Hello,
Re: the cases sticking problem that I had this summer with my .280 rem 7400 autoloader, I think I have diagnosed the problem. Since there was quite a bit of interest in the thread I thought I would post the outcome. I ruled out excessive pressure as well as dirty/ lubed chamber. Got a set of SB dies (thanks wigglespal
) and ditched my old brass for fresh new rem cases. The problem was cartridge OAL. I diagnosed it through inspecting unfired rounds that had been chambered but had not been fired. Faint rifling marks on the bullets. Candling a dummy round confirmed the problem. This was surprising to me, since I check the cartridge OAL for each round I load with calipers versus published OAL. I also had been making a habit of checking the OAL versus a factory rem 150 grain load. In all cases the cartridge OAL for my handloads was shorter than max OAL and slightly shorter than rem factory loads. The handloads were also seated on the cannelure, which should be a good guide usually for bullet seating depth. However in this case it was obvious that the bullet was engaging the rifling and was causing it to jam upon extraction both upon firing and when the round was chambered but not fired 
The fix to this problem was adjusting OAL using candling until I had clearance off the lands. The end result was a rather deep seated bullet, but a bullet that both cycles and fires in this rifle. My tests today showed the rifle to function properly with the deeper seated bullets. When I closely compared the shape of the rem factory bullet to the hornady, it seems that the rem is more tapered which would allow it to be longer and still not engage the rifling.
A bizarre problem for sure. Glad it's fixed.
Re: the cases sticking problem that I had this summer with my .280 rem 7400 autoloader, I think I have diagnosed the problem. Since there was quite a bit of interest in the thread I thought I would post the outcome. I ruled out excessive pressure as well as dirty/ lubed chamber. Got a set of SB dies (thanks wigglespal
) and ditched my old brass for fresh new rem cases. The problem was cartridge OAL. I diagnosed it through inspecting unfired rounds that had been chambered but had not been fired. Faint rifling marks on the bullets. Candling a dummy round confirmed the problem. This was surprising to me, since I check the cartridge OAL for each round I load with calipers versus published OAL. I also had been making a habit of checking the OAL versus a factory rem 150 grain load. In all cases the cartridge OAL for my handloads was shorter than max OAL and slightly shorter than rem factory loads. The handloads were also seated on the cannelure, which should be a good guide usually for bullet seating depth. However in this case it was obvious that the bullet was engaging the rifling and was causing it to jam upon extraction both upon firing and when the round was chambered but not fired The fix to this problem was adjusting OAL using candling until I had clearance off the lands. The end result was a rather deep seated bullet, but a bullet that both cycles and fires in this rifle. My tests today showed the rifle to function properly with the deeper seated bullets.
When I closely compared the shape of the rem factory bullet to the hornady, it seems that the rem is more tapered which would allow it to be longer and still not engage the rifling.A bizarre problem for sure. Glad it's fixed.
