Stiff bolt closing 204R

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Leatherstocking

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I'm reloading 1x fired Hornady cases 204 Ruger. These are neck sized with the Lee collet die
26grn Barnes varmit gernades.
I experienced difficulty camming down the bolt handle on several cartridges. Probably could full length resize to fix the stiff bolt handle, but shouldn't neck sizing be okay? I did get the bolt closed on all the cartriges, just very stiff on a few, maybe 3 out of 15.
Reloading sequence:
shoot
deprime
scrape primer pockets
corn cob
check flash holes and inside case for corn cob
bronze brush inside of neck
neck size
check length (these cases all under length by maybe .005 average)
auto prime
charege w. powder
seat bullet
shoot
record results
Thanks for any opinions.
 
I assume these were fired out of the same gun? Try full length sizing them, just size them a little at a time and try them through the gun until they go in with just a tiny drag on the bolt.
 
are you setting the die down enough that the press is slightly camming over?? try another quarter turn on your die........
 
yodave said:
are you setting the die down enough that the press is slightly camming over?? try another quarter turn on your die........
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If you set up a Lee collet die so that the press cams over. you will punch the aluminum plug out of the top. Ask me how I know. I had the same problem with my 30-30 collet die. I could not get the collet die sized brass to chamber properly so I just FL size now.

G
 
sounds like all of this could be a lee die issue..............where is Ben when you need him??
 
That's why I asked for some pics, it is possible the the seating die was not backed off when seating the bullets and might have deformed the neck or case. There could be almost any reason they didn't chamber. Pics would help diagnose the problem and help us know what questions to ask.
 
Guess I better take a pic or 2.
1xfired same rifle. Not mushroomed.
Don't think I have found the best load yet for the Varmet Grenades. I have shot MOA groups, but hope to do better.
Seem to be having trouble with copper fouling. Hit it with Barnes CR-10, but needs more. Copper visible at the muzzle, in the grooves. This is after 15 shots with the VGs. First 5 shot group by far the best, maybe its the copper, maybe it is me.
 
Having a stiff bolt is "normal" when the case is only neck sized. The case body is fully blown-out that will result with a tight fit in the chamber. The only other possible reason for the hard camming is that his bullet is seated long, jammed into the lands.
 
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track said:
Having a stiff bolt is "normal" when the case is only neck sized. The case body is fully blown-out that will result with a tight fit in the chamber. The only other possible reason for the hard camming is that his bullet is seated long that it is jammed into the lands.
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At some point the OP will need to bump the shoulder back, so just having a Lee Collet die and not a full length or body die is not enough (maybe he has these others - not sure). Yes, often you can get away with neck sizing only for several firings but that will only last for so long. I just ran into a situation where I had to bump shoulders on once-fired Remington brass for my .280. I thought it was a bit strange (and it is relatively rare, in my experience) but that's just the way it goes sometimes. New brass does not always come out of the factory presses spot on, at the very minimum SAAMI dimensions all the time, due to variations in lot-to-lot material hardnesses, annealing effectiveness throughout forming processes, machinery conditions & setup, etc. Add to this, the fact that all rifle chamber dimensions are not the same and all die dimensions are not the same.

Cartridge trim length is also a factor. OP has stated that all his brass is about the same - within .005. But is it the correct length? Personally, I've yet to run into a chamber where a shorter than book-recommended trim length is needed but again, it's possible. Try trimming a few of the ones that chamber hard another .005 further back to see if it makes a difference. It can't hurt. Without knowing the actual measured chamber length, it's hard to tell what trim length is required.

Of the few Lee collet dies I've had, none gave enough neck tension where the bullet wouldn't push back into the case if seated excessively long. I doubt this is a factor here but yes, it could happen.

Rooster
 
Leatherstocking said:
Guess I better take a pic or 2.
1xfired same rifle. Not mushroomed.
Don't think I have found the best load yet for the Varmet Grenades. I have shot MOA groups, but hope to do better.
Seem to be having trouble with copper fouling. Hit it with Barnes CR-10, but needs more. Copper visible at the muzzle, in the grooves. This is after 15 shots with the VGs. First 5 shot group by far the best, maybe its the copper, maybe it is me.
Click to expand...

Agreed! Full length sizing would be a great option. I'd run it through the full length die twice to get it back to spec's as close as possible. Don't forget to turn it 180 degrees after the first resizing............I think it helps.
 
Thanks for all the advise.
Yes, I do have the 4 die set which includes the full length die. I also have about 100 cases sized and primed, so I guess I will need to check them to see if they fit in the chamber before I load them. Then deprime and FL size the ones that don't fit.
As mentioned these are once fired in the same rifle.
These were loaded to SAAMI OAL, so the bullets should not be jammed into the lands.
Sounds a lot like Rooster's experience. I always check for neck tension; don't want to blow my face off.
 
Hi all,
Cpied this from a differnt fourm. The concensus was to just go ahead and load them up.
Have about 350 Hornady cases to load. Neck resized and measured the lengths. Max. length is 1.85, trim length is 1.84(Barnes data)but all of them were under 1.84. Varied from 1.37 to 1.32. Is this likely to cause poor accuracy. I know the 32 grain Hornady factory loads were pretty good, shot a 0.5MOA group prone off a bipod, and lots of varmits.
Will be loading Barnes 26 grn bullets.
Any advice appreciated.
 
bigedp51 said:
When neck sizing only with snug fitting cases make sure you grease the back of your bolt lugs or you can end up galling your bolt lugs.
Click to expand...

Grease your lugs anyway but yes, especially important in this scenario.

No need to deprime unfired primers if you need to resize unless your die does not have a thread-adjustable mandrel. If it does, just retract it into the die enough that the tip of the pin is inside the die by 1/8" or more, then have at 'er!

Neck tension won't blow your grill off. If the die mandrel or button has been modified (small) or you're inadvertantly using a smaller caliber mandrel / button, you won't be able to seat a bullet without grunting. And if you're grunting while seating a bullet, either you have a problem and need to reassess or you need to go to the little boys room. Even if your neck tension is too little, all you might get (if the bullet doesn't fall out prior to chambering), is a badly smoked neck and shoulder - unless you're loading stupid hot or using the wrong powder. I can't help you in this case.

Probably the best thing you can do right now is take the whole lot and run them through once you've set up the die properly and you've found where that shoulder needs to be. That way, you'll be consistant with your chamber fit across the board.

Good luck and stop worrying so much. Keep it fun and continue to use your noggin.
Rooster
 
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Cleftwind wanted photos. Finally posting.
Don't think there is much of interest in the photos, but I'm no expert.
 
Lots of guys responded to your problem hope you get it worked out, i will say i was underwhelmed with the Varmint grenades performance in my 204 and the 222, my 204 preferes 32gr Sierra bullets.
 
Me too on the VGs. Think I'll try some 32grainers.
Thanks Rooster. I have the Lee FL die, so I will try Fl sizing without depriming.
Lack of neck tension can be serious if the bullets get set back in the case from recoil of previous round. One guy on a forum had this problem, and commented" thank God for safety glasses, and Remingtons 3 rings of steel". Gun was destroyed, face bloodied.
 
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