Really big problem .

Another up date . Well , from all the replies ( thanks everyone ) i managed to get the confidence to tackle the removal of the round in the 50 Cal . It came out ...phew , now damage to anything . With my " new found knowledge " i decided to cycle through some of the spent 50 cal casings i have . Here's the results . Casings numbered IVI 73 , GOOD , Casings numbered PSD 12 GOOd , Casings numbered PMJ 06 which i think are Military NO GO !!! The rifle is a Steyr HS 50 . As i put the Military spec ones into the breach the bolt is very tight ,as you get to the end of the stroke to close the bolt , its extremely tight . This is on all of them with that case number . Any ideas anyone ? I bought 100 of these and now can not use them . I thought a 50 is a 50 no matter what make .
 
ivo said:
Kazman1960,
Where are you? If you are in the Calgary area, PM me and I will come over and help. Or matbe someone can help you if you are in another area.

Lift the bolts all the way up (in the normal position to pull straight back for ejection). Take a 2x4 or block of wood and rest it on the bolt handle and TAP it lightly till the bolt slides out. DO NOT HAMMER IT!!!! You may end up breaking your bolt handle, then you are totally screwed. Only use the wooden dowel after the bolt has been removed to knock out a stuck bullet.

I think you may have gone light on powder for the 30-06, gone too hot with the .338 load and seated too long on the 50 but these are only a guess.
Good luck and try to find someone locally to come by and take a look at what you are doing to get you going in the right direction.
Click to expand...

No , i live in Northern Ontario ( Timmins ) we are in the midst of a major snowstorm 15 to 20 cm and more coming , so , i have time today to load and check . I managed to get both bolts free by tapping lightly with a bubber mallet .
 
Congratulations on surviving a hazardous situation!

You can also use a cartridge headspace gage to check live factory or reloaded ammunition for dimensional conformance too.
I do that for all my reloads as a final check. It won't guarantee projectile throat clearance, but it checks a lot of other dimensions.
 
So the 338 is a sizing issue? if it chambered and fired it should have extracted, still sounds like a hot load to me, no marks on the head? Try depriming and seating a new primer in the casing that was stuck with a hand priming tool if you have one and see if the pocket is loose. Or if you have a tool to measure the primer pocket even better. Measure the brass diameter at the head, and a few places close to the head and compare it to equivalent brass you haven't fired that load with, with an accurate mic.

As I figured the 50 wasn't a too long seating issue as it should have just closed and jammed the bullet with the cam action.

And it does sound like you just don't have enough pressure with the -06 as I first guessed, what is the load data if I may ask?
 
Cleftwynd said:
So the 338 is a sizing issue? if it chambered and fired it should have extracted, still sounds like a hot load to me, no marks on the head? Try depriming and seating a new primer in the casing that was stuck with a hand priming tool if you have one and see if the pocket is loose. Or if you have a tool to measure the primer pocket even better. Measure the brass diameter at the head, and a few places close to the head and compare it to equivalent brass you haven't fired that load with, with an accurate mic.

As I figured the 50 wasn't a too long seating issue as it should have just closed and jammed the bullet with the cam action.

And it does sound like you just don't have enough pressure with the -06 as I first guessed, what is the load data if I may ask?
Click to expand...

For the 338 , i'm not sure . Even some of the new S&B rounds are tight in the breach . I may try a different brand of brass .

06 is likely too light of a load , just need to experiment a little .

Now the 50 , it seems it does not like the Military brass . For what reason , i don't know . Each casing i tried jams .

I have 100 casings and tried 30 , i can't close the bolt on any of them .

Where or what could be the issue here ?
 
Kazman1960 said:
For the 338 , i'm not sure . Even some of the new S&B rounds are tight in the breach . I may try a different brand of brass .

06 is likely too light of a load , just need to experiment a little .

Now the 50 , it seems it does not like the Military brass . For what reason , i don't know . Each casing i tried jams .

I have 100 casings and tried 30 , i can't close the bolt on any of them .

Where or what could be the issue here ?
Click to expand...

Were those 50 cal brass fired in another rifle before yours? Smoke or color the entire brass case and chamber it, should be a clear indicator on where the brass is hanging up.
How are you setting up your FL sizing die?
 
My question is what tools do you have to measure case dimensions?
Do you have a case gauge for each caliber?
Measuring the overall length and diameter isn't enough.

The 4 most probable areas which can give you trouble are:
1) Base Diameter. If the rounds were fired out of a semi auto you may need to small base size them to get them to fit your chamber.
2)Headspace. This is the distance between the datum line and the base of the case. If you don't push the shoulder back far enough or too much you will have problems.
3) Case Length. There is a maximum case length which must be observed. You must trim brass if it is longer than the maximum case length.
4) COAL. Cartridge Overall Length. If the bullet is not seated far enough in the case it can be hitting the rifling.

My personal opinion is that you should practice reloading on one cartridge at a time.
The knowledge and confidence you gain once you correct the problems you encounter will help you on the next one.
 
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thump_rrr said:
My question is what tools do you have to measure case dimensions?
Do you have a case gauge for each caliber?
Measuring the overall length and diameter isn't enough.

The 4 most probable areas which can give you trouble are:
1) Base Diameter. If the rounds were fired out of a semi auto you may need to small base size them to get them to fit your chamber.
2)Headspace. This is the distance between the datum line and the base of the case. If you don't push the shoulder back far enough or too much you will have problems.
3) Case Length. There is a maximum case length which must be observed. You must trim brass if it is longer than the maximum case length.
4) COAL. Cartridge Overall Length. If the bullet is not seated far enough in the case it can be hitting the rifling.

My personal opinion is that you should practice reloading on one cartridge at a time.
The knowledge and confidence you gain once you correct the problems you encounter will help you on the next one.
Click to expand...

