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Posted: 8/28/2010 6:44:12 AM EDT
| Hey guys, i have kind of a n00b question here...my local gunsmith just told me that i dont need to check the headspace on my rifle if i put my new rifle together properly. I bought the daniel defence 16" 1-7 twist barrel and the CMT/Stag Bolt. does that sound right to anyone else? cause it sounds wrong to me.....just alittle confused. thanks for the help |
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Perfectly fine. Headspacing was traditionally done by finish reaming because barrels were installed with a crush fit into the receiver. The AR15 uses a precision machined bolt with a set distance from the bolt face to the backs of the locking lugs. The barrel's headspace is set when the barrel extension is installed. That small bit of metal is the equivalent of a receiver. |
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Quoted:
Hey guys, i have kind of a n00b question here...my local gunsmith just told me that i dont need to check the headspace on my rifle if i put my new rifle together properly. I bought the daniel defence 16" 1-7 twist barrel and the CMT/Stag Bolt. does that sound right to anyone else? cause it sounds wrong to me.....just alittle confused. thanks for the help I used to check headspace on my builds, but never saw a fluctuation when using new or near new BCGs and barrels/uppers. New parts being the reason. If assembling older used BCGs and barrels, it is probably prudent to check HS. I have personally never seen a bad headspaced AR yet, but it can happen. It's not a nOOb question really, it's a lot of pressure kinda close to your face when that round is touched off. Now go shoot it! |
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If the parts were all new and they were installed correctly then your probably GTG.
That being said... I have seen a brand new barrel headspace perfect with one new bolt but then not with another one from a different manufacturer. 
The gauges are relatively cheap and they are really easy to use .... I check all my rifles just to be sure ... but then I'm extremely OCD about my firearms. 
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| I thought you didn't have to check head space on my builds because the head spacing was set already at the factory on the barrels and barrel extension, just drop in the bolt/carrier assembly of your choice, right? Not so fast, every call I made to the manufacturers, Rock River Arms, Armalite, DelTon, and CMMG urged me to take my builds to a qualified gun smith and check the head space. I took 4 builds in, 3 checked out perfect, one was "okay", but don't shoot crap ammo with that one. Its up to you, most more than likely they will check out fine like mine did. For peace of mind, I recommend you take your rifle in, I was only charged $5 bucks to have it checked. |
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Call me particular but if I am sticking my head or one of my customer's heads near an upper that I own/sell then I will check head space along with a few other things.
Not all parts are made equal. ESPECIALLY bolts. Not all barrels are chambered to the same tolerances either. Our chambers are tight for accuracy and longevity of brass but other companies loosely chamber their barrels. To say that there is no need to check head space on an upper you built yourself is not a great practice. Often you will find that you are fine but not always. A chamber that will allow a field gage to close with the bolt is bad too (too loose). Now if you purchase an upper from a company they should check head space before assembly is complete. I would like to say that every company does this but.... |
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I used to not check head space regularly until I closed a field gauge in a Colt 6920 barrel with less than 3000 rds on it with a new "mil spec" bolt. It's probably the most important aspect of any rifle build considering the consequences. I don't care what mfg. anybody can f' up. I would compare it to checking your oil in your car after having somebody change it. I don't trust anybody when it comes to that.
If you're not concerned about match grade accuracy buy a .223 "go" and field gauge. as long as it closes easily on go and doesn't close on the field you will be gtg. if you want precision it will close on a "go" easily and not close on a "no go" or close very tightly in a 5.56 chamber. BTW: I change my own oil but when I was 18 I worked at a quick lane and I saw some horrible shit. 
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Even if you buy a complete rifle not all the parts that make it up come form the same manufacturer. Most of mine are build ups with parts coming from various vendors (who know who made every single part??). Anyway, I checked 4 of them recently because of issues with my newest build (not chambering rounds that worked fine in my 20" rifle.) Well, the 20" will "eat" a no go ga. no problem (but not the field ga. - so its okay still) so my reloads were running fine in it. Then when I built the 16" only about 5 out of 10 rounds would chamber. The 16" will not close the bolt on a no go gauge. Both rifles were built with new parts and even though I've had the 20" longer it's got very few rounds through it - more .22 rimfire than .223.
Better to check and find its okay than to not check it and find out at the range some day that things aren't quite right. Good luck with your build, they can be addictive. Better than tinker toys or leggoes. |
| I use to assume the headspace was correct on my builds (10 in all), until the next to last build. I checked the length of the fired brass (because I reload) and found using a RCBS precision mic, that the cases averaged .007 over some of my longest fired brass from a 5.56 chamber. I checked the chamber with a field guage and it failed. Checked with two different new bolts, no joy. Placed a piece of cellophane over the gauge before the bolt wouldn't lock up. Needless to say the barrel went back. But this is the only time I've ran across an out of spec chamber. |
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Quoted:
Call me particular but if I am sticking my head or one of my customer's heads near an upper that I own/sell then I will check head space along with a few other things. This +1,000,000 You can disregard all the comments from us couch commandos if you want .. but listen to someone that makes and uses quality barrels.
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Anybody that reloads and picks up range brass will tell you that there are some rifles out there that are at, or over maximum headspace. Some rifles run this way straight from the manufacturer. I've never seen a Ruger Mini-14 in .223 that wasn't near the maximum.
A lot of people conduct mag dumps as a regular practice. This will change your headspace sooner rather than later. New barrels and bolts are usually just fine. Everything else is suspect. |
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Quoted:
Anybody that reloads and picks up range brass will tell you that there are some rifles out there that are at, or over maximum headspace. Some rifles run this way straight from the manufacturer. I've never seen a Ruger Mini-14 in .223 that wasn't near the maximum. A lot of people conduct mag dumps as a regular practice. This will change your headspace sooner rather than later. New barrels and bolts are usually just fine. Everything else is suspect. That's mostly because Ruger rifle barrels have abysmal QC. |
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