Dougfirtree
Well-known member
Some might remember that I bought a TC Venture Compact, in .308 for my kids to use. I've had it to the range twice now and I have some good news and some bad news (maybe). The question relates to the bad news.
First the good: I used some factory Federal Fusion 150's to break in the barrel. Along the way, I shot a couple of groups, the best of which was 5/8"! So, the rifle is certainly capable of shooting well.
Now the bad: I've been working up a reduced recoil load for it, using 150 grain Speer BTSP's and H4895. I'm still in the process, but it seems like I'll be able to get a sufficiently accurate load around 23-2400fps. The problem is that there seems to be a lot of powder residue getting into the chamber. The cases come out really dirty and the extraction feels a tad rough. The bolt face is getting very, very dirty too. There's absolutely no sign of residue coming out around the primers, it seems to be coming from the case neck and working its way back. There also aren't any pressure signs. I've never run into this before, so my questions are:
1. Should I be concerned about safety?
2. Any other negatives about this, other than more cleaning? Should I consider contacting TC?
3. If the chamber is "loose" (in relation to my resizing die), can I just resize the necks from now on, since the body of the cases should be perfectly expanded to the rifle's chamber?
Thanks!
First the good: I used some factory Federal Fusion 150's to break in the barrel. Along the way, I shot a couple of groups, the best of which was 5/8"! So, the rifle is certainly capable of shooting well.
Now the bad: I've been working up a reduced recoil load for it, using 150 grain Speer BTSP's and H4895. I'm still in the process, but it seems like I'll be able to get a sufficiently accurate load around 23-2400fps. The problem is that there seems to be a lot of powder residue getting into the chamber. The cases come out really dirty and the extraction feels a tad rough. The bolt face is getting very, very dirty too. There's absolutely no sign of residue coming out around the primers, it seems to be coming from the case neck and working its way back. There also aren't any pressure signs. I've never run into this before, so my questions are:
1. Should I be concerned about safety?
2. Any other negatives about this, other than more cleaning? Should I consider contacting TC?
3. If the chamber is "loose" (in relation to my resizing die), can I just resize the necks from now on, since the body of the cases should be perfectly expanded to the rifle's chamber?
Thanks!