Chacon 10/22 failure to feed issues

[lawrence97]

Hello all,
I just decided to try a high end 10/22 for NRL22 and was between a Kidd and a Chacon build.
I went against the grain and opted for a Chacon build with his tuner. I purchased the barreled action from Joe and mounted it in a Victor Titan stock while I wait for my chassis. The rifle shows some promise in the accuracy department but at this point I cannot reliably fire a 10 round magazine thru the gun without a failure to feed. I have become an expert at clearing malfunctions on a 10/22 but it’s not what I want to deal with during a match.

Yes, I’ve tried cleaning, used 7 different factory new mags and played with spring tension on one magazine. I am still plagued with a failure to feed issue.

1- load magazine
2- insert magazine
3- rack bolt to the rear and release........ sometimes on this step I need to slightly pull back on the bolt and then shove it forward/closed.
4- fire the first round...... 2nd round gets stripped out of magazine but fails to fully enter the chamber. I try to push forward on the bolt handle to try and get the round to fully seat into the chamber but it does not work! It seems as if the angle of the round coming out of the mag is too aggresive and the bolt is only catching the top portion of the rim rather than catching the whole rim against the bolt face and feeding the round straight into the chamber.

The tip of the bullet enters the chamber but since the angle of the round is too aggressive, the bolt cannot be forced closed. To clear the malfunction I need to lock the bolt to the rear which ejects the round, drop the mag and re-insert.

I have tried CCI std, sk std, sk pistol match, sk flatnose, CCI green tag and center x (it hates this ammo with a passion and there’s absolutely NO accuracy).

Without a magazine inserted, the bolt moves freely back and forth and does not bind. The magazines fit the mag well fine and drop out when released without any issue.

Have any of you experienced this and if so, what can I do to correct it?

Yes, I am aware that I can send the whole rifle back to Joe and spend time and money shipping. That’s my last resort while I wait for my chassis.

I have put at least 200 rounds thru this build and have only gotten two full 10 round magazines to cycle without a failure to feed....

I am all ears!

 

[Sniper338]

Have you tried at least contacting Joe and discussing it? Maybe he has some ideas to try? Thatd be my first step after fittling with it myself. He will know more than any of us since he built it...

 

[zeke06]

Pm sent.

 

[lawrence97]

Joe has been contacted. I’m using the rifle in a victor Titan while my chassis arrives. Once the chassis arrives I will see if this is still an issue and if it is it will have to go back to Joe.

Just trying to prevent shipping a full build due to time and cost!

If there is some simple advice or possible fix that I can perform I’d rather do that.

 

[gunsandgunsmithing]

I'd check the boltface for any irregularities and maybe replace the spring that returns the bolt into battery. I can't recall, but aren't those guns where the mag will fit the receiver the same way regardless of the stock?
If so, I don't think the new stock will matter.
If those two thongs don't fix it, Let Joe worry about it. JMHO. I'm no 10/22 expert but have been into plenty...and I may have spent the night in a Holiday Inn Express some time or another. Hope that helps....Oh, and check the bolt guide rod etc. as well as the receiver to make sure everything is smooth when stripped.

 

[lawrence97]

Mike,
I agree that changing the stock will most likely not make any difference at all!

Ultimately, Joe will fix it. I am waiting to test it in the chassis when it arrives to eliminate the last variable I can control.

I am trying to prevent shipping/insuring and the wait involved if I have to send it back!

 

[gunsandgunsmithing]

I understand. Won't hurt a thing to try.

 

[Evelio]

lawrence97
I am pretty sure that your problem is not related to the barrel action, it is how everything fits in the Victor Titan stock, any misalignment or bind areas between the stock and the barreled action will not allow it to feed properly.
Take the action out of the stock, put a loaded mag. in it, hold it with your hand in front of the action, and fire it, and see if it feeds correctly, there is practically no recoil, and is perfectly safe to do it, just aim at the ground, all you are doing is to check if the gun is working correctly out of the stock.
If the pins holding the trigger group in place are loose, just get a piece of scotch tape to keep them from sliding off.
I am a gunsmith and have shot the 10/22 out of the stocks hundreds of times, and as I said earlier it is perfectly safe, 95% of the failures to feed are due to a bad Mag. or incorrect fit in the stock.
Evelio.

 

[K9TXS]

I would definitely try what Evelio is telling you to do. There are probably some people that know more about .22 rimfire rifles than Evelio, but not many. He's made two for me from the ground up. He just won the Texas State ABRA Championship with his built up style Ruger 10-22.

 

[lawrence97]

I will definitely try that later today!
I went out earlier to shoot my vudoo and get it ready for 100 yds. I dragged along my 10/22 and it is still a jam-o-matic! I thought maybe cleaning it would help but no difference at all. It is begging to be sent back to Joe!

 

[Hoser]

Be sure the bottom of the extractor isn't sharp and digging into the brass. If it grabs, the extractor won't push out of the way and let the rim slide under.