I have tried and checked everything on this list , the only probable thing is that the rounds were fired from a semi . The New Rounds that i bought , fired and reloaded work fine , its the Military ones with the PMJ 06 stamped on the base thats giving me heartache . How would go about small sizing them if this is the issue ?
 
Did you full-length resize the military 50 cal brass, as part of your reloading procedure? That should be the first thing you do after cleaning and inspection of the brass.

Or, at least sized enough to chamber in your rifle.

Ted
 
Why not? said:
Did you full-length resize the military 50 cal brass, as part of your reloading procedure? That should be the first thing you do after cleaning and inspection of the brass.

Or, at least sized enough to chamber in your rifle.

Ted
Click to expand...

Well i went back and rechecked some casings that i had just deprimed . By the book , casing length was supposed to be 3.91 , the ones i rechecked were anywhere from 3.93 up to 3.947 , so , first thing first , i trimmed down the length . Next up is the full length re sizing , well it appears neither me or my re loading bench can take the pressure needed to re size the length . My bench decided to split owing to the force needed to reef down on the press . I will have an upper body the same size as Arnold Schwarzenegger if i have to resize all 100 casings . Better fix the bench first i guess .
 
If you are not fully resizing the 50 cal. cases you may be pushing some of the brass toward the base of the case i.e. increasing the diameter of the cartridge base. If this happens then it would explain why the cases will not enter the chamber. Also, are you adequately lubricating the case prior to attempting to resize? Do not use so much lubricant as to cause oil dents but there has to be enough to insure the case does not stick in the die.

Do you belong to a local shooting club? If so inquire around and try to find an experienced reloader to assist you. Alternatively see if there is anyone at a local sporting goods store who can advise you. Many situations related to reloading are easier shown than described.

Jim
 
50 BMG is a big case, takes a lot of force to resize it. That in turn makes large demands on a reloading bench.

I have a gage for each cartridge I reload. Checking the resized case with a gage is a much easier, more reliable method of confirming dimensional conformance
of a resized case. (Tricky to measure cases against shoulder datum points, etc). The gage also permits checking trim dimension too, which is a nice bonus.

The biggest pain about using case gages is that if the rims are beat up, the case won't properly enter the gage.

Cases fired in machine guns may not resize back to the correct dimensions, which is a big pain as a reloader. Heard reports of that in 7.62 NATO too, not just in .50 BMG.
 
rodregier said:
50 BMG is a big case, takes a lot of force to resize it. That in turn makes large demands on a reloading bench.

I have a gage for each cartridge I reload. Checking the resized case with a gage is a much easier, more reliable method of confirming dimensional conformance
of a resized case. (Tricky to measure cases against shoulder datum points, etc). The gage also permits checking trim dimension too, which is a nice bonus.

The biggest pain about using case gages is that if the rims are beat up, the case won't properly enter the gage.

Cases fired in machine guns may not resize back to the correct dimensions, which is a big pain as a reloader. Heard reports of that in 7.62 NATO too, not just in .50 BMG.
Click to expand...

Where did you get the guage ? I use Bonanza lube at the moment . I also tried Lee case lube .

Notsorichguy . I am trying to fully resize the 50 casing . It is actually seating further in the breach now but as i mentioned , these 50's take some force and i broke ( split ) the timber the press is bolted down to .
 
Gotta love it! A guy with no, zeero, nada experience hops into reloading with a .338 Lapua and a .50 BMG. What can go wrong!!!!

Sheite. Still has provided no details as to bullet design and weight, powder, charge weight, and now, after the fact, trims cases, but it seems to me he may have trimmed BEFORE he resized.

My advice is to buy and read the how-to in two different reloading manuals - Seirra and Hornady come to mind - about the best $150 he will ever spend. Then, pick a nice, old moderate pressure round - his .30'06 is ideal - shoot it in a ridiculously strong action - Rem 700 comes to mind, and learn how to handload. Oh and a volume of the ABC's hould be on every handloader's bench. Ain't much you need to know about making ammo that ain't covered in ABC's.

To F/L re-size .50 BMG, he likely needs to integrate a couple of steel plates into his bench, with a sandwich of plywood benchtop epoxied between. That will stiffen up a benchtop so you can tip the whole thing over before the benchtop fails! And, maybe some lube - Imperial sizing Die wax is likely the best for cases like the .50, and Unique makes a case lube that is very fine as well. Read and heed.

Can't say I agree with notsorichguy. Reloading is not dangerous. But it does take a modicum of caution, a tad of common sense, a willingness to work at learning, and the sense to spend some amount of money to buy the right references and right tools. Oh, and maybe to rely on those references, and not the wondernet for instruction!!
 
Kazman1960 said:
Well i went back and rechecked some casings that i had just deprimed . By the book , casing length was supposed to be 3.91 , the ones i rechecked were anywhere from 3.93 up to 3.947 , so , first thing first , i trimmed down the length . Next up is the full length re sizing , well it appears neither me or my re loading bench can take the pressure needed to re size the length . My bench decided to split owing to the force needed to reef down on the press . I will have an upper body the same size as Arnold Schwarzenegger if i have to resize all 100 casings . Better fix the bench first i guess .
Click to expand...
I asked in an earlier post if you checked headspace dimensions and you replied that you did.
You are now saying that you are trimming brass that is longer than 3.91"
Although brass longer than the desired maximum case length should be trimmed it should be done after the brass is sized.
The headspace dimensions for .50 BMG are Min. 3.1332", Max. 3.1392".
If you cannot tell me how or where to find these dimensions then you don't have a clue as to what you are doing.
Stop read a reloading manual or two and figure out what you are trying to accomplish before you blow your hand off trying to slam a bolt shut on a .50 BMG.
 
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