Bolt tight to close

[Etxbuckman]

Curious about something re. my brand new Tikka T3x: I noticed on both Hornady American Whitetail 117 and Barnes TTSX 100 that the bolt is tight/somewhat difficult to close in comparison to the snap cap I have for it.

Is that normal? Could it cause accuracy issues?

FWIW I also noticed the same thing in my 7mm-08 after I had it rebarreled a few years ago, but with Nosler BT 140’s it’s a tack driver.

[Nate Riley]

I just had one blueprinted and rebarreled and the smith head spaced it to a specific cartridge. He said it would be tight. He also told me to clean the fool out of the chamber and barrel before starting to shoot it.

[trophy8]

Incorrect head space is likely the cause.

[diamond10x]

Incorrect head space is likely the cause.

X2. I wouldn’t exactly say incorrect, factory cartridges are loaded to fit the highest percentage of chambers instead of loaded for a specific chamber.

As far as accuracy, won’t be able to tell a difference unless you’re shooting bullets like Berger vld’s where you’re jumping or jamming bullets.

[trophy8]

X2. I wouldn’t exactly say incorrect, factory cartridges are loaded to fit the highest percentage of chambers instead of loaded for a specific chamber.

As far as accuracy, won’t be able to tell a difference unless you’re shooting bullets like Berger vld’s where you’re jumping or jamming bullets.

True. Would still get it checked for pressure reasons though.

[Etxbuckman]

True. Would still get it checked for pressure reasons though.

If it is a head spacing issue, whats the worst that could happen? And whats the remedy?

[trophy8]

If it is a head spacing issue, whats the worst that could happen? And whats the remedy?

One overpressure round and it’ll compound the problem. Simple chamber reaming will fix it. Check it with go/no go gauges. Just to be safe.

[Bigfootwolff]

I had the same issue with a Tikka T3 in .270 Win with some older Hornady Custom 140 grain BTSP factory rounds. I took it to a gunsmith who checked it with go/no go gauges and it was good to go. He took some measurements of the Hornady rounds and some other rounds he had in his shop, and the Hornady was just a few thousands of an inch longer. He said he has seen Tikkas with tight chambers, but everything with my rifle was in spec. He suggested I try different ammunition to see if I experienced the same issue. I tried other brands, Winchester, Remington, Federal and Norma, and none of them were overly tight when closing the bolt. Might just be a Hornady issue, coupled with a tight, but still in-spec, chamber. I did a TBH search for recommended gunsmiths, and took it to one of them. The gunsmith said if I continued having problems, we could talk about reaming the chamber, but he suspected it was ammunition related. I have never experienced this issue with Hornady Custom rounds in my Remington 700 or Marlin XL7, but their chambers might by slightly larger than Tikkas.

[Etxbuckman]

One overpressure round and it’ll compound the problem. Simple chamber reaming will fix it. Check it with go/no go gauges. Just to be safe.

Can go/no-go gauges for a 30-06 be used for a 25-06? From all I’m reading as long as the parent case works, then other cartridges based off that same case should too.

[MitchParker]

I've got a Tikka with the same issue (22-250 fast twist).
-M

[diamond10x]

98% of the time it is just an ammunition issue. The OAL/seating depth is a little too long for the tolerances of the chamber. The bolt is tough to close because that bullet is being pressed up against the chamber and not just eve so slightly off of or softly resting against it. This doesn't mean your barrel is going to blow up or it won't shoot worth a dang, it just means if you want to use that specific factory load the bolt will be a bit snug. If you want piece of mind just change ammo or have a smith check it.

[Chase4556]

I’d try it against another factory round of another flavor and see if it is still tight. If it’s fixed, you might be able to take some calipers to the suspected case and see if the shoulder is a few thousands longer. Odds are it’s not bullet length jamming into the lands, but you can always use a sharpie on the bullet and see if it gets any little nicks on it after chambering. The same can be said for the shoulder of the case, color it black with a sharpie and see if any rubs off after chambering.

Side note, hope you enjoy the 25-06! It’s my favorite caliber and I’m loading for my buddies new 25-06 as well. He even scored some brass from a guy at the range this weekend.

[trophy8]

98% of the time it is just an ammunition issue. The OAL/seating depth is a little too long for the tolerances of the chamber. The bolt is tough to close because that bullet is being pressed up against the chamber and not just eve so slightly off of or softly resting against it. This doesn't mean your barrel is going to blow up or it won't shoot worth a dang, it just means if you want to use that specific factory load the bolt will be a bit snug. If you want piece of mind just change ammo or have a smith check it.

Only reason I mentioned it is because it was two different types of ammo.

[BrianL]

Take a new round and close it in the chamber and remove, Look for scratches on the bullet. If it is scratched, they are too long.

[Etxbuckman]

Only reason I mentioned it is because it was two different types of ammo.

In fairness I’ve settled on the Barnes because they’re a lighter grain and shooting better than the heavier AW’s. I just mentioned both of them in my original post as it was the same issue with two brands of ammo.

I appreciate the information you and everyone else has provided.