-
Terrible Day Shooting
New to the forum. Hoping to get some valuable insight.
I bought my new Tikka Superlite in 6.5 Creedmoor on Monday, and today I finally got to shoot it. Worst day ever shooting a rifle. I tried out three different types of factory ammo (Hornady ELD Match, Norma HPBT Match, and Federal Premium with Nosler Accubond). Had problems with all three. Groups looked pretty good until I came across a round of Norma that wasn't hollow point. It looked like lead was filled all the way to the tip. I should have thrown it out because my groups started getting bigger after firing that round. One grouping later, I shot a round of the Hornady and I could barely eject the casing. Turns out that the primer blasted out of its pocket and welded itself to the bolt (not literally). It took about 40 minutes to remove the carbon scoring from the bolt after I got home. Frustrated with Hornady and Norma, I switched to Federal which would not even load into the chamber. The box says 6.5 Creedmoor, but the casings definitely have different dimensions than the other two. I was really looking forward to seeing the performance of Nosler's Accubond because I have heard so many good things about it and was hoping to use it for hunting whitetail this year.
Sorry for the long post, but I needed to vent. I never had any of these issues (even with cheap ammo) with my Tikka Lite in .223. Are these manufacturer defects normal? Do you think it has something to do with the Creedmoor being fairly new to the market? I love the rifle, but maybe it's cursed.
-
4 Replies
-
Hi there’s been a few problems with the newer Tikka’s that have the wrong head space it might be worth getting it checked
-
Man, that sounds like a bummer of an outing!
I'm trying to better understand — were you able to shoot some number of rounds before the problems started? Or was it troublesome right away?
— Todd
-
Sorry for the delay. I logged in to another forum with the same info and got a zillion responses, so I was neglecting my fellow Tikka owners. Here's what I know so far.
After sighting in the scope, my first 3-shot group was 1.3″, then 1.2″, then 1.1″. After a total of 21 shots and more-than-adequate cooling periods, my final group was 2.9″ MOA. Something is definitely wrong. The Federal ammo would not load, even before my groups started spreading.
After other forum members saw the spent casings, they noticed that the primers were very flat. After closer inspection, I found that every casing from both Hornady and Norma had a scratch in exactly the same location. I don't know if there is an issue with head space, but there is definitely a problem. I don't think I have any other choice but to send it back to the factory. If anyone else has had to deal with a Tikka warranty, I would really appreciate some input.
-
I'm one of those who had a headspace issue. Bought a new T3X lite in 6.5 CM noticed the bolt was hard to open after firing. This happened with factory ammo (3 different types), it also occurred when using a spent cartridge as a dummy round or dry firing. I contacted Beretta USA and described my problem. They had me send it back in diagnosed and corrected the problem and fired three shots. They shipped it back this all took less than ten days I'd say
I know this may not be your issue, and no one wants to have to send a “new” gun in for service, but Beretta did right by me. Hope you keep us informed.Burns
Log in to reply.