 

[lawrence97]

I will try to get out today and test fire the barreled action removed from the stock.

I did try manually cycling the bolt with a loaded magazine inserted and it runs fine. The problem is only occurring under live fire.

 

[lawrence97]

Well I put 3 10rd mags thru the barreled action and it ran fine. I put the action back into the stock and it ran fine w 2 mags. I double checked the stock to make sure there is no interference w the magazine or anything else and the stock has more than enough clearance and no rubbing on any parts. The only way I can cause interference is by pressing upward on a magazine and it will cause the bolt to drag on the feed lip of the magazine but this is induced and I do not consciously shoot with any pressure on the magazine.

I will take it back out, put a few more mags thru it and see if it still runs fine as is.

 

[Evelio]

I will definitely try that later today!
I went out earlier to shoot my vudoo and get it ready for 100 yds. I dragged along my 10/22 and it is still a jam-o-matic! I thought maybe cleaning it would help but no difference at all. It is begging to be sent back to Joe!

Well I put 3 10rd mags thru the barreled action and it ran fine. I put the action back into the stock and it ran fine w 2 mags. I double checked the stock to make sure there is no interference w the magazine or anything else and the stock has more than enough clearance and no rubbing on any parts. The only way I can cause interference is by pressing upward on a magazine and it will cause the bolt to drag on the feed lip of the magazine but this is induced and I do not consciously shoot with any pressure on the magazine.

I will take it back out, put a few more mags thru it and see if it still runs fine as is.

 

[Evelio]

lawrence97
OK so it cycled fine out of the stock, you put it back in the stock, and it work fine for two mags. That pretty much tells me that something was on a bind the first time that you put it together and fired it. As you said there was plenty of clearance all around that you could see, but once you tightened the action screw it could put it on a bind, and not allow it to function correctly. So I am sure your problem is how the whole barreled action fits in the stock. Shoot it several more times in the stock as it is now, if the problem re-occurs loosen the action screw and wiggle the barreled action in the stock and tighten it and shoot again, if the problem persists, take it back out of the stock, and shoot it, and see what happens, if it feeds all the time with no jams, that should tell you where the problem is.
I have known Joe C. for quite a while, I know the quality of his work, and it is excellent, he test every rifle that comes out of his shop to an extreme, he would not let anything out until it works correctly. If you continue to have jamming problems, I am sure that he be more than glad to fix it for you, but I am very doubtful that your problem has anything to do with the quality of his work.
Please, I am very interested in your next testing results so let us know how it goes.
Evelio.

 

[lawrence97]

I tested 4 full mags today. They ran fine with the exception of 2 or 3 stove pipes. I will continue to test at least 3 mags per day. I have seven mags total and so far the first 4 have worked fine. Since I’m just testing reliability I have been using CCI Std. But I plan on shooting SK pistol match, flatnose basic or Eley match which shot best. I’m hoping it will continue to run somewhat reliably with those choices.
I will also test another lot of Lapua Center X but so far I have not had any luck with it in my bolt gun or this 10/22.

 

[Evelio]

Lawrence,
DO NOT SHOOT any Eley EPS bullets ammo. or flat nose ammo. I am pretty sure that you have a match chamber in that rifle, which is not set up to feed correctly out of a semi auto with that type of bullet profile. Your best bet is with SK STD. plus or the SK pistol match. You can also try other MATCH QUALITY ammo. as long as they are fully round nose profile.
Evelio.

 

[lawrence97]

I tested 2 full mags of CCI std. and one mag with SK Flatnose basic at 100 yards. I only had 1 stovepipe with a mag of CCI std. and it was the 2nd to last round. The SK flatnose ran fine (the nose profile isn’t as aggressive as the Eley eps). It shot best out of the 2 at 100 yards with a light breeze.

 

[Evelio]

The CCI std. is a good plinking ammo. and will work on all SAAMI chambers, but as I mention earlier, you have a match chamber in that gun, and CCI ammo. due to its large tolerance in their dimensions will frequently fail to seat fully in the chamber due to the limited force in a 10/22 bolt, they will chamber in just about all bolt rifles due to the greater caming force by the manually operated bolt.
I have not had a chance to look at the new flat nose SK yet, so if it works 100% fine.
If you are planning to shoot a match with that gun, I would put at least a 100 rounds thru it at one time with whatever ammo. you choose and it has to feed and fire 100%. One mag. or two will not really prove that your gun is working at a 100% of its potential.
Evelio.

 

[lawrence97]

For those of you on this thread with a custom 10/22 and using the Ruger 10 round magazine, do you feel your bolt binding if there is any upward pressure on the magazine?
On mine I can feel the bolt resistance/binding while sliding over the magazine as if I were to shoot standing with my support hand under the magwell and the same upward pressure would most likely be caused if I had a tight area to shoot off of and had to rest my rifle over a bag near the magwell/trigger guard.