Kind of hard to describe, but here goes....I shot the gun this evening for the first time. I shot slow, 5 shot strings (SS197). After each 5 shots, I removed the mag, cleared the remaining round (down into the catch bag), and went to check my target for grouping/sight alignment. Each and every time, when manually charging the weapon, the first round instead of firing with a sharp staccato crack, was sounding like a low pressure squib, with the internals seeming to operate in slow motion. It seemed as if I could hear/feel the bolt moving in a slow, two part , backward-forward movement. Rounds 2 through 5 of each string had a very crisp, sharp, report, and the bolt's movement was what I expected...just as crisp as any of my other rifles.
This happened 10 times in 50 rounds...every time I manually charged the rifle. My initial thoughts before I connected it to being the first round of each string, was that the quality control of the bullets was suspect, and that I was experiencing lightly loaded rounds. This appears not to be the case...as follows.
I handed the rifle over to an other member at the range who had been watching me shoot (he thought the rifle was cool), and let him fire off some ammo. He fired a few, and then I asked him to manually cycle the action. We did this a few times. Without me telling him what I was experiencing, I asked him what he thought. He volunteered that some of the rounds were quite lightly loaded. After asking if it was the first round of each string that felt light, he concurred.
Each time I chambered a round, I did so by pulling the charging handle back as far as it would go, and then let go, I did not ride the handle into battery.
I'm wondering if while cycling the bolt manually, the moving parts group might not have been going completely home, but far enough to release the (don't know the proper terminology) sear that's at the very front of the hammer group(the one that clicks loudly).
Anyone else experience this???? Any thoughts???
For informational purposes, with the SS197, the rifle was initially shooting a few inches high and to the right at 50 yards. Once sighted in, I was able to get all of my groups within 4 inches. Each group had 4 rounds in a 1 to 2 inch horizontal line, with one flyer in each 5 shot group opening it up to 4 inches. Don't know for sure, but I'm guessing the flyer was the first shot of each group.
This happened 10 times in 50 rounds...every time I manually charged the rifle. My initial thoughts before I connected it to being the first round of each string, was that the quality control of the bullets was suspect, and that I was experiencing lightly loaded rounds. This appears not to be the case...as follows.
I handed the rifle over to an other member at the range who had been watching me shoot (he thought the rifle was cool), and let him fire off some ammo. He fired a few, and then I asked him to manually cycle the action. We did this a few times. Without me telling him what I was experiencing, I asked him what he thought. He volunteered that some of the rounds were quite lightly loaded. After asking if it was the first round of each string that felt light, he concurred.
Each time I chambered a round, I did so by pulling the charging handle back as far as it would go, and then let go, I did not ride the handle into battery.
I'm wondering if while cycling the bolt manually, the moving parts group might not have been going completely home, but far enough to release the (don't know the proper terminology) sear that's at the very front of the hammer group(the one that clicks loudly).
Anyone else experience this???? Any thoughts???
For informational purposes, with the SS197, the rifle was initially shooting a few inches high and to the right at 50 yards. Once sighted in, I was able to get all of my groups within 4 inches. Each group had 4 rounds in a 1 to 2 inch horizontal line, with one flyer in each 5 shot group opening it up to 4 inches. Don't know for sure, but I'm guessing the flyer was the first shot of each group.
