Apoptotic
06-06-19, 12:41
Earlier this week I received a new bolt from a company greatly esteemed on M4C.
I like to have an extra bolt held in the pistol grip of all of my main ARs and this bolt was intended for my new Centurion Arms rifle.
This being so, I pulled the BCG from the CA rifle and replaced the bolt with this new one. Note that the BCG already in the CA rifle is from the same company who made this new bolt that I wanted to test.
With the new bolt in place, I attempted to charge the rifle but was only able to pull the charging handle back as far as the bolt extends from the carrier. The bolt seemed to be stuck to the barrel extension. I ran the charging handle forward and used the forward assist to put the carrier back into its forward most position. Again I tried to charge the rifle but had the same result as before. Frustrated, I yanked and yanked on the charging handle with all of my strength and after many attempts it finally dislodged.
At this point I was worried the issue lie with the new CA rifle since I hadn’t yet fired it. So I pulled BCGs from three other rifles (all from manufacturers recommended on M4C) and tried them in the CA rifle. All of them worked perfectly fine, so my suspicion shifted to this new bolt. I put this new bolt into the carriers that I had pulled from other rifles and tried them in the CA rifle and the issue I mentioned above occurred in all cases. I had to mortar the rifle a few times during these tests to dislodge the bolt. I should mention that I used several different BCM charging handles in these tests to ensure the BCM charging handle in the CA rifle wasn’t the issue.
To be thorough, I used this new bolt in 3 BCMs, 2 Colts, 1 CA, 1 LMT, and 1 Daniel Defense. The bolt stuck in 2 BCMs, 1 Colt and 1 CA. Note that in the rifles where the bolt stuck it would be just as difficult to pull the BCG from these rifles’ uppers after said uppers were separated from their respective lowers.
I presented the bolt’s company with my concern and test results and was told this:
“Based on your information, hand cycling of a new bolt assembly can be slightly more difficult than a bolt assembly that has been shot hundreds of times.
This is completely normal. All [of our company’s] Bolt Assemblies and [our company’s] barrels are head spaced prior to being offered for sale.
We would recommend taking your bolt assembly to the range and test firing it.
*
Please let us know your results.”
Bracketed words are mine.
This doesn’t sound right to me. It seems to me that I’m being told that I should expect a break-in period for this company’s products. As I’ve learned over the years on this site, there is no break-in period for a properly constructed AR.
So, should I do as this customer service rep suggests or is his direction unwise?
Many Thanks!
I like to have an extra bolt held in the pistol grip of all of my main ARs and this bolt was intended for my new Centurion Arms rifle.
This being so, I pulled the BCG from the CA rifle and replaced the bolt with this new one. Note that the BCG already in the CA rifle is from the same company who made this new bolt that I wanted to test.
With the new bolt in place, I attempted to charge the rifle but was only able to pull the charging handle back as far as the bolt extends from the carrier. The bolt seemed to be stuck to the barrel extension. I ran the charging handle forward and used the forward assist to put the carrier back into its forward most position. Again I tried to charge the rifle but had the same result as before. Frustrated, I yanked and yanked on the charging handle with all of my strength and after many attempts it finally dislodged.
At this point I was worried the issue lie with the new CA rifle since I hadn’t yet fired it. So I pulled BCGs from three other rifles (all from manufacturers recommended on M4C) and tried them in the CA rifle. All of them worked perfectly fine, so my suspicion shifted to this new bolt. I put this new bolt into the carriers that I had pulled from other rifles and tried them in the CA rifle and the issue I mentioned above occurred in all cases. I had to mortar the rifle a few times during these tests to dislodge the bolt. I should mention that I used several different BCM charging handles in these tests to ensure the BCM charging handle in the CA rifle wasn’t the issue.
To be thorough, I used this new bolt in 3 BCMs, 2 Colts, 1 CA, 1 LMT, and 1 Daniel Defense. The bolt stuck in 2 BCMs, 1 Colt and 1 CA. Note that in the rifles where the bolt stuck it would be just as difficult to pull the BCG from these rifles’ uppers after said uppers were separated from their respective lowers.
I presented the bolt’s company with my concern and test results and was told this:
“Based on your information, hand cycling of a new bolt assembly can be slightly more difficult than a bolt assembly that has been shot hundreds of times.
This is completely normal. All [of our company’s] Bolt Assemblies and [our company’s] barrels are head spaced prior to being offered for sale.
We would recommend taking your bolt assembly to the range and test firing it.
*
Please let us know your results.”
Bracketed words are mine.
This doesn’t sound right to me. It seems to me that I’m being told that I should expect a break-in period for this company’s products. As I’ve learned over the years on this site, there is no break-in period for a properly constructed AR.
So, should I do as this customer service rep suggests or is his direction unwise?
Many Thanks!