That’s what I thought. Mine was rough on the upper 2/3 of the walls. GAP redid the chamber free of charge because they pitied me
Bergara called me a pansy - Any ABQ area 300WM Shooters to prove it?
- Thread starter Chingon
- Start date
Benfromalbuquerque
Well-known member
- Joined
- Jul 15, 2020
- Messages
- 2,013
@Chingon have you got the grain and OAL on those same cases? As in, were they all same grain, seated to the same length? Propellant and primer should be considered too. I think you’ll have a solid point when all variables are consistent.
cahunter805
Well-known member
- Joined
- May 27, 2014
- Messages
- 2,627
Looks like some rubs/scrape marks on the Bergara case just above the belt. That neck is certainly out of round also. I’d bet the chamber is non concentric also.
Looks to me to be the problem as well. I’d be going up Bergara’s arse to have them remedy it if I were Chingon
Heavy ejector spring will slightly dent a case mouth. Just a thought. mtmuley
Benfromalbuquerque
Well-known member
- Joined
- Jul 15, 2020
- Messages
- 2,013
I forgot about primer too. What did the stuck case primer/case head look like? I started a thread on here after a factory box of Federal gave me my first ever blown primer.
cahunter805
Well-known member
- Joined
- May 27, 2014
- Messages
- 2,627
True but normally they are dented inward from my experience. Also they can be dented from the ejection port if it’s smaller or the ejection angle is too much.
Primer looks normal, no cratering or ejector marks.
I appreciate the offer and will follow up as needed. Right now the Bergara is stripped back down and I'm going to take it back to the smith to get the action cast.
Ok, in my quest to die on this hill, I went out and bought the lightest, most recoiling 300WM I could find - a Tikka T3X Superlite without a muzzle brake. Weighs in at just over 6lbs naked, 8lbs with scope.
Paired it up with my Leupold VX6HD 3-18 scope, and shooting from a light sled. I've been slowly breaking this barrel in, and it had only about 9 rounds through it so far. This is the first batch of decent ammo I've tried. Hornady Superformance SST 180gr factory loads.
First group after 1 fouling shot:
It seems like I am capable of sub-MOA shooting, so maybe now I can send Bergara a link to these posts.
Thoughts on the new Tikka: Man, this thing is nice, and the weight will be a joy to pack around. However, this pencil barrel heats up REAL fast and shooting for groups is an exercise in patience after the first couple of rounds.
I'm going to thread the barrel and see how it likes my suppressor in the near future. If it doesn't, I'll go ahead and slap a brake on, adjust the trigger down, put on the pistol grip and see what ammo it likes best. Hopefully it's capable of 3/4 MOA!
Paired it up with my Leupold VX6HD 3-18 scope, and shooting from a light sled. I've been slowly breaking this barrel in, and it had only about 9 rounds through it so far. This is the first batch of decent ammo I've tried. Hornady Superformance SST 180gr factory loads.
First group after 1 fouling shot:
It seems like I am capable of sub-MOA shooting, so maybe now I can send Bergara a link to these posts.
Thoughts on the new Tikka: Man, this thing is nice, and the weight will be a joy to pack around. However, this pencil barrel heats up REAL fast and shooting for groups is an exercise in patience after the first couple of rounds.
I'm going to thread the barrel and see how it likes my suppressor in the near future. If it doesn't, I'll go ahead and slap a brake on, adjust the trigger down, put on the pistol grip and see what ammo it likes best. Hopefully it's capable of 3/4 MOA!
BoomerUSAF
Well-known member
Companies have become very slow to admit their mistakes. I’m very weary of this. A company can have the best marketing ad but it doesn’t mean anything if the company doesn’t match. You would think Bergara would not be so reluctant to help. That’s too bad, I’m sorry.
The worm turns...
So after the failure to eject fiasco, I took the rifle back to the smith and he found a slight burr, likely caused by a headspace gauge. He gently ran a reamer through it by hand, and that seemed to fix the issue with feeding/ejecting.
I also went out and bought some new ammo - one that Bergara claims to have proofed it with, and some Barnes VOR-TX 180gr that was suggested.
First group with DRT 175gr Terminal Match ammo with the Bergara:
Second group with the same ammo:
Averages out to 1.14 MOA
My Tikka didn't like it:
I was going really slow here, so only had time for one more group with the Barnes:
Bergara with the VOR-TX:
Tikka with the VOR-TX:
More testing to come...
So after the failure to eject fiasco, I took the rifle back to the smith and he found a slight burr, likely caused by a headspace gauge. He gently ran a reamer through it by hand, and that seemed to fix the issue with feeding/ejecting.
I also went out and bought some new ammo - one that Bergara claims to have proofed it with, and some Barnes VOR-TX 180gr that was suggested.
First group with DRT 175gr Terminal Match ammo with the Bergara:
Second group with the same ammo:
Averages out to 1.14 MOA
My Tikka didn't like it:
I was going really slow here, so only had time for one more group with the Barnes:
Bergara with the VOR-TX:
Tikka with the VOR-TX:
More testing to come...
isu22andy
Well-known member
Sorry to bring a thread back from the grave but what did you end up finding out with the rifle ? Was it just ammo picky ?
Nope - gunsmith found a burr and ran a reamer through it gently. After that it started shooting, but I was done with it. Sent it down the road. I've since bought three Tikkas personally and am loving the lack of drama and more refined action. My guess is that I've convinced about a dozen people not to buy Bergara at least.
Hopefully they'll learn that the cost of customer service is a worthwhile investment.
Here's a group from today zeroing out my Tikka 223 Compact with Factory 77gr TMK's. Shots 9 and 10 I pulled since I was getting a bit impatient waiting for my suppressor mirage.
Hopefully they'll learn that the cost of customer service is a worthwhile investment.
Here's a group from today zeroing out my Tikka 223 Compact with Factory 77gr TMK's. Shots 9 and 10 I pulled since I was getting a bit impatient waiting for my suppressor mirage.
isu22andy
Well-known member
Nice group ! I have a Tikka that I cant group for the life of me, 1 tikka thats a tack driver, and 2 bergaras that shoot great. Spin the roulette wheel !
Bigjay73
Well-known member
I have to wonder what the other side of the story is. No offense, there's always 2 sides., even when I tell a story
isu22andy
Well-known member
Personally I think there are just rifles that shoot good, and some that dont. Spin the roulette wheel and hope you dont land on the wrong end. . In tikka it might be 1 in 2000 in Bergara might be 1-1500 who knows . One thing though, it always seems like magnums dont shoot vs 243s or 223s.
I have the emails. They said they worked on the rifle and it shot one 3 round sub moa group. They shipped it back and refused to look at it again. That's it. They blamed me for not being able to shoot. I proved them wrong.
Rifle went from 5+ MOA to 2+ MOA.
