Brass shavings found in action

[bumperfood]

I have just finished epoxy bedding my Lee Enfield (wooden sporter two piece stock), and scrubed out the action and barrel to remove the water soluble release agent. I also ran a bore cleaner on a swab through the bore to displace the soapy water that might be in the bore with a little oil to prevent rust. When I went to replace the stock, I found quite a lot of brass shavings in the area just in front of the charging bridge, Now I had not noticed them before, and was wondering if anyone had seen this before or had any ideas how the got there or how they got shaved off in the first place

 

[5440fight]

Scraped off of cartridges during chambering, no doubt, maybe by the top lip of the magazine.

 

[Royzo]

Check for marks on your ejected brass. Could be dragging on mag or may be a burr in the chamber. A little polishing may cure the problem.

 

[Calum]

Indeed, the ejected brass should give you some clues.

 

[bumperfood]

The odd thing is, I am sure that there was nothing there before I cleaned the bore. I'm sure I would have seen it as I had the stock(s)on and of at least 30 times. For sure, I'd agree it is from the shell casings, but where was it hiding before I cleaned the bore? I can see no obvious scraping on the old casings, which leads me to suspect that it occurs on chambering. The magazine is from a later model and fits tightly, taking a bit of effort to remove, so maybe that is the problem. Polishing sounds interesting, any pointers would be appreciated.

 

[Northman999]

It may be something farther forward in the action that is actually doing the damage, and you just pulled the piled-up shavings back to the rear when you were cleaning your rifle.

IMO, a common culprit is a sharp edge/burr on the extractor groove part of the barrel, that slices off brass shavings as rounds are chambered.

I just cleaned up a Remlin 1895 in 45-70 that was brutal for this, but 5 - 8 minutes of careful work with a round jewelers file and she's slick as eel snot...

 

[double gun]

Was your cleaning rod brass? It most likely rubbed the rear bridge .

 

[Royzo]

It may be material that has built up in the mag. The mag may need cleaning and a little tweaking.

 

[bumperfood]

Everything that has been suggested, will be addressed. It has been raining here so much, I will have to wait to get back out to the range, allow the epoxy to fully cure etc. I have run a few patches through again, and no more brass showed up, so we will see what happens after few rounds. Now I do use a brass cleaning rod, but see no sign of scrape marks on it. Looking for a jewelers file next time I get to town as well.