and I'm stickin' to it).

Had a Ruger 10-22 that just didn't shoot well. Bought a new heavy barrel, it still didn't shoot well. Bought a new stiffer stock, that didn't help. Glass bedded the new stock, still no joy. Had the chamber headspace tightened up a touch, a little better, but still crappy. Did a trigger job...still no significant success.

Then one day I...errr, he was at the range, and was swapping some scopes around.
Just for kicks, tried the torque wrench on the scope mounted on the lousy 10-22. The base wasn't securely attached to the rifle, the rings were loose on the base, and the scope was loose in the rings. Everything was tightened up, and the rifle shot great.

He sold the rifle just to get rid of the memories of being a dumb ass.

 

[Dirty D]

Re: You ever do something stupid....

When I bought my my first Savage I bought a fairly inexpensive optic rail (won't do that again) and after I installed it the bolt would not go all the way into battery. After talking to the guy who sold it to me I stuck my finger into the reveiver and felt the top of the receiver on the inside, sure enough I could feel the front screw portruding down into the action. I took both screws off to see if I had the short screw on the back but the factory had sent 2 long screws. One hacksaw, vise, wood blocks and jewelers file later I had the appropriate length screw. Painless lesson on some of the things to watch for.

 

[Dylan in AZ]

Re: You ever do something stupid....

Thank you, i can see myself making this mistake as well and now i know to look first and learn from your mistakes

Probably just saved me some time, frustration, and headaches

 

[mexicanmatch]

Re: You ever do something stupid....

i have done the same thing Training Wheels errr friend did.MM

 

[Va_Gentleman]

Re: You ever do something stupid....

I was 12 when I was hunting with my 30-30 94. If you wanted a scope on that model then, you had to diagonal mount it.

If you wanted to use open sights.. you needed to be careful for the Crescent Moon demon...

8 stitches and a missed deer later.. I learned a lesson. LOL..

As Heat said.. Good times!