Looking REAL TALK on Defiance XM actions and mag feeding issues

[Budget_Sniper]

I'm gathering parts for a "light-weight" 7-300wsm build. I've ordered so far:

Defiance Deviant Hunter XM action, full nitride, .750 bolt.

Proof 1:8, 26" sendero contour

Manners LRH stock, M-5 bottom inlet

My plan has been to run a hawkins or APA bottom metal and MDT mag. I keep getting pushed toward the BDL bottom metal, folks are telling me they've had horrible luck getting mags to feed. I have time to change things now before they arrive, if I need to. My biggest hang-up is the BDL box offers less COAL, enough to impact my seating depth significantly.

So my question, for those who have been down this road, what problems did you have and were you able to correct them? Does any particular bottom metal and mag combo work better than others?

I really appreciate any first-hand insight.

TK

 

[dnellans]

I’ve got a buddy who was having issues (fall 2021) feeding a 7 SAUM into a XM from a MDT mag (mdt chassis) due to the way the last few rounds were being brought up. He let them know and they sent him revised spring and follower which fixed the issue on both mags he had.

So if you see problematic posts about the MDT mags, check the date on them as there has been a revision to address some fees issues but I don’t know what exact date that revision occurred.

 

[Carl S]

I have a 6.5x47 built on a deviant action
sunny hill floor plate.i haven't had any feeding issues with it at all.

 

[Budget_Sniper]

I have a 6.5x47 built on a deviant action
sunny hill floor plate.i haven't had any feeding issues with it at all.

That's great, Carl. Does Sunny Hill make an XM length bottom metal?

 

[Carl S]

I'm not sure if sunny hill make an XM
Length bottom Metal,sorry.maybe an idea
to email them.

 

[L.Sherm]

I'm not sure if sunny hill make an XM
Length bottom Metal,sorry.maybe an idea
to email them.

They do for Defiance, ive got it on my Anti XM for my 6.5x300wsm feeds great.

 

[Buck300]

I believe Snowy Mountain Rifles has been making the xm bottom metal for Defiance these days.
I have a few xm's and they feed great out of the BDL set up.

 

[SweaterDood]

I built a Defiance XM repeater with the Tenacity XM action, APA bottom metal, MDT mags, and a McMillan stock at the end of 2020. My rifle is chambered in what is essentially a 257 Roberts AI, at 3.220” OAL. I ran into a 2 issues which have both been resolved:

- My action was one of the first few Tenacity XMs with the DBM cut, off of the latest milling center that Defiance had acquired at the time. The magazine cut was too small and preventing the magazine from fully seating into the action. Defiance took care of this and had my action turned around and back in my hands extremely quickly. I was without it for less than 48 hours (Alabama - Montana - Alabama).

- MDT magazine issue mentioned above. New magazines should not have an issue, but the follower would tilt on the older magazines. The update was to drill a new hole about 7mm forward of the existing hole in the follower, and reinstall the spring through the new hole. Again, I was one of the first customers to be using an XM with MDT mags extensively. I was on the phone with MDT for about a week trying a few different solutions and reporting back to them. The 7mm hole relocation was the final outcome. No issues after that.

- Not an issue, but the APA bottom metal seems to leave a lot of play with the magazine. It has never caused any issue, but I would lean toward the Hawkins XM bottom metal if I did it over. I don’t have the Hawkins XM to directly compare to, but the M5 version of their bottom metal is a much more snug fit with AICS magazines.

I should mention that my magazines are obviously the standard magazines and not the magnum feed lip configuration, but from the slight inconvenience of the action cut issue, Defiance did provide me with a magnum bolt. I plan to run a 300WSM or 7-6.5PRC on this rifle, and have no hesitation in buying 2-3 new MDT magazines to do so.

Hopefully this all helps. I support your original plan.