Ruger American 17HMR

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Ruger American 17HMR

Post by rsj223 » 14 Dec 2015, 6:33 pm

So I got my kid (me) one of these in compact, got 5 different boxes of ammo and went of to the range to see what would be best.
All started off ok but after around 50 rounds and the target was moved out to 100mtr it was having trouble ejecting I could get them out with my little finger but there is one stuck in the chamber (fired) so I left it there for the shop to sort it out, sitting there wile the son was using the most reliable rifle I have (Lithgow 1b) I started going through the empty 17hmr rounds kept the ones that got stuck separate and noticed cracks, searching the net showed many that had failed some years ago so thought I would send off a email to Winchester as the ammo was Winchester and CCI and this was the response I got, what do you guys think?

Split necks are common in magnum ammunition.

It causes no damage to your firearm or accuracy of the projectile.



Thanks for your email and have a great day
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Re: Ruger American 17HMR

Post by drewmd » 14 Dec 2015, 6:48 pm

Hi RSJ

I use the Winchester Varmint HV ammo in my 17HMR in my Savage and the only issue I have ever had was soft strikes on the primer....which has since been sorted with some minor bolt work.

Pressure and chamber headspace issues maybe????? I think some of the other guys may be more knowledgeable than me on this.

Interesting response from Winchester though.

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Re: Ruger American 17HMR

Post by bigfellascott » 14 Dec 2015, 9:13 pm

Yep its a very common problem with the 17hmr, I wouldn't own one if you gave it to me! there have been too many incidents of people taking a shot only to find the projectile stuck halfway up the pipe then take another shot unaware that the first projectile never made it out the barrel! End result blown up rifle and injuries in the more serious cases.

Do a google search you should find a few stories with the same issues.
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Re: Ruger American 17HMR

Post by brett1868 » 14 Dec 2015, 9:28 pm

Maybe an oversized chamber, too much headspace would possibly see the rim splitting. I have a Savage 93R17 FVSS and I've only ever seen 1 split neck outta maybe 500 rounds but never a split shoulder. I found the Hornady shot best in mine and use it exclusively now. Great little rifle which I shot my test target for the SSAA Farmer Assist program with just last week.
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Re: Ruger American 17HMR

Post by rsj223 » 14 Dec 2015, 10:27 pm

Yeah the Hornady 17g were looking the best will see what the shop says, they gonna love me all I seem to do is buy and return :unknown:
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Re: Ruger American 17HMR

Post by bigfellascott » 15 Dec 2015, 4:44 am

rsj223 wrote:Yeah the Hornady 17g were looking the best will see what the shop says, they gonna love me all I seem to do is buy and return :unknown:


That's what I was thinking :lol: you're having a bad run on the rifles mate, no doubt about it, I've never had to return one yet over 35yrs or so of owning em. Let us know what the outcome of this problem is hey. :thumbsup:
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Re: Ruger American 17HMR

Post by happyhunter » 15 Dec 2015, 8:34 am

.
Last edited by happyhunter on 16 Feb 2017, 6:44 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Ruger American 17HMR

Post by Walt68 » 15 Dec 2015, 8:47 am

this is why I stick to .22 WMR.
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Re: Ruger American 17HMR

Post by rsj223 » 15 Dec 2015, 9:38 pm

Walt68 wrote:this is why I stick to .22 WMR.

I'll get it right one day I hope
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Re: Ruger American 17HMR

Post by Wobble » 16 Dec 2015, 1:58 pm

How many did you fire in the end to get 9 splits?
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Re: Ruger American 17HMR

Post by Apollo » 16 Dec 2015, 2:21 pm

17HMR has had hicups with ammo since the day the calibre was released.

CCI make most all the ammo for other market names like Hornady, Remington and of course CCI. Winchester make there own and there is another I forget who.

Split case necks AFTER being fired is no worry what so ever and most don't ever notice because they don't collect their fired empties and/or or ever look at them.

The biggest problem was split necks in unfired ammo. This is/was a manufacturing process in the forming of the case. Explained as the cases were a touch too brittle when shaped and split. It was a major drama a few years back and may still be happening, depends on how old the batch is and how long it's been on shop shelves.

MANY WARNINGS have been posted about the issue and MANY WARNINGS of check every round you purchase BEFORE FIRING IT.

The BIG PROBLEM is that if the case neck/shoulder has split during manufacturer and NOT detected then sit on a shop shelf perhaps for many years it will allow moisture to enter and contaminate the powder load causing misfires and/or no powder detination at all which can cause the bullet to move forward into the barrel rifling depending on the degree of misfire.

If you have a 17HMR and you fire a round that doesn't go BANG or sounds MUFFLED then DO NOT FIRE ANOTHER ROUND until you inspect the bore for an obstruction like being the bullet. Some are easy to remove, some aren't and some will cause a lot of damage.

I had a 17HMR for a long time, I checked every round, threw a few into the experiment box, fired them all without a problem BUT a mates son had one misfire and lodge partially into the barrel. He was smart enough after being warned to check and returned back here to clear the barrel. Lucky he was alert. He has had his 17HMR for a lot of years and only ever the one hickup, none since he checked every round in a new box.

I sold my 17HMR and use a .22 Hornet instead. Near a cheap to reload for as buy .17HMR Ammo.
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Re: Ruger American 17HMR

Post by rsj223 » 16 Dec 2015, 5:32 pm

Wobble wrote:How many did you fire in the end to get 9 splits?

I can check the left over boxes but I think about 75.
I'm not to worried about firing the ammo that splits more so pissed off I knew nothing about it and its another new rifle that had to go back to the shop to see why they are getting stuck, my latest rifles will spend more time in the LGS than my safe.
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Re: Ruger American 17HMR

Post by Norton » 05 Jan 2016, 8:55 am

Apollo wrote:Winchester make there own and there is another I forget who.


Olin rings a bell?
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