Brand new model 11/111 trophy hunter XP 22-250 feeding problems

[rocknman]

Hello.
I recently purchased the above referenced firearm 2-5-14. Went to Cabela's and got 2 more magazines couple days ago. Was thinking about going out this week to the range but first decided to run some rounds through it as follows (just at home cycling the ammo into the barrel):
1) load magazine into the rifle (and make sure the mag is seated properly)
2) using the bolt, shove the cartridge into the barrel
3) extract cartridge from the same
Wow. I never expected to have such problems from a brand new firearm. This is my first Savage and to say the least I am very, very disappointed. Feeding the ammo is inconsistent. Sometimes the bolt will not engage the cartridge and a few times the cartridge does not insert the barrel properly (stove pipe almost).
Ammo (4 types): Federal Fusion 55gr, Federal Power Shok 55 gr, Winchester Super X 55 gr and Hornady 55gr.
At first I thought the original magazine might be the problem because when I first used the new mags, they were somewhat better. However, that's not the case. I will be contacting Savage tomorrow and hope I can resolve the issue promptly. Anybody else had these issues? Thanks for your input and time.

[tufrthnails]

I found the mag seems to "Flex" a bit with the plastic bottom "metal". When you find out the fix let us know. I have yet to contact savage, but my .270 does the same.

[rocknman]

I contacted Savage today and spoke with customer service. Based on the problem happening with all three magazines and all four types of ammo, they are having UPS pick up the firearm in the next day or so. Savage will examine the rifle and get back with me. I'll update once I have more info.

[rocknman]

Well, I received my Trophy Hunter Model 11 XP today. To say the least, I am not pleased.
I loaded the magazines and on my very first attempt to load the cartridge via the bolt, it slid right over top of it just like when I first sent it back. Wow. The paperwork indicated that they changed the stock and function fired-passed.
Did they try to load the ammo as I did or just shove a round in the barrel? Unbelievable!
Timeline:
Called Savage and indicated problem Feb. 18, 2014
UPS picked up firearm Feb. 19, 2014
Delivered to Savage Feb. 26, 2014
Returned firearm to me Mar. 31, 2014
I simply cannot believe my luck. This is putting a bad taste in my mouth with Savage. I'll be calling them tomorrow. How ironic...April Fools Day.

[tufrthnails]

That sucks man. My issue with seems to have gone away. It now chambers well. Not sure if the mag has worn in a bit or what.

[cqh1111]

I have a 223 that had the same problem. It would not feed the last round.
Remove the action screws and the trigger guard screw. The rear action screw will have a spacer that fits into the magazine frame hole. Make sure the wide part of the spacer is making contact with the trigger guard. Mine was upside down which made the magazine frame sit away from the action.

[Dreadx]

I just bought my first Savage rifle. Its a model 11/111 trophy hunter XP in 30-06. I am having exactly the same problem. It randomly wont feed rounds. If I push up on the magazine from underneath it will work every time. It's as if the magazine is not seating well. The range officer where I went to test the rifle owns several Savage rifles and was shocked by the malfunctions. He looked it over and and advised me to contact Savage. After speaking with their customer service they are sending me a new magazine. If that doesn't fix the issue it will be going back as well :apologetic:

[rocknman]

Well, I talked to Savage on Tuesday. Said they'd "check with the gunsmith and call me back either that day or Wednesday". That puzzled me. Got a call back on Wednesday (yesterday) and indicated that a call tag was placed to UPS so they could pick it up again. Asked me if I had any questions and I asked "Will you have it for another month like last time?" She answered "I hope not". Not very reassuring to me. UPS picked it up today. I'll post back when there is more to add.
Rocknman

[rocknman]

Hey DreadX. I could do the same as you indicated. So it appears there is a problem with the proper seating of the magazine (I'm guessing). We'll see what the end result is from Savage. Not good as far as I'm concerned. Thanks for your input.

