by in2anity » 10 Aug 2016, 9:23 am
After recently purchasing a walnut black crossover (btw love it besides the mag), my rifle started "stovepiping" after about 150 rounds. I proceeded to follow the instructions provided on the official Lithgow website in an attempt to bend the follower slightly (to rectify the problem).
Unfortunately this has not really alleviated the problem - if anything it's made things worse. I'm now left in the position wondering if I should have ever mucked with it in the first place.
I always intended on upgrading to a 10-shot, so, considering Lithgow advertises the rifle as being compatible with CZ magazines, I went and bought a steel 10rnd CZ magazine. The magazine is a very snug fit when trying to make it engage or "click" into place. But once it's in, I have no doubt it feeds MUCH more reliably than the factory poly. I'm still yet to have a stovepipe after cycling many hundreds of rounds, and there is no lead shaving at all.
The CZ magazine engages much easier when the bolt is open, so at the range that's what I intend on doing. When the bolt is closed however (and there is a full 10 rounds in the magazine) it's virtually impossible to engage the magazine. In this case you can actually see how the first round is hitting the underside of the bolt. The lead actually gets flattened due to the downward pressure as you try and squeeze it in. My solution - if I want to insert the magazine with the bolt closed (in the field), I'll only put 9 rounds in the magazine. Also maybe the CZ problems will lessen once the spring loosens up over time (I.e. It's a brand new CZ magazine).
Has anyone else noted this behavior with a CZ magazine in a crossover?
Has anyone else figured out how to make the CZ magazines fit easier?
Much obliged.
At what point does lack of maintenance become patina?