This is a possibility.Have your friend call Ian Kelbly and arrange to send it back to Kelbly's and they will take care of it. That's the best answer to your question.
ExactlyWhy should this be a problem for Kelby???
It might also be as simple as the Sweaty Paws, no maintenance problem.Come on, really Pandas are some of the most competitive guns in Benchrest. If this gun sits in the garage here in Florida, I have no sympathy at all. Maybe the neighbors dog is peeing on it as he makes his rounds looking for a handout. If the owner doesn't care enough to keep this gun out of the elements, and on the east coast of Florida not in climate control is the elements, he has no business owning a rifle at all let alone one this nice. I loaded a few rounds for my brothers 308, 700 ADL and cleaned the bore. Got a pretty good bunch of rust out of the barrel. He keeps it in the attic, when it shoot a nice group he put it right back in the attic. I will never touch it again. Why should this be a problem for Kelby???
No black nitride.Based on the photos, I don't see corrosion on the outside of the action body. Would it not be corroded as well, given the outside storage technique in the same elements?
Is the bolt one that has the black nitride? If so, perhaps this is chemical exchange, (wear-off), from the coating since your advising he does not use any barrier lubricants.
Suspiciously (again, from the pictures) it is centered around the bolt passage-way only.
Thought about it last night, if no corrosion on the exterior of the action then this could have been moisture between the bolt and the raceway, assuming it was stored with a closed bolt.No black nitride.
I've seen all too well what Florida humidity and atmosphere does to even aluminum accordian hurricane shutters.Thought about it last night, if no corrosion on the exterior of the action then this could have been moisture between the bolt and the raceway, assuming it was stored with a closed bolt.
Nitride or Melonite is not a coating.Based on the photos, I don't see corrosion on the outside of the action body. Would it not be corroded as well, given the outside storage technique in the same elements?
Is the bolt one that has the black nitride? If so, perhaps this is chemical exchange, (wear-off), from the coating since your advising he does not use any barrier lubricants.
Suspiciously (again, from the pictures) it is centered around the bolt passage-way only.
He needs some adult supervision.That's an interesting maintenance program.
I'll catch flak for this... but I've never liked the idea of bare aluminum... or bare steel. Pandas that have been around for a while usually look kinda rough.
Kelby's is a good outfit to deal with. I would bet money that the action didn't look like that when he bought the rifle. Is it an aluminum action? Was Thoroclean ever tested for corrosion on aluminum? I would get a piece of aluminum, clean the surface with a fine abrasive and expose the Al for several days to Thoroclean and see if it corrodes. Sounds like the cleaning agents are the only reasonable cause of corrosion. Kelby has sold thousands of actions without a complaint. Switch to a different cleaner immediately. Sounds like he is a casual shooter that paid for a great rifle. I couldn't find a MSDS to see what chemicals are in Thoroclean.I have a shooting buddy (new older rifle shooter) who brought his rifle by after a local match where he did not perform well. In looking at the rifle I noticed that the bolt was difficult to open, and upon inspection of the action and bolt I found a significant amount of corrosion. This rifle is about 2 years old and was bought new from Kelblys after a 9 month wait. I have never seen this degree of corrosion on any action, and I have strongly suggested to my friend that he call Kelblys and discuss the issue with them. He does use a PMA bore guide, but otherwise I don't know much about his cleaning procedure other than he uses Thoroflush and Thoroclean. He says the never cleans the action or puts anything on the bolt (such as grease on the bolt lugs or a light coating of oil on the bolt).
I have strongly suggested that he send the action back to Kelbly to get it polished if possible, but I am a bit perplexed how this much corrosion developed.
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Isn't that where you are supposed to keep tools? lolI just found out that he keeps his rifle in his garage year round (Florida… very close to the coast) with no humidity control.