Factory 7PRC x Christensen FFT = Pressure?

[Hsammak]

Hi all, I’m trying to figure out how concerned I should be about this.

I took a brand new 7prc Christensen FFT to the range for the break in process. First shot with Hornady factory ammo, I got the following pressure signs: completely blown out primer, ejector marks with sharp edges where brass flowed into ejectors, really heavy bolt lift (could still work bolt with one hand, just really had to reef on it).

Another weird thing was that the case neck was dented on both sides at about 10 and 2 o’clock.

I know enough to be wary of what — in my mind — are significant pressure signs, but not enough to know if it’s the barrel just being brand new or something, or if it’s just a little left over factory grease causing excess pressure I can clean out, etc.

Anyhow, I erred on the side of caution and decided to stop right there and then. I’ll call Christensen and Hornady and see what they say.

Pics attached (note: I reinserted the primer just so it would stay with the case in the box). I would love to hear what you guys had to say. Thanks in advance.

 

[Part Timer]

I know enough to be wary of what — in my mind — are significant pressure signs, but not enough to know if it’s the barrel just being brand new or something, or if it’s just a little left over factory grease causing excess pressure I can clean out, etc.

Did you clean it before you went to the range or just right out of the box and firing? Not saying this is the case, but if there was to be grease in there, it could definitely cause these signs.

When you chambered the round, was it tough to close the bolt or not? Not sure if it's worth chambering - but not firing - another round to see what's up.

Regardless of the barrel being brand new, you should absolutely not be getting these issues.

 

[Hsammak]

Did you clean it before you went to the range or just right out of the box and firing? Not saying this is the case, but if there was to be grease in there, it could definitely cause these signs.

When you chambered the round, was it tough to close the bolt or not? Not sure if it's worth chambering - but not firing - another round to see what's up.

Regardless of the barrel being brand new, you should absolutely not be getting these issues.

Frankly, I took it out of the box, mounted the scope, cleaned the bore using a bore guide and shot it.

Being that all of these rifles are shot in factory, I perhaps wrongfully assumed that it was in shooting order.

Rounds chamber very smoothly. I blacked out a bullet with a marker to see if there was anything really obvious when chambering. This is what I saw.

 

[Chris1972]

It looks like it has two ejectors. A lot of people have been removing one of those because of excessive pressure even with factory ammo.

I am NOT saying that’s your issue, I’ve never saw it that bad from dual ejectors.

 

[BORD]

I am no expert, but I would say the rifle misses home and wants a trip back to CA.

 

[FisherT&C]

It could be as simple as an excessive head space vs hot factory ammo. If you have the tools you could pull the bullet from a live round and see how much fire form you are getting with a comparator; punch out the spent primer it can skew the measurement.

 

[Mike Tackleberry]

What Fisher said, Excess headspace and hot ammo causes problems, I'd also make sure the bullets are not jamming into the lands, This will increase pressure significantly in already hot rounds!

 

[evilsvt]

send it back. Buddy had one do the same exact same thing and he had it back within 7 days.

 

[tysonpence]

I had this happen to me as well today, I didn’t think much of it because the primers weren’t cratered, I did have some ejector marks by nothing major. I was shooting a Christensen mesa fft with factory hornady 180 gr eld-m’s. I got through 50 rounds, and about 10 of them popped primers.

 

[Chris1972]

Ejectors. Plural

 

[christensenarms]

Hi all, I’m trying to figure out how concerned I should be about this.

I took a brand new 7prc Christensen FFT to the range for the break in process. First shot with Hornady factory ammo, I got the following pressure signs: completely blown out primer, ejector marks with sharp edges where brass flowed into ejectors, really heavy bolt lift (could still work bolt with one hand, just really had to reef on it).

Another weird thing was that the case neck was dented on both sides at about 10 and 2 o’clock.

I know enough to be wary of what — in my mind — are significant pressure signs, but not enough to know if it’s the barrel just being brand new or something, or if it’s just a little left over factory grease causing excess pressure I can clean out, etc.

Anyhow, I erred on the side of caution and decided to stop right there and then. I’ll call Christensen and Hornady and see what they say.

Pics attached (note: I reinserted the primer just so it would stay with the case in the box). I would love to hear what you guys had to say. Thanks in advance.

Good afternoon, we have recently made some changes here at Christensen Arms and I am the new Director of Customer Experience and I am focused on clearing up any past issues of QC and Customer Service. Our marketing team will be addressing this shortly as we leave this stuff behind us.

