Firing pin denting primer

I tried doing a search on this but didn't find anything relevant. While hunting a week ago I checked my unfired primer about mid day to reassure myself i was loaded and found that the firing pin sticks out just a little bit and dents the primer when it's closed (break action - Optima). Is this normal or did i miss something in the cleaning process and i have blowback in the action? i do think i get a lot of blowback to start with and was going to look into getting an O-ring for the primer pocket this offseason. A few years ago a hunting buddy of mine had a slam-fire with his Wolf and hasn't hunted with it since. Is this something that's normal or something to be concerned about?

Thanks

The firing pin is not supposed to stick out, you probably need to clean it in there. Also there is a shim kit that CVA sells that will correct head space and eliminate blow by. There is a video on you tube that shows how to install the shim kit.

That is not how my Optima is set up. I would be a little concerned. Try turning in the firing pin a little more. And like said.. make sure its nice and clean in there.

Agree. The firing pin should not be marking the primer. Crud does get in the firing pin housing and can cause problems. One thing I always do after cleaning my inlines is to put the tube of a spray can of carburetor cleaner against the firing pin hole and give it a short blast, following with a drop of oil.

jg2006 said:

I tried doing a search on this but didn't find anything relevant. While hunting a week ago I checked my unfired primer about mid day to reassure myself i was loaded and found that the firing pin sticks out just a little bit and dents the primer when it's closed (break action - Optima). Is this normal or did i miss something in the cleaning process and i have blowback in the action? i do think i get a lot of blowback to start with and was going to look into getting an O-ring for the primer pocket this offseason. A few years ago a hunting buddy of mine had a slam-fire with his Wolf and hasn't hunted with it since. Is this something that's normal or something to be concerned about?

Thanks

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Your Optima should have a firing pin bushing like my Accura V2. Take the barrel off, I have a stand that holds my stock and breech assy, if you don't have a stand, support the stock and breech assy. Use a properly fitting screwdriver to remove the firing pin bushing, if your firing pin is sticking out you may have to file a notch in the middle of the screwdriver blade. Now while pulling the trigger back, push the hammer forward and grab the firing pin and spring to remove them. Now clean out the firing pin housing with Q-tips and a solvent making sure to push the Q-tip out towards the hammer. Dry the housing with Q-tips. When you finish lightly lube the housing and wipe any excess away with a Q-tip. Now clean the firing pin and spring then lightly lube them, wipe off any excess. If you had a CVA Shim kit you could install it now, if you buy one get a few of them, if you damage a shim when you dis-assemble the firing pin assy again you will need another shim. Put the firing Pin and spring back into the housing, Put breech plug grease on the threads of the firing pin bushing, then install the bushing into the breech face and you should be done. I dis-assembly my firing Pin Assy after every range session and clean and oil it, then re-assemble it for the next range session. All of this does not take very long at all, the hard part will be finding the right screwdriver, It must fit the firing pin bushing perfect or you will burger the bushing up. All of this should cure your firing pin from sticking out and damaging the primer.

Awesome help, thanks all!

We had a break open shotgun that discharged once on closing, the culprit was a firing pin that extends beyond flush and the gun discharged. That was fixed quickly.

I went with the advice from d.winsor and carved out a flathead screwdriver and removed the firing pin bushing so i could get to everything else and clean it and it's back to functioning like it should

Thanks!