Savage smokless powder rifle. bolt primer issue

[darrell8937]

My friend has a savage that uses smokless powder. Can't think of the model . He really likes the way the gun shoots but is not reliable, 50/50 est.. It used 209 shot gun primers. They are placed into a slot on the bolt face. There is a lot of play in the primer fit. Really sloppy. some times light strikes . It seems to be that the energy of the firing pin is not fully used to ignite since there is play. Savage say,, try diffrent primers etc. all major brands have been tried with the same results. when a primer does fire. it takes some needle nose pliers to get it out. Powder charge was reduced to see if it had an effect on the primer removal but has no effect.any have a problem like this.  thanks,,,,

[Biff Mayhem]

What do you mean by "sometimes light strikes"

Can you please explain "50/50 est?

Are you saying there's been misfires?

Worst case scenario is calling them for a price on a new plug. Send them a check for the new plug - also send that plug back to Savage with a full explanation letter attached on what's wrong. Ask them to inspect and test it. Then if the problem is a warranty issue that requires free replacement, ask them to ship you a new plug and return the bank check you forwarded them.

Either way, you get another plug.

[simonkenton]

Is your friend firmly locking the bolt all the way down? Not doing so will cause the problem your friend describes.

I have a Savage and it is very relliable. Your friend can get his Savage working perfectly, as it is one of the best muzzleloaders on the market. I would say that my primers are a loose fit in the bolt head, so I think this is normal. As for the difficulty in extracting, usually this is straightened out by switching to another primer. Usually the Winchester 209 is easy to extract, and that is the primer I use.

Send your friend to this forum. This is where the Savage experts hang out. They are very friendly, and they will get him fixed up. If his accuracy is not up to par, these guys will have him soon shooting 1 1/2 inch groups.

http://dougva.proboards34.com/index.cgi?board=Savage