Perplexing issues with a 280 Rem!

Personally I would never make loads that required a 'buffer' to fill up the case when using a bullet... I would use an appropriate powder using published data from a reloading book.

I have fire formed 17 Ackley Hornet cases using a fast powder with a wax plug sealing the neck, no bullet... Cleaned the barrel after - before firing any actual rounds.
 
I don't neither and I never use any loads under 85% of filling ratio, whatever the powder I use, for rifle loads, anyways. I've experienced SEE once - and it was a published load - and I'm done with it :)
But many do use low density loads and I think they should know.
 
I personally plan on using slower powders to bring my load density/performance up.

But firstly, I will be doing some false shouldered fireforming, with medium burn rate powders.
From a manuals suggestions.

I can hardly Wait to get home And do some shootin!
 
I wonder just HOW tight your rifle is chambered.

Eight thou case stretch.... and then put back into the rifle..... with a tight enough chamber.... certainly is enough to pinch the case-mouth in the leade, causing a pressure spike.

With the .303, for example, overlength cases are the single most common cause of head separations.
 
smellie said:
With the .303, for example, over length cases are the single most common cause of head separations.
Click to expand...

I think excessive sizing and headspace is the most common cause of head separations in rimmed cases. For best brass life fire formed rimmed cases should be sized to create absolute minimum case head clearance.. using the shoulder rather than the rim to do that.
 
Yes, and that goes for the .303 as well.

People fire them and resize them and don't check the case length. The Lee rifle has a springy action, most guys want to load 'em to the nuts, and the loose chambers contribute: a LOT of brass gets pushed forward and more is dragged forward by the expander ball in the full-length die. Result: brand-new cartridge, fired once, reloaded once, on its second reloading, 'way overlength. Case-mouth gets pinched in the leade, pressure spikes and she nips off.

I have been reloading .303 for almost 50 years now and have wrecked my share of brass. These days, I drop my loads 10%, fireform, neck-size, anneal when they need it and I have no idea how long the brass will last: 15 firings is common.

But if the chamber is tight enough, .008" overlength is enough to give you grief.
 
update!

Found the issue definitively!
When I got home, I took my New Wilson 280 Remington Case Guage, and measured the "CASE HEAD CLEARANCE".

A total of 15 cases in a batch of 100 unfired cases had .046-.048" exsessive clearance! BIG TIME ISSUE! Some serious quality control issues at Winchester!

During case prep, ALL THE CASES WERE NECK SIZED ONLY to create a nice round neck for trimming. So no excessive full length sizing was the culprit.

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Wow eh!?
 
That's just Winchester doing what it usually does...

Did you know if you take that primed case and fire it in that rifle, the primer will back out very close to the same amount of clearance... it's a cheaper way of measuring head clearance...
 
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guntech said:
That's just Winchester doing what it usually does...

Did you know if you take that primed case and fire it in that rifle, the primer will back out very close to the same amount of clearance... it's a cheaper way of measuring head clearance...
Click to expand...

Cool idea! The problem is that my primers may have just fallen out! LOL!

I will have to give that trick a try!
 
WOW, that some fun bambie....

have a look at a cartridge diagram and compare what you have to a 270 Win. My guess is someone made 270 win but stamped it 280.

Problem identified and resolution easy.
Jerry
 
Mystic Precision said:
WOW, that some fun bambie....

have a look at a cartridge diagram and compare what you have to a 270 Win. My guess is someone made 270 win but stamped it 280.

Problem identified and resolution easy.
Jerry
Click to expand...


You bet Jerry!

Its no coincidence that the 270win datum line measurement is .051" shorter than the 280 datum line measurement. With the SAMMI tolerance of around .007". My measurements of the cases in question are .046-.049 out of spec, is bang on!

There is "NO" doubt that these cases are 270 formed brass, with 280 Rem head stamps.

I simply necked the cases in question up to .308, and then "partially" neck sized back down to .284". Now I have a crush fit for the cases in question. Fire forming here I come!

Take care guys!
 
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Hope you get case issues corrected. But for me your barrel is not suited for 7mm bullets way to fast of twist your going to have major copper fouling with a 1/8 twist. Berger recommends
a 1/10 twist for there 168gr bullets and max 1/9 twist for heavy-er bullets
 
Interesting observation by Manitou: My #26 Hogdon manual does not specify specific barrel twists used in establishing their data while Speer and Nosler are split between 1/9" and 1/9.5"
I believe an increase in rate of twist (ie a faster twist) would result in more pressure - dont know by how much
 
The difference in twist between 8 or 9 or 10 will have very little affect on copper fouling...

Twist rates can influence pressure very slightly but not as much a differences in throats. In .300Weatherby's made long long ago, they used an extremely long throat and a 12 twist barrel and a lot of powder trying to get the velocities they get today with a 10 twist barrel and a normal throat and less powder.
 
1:8" Twist Has A Specific Purpose

manitou210 said:
Hope you get case issues corrected. But for me your barrel is not suited for 7mm bullets way to fast of twist your going to have major copper fouling with a 1/8 twist. Berger recommends
a 1/10 twist for there 168gr bullets and max 1/9 twist for heavy-er bullets
Click to expand...

This rifle is built for long range shooting, with the heavier bullets. The faster twist will stabilise the heavier bullets better, and they will stay stable for longer flight times. The plan is to shoot this rifle on "Occasion" at distances past 1000, and up to 1760 (1 mile). Why? Cause I find it fun.

I have shot a few calibers out that far, and plan To shoot a. Bunch more.
 
Interesting thread. Question I have; couldn't a guy just measure the proven headspace gauge with his comparator and then measure the raw, unfired cases to figure out where the clearance is in relation to the chamber? I know it's a bit late now for dthunter with this batch but it was a thought that seemed plausible to me.

I've made a habit of measuring clearance dimensions on new cases as compared to the dimensions I have logged for my rifles, more out of curiosity than anything. I've found though, that it helps me determine what sort of prep I need to do prior to the first firing of new cases. Bear in mind that I've never had a set of headspace gauges - I just reference the dimension from fired cases (usually twice fired).

I still have a batch of nickle plated Winchester for my .280 that is slowly whittling down in numbers (hate the damn things but they came with the rifle & I thought I might as well use them for a bit). My problems are with the plating peeling and chipping but have not had the problem that dthunter has. No splitting so far either. For what it's worth, I fired the first round out of each with the bullet jammed - no obvious stretch (that I can tell...fingers crossed).

Rooster
 
Rooster:

I only had a few fired cases from this barrel when this issue came up.
I had changed the barrel a couple days earlier.

I had checked my rebarrel job with my headspace guages before I fired the rifle the first time. When seeing this happen, It makes a guy question if I in advertantly missed something.

In the end, this is a quality control issue for Winchester. Thank heavens I had enough experience to recognised this dangerous issue before anything worse happened! Any one of those cases could have burst with .048" case head clearance! Thats ALLOT OF STRETCH!!!
 
Yep, I'm with you bud. I read this whole thread a couple days back and I probably missed it but how is it you found that number (.048") again? Just to satisfy my curiosity, measure your gauges with your comparator and then measure a case that's been fired in that chamber a few times, please. My mind's on a track and I want to know if I'm thinking straight. Thanks.

As for the Winchester brass, I haven't personally noticed any of mine in that kind of shape (mis-marked / mis-processed) but it makes a fella really think about things, doesn't it? Personally, I've used Winchester brass a lot and other than one or two from a bag with creased / kinked necks or shoulders and a fair bit more hand work needed to get them as close to uniform as possible, I have no real issue with them. You can be certain that I'll be inspecting the next new lot much more closely now, though.

Rooster
 
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