For the amount of money you guys are paying for a rifle from us we do want you to have complete faith in your rifle as well as ammunition you are running. You also want the level of customer service that is fitting of a rifle purchase like this.

Ejector marks like you are seeing are pretty common across all manufacturers making rifles for the PRC line of cartridges, but if at any point you have a question with it we are always more than happy to bring your rifle back and do a complete inspection of the rifle.

Now the primers popping out at that rate does make me a little concerned. We know the Hornady PRC ammunition are pretty hot rounds, that mixed with some excess headspace can cause this issue. We would be more than happy to get this back to check out for you to make sure we have no issues.

If at anytime you guys feel your question is not getting answered by someone at Christensen Arms, please feel free to reach out to me here and I will get you guys taken care of ASAP.

 

[mbtguide]

Having the same issue as I just brought mine to the range for the first time today. Cleaned it well before shooting. First 4/5 shots no issues. 6-8 all have major issues with ejecting.

 

[tysonpence]

Having the same issue as I just brought mine to the range for the first time today. Cleaned it well before shooting. First 4/5 shots no issues. 6-8 all have major issues with ejecting.

Their customer service team is great, I ended up sending mine back and got it back within a week. If you have any doubts call them or send in a warranty request

 

[Bsnyder]

op take ca up on their offer. Hornady will tell you it’s the gun because all of their stuff is loaded to Sami spec. (Yeah right!) Hope you have better luck than my experiences.

 

[christensenarms]

@Hsammak we would be more than happy to bring your rifle back and get you taken care of. No manufacturing process is perfect and we know we have had our share in the past.

The new General Manager of Manufacturing and myself, the new Director of Customer Experience have been specifically brought in to fix these issues. We have hit those issues head-on and are looking at what that means for even better products in the future. We have been pushing the RMA team to get as many rifles corrected and sent back out in under a week's time.

Rest assured any issue a customer may have with one of our firearms, we are here to get corrected as fast and thoroughly as possible.

Very respectfully,
Jimmy

 

[Kootenay338]

Good afternoon, we have recently made some changes here at Christensen Arms and I am the new Director of Customer Experience and I am focused on clearing up any past issues of QC and Customer Service. Our marketing team will be addressing this shortly as we leave this stuff behind us.

For the amount of money you guys are paying for a rifle from us we do want you to have complete faith in your rifle as well as ammunition you are running. You also want the level of customer service that is fitting of a rifle purchase like this.

Ejector marks like you are seeing are pretty common across all manufacturers making rifles for the PRC line of cartridges, but if at any point you have a question with it we are always more than happy to bring your rifle back and do a complete inspection of the rifle.

Now the primers popping out at that rate does make me a little concerned. We know the Hornady PRC ammunition are pretty hot rounds, that mixed with some excess headspace can cause this issue. We would be more than happy to get this back to check out for you to make sure we have no issues.

If at anytime you guys feel your question is not getting answered by someone at Christensen Arms, please feel free to reach out to me here and I will get you guys taken care of ASAP.

I am having issues with my CA Ridgeline FFT in 7MM PRC. It is apparent that the free bore was cut too small, and will not chamber some bullets. Your team member has replied to me and my gun will go back to Corlanes for warranty ( first time was because the wrong mag box was installed from factory). In Canada, it cost me 50 dollars to ship, plus hundreds in shipping insurance. I also found out that return shipping is paid but with no insurance. Seems like a bad idea to ship a 3500 dollar gun without insurance. Or will you guys go good for a new gun if something goes wrong. I feel like there should be some compensation for the amount out of pocket to send these guns back

 

[Hsammak]

I’m

@Hsammak we would be more than happy to bring your rifle back and get you taken care of. No manufacturing process is perfect and we know we have had our share in the past.

The new General Manager of Manufacturing and myself, the new Director of Customer Experience have been specifically brought in to fix these issues. We have hit those issues head-on and are looking at what that means for even better products in the future. We have been pushing the RMA team to get as many rifles corrected and sent back out in under a week's time.

Rest assured any issue a customer may have with one of our firearms, we are here to get corrected as fast and thoroughly as possible.

