so i sat down after finally getting my reloading bench all set up and all my supplies. going step by step with the rcbs online guide and the speer manual in my lap and when i got to the "inspect cases" step (step 1) i noticed that at least half of them had cracks in the shoulder area. this is a brand new rifle (Remington 700 sps tactical) and i was shooting "new" (still factory sealed) pmp 150gr psp rounds. not sure how old they are but i got a good deal from a friend so i was getting used to the rifle using them and was planning on using the brass to reload.
my question is what could cause this issue? everything i read about headspacing says that the cracks should be near the case head if that's it. could it be the age of the brass or is it an overpressure issue or maybe something else?
i'm going to go buy a box of recently manufacutred ammo tomorrow and shoot it to see what happens with that but this is bugging me so any help would be appreciated.
tl;dr case shoulders are cracking and i don't know why
my question is what could cause this issue? everything i read about headspacing says that the cracks should be near the case head if that's it. could it be the age of the brass or is it an overpressure issue or maybe something else?
i'm going to go buy a box of recently manufacutred ammo tomorrow and shoot it to see what happens with that but this is bugging me so any help would be appreciated.
tl;dr case shoulders are cracking and i don't know why