Trouble shooting - Impact 737 - MDT HNT26 - AW Magazines

Gentleman4561

Luke Crawford
Full Member
Minuteman
Supporter
Dec 14, 2011
792
225
Cumming, GA
jbonemedia.com
I recently decided to try out AW mags, as I’ve always used standard "long" mags in the past.

These mags are brand new, with no tuning done yet.

The issue I’m encountering is that about every 10 rounds or so, the bolt skips over a round.

When I look through the rear of the rifle, the round sits too low in the action compared to my experience with single-feed mags.

MDT does offer different length mag catches for the HNT 26, but there’s not much room to push the AW mag further into the action.

I’m thinking the solution might be to remove some material from the mags and install a latch that will allow the mag to sit deeper in the action.

Does anyone have any other suggestions before I go back to using standard AI mags?
 

Attachments

  • IMG_4398.JPG
    IMG_4398.JPG
    193.5 KB · Views: 47
  • IMG_4399.JPG
    IMG_4399.JPG
    193.5 KB · Views: 46
I gave up on running AW's in my Impacts (and even my 3-lug Solus). Even with the mag tight to the action, the rounds are presented too low. At worst, the round impacts the flat faces of the feed lips and stops the bolt, or the bolt skips over the top. At best, the round impacts the feed ramp and has to cam out of the feed lips, adding a lot of extra catches to the bolt stroke, some significant enough to deform the bullet or require excessive force to overcome.

Use AI mags and it's back to throwing a hotdog down a hallway.
 
Every tiny bit of mag height helps with aw mags when using a 2 lug action like the impact. Tuning the lips to get more case head presentation is where I'd start, plus the mag latch. I'd go that direction b4 chopping or making permanent mods.
 
You need to mention what cartridge you’ve running please
Also cartridges should be touching the feed lip for the length of the lip. If the base is too low you may need to open the front to let the case head rise up higher
Edited for clarity
This is what I did with 6.5CR in the 308 AW mags and 737.

Is there a recommended width chart for the feed lips? I did trial and error to open the feed lips a little at a time after using all the adjustments on a Vision Pro chassis to have the mag sit nice and tight. It would be nice to have a cheat sheet to save time. I've had no issues since adjusting.