Marlin XT-17V Keyhole'ing issue!

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ginnz

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Hey guys, i need some help, BAD!

here's my issue, Yesterday, i picked up a brand new Marlin .17 XT-17V, heavy barrel rifle. With it i got a couple boxes of .17, one Hornady 20 gn .17HMR, and one box of Remington 17 gn Accutip V Boat tail.... I mounted my Tasco 4x16x40 scope on it today and headed out to zero it!

well, i started out with the Hornady. after about 15 rounds i was getting somewhere, (50 yards), my son shot a dozen or so, but it just wasnt shooting very tight. Now keep in mind, i was running a patch with nitro cleaner through it every 7-10 shots, about 3 soaked patches, then about 5-6 dry.... then shooting some more. we moved the target out to 100 yards, then things got worse....

well, after 50 shots (the box of hornady), I decided to remove the scope, and was going to install a Bushnell Trophy that i had along, to see if that made a difference. It was then that i noticed the mounting blocks on the gun were'nt tight! they were barely finger tight, so the scope was wiggling around, hence things getting (real) bad at 100 yards. So i went home, and dissasembled it, and tightned, and loc-tighted everything. Problem should be solved, right?

So i go back, by then im out of all .17 ammo except a box of Remington Premiere magnum 17gn. .17 HMR AccuTip V bot tail ammo. I put the target out at 50 yards to get an inititial zero, and shoot four shots, and the group is about 12"!!! and everyshot is "key holed" like they went through sideways!, so i try four more and it does the same, the group is hideous, 12" -16" and all keyholed!

I went home and cleaned the heck out of it with nitro cleaner and a bore brush, and many patches, till it came out clean, i thought maybe it was just really fouled up (which it prolly was a bit). I checked the barrel, its fine looking, the crown is fine (recessed)....

I went back out for the 3rd time, and it still does the same thing, even super cleaned! EVERY shot is keyhole'd, and a super bad group, if you can even call it that! is there something wrong with the gun? its brand new! the first shots never keyholed.

could it just be the ammo? (im hoping it is). its too bad i ran out of anythig else. has anyone else experienced this with the Remington stuff?

can someone shed some light on this issue? could it be something else loose on the rifle? (i cant see that)....

please help! man what a disappointing first day. i should have gone over every screw on the rifle before, i dont know what i was thinking, or NOT thinking!

A very sad Ginnz!
 
All of the .17 HMR stuff is made by CCI in the same factory with pretty much the same grain bullets so I can't see ammo having a huge impact.

Have you looked at the rifling in tha barrel?

Is there any? :eek:

And you are sure everything is mounted up right? If so I'd be talkin to whoever you bought it from.
 
I checked the barrel/crown, they are perfect. I did tighten the stock though when i re-assembled the rifle after adjusting the trigger.... ill loosen it back up.

i would post pics, but they are of bullets that went through a target sideways, and im not opening up a photobucket account for that.... thats ONE thing this forum truly sucks for, the inability to upload photo's, like almost any other forum. ;-(

anyways. all i can do is loosen the stock, if that doesnt work, ill have to return the gun, i guess. very disappointing!

ginnz.
 
well, ill pick up some other ammo tomorrow, and give it another try i guess, if its still chucking rounds all over, ill see what they'll do for me. I'd be perfectly happy with this exact gun, if it was functioning as it should. i cant understand what it is? the barrel "looks" fine, its got a recessed crown, that appears to be ok, the rifling is clean.... i dunno, i dont understand. I really like the feel of it, and of the trigger. its a shame. or, its just my luck.

if i have to exchange it, i have to drive 100 freaken miles, cost 60 bucks in gas, loose 4 hours of my time.... The upside is, i personally know someone who works there, i grew up with him.i hear he pretty much runs the place... in the end it may work out to be in my favor.
 
Brand new Marlin = Remington? If so, no one can really be surprised. This company is working at it's own demise. There are just too many stories of this nature. It's obvious that there is little (if any) quality control at the very end of their manufacturing process. It's one thing to occasionally produce a bad rifle among the 1000's they must make, it's quite the other letting out of the shop and into customer's hands.

