Howa 1500 feed problem

Swandog

Swandog

New member
My new .223 varmint in a Bell&Carlson A2 stock. It will not feed. The picture shows the cartridge sitting in the magazine waiting to jump up but the bolt does not go back far enough for it to be fed. It single feeds and ejects the empty brass far and fast.

It's like the bolt needs to go back farther. It does this in and out of the stock so there is no binding anywhere. Should my bolt stop here?

Any advice before I take it to a gunsmith?



Howafeedproblem.jpg
 
mtwood, I did that but after the first round feeds they all back up like you see there in the picture whether there's 1 or 4 cartridges in there. They all start out forward but...
 
Yes. I bought the action new from Legacy Sports and the stock is brand new as well. There's no binding anywhere. I'm not sure why the follower is being cocked like that. I've had it apart 10 times today trying to figure it out.
 
I just took it out of the stock and screwed the magazine and trigger guard on the action and it does the same thing. Maybe it came with the wrong magazine box on it. Seems like there's too much room for the cartridges to move back and for the follower to get cock eyed.
 
Originally Posted By: Swandog
Maybe it came with the wrong magazine box on it. Seems like there's too much room for the cartridges to move back and for the follower to get cock eyed.

That is what I was thinking. I'll bet you have the wrong follower and mag box.
 
Has it done this since day one?? My 1500 has a spacer in the magazine. Maybe you have it assembled incorrectly.
 
Thinking right follower, wrong box. Some mag boxes are the same external measurements for both 308 and 223 length cartridges. However, the mag boxes are altered internally to accept the shorter 223 length cartridges. Without this internal alteration, the correct size follower will just float around in there, and the cartridges themselves will be able to sit back in the box further than the bolt is capable of retrieving them.........
 
zilla, Today is day one, it's brand new and I just picked it up last night. The magazine box only goes in one way and I tried it reversed and up side down and still no go.

There is no spacer in mine and that could be the problem. Thanks for the tip. I'll be calling Legacy Sports on Monday.

Also, I compared the spring tension compared to my Marlin XL7 and a couple of Mausers and it seems weak.
 
Originally Posted By: zillaHas it done this since day one?? My 1500 has a spacer in the magazine. Maybe you have it assembled incorrectly.

I was typing while you wrote this. The "spacer" is exactly what I'm talking about. maybe it is absent?
 
2muchgun, I believe you and zilla are correct. I bought just the barreled action and I'll bet it slipped by QC not being a complete rifle. There is way too much room in there. Thanks guys!
 
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Mine too has a spacer in my .223. If you take the Mag box out it will fall out. It sits about 1/2" forward of the rear of the box. You should be able to see it, and a gap in the rear of the box.
 
Originally Posted By: zillaHas it done this since day one?? My 1500 has a spacer in the magazine. Maybe you have it assembled incorrectly.

This is exactly what I was getting at!
 
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