Difficult to insert reloaded bullet into my bolt action rifle, what to check?

Evil_Dark

Evil_Dark

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Well, I've done my first "five of each" for my recently acquired Browning A-Bolt in 30-06. Factory ammo just went through it without problems.

Some of my reloaded cartridges get into the chamber without any problems, some are just a bit hard to close the bolt down, and some are just impossible to close at all.
I'm just not sure where to start with my measurements to identify the correct ones over the bad ones. The OAL of the empty case and the full cartridge itself is not an issue, because my bullet is an bal. tip 165gr that is shorter than my 180gr that fits already into the chamber. I've tryed a 140gr HPBT with 0.010" OAL smaller and some still won't go into the chamber easily, and I've veryfied or trimmed the overspecs lenght of every cases.

I've seperated the fired cases of the good ones and the too-tight ones for after shot measurements, and I still have some unfired to make some comparisons, as long as I know what to check / measure...

I use LEE full lenght resizing die. The second batch I've done I pressed every case twice into the resizing die, without improvements. So I'm looking to things to check... My cases were some used cases bought in bulk at a local range. I don't know if it can be a part of the problem, I was initially thinking that every brass case that went into a resizing die should fit.

Thanks in advance for your inputs!

Dark
 
Your shell holder should touch the die just before the press handle hits the bottom of the stroke. A "little extra pressure" and the handle should cam over. This is how you need to adjust your resizing die. Brass fired from another rifle will go back into spec once you resize it with the above mentioned method.
 
Tagged for interest. I'm sure the veteran reloaders will respond.

I'm just getting into reloading as well and I noticed that some of the 308 brass I have (98% are once fired from my bolt action gun the 2% from brass I may have picked up thinking they were mine) were snug to FL size and that not all of the case was going into the die. There'd be about 1-3mm of the case that didn't get sized but needed a little more force (sometimes more case lube) on the arm to get that done. If I didnt' look at what was going on, I'd easily missed this. Not sure if this could be the cause of some of your ammo being snug but check the problematic cases to see if this is not the happening to you? Maybe time to pickup a case gauge.
 
Well - Using brass that has been fired in another rifle can be problematic if the original rifle had a larger chamber. This is particularly true if the fired brass is oversize at the base of the case, which can be difficult to resize with a FL die. However, in your case I suspect that you have been resizing the brass inconsistently, ie :

- not enough die adjustment
- uneven die stroke (very common)
- poor lubrication, particularly inside the neck

This is a common rookie mistake, you should always try a few resized cases in your rifle before completing your reloads. BTW - Is your reload brass all the same make?
 
Good to try resized brass w/o projectile, powder or primer in goal rifle chamber w/action closed before proceeding with production.

I use a case gage to confirm die setup and that each case is resized enough. When using brass from another source, be prepared to discard some of it
if it can't be resized enough. This is especially true for cases fired in true military long guns, some have excessive headspace or oversize chambers.
 
I actually make dummy rounds. I resize the brass insert the old primer, load a bullet, seat and crimp.

This verifies my setup. I usually make 3-4 and see how they chamber.

It also leaves me with a physical record, use a sharpie and record the particulars on one of the cartridges.
 
You didn't mention this specifically but is the sized case length OK it should be 2.494" max? Sometimes if the inside of the neck is not lubed the expander ball will pull the case and stretch it enough it is out of spec and won't chamber.
 
A minor crime amongst handloaders is the habit of choosing any shell holder, regardless of number, that will grab the rim of the cartridge without concern for the height of the shell holder. If the shell holder is too tall, the cartridge does not extent far enough into the sizing die tot bump the shoulder and ensure easy chambering. If your sizing die is in fact a full length sizing die and not just a neck sizing die, and if you adjust the die so you can just feel the press handle cam over at its full travel, and you still have difficulty chambering your resized brass, you should either buy the correct shell holder, or you should modify that one by grinding it down until it works. Occasionally, shell holders are out of spec (I've had a couple) and this also causes problems with full length resizing.
 
Lee dies use an o-ring on the bottom and this drives me bonkers.
I mark the front of nut with a metal marker to insure the die ends up
at the front of the press. Could mean a thou or two if the die is turned
down into the press more tight at other times.
Hence, Lee dies I own a couple of only.

Another could be overly crimping causing a slight swell at the shoulder?
 
