Triggerless Discharge !

thorneyglatt

Well-Known Member
I was checking the zero on my Tikka T3 before a day's hind stalking on Forrest Estate (great place !) back in February. Two aimed shots had hit the target to John Hilditch's satisfaction, but as there was a third round in the magazine I decided to fire it just to prove the first shots weren't a fluke. The second spent case ejected OK, but when I chambered the third round it went off, hitting the ground about 4 feet below the target. My hand was still on the bolt handle (not the trigger) as the rifle fired. I was using .308 factory loads, and the action has worked perfectly ever since. Any suggestions ? The experience was a forceful lesson in muzzle awareness !

Thorneyglatt.
 
Any suggestions ?

my suggestion would be don't ask on here!
take it to a gunsmith.

I have a parker hale trigger that was given to me that whilst test fitting I discovered had an altered sear, it meant the pin fired on closing.
either the trigger has not engaged the sear allowing the pin to slip past the sear or the sear has not engaged the firing pin to hold it cocked on closing

either way I wouldnt be messing about with it if it had done that
 
+ 1 take it to a gunsmith, have you lightened the trigger at all as this could cause this to happen
 
+ 1 take it to a gunsmith, have you lightened the trigger at all as this could cause this to happen

Took it to a gunsmith post haste - he couldn't find anything wrong. No, I haven't fiddled with anything. (I've owned the rifle from new).

Thorneyglatt
 
Grit or something on face of bolt, a long shot, but as sherlock would say when you have eliminated........ etc etc
 
Impossible to be definitive ( but could be wrong! ) in the circumstances, but have had a couple of similar instances with various rifles.

First time it happened a very old article in Guns & Ammo came to mind - in that case a rifle discharged on moving the safety catch. Was found to have been caused by a bead of polystyrene from the box the rifle came in. It had wedged under the safety bar and pressed against the sear. Author noted it was pure chance that it stayed in place upon firing and removal of the stock.

That first time with me I put a sheet down and carefully removed the stock. Not proof positive, but a bit of heather gracefully fell out onto the cloth from the trigger area. Could find nothing else amiss and upon reassembly various efforts with an unloaded rifle failed to reproduce the discharge. It went back to the distributor - who confirmed no mechanical problem.

Subsequent instances have failed to turn up any suspect debris/ bits etc - but a bit of grit lodging on the sear could work wonders and would likely be dislodged upon recoil.

Not a certain answer by any means, but a possibility.
 
Have you ever wondered WHY you ALWAYS chamber a round with the muzzle pointing away from everyone and at the ground....... 'slam-fires' happen, fact of life... If you have had it checked out and it is fine just put it down to one of those things and be aware whenever you chamber a round...
 
I had the same thing in a Remington 700 years ago, caused by some unburnt powder, A Gunsmith friend has fixed quite a few triggers that fire independently of finger, biggest cause is rust second is people fiddling with adjustments.
Robert.
 
bloody hell how old are you! ,700 years ago?,only messing ,but my sako wont engage the firing pin ,and its worrying that if it did engage it could do the same ,possably some debrie in the mechanism
 
I've closed a bolt on loading and, unbeknown to me, managed to touch the trigger with my knuckle. I didn't feel it at all. Bang! Followed by "What the **** was that?"

Stan
 
bloody hell how old are you! ,700 years ago?,only messing ,but my sako wont engage the firing pin ,and its worrying that if it did engage it could do the same ,possably some debrie in the mechanism
Missed a( ,) SAKO triggers are very reliable I have early SAKO's and a Model 75 never had a problem check for wear and grit, give it a good clean and check the adjustments or get a qualified gun smith to do it, it's bloody scary having a round go off when not expecting it. Robert.
 
my suggestion would be don't ask on here!
take it to a gunsmith.

I have a parker hale trigger that was given to me that whilst test fitting I discovered had an altered sear, it meant the pin fired on closing.
either the trigger has not engaged the sear allowing the pin to slip past the sear or the sear has not engaged the firing pin to hold it cocked on closing

either way I wouldnt be messing about with it if it had done that

I'll second that. Take it to a gunsmith.
I had a Howa that would discharge when the safety was flipped off. It was a dirty trigger combined with too-fine a sear engagement.~Muir
 
A couple of years ago, a friend with a brand new Sako 85 had a round go off while stalking in the Highlands. On to a hind, he slipped the safety for the shot and the round fired before he touched the trigger.

To this point the rifle had performed faultlessly. He chambered another round as the hind, not hit, hadn't moved far.
As he closed the bolt.....gently, again the round fired without him touching the trigger.

He didn't attempt to use the rifle again on that trip and took it stright into the dealer on his return home. But, we noticed testing it back at the lodge, once cocked, provided the firing pin didn't inadvertently go off, the action of sliding the safety catch to 'Safe' was enough to dry fire the rifle. If the safety made it to 'Safe' without firing, then releasing it from safe to fire would once again dry fire the rifle. It was a matter of luck, so the rifle was deemed unsafe at that time.

The dealer in front of my friend & I removed the steel from the synth. stock. It was immediately apparent a hex. bolt holding the trigger assembly in place was significantly loose. Once tightened, the rifle functioned perfectly in all aspects once more.

What's astonishing is that if something of this nature fails, the rifle should be able to discharge at all.

Naturally, we all know about muzzle awareness and follow usual safety procedures when handling firearms, nevertheless, I should have imagined it not beyond the wit of man to redesign the trigger/action so that in the event of a failure of this nature, no discharge could occur :cuckoo:
 
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