Very respectfully,
Jimmy

I missed this message, but I’m very happy you guys switched something up. I was told by your previous support team that you guys aren’t in the business of “buying back guns.” I was so done at that point, I decided I’d rather take the hit getting rid of that gun at the gun counter than continue to deal with your support staff. I sold that gun to the sporting goods store, and in order not to pass my misfortune off to the next guy who bought it, I took a several hundred dollar hit on the sale because I told them what repairs they’d have to send it in for and offered to take that out of the price they offered me. I don’t think I’ve ever been so annoyed with a purchase or customer service experience in my life. It essentially cost me $1200 to rent a gun from you guys for 1 shot.

 

[Kootenay338]

In Canada our guns go to Corlanes for warranty. My gun is there again and I’m sure the gunsmith there will resolve this issue. My main complaint is the money out of pocket to keep getting the gun there and back. 50 dollars shipping and a couple hundred in insurance. Corlanes will not include insurance on the return shipping and with a 3500 dollar gun, I question if you guys would go good if there is a mishap in shipping. There should be some sort of compensation

 

[redneckbmxer24]

You shouldn’t be out a dime sending a rifle back for their fuck ups, and you’re having to do it twice now.

When I had to send my MPR back (twice) first for a short chamber, and second time for the replacement barrel shooting like ass they wanted me to pay shipping and I told them it was their problem not mine and they sent a label.

That company sucks ass and so do their rifles.

 

[christensenarms]

@Kootenay338 Hello, my apologies for the frustration on that 7PRC. Please send me a message here with your name and contact info or give us a call in customer service, we can get with our contact at Corlanes and see what solutions are available regarding the shipping fees.

As for the 7PRC projectiles not chambering: Some of the projectiles made for 7PRC are the longest available to this point for that bore, working with a few ammunition manufacturers we have been made aware that some of these projectiles have been subject to concentricity issues, and that may be what's causing the problem here. In either case, we can certainly get the rifle back for evaluation and repair if need be.

Quinton
Christensen Arms Customer Service

 

[christensenarms]

@Hsammak That kind of interaction is one of the many reasons we have an all new CS team in place. I know you've moved on from that rifle, but if you decide to give us another chance in the future, please feel free to reach out to us with any questions or concerns. As Jimmy stated previously, we're dedicated to giving customer's a great experience and resolving any issues they may run into as quickly as possible.

Quinton
Christensen Arms Customer Service

 

[Kootenay338]

@Kootenay338 Hello, my apologies for the frustration on that 7PRC. Please send me a message here with your name and contact info or give us a call in customer service, we can get with our contact at Corlanes and see what solutions are available regarding the shipping fees.

As for the 7PRC projectiles not chambering: Some of the projectiles made for 7PRC are the longest available to this point for that bore, working with a few ammunition manufacturers we have been made aware that some of these projectiles have been subject to concentricity issues, and that may be what's causing the problem here. In either case, we can certainly get the rifle back for evaluation and repair if need be.

Quinton
Christensen Arms Customer Service

 

[lbalsley1948]

Recently purchased CA Mesa FFT 7prc. Fired rifle first time on Monday. Following CA break-in procedure using Hornady Precision Hunter 175 ELDX. First shot blew primer, following their procedures fired two 3 shot groups. Each shot the bolt was harder to use. Noticed primers flattened and ejector marks on case . Went to clean and noticed one of the ejectors broke. Contacted CA customer service and discussed the issues and was advised to return the firearm for repairs. After reading this thread it seems to me that is not an uncommon problem and by this time the issue should have been resolved in the manufacturing process. I have been a fan of Bergara for a long time. I have never had one issue with the several I own. But decided to give CA a try. In the sixty two yrs I have been involved in the shooting sports with just about every firearms manufacturer in the USA I haven't never had to return a firearm to the manufacturer for repairs after six shots.

 

[JR1200W3]

I can't believe still buy Christianson rifles at this point. It's been years of problems despite all the "We're making changes and hope to provide a better customer service in the future" apologies.

 

[lbalsley1948]

I can't believe still buy Christianson rifles at this point. It's been years of problems despite all the "We're making changes and hope to provide a better customer service in the future" apologies.

Not concerned with customer service, concerned with product quality. Considering all of the complaints on here over an extended period I'm starting to question my choice. I agree that promises to fix the problem is not the solution. If it issues with the man

 

[redneckbmxer24]

Christensen has been junk for two decades at this point. They’re perfectly capable of making quality rifles as anyone else is, they just don’t and they keep saying they’re better yet they’re not. They can only improve, I don’t think they could actually get any worse than they are but at this point I certainly won’t believe it.

There’s way better shit out there that people can spend their money on.