You likely have not sized them correctly. Take apart the one that is too big and run it through your sizing die, (lubed, and w/o primers, bullet and powder.) Be sure you are pushing all the way down on the handle. Then try the empty case in your chamber. If it is too tight, turn your die in, (down) a little (say 1/16th a turn) and re-size again. Repeat this process until you get it sized to where the bolt closes properly and you are then sizing the case to the maximum size that will fit in your chamber. Enjoy!

PS. Remember after resizing to check the length of the case and trim if necessary. A case that is too long can be extremely dangerous as it can cause the bullet to become jammed which may result in rapid firearm dis-assembly.

Good Luck
 
Another point to consider is that the FL die can back out if the lock ring isn't tight, if it backs out, the shoulders of your cartridges are not uniformly set back. I've got into the habit of using a wrench to tighten the lock rings.
 
I've ran into a similar situation with a friends gun.

We used once fired brass from GMM. I ran them the same way I do my lapua. I've NEVER had one that wouldn't chamber and have never had to trim down my cases (Going on 6 reloads). All of them come out with a neck ID of .3075, or very close. I shoot a .308 AAC-SD, he shoots a .308 5R.

His brass we had a tough time getting down to .308. Without checking all of them we had projectiles that would drop into the brass.

Later while shooting, he had a few that wouldn't chamber.

I couldn't explain it. I need to look at them closer and see what went wrong. I have a 5R coming so I hope my Lapua brass doesn't share the same issues!
 
Some brass that has been shot in one chamber simple cannot be resized to function properly in a second chamber. Just toss the offending pieces and enjoy loading/shooting the remainder.
 
What does the edge of the shoulder where it meets the case look like? If the seating die isn't adjusted properly it can crush the case slightly in this area and prevent proper chambering.
 
The problem the OP mentions is probably the commonest problem in hand loading. It is why many of us would not enter a shooting competition, or go hunting with our hand loaded ammunition, until we had tried every round in the chamber, to make sure it all went in without a problem.
Any one of many reasons can prevent a reloaded cartridge from going into the chamber it was intended for. A number of those reasons have been stated here by various posters, and every reason stated is a valid reason, of what could be keeping the cartridge from going into the chamber.
I came across a toughie a couple of years ago. I got a 243 Winchester calibre rifle built on a Mauser 98 action by a very competent gunsmith.
Factory loads chambered and shot great. Then I garnered up some of my old 243 brass, accumulated from at least two different rifles and reloaded an unknown number of times in years past. I did everything right in prepping them, using RCBS dies and a heavy hand press.
However, they would not allow the bolt to close on them in my custom chamber!
In my RCBS die set is the full length sizing die allowing an empty brass case to be put full into, then filing off what sticks out, for trimming cases. This die has the great advantage of allowing a fully loaded round to be run through the die for sizing it, in the event the shoulder had been pushed back on seating the bullet.
I ran my new reloads through this die, but they still wouldn't go into the chamber of the custom rifle!
After some head scratching I figured it out. I could reload the factory brass that had been fired in my new rifle in a normal way and they went back in the chamber without problem. It was just the old brass that gave trouble.
So, I annealed the old brass, gave them a normal reloading and they worked fine!
What was happening was the old brass was hard and when the shoulder was pushed back on sizing, it didn't stay back, but expanded just enough on coming out of the die, to prevent it from going into the new, tight chamber.
 
If you have a friend with a lever, pump, or auto, ask to use there small base dies. Your dies might not right for your chamber. !st. thing though, check cartridge length. If after sizing it is correct & will not fit, then you need to start looking at set up of die.
 
Bruce, One of the things I like about the A Square manual is the unusual subjects they cover. One of those subjects provides some interesting information on work hardened brass. In a test they performed, one piece of .30/06 brass was repeatedly resized and fired across a chronograph while another with the same load was annealed with each resizing. The velocity of the annealed brass for 5 firings was 2681, 2710, 2692, 2702, & 2708. The non-annealed brass ran: 2673, 2712, 2715, 2741, 2764. They listed the pressure with each firing, which ran from 55,900 - 57,700 CUP with the annealed brass and from 53,900 to 62,300 CUP with the non-annealed brass. The message was to anneal the brass after every second or third reloading.
 
Mauser98 said:
Some brass that has been shot in one chamber simple cannot be resized to function properly in a second chamber. Just toss the offending pieces and enjoy loading/shooting the remainder.
Click to expand...

If you are refering to me, all of my brass has only been shot in my gun. All of my buddies brass were once fired from HIS gun only. Still wouldn't size or fit right.

I have yet to take a closer look. Couldn't figure out why my Lapua brass sized much better than his.
 
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