[rocknman]

Well, it's now May 19th and I received the rifle back today for the third time. What a joke. Guess what? Same **** problem. I talked to a "supervisor" which I also did last time (same person) and indicated that the bolt, intermittently, will not engage the cartridge when the bolt is pushed forward. He has stated that they cannot replicate the problem at the factory. Well, this time they replaced the magazine and polished the feed ramp. How in the hell would that fix this issue? Read my first post, 3 different magazines, four types of ammo (all 55 grain), and they will not feed properly. Sorry, it's not operator error. Bolt actions are one of the easiest firearms on the market. This is ridiculous! I said it's time for a new firearm or my money back. Gee whiz. Comments?

[cttb]

My Trophy Hunter did the same thing when I first got it. One thing I noticed is the shell ejects quite a bit before the bolt is all the way back. I believe at first I was keying the forward stroke off ejection instead of the rear stop and not bringing the bolt all the way back before going forward. Now I try to be firm when cycling the bolt and make sure I hit positive forced stops at all four stops in the action (up, back, forward, down). These actions really aren't very smooth. I still get the occasional cartridge where the bolt meets some resistance when it meets the rim, but increasing the forward pressure on the bolt gets the cartridge to seat. The magazine system isn't the best either. I find the rear corners of mine tend to catch the bottom "metal," and the click the tab makes when the magazine seats is mushy and vague. You're probably doing all this stuff already, but I thought I would share my experience just in case.

[johnsland8]

This thread is kind of depressing. I did a bunch of research before buying my Savage and heard nothing but good things about their accuracy and reliability for the price. I just got back from the range and breaking in the barrel on my new Trophy Hunter XP in .223. I am having the exact same experience as the others. It's very random and doesn't matter if there's 1, 2, 3, or 4 rounds in the magazine. It will randomly fail to feed at any time. Mine almost acts as though the bolt will not pull back far enough to pick up the next round. When it fails to feed, if I reach in the chamber and push the round forward or just jostle it a bit, the bolt will then cycle it without issue. I can't believe so many people can have the same issue and they have no idea why or how to fix it. I guess I will try what cqh1111 suggested above. I'm certainly not shipping it back for a month for nothing. I will let you know if I have any luck with the washer...

[SlimySquirrel]

Ok.

I had this exact problem on both my Savage rifles.

The first was a Predator Hunter Max 1 in .223 and the second was a Model 16 (Used) 22-250.

Very frustrating and it has prevented me from buying another Savage so far but... I am looking again if I can find the right price for a donor action.

I decided to try an after market bottom metal and AICS mag... it fixed the issue as it seems the problem lies with the magazine lips feeding too high or something.. There has been fixes in the past that included Opening up the "Lip" of the mag to allow a better feed... this sorta worked but not reliable enough for me.

I went with the Atlas Worx as it was available here in NZ for a decent price and enjoyed the larger mag capacity too.

For the record.. mine really hated hollow points and basically would not feed them.

[rocknman]

Well, I finally got the firearm replaced and I think received it around June 30th. Feb. 14th - Jun. 30th, 4 & 1/2 months to have Savage get it right (hopefully). The new gun seems to work fine feeding the ammo. Been too busy to shoot yet. Hoping to in the next week or two. Unbelievable is all I can say. Savage refused to replace it until I mentioned "an attorney may have to get involved". Hope they just don't put (the defective one) back on the market and sell it. My experience (first time Savage buyer) has been horrible. The supposed "gunsmiths" that work there do not know what they are doing in my opinion. Never addressed the real problem. Hope to follow up on this thread again.

[SlimySquirrel]

Wow... at least you got there!! Stinking experience though....

[tufrthnails]

That sucks man glad you finally got another one. I need to get out and shoot mine with the new to me stock but the feed issue cleared itself on mine after the 4th box of ammo or so I shot through it. I have not had another issue knock on wood!

[mikgarus]

Are these the Axis style mags with the plastic tab?