Endcap strike. Ranger 2. 16" BCM lightweight barrel.
Posted: Wed Dec 12, 2012 10:23 pm
I've got an interesting endcap strike, an idea that it was a particle or fragment that made it, and wanted to get opinions from you all here.
The AR in use used a 5.56 16" BCM CHF lightweight barrel with 1/7 twist. The suppressor was tightly installed, was well Rocksetted in place, and has been in place without removal for about 800 rounds. Quite a bit of force was necessary to remove using a strap wrench, so the strike didn't occur because the can was loose. The rifle has been re lubed, and the bolt and receiver swabbed, but neither the bore nor chamber have been cleaned since installation. Ammunition used has been exclusively Barnaul (Brown Bear) 55gr .223. Over 1000 rounds have been fired since attaching the can. This strike occurred in the last two range sessions, which were no more than 100 rounds combined. None of the other baffles show any sign of damage.
I've seen a similar type of strike in the forward most 'baffle' of a Romanian AK-74 type compensator that was mounted on a 5.56 WASR-3. Whatever it was struck squarely just to the side of the aperture, but only 'dented' the metal, making a rounded crater- much less damage than I would expect had the strike been caused directly by a bullet. It happened once and never again in thousands of rounds of (mostly) Wolf.
It seems to me that if what struck the end cap on my can had been any part of a whole bullet, it would have fully penetrated, would have bulged that part of the end cap outwards, leaving a partial bullet-silhouette-shaped hole and bulge, and would have been larger in diameter. Perhaps this was caused by some lead squeezed from the base of a round or by a chunk of debris free in the can or barrel?
Do you all concur this looks like a particle/fragment and not a direct bullet strike?
Have any of you noticed similar impacts in your own cans? Is this kind of thing to be expected over the life of a can?
Since there is now a slight projection into the endcap aperture, it seems like the best course of action would be to carefully remove the protrusion with a small file to reduce the possibility of a bullet striking it, since it seems likely removing the protrusion is what AAC would do anyway (I don't think they're going to cut the weld and reweld a new endcap). Do you all concur?
The AR in use used a 5.56 16" BCM CHF lightweight barrel with 1/7 twist. The suppressor was tightly installed, was well Rocksetted in place, and has been in place without removal for about 800 rounds. Quite a bit of force was necessary to remove using a strap wrench, so the strike didn't occur because the can was loose. The rifle has been re lubed, and the bolt and receiver swabbed, but neither the bore nor chamber have been cleaned since installation. Ammunition used has been exclusively Barnaul (Brown Bear) 55gr .223. Over 1000 rounds have been fired since attaching the can. This strike occurred in the last two range sessions, which were no more than 100 rounds combined. None of the other baffles show any sign of damage.
I've seen a similar type of strike in the forward most 'baffle' of a Romanian AK-74 type compensator that was mounted on a 5.56 WASR-3. Whatever it was struck squarely just to the side of the aperture, but only 'dented' the metal, making a rounded crater- much less damage than I would expect had the strike been caused directly by a bullet. It happened once and never again in thousands of rounds of (mostly) Wolf.
It seems to me that if what struck the end cap on my can had been any part of a whole bullet, it would have fully penetrated, would have bulged that part of the end cap outwards, leaving a partial bullet-silhouette-shaped hole and bulge, and would have been larger in diameter. Perhaps this was caused by some lead squeezed from the base of a round or by a chunk of debris free in the can or barrel?
Do you all concur this looks like a particle/fragment and not a direct bullet strike?
Have any of you noticed similar impacts in your own cans? Is this kind of thing to be expected over the life of a can?
Since there is now a slight projection into the endcap aperture, it seems like the best course of action would be to carefully remove the protrusion with a small file to reduce the possibility of a bullet striking it, since it seems likely removing the protrusion is what AAC would do anyway (I don't think they're going to cut the weld and reweld a new endcap). Do you all concur?
Your input is always appreciated.