How long is it going to be before Remington closes in the USA and opens operations in Japan? (like Winchester, Browning).

It's difficult to build a reputation and so easy to lose it.
 
i really doubt that this is your case, but... I had a bubba'd 6.5 Swede that i could not get zero'd for all the tea in China. At 100 yds. I never even hit paper, at 50 (or was it 25), pie-plate sized groups, almost all keyholed. This was with open sights. I was ready to wrap the gun around a tree. then my son noticed that I was kicking up sand in front of the target. Turns out the new front sight was way too high, and I was hitting the ground, ricocheting on the target. I got a lower front sight, because I didn't have enough adjustment in the rear. It now shoots 2" or so groups at 100, with open sights and my sucked out eyes.

Have you tried boresighting, to see what you get? If not, ask somemone to look at the ground ahead of the target as you're shooting. Won't cost anything and just may be worth a try.
 
..doubt it's this either, but did you clean the bore before shooting the rifle? I've never shot a new rifle without cleaning it thoroughly, but have been amazed at the amount of crud that can be in the bore of a brand new gun.

As an aside, I almost bought an XT17 VR last week, and would have if my local Marlin dealer had one in stock. I rarely see any mention of XT17, or the VR version, and having held one...it seems like a finer rifle than the comparable Savage 9317FV. Nicer finish, nicer synthetic stock...WAY better geometry with the stock, etc. It's a shame Marlin decided to try and save $1.50 and mold-in sling swivel studs as opposed to proper metal ones. I think they'd rip right off if I tried to mount my Harris on there!
 
The only thing that could cause accuracy as bad as you say you are getting is a bad barrel. Either no rifling, oversized bore, or VERY bad crown cut non-concentric. Send it in for warranty work.

I'd be curious to check though, try taking a round and see if you can insert the bullet end into the muzzle. It should not go in, but if you can slip the bullet into the bore you have a problem. Also, what is the muzzle fouling pattern like? Is it like a snowflake or more like an amoeba? If it is not a perfect star/snowflake you have a bad barrel.

The cause of keyholing is an unstabelized bullet, and considering .17hmr ammo is made by CCI (all of it) and to very strict tolerances, I highly doubt the ammo is your problem. Considering the barrel was made by remington, instinct tells me it's the barrel that is not stabilizing the bullets.
 
thats weird....I bought the XT17VR last november and I love the damn thing...accurate as hell...I love how people sell out the Marlin's bcuz of the Remington Factory and such. The thing is a tac driver...sorry your having a problem with yours bud!
 
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I would take the rifle back and exchange it. Sure hope you were smart enough to keep your targets, as you should take them with you to back up your request for an exchange rifle.

While you are there, have the gun shop put your scope on the new rifle, buy a couple of boxes of ammo of different weights, and ask directions to the nearest gun range where you can shoot the new rifle. If the new one shoots all right, then take it home.

If you send it in for repair, it could take a couple of months to get your rifle back. Accept the fact that is going to cost you money, either in shipping or driving to return the rifle. Anyone who has been shooting a long time has been in exactly the same situation you are in. I am not saying it is right, but that is probably the way it is going to end up. Maybe ask the Gun Shop to throw a couple of boxes of ammo in for your trouble.
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They gave me a full refund. I went to Cabella's and bought a Savage 93R17 BESV! Very nice. Cutout thumbhole stock, Stainless spiral fluted barrel, Accu- trigger. I mounted my Tasco 4x16x40 on it, and it looks like a million bucks! The only problem is all the places were sold out of Hornady 17 gn. .17HMR! So i picked up one box of Hornady 20 gn. XTP, 1- CCI 17 gn. TNT HMR , 1 Federal Premium 17 gn. TNT HP, 3-Federal Premium 17 gn Hornady V-Max Polymer Tip.... we'll see what it likes!

overall, after exchanging the Marlin, and the scope, i had to kick in an additional 105.79 for the BESV, but its worth it already, and i havn't shot it yet!

and man, they had alot of .17's to choose from..... it was a hard decision, in the end, i believe i picked the most expensive one they had there.
 
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