A friend of mine recently bought this brand new AR. When he opened up the rifle to inspect everything he was greeted by what you see attached below.
He asked me what I thought, and personally I think someone rammed home the bolt assembly on top of a NO-GO gauge. It’s the only way I can see this kind of damage happen in a new-in-the-box rifle. I told my friend to check the lugs in the barrel extension for any damage and to contact the dealer to replace the bolt. What do you guys think? Am I being overly cautious, or not?
Keep in mind that over here (Sweden) both the bolt and the barrel are “restricted parts” that require a firearms permit, so it’s not as easy as in the U.S. to replace parts as you go along.
I think you are right about slamming it on a gauge. I doubt it would really cause any problems but if parts are restricted as you say he want to try to get a replacement.
I had a customer check his headspace by putting the go gauge in the mag and releasing the bolt catch. Of course the gauge slammed in to the chamfer on the barrel breech and made a big dent. He wanted the barrel replaced…sorry not on my dime. He thought that was the way headspace was checked. " if it closes on the go gauge it’s ok" LOL
Some know just enough to be dangerous.
That bolt just doesn’t look right besides the obvious lug damage.Looks like its a cast part or something.Look at the imperfections,i.e. strange lines and pockmarks, on the bolt body and in between the lugs on the supposedly machined surfaces.
As for the bolt damage I’d say it must be poor heat treat.
I have not been able to physically inspect the bolt myself; all I have are these images. But yeah, the surface finish looks odd and uneven (or even cracked.) You’re probably correct about the heat treat.
Yeah, get that back to the Dealer make them get that right so your friend doesn’t get burned later. That bolt looks really rough for something that is supposed to be brand new.
Your friend is a smart guy for inspecting first and shooting later, now they can’t say he messed it up and is trying to get a free replacement. Make sure not to shoot until that issue is cleared up. Most guys I know shoot first and inspect later lol
OP, if you don’t mind me asking, what brand AR is it?
Based on the registered part, I would send the entire rifle back to where I bought it and/or the mothership. Failing that would sen complete BCG back to mothership… JMO
There is a lot of conjecture about that involved part in this thread that is NOT correct. That is not a cheap Chinese bolt. Given that is a JP LRP-07, that is a JP enhanced bolt. I also have one of these bolts in a 308 AR. I will say that during initial firing, it looked “rough” as well, and seemed to be quite “tight” in the barrel extension. Whatever the coating is on these bolts, it is weak and seems to peel off and look really bad. After ~150 rounds it was burnished by firing and looked like a normal, worn-in bolt.
BUT, with this being said, I would agree with the assessment that someone likely attempted to close the bolt on something that was at least slightly oversize. Of note, the edge of the bolt itself is NOT a square edge, but instead cut at an angle. Compared to a 5.56 AR bolt it definitely looks different.
Good luck with JP, I am sure they will sort it out. And a JP LRP-07 is an awesome rifle, these apparent quality issues not withstanding.
