Some chamber, some do not

[m1ajunkie]

I am working on my first .308 load to try out at the range next monday.

I am using WCC 06 nato brass and ppu .308 brass from there 175gr match load.

I have resized 100 pieces of brass, 60 WCC and 40 PPU. I am now getting ready to load powder and bullets, but some of these rounds do not chamber. I loaded 5 dummy rounds to check funtion and 2 of these give trouble going into the chamber and are really stiff to remove.(I had to pry the bcg from my ar open with a screwdriver) I then decided to start checking just pieces of brass and found the same result. About 20-25 pieces out of the 50 I tried do not chamber or extract well at all.

What should I do now? Why do some chamber perfect and others stick?

This is a brand new unfired barrel I am using, but I check factory loads and they all perform perfect.

Is there something wrong with my dies?

I am sorry for the newb questions but I don't want any mistakes while I'm learning. I did not have this trouble at all when resizing for my .223's all of those perform just like factory new ammo.

 

[The Mechanic]

Re: Some chamber, some do not

Take a felt pen on one that has a problem chambering. Mark it up REAL good with the felt pen and try to chamber it. Pull it back out and post a pic of it here. Or you may just be able to see the spot that is causing the problem, as it can be a lot of things or a more than one problem.

 

[jet_lagged]

Re: Some chamber, some do not

Probably not the dies, just variations in your resizing and the amount of shoulder bump/headspace.

I have a similar problem in .223, where one rifle will eat anything, even well over max headspace, and another will only accept absolute min headspace rounds, and a third that is in between.

Are most of the brass that will not feed the same brand?

If you have any kind of a case gage from like Wilson or Dillon, put a sized round in it and see if it is really sized to the minimum headspace level. And then take a caliper to it while it is in the gage to measure and see if the brass that won't chamber are just a hair longer than those that do. This will give you a relative measurement from the case shoulder to the base to compare cases.

So try sizing those that do not chamber a bit "deeper" to bump the shoulder back and then see if they now work. Or if you have friend you can swap bolt/BCG with and see if that makes a difference. Different bolt may also change the headspace a fraction.

A second issue might be, but less likely, is brass length, and if overly long it is jamming in the chamber, it may need to be trimmed a bit.

 

[2clicks]

Re: Some chamber, some do not

Hornady headspace guage Get something like this and learn how to use it.... several types out there they all serve the same purpose.

 

[vman]

Re: Some chamber, some do not

It could be that your sizing die isnt bumping back enough, or not at all.

If this is the case the cases that chamber just happen to be below your chambers specs, whereas the ones that dont will have case shoulders ramming into and grinding against the inside of the chamber.

In both cases the only thing happening is neck sizing with the expander ball.

The hornady gear is good to go and i recomend it.

Pull a case that wont chamber and resize it with your die turned down a fraction. If that then chambers, its your die that was set up incorrectly.

 

[m1ajunkie]

Re: Some chamber, some do not

[url=http://www.midwayusa.com/viewproduct/?productnumber=479704]

Both brands of brass are having the same issue.

That is what I found for a headspace gauge set. I do not have one at the moment but will order one later today.

When I get home, I will try to resize some with the dies turned down a little farther and see what happens. I will also try to mark up a case with a felt pen and see if I get any marks.

Thanks for the help.

 

[m1ajunkie]

Re: Some chamber, some do not

Here is a pic of a round that has trouble.

Note the scratch at the end of the arrow. I am going to try turning my dies down a little this afternoon and see if that does it.

Should I resize all of the brass or only the brass that does not function?

 

[The Mechanic]

Re: Some chamber, some do not

You would be surprised at how many things in life can be diagnosed with a felt pen.
Turn the die down and it will work. Not enough bump

 

[samnev]

Re: Some chamber, some do not

I would get a Wilson case length gauge as others have recommended to see if you are correctly resizing your brass. Then if needed you can scew your die down a bit and recheck with the gauge until it fits the gauge properly.

 

[shooter19802003]

Re: Some chamber, some do not

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: The Mechanic</div><div class="ubbcode-body">You would be surprised at how many things in life can be diagnosed with a felt pen.
Turn the die down and it will work. Not enough bump</div></div>

This!
should be a quick easy fix...just frustrating.

 

[LawDog101]

Re: Some chamber, some do not

I was having the same or similar problem. I first put the rounds into my Lyman gauge. Sure enough, they would not fit fully flush in the gauge. Screwed down my RCBS die a bit more. Fixed part of the problem, but not all. Would go in gauge and brass would chamber easy so i knew it was the seating die.

I started over with my seating die and did the marker trick. Found out that my COAL was within spec in my Savage 10fp at around 2.805-2.81. Still having hard time functioning. I took a factory round and started measuring. My problem was in the seating die. I am using Izzy mil brass (hard as a brick) but free to me.

I found that my seating die was still set down a bit for using in my FAL (i.e. a tiny bit crimp). It was altering the brass just a little, maybe a thousanth. Backed it out and reset the seat. Bingo. Problem solved.

Isn't learning to reload great?

LD

 

[m1ajunkie]

Re: Some chamber, some do not

Well, good news. I turned the die down a hair over and 1/8th turn and all works perfect now.

Thanks for the help. I am going to put a set of headspace gauges on my next midway order for sure.

 

[vman]

Re: Some chamber, some do not

yeh worth getting a pair imo

I have found that even 1/16 of a turn is enough just depends how close you are to begin with.

Get the guage sets and you will see how you can have your die bump back only 0.001-0.002 on cases that wont chamber properly... once you have that, lock it down and its good to go

For an autoloader give yourself a little more

 

[samnev]

Re: Some chamber, some do not

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: m1ajunkie</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Well, good news. I turned the die down a hair over and 1/8th turn and all works perfect now.

Thanks for the help. I am going to put a set of headspace gauges on my next midway order for sure. </div></div>

I would get a Wilson Case Length gauge as well.