• The SH Membership has gone live. Only SH Members have access to post in the classifieds. All members can view the classifieds. Starting in 2020 only SH Members will be admitted to the annual hunting contest. Current members will need to follow these steps to upgrade: 1. Click on your username 2. Click on Account upgrades 3. Choose SH Member and purchase.
  • We've been working hard the past few weeks to come up with some big changes to our vendor policies to meet the changing needs of our community. Please see the new vendor rules here: Vendor Access Area Rules

Light primer strike misfire

Hardly_Hangin

Well-Known Member
Joined
Nov 25, 2019
Messages
426
Location
Jasper, Ga
I guess it can happen to anyone. Just never thought it would be me.

I sat overwatching a narrow riverbottom crossing between 2 thickets. My vision was limited to a tunnel about 20 yard wide, which i had visibility for about 120-130 yards through. This is a highly pressured WMA, so I set up very early hoping for hunters to push deer to me.

About 430 a little three pointer crosses at a casual pace. I got "extra ready", in anticipation he might have company. Sure enough, big boy waltzes through just after. The shot was about 100 yards, quartered away slightly. I squeezed the trigger - click. In disbelief i worked the bolt to chamber a new round, but my opportunity had fleeted.


I followed up with a calling sequence in hopes of turning them back to me, but got to aggressive like you see on TV. The little 3 point crossed back like a rocket, and I never saw the shooter.

I expected a dud round, which surprised me from Winchester ammo. Upon inspecting however, the primer looks like there was a light firing pin strike. I tested a new round back at camp, and it fired.

I am not sure what exactly to do. Researching causes and fixes for this now, definitely do not want to be the butt end of this joke again.

The rifle is a ruger american 270, shooting winchester ammo. IMG_20201121_224226_093.jpg
 
With the ruger american if the bolts not pushed all the way down it dosent let the firing pin go all the way forward. If you lift the bolt up a little and try to fire should get a light strike like you had this morning.
 
If it was cold weather, grease in the bolt can cause it. Lighter fluid in the bolt could help dissolve the grease.
I shot a deer once where I had a misfire first at one deer. I removed the bolt and slid it up my coat sleeve. An hour later another deer comes by and I slipped the bolt back in and shot the deer. It was cold weather.
 
With the ruger american if the bolts not pushed all the way down it dosent let the firing pin go all the way forward. If you lift the bolt up a little and try to fire should get a light strike like you had this morning.

Its likley that was the case, i was on the ground and it very well could have hit my knee or leg and got nudged slightly open
 
I would definitely take the bolt apart and clean the firing pin well. I wouldn't just chalk it up to the bolt not being fully down.
 
Take the bolt out and put it in the freezer for a few hours. Put it in the rifle and dry fire it. The sound will tell you if it's cold thickened oil.
 
I agree with @bj139 , this happened to me back in 2018, wicked cold day, accidentally got some oil on the firing pin when cleaning and she froze up. Luckily for the 2 misfires I have had in my life, this one was at a doe and didn't bother me much. Primer looks fine depth wise, but I have had a primer that was set too deep also.
 
Could also have been a poorly loaded round. If winchester for some reason sized the case a little bit too much the case will actually slide slighty foward as the firing pin hits. Unlikely if you ask me. More likely bolt lift or dirty bolt, but it could happen.
 
The only misfires i've ever had was from bad factory loads (federal .223). I had 3 or 4 out of a box all fail to ignite. Could clearly see the where the firing pin struck the primer.

I sent the box back to federal and they confirmed that there was some defect in that batch. They sent me a voucher for a few free boxes of ammo.
 
I contacted my local gunsmith for his opinion, and he said he'd heard of people having problems with ruger americans misfiring similarly. His recommendation was to swap to a more reputable brand of ammo like Hornady
 
4C39D5BB-B5C6-4810-8E0D-F954C3A3D835.jpeg

I feel your pain. Had an awesome 8 sparring with a 6 late last season in a cold drizzle I decided to sit through. Waited for them to separate and click-no bang. I was devastated as it would have been my biggest buck to date by far. Dude was a monster for a NC buck.

I’ve barely taken the rifle out this season except for a few days after I changed the fiber on my bow sight and needed to check that it was dialed in.
 
I have an older Tikka T3 that will misfire cartridges in very cold weather when using cartridges with Winchester primers. I doesn't matter if the bolt/firing pin is clean, dirty, lubed, dry--the constants are cold and Winchester primers. I have since switched to Federal primers and no problems.

One further note on this: after loosing two deer to the problem, I figured out that re-cocking the action and pulling the trigger a second time results in a fired round. If this happens to you (with a bolt action), keep still so as not to spook the deer, and slowly move your right hand up to the bolt handle, raise and lower the handle to re-cock, and fire. It worked for me.
 
Back
Top