Problems with my .223

[Haycoxjason]

This is my first attempt at reloading .223 ammo. I can reload .223 brass and shoot it through my savage axis, but I can't shoot brass that has been shot through my specific gun. The cartridge will get stuck in the chamber every time. It's so tight we have to use a mallet to open the bolt. We have tried just about everything and can't seem to find the problem. I figure it's probably something small that we're just overlooking. Has anyone else had problems like this with their savage or their reloads? Any ideas? Thanks for the help in advance!

 

[sloughfoot]

How far are you bumping the shoulder? You are full length resizing, correct?

Welcome to INGO

 

[Yeah]

What sizing die and how are you setting it?

If you've set your sizing die correctly and then can't chamber the round after a bullet has been seated, your necks need turned.

 

[teddy12b]

How far are you bumping the shoulder? You are full length resizing, correct?

Welcome to INGO

What he said.

I'll add this much. Next time you have a pile of brass and you're ready to start reloading run one piece of brass through your resizing/deprimer die and then try to chamber it in the gun. If that piece of brass is to toight for your chamber, then turn your resizing die a quarter of a turn. Run your piece of brass through it again and then see how it fits in the chamber of your rifle. Keep repeating this until you're happy with how it's working out for you. This is one of those areas where you can get your brass to fit your chamber as perfectly as you set your reloading dies.

After you've done all that, then fully reload one round and check it in the chamber (do this safely and carefully). If that round feeds and extracts fine, then you have properly setup your dies. If not, go back to setting your dies.

 

[Haycoxjason]

I'll have to check with the guy that is helping me reload these rounds. The thing I don't understand is that the rounds I'm reloading, I had just fired through the gun. So shouldn't it be the same? I even tried reloading a spent shell that I had just fired though the gun and it got stuck. I'll post tonight when the guy that's helping me get off work.

 

[teddy12b]

When you fire a round the brass expands to fit the chamber, but between it getting expanded, heated and then cooling off it needs to be resized especially at the shoulder. Your fired brass is a tight fit because the shoulder has expanded/stretched and it needs to be pushed back just a few thousandths of an inch. Just about everyone goes through this at some point in their reloading career, so don't get frustrated. There's a reason that a lot of guys are going to give you advice on this, because they've (myself included) have done the same thing.

 

[Lonnie]

I have this same problem with my 22-250
my resizer is suppose to be full length

it always appears to be the bottom part of the brass that has exspanded when fired

if I keep certain brass for certains guns sperate it doesnt matter but if i mix brass from other guns this is when I get the same issue

 

[Yeah]

If you have a guy helping you reload who isn't sizing to your chamber, find a new guy. Not moving enough brass to reliably chamber is a worse practice than moving more than you need to do the same.

You might consider doing a bit of independent reading on the subject before you do much more reloading. Brass fireforming to the chamber and expanding upon extraction to require resizing, is a pretty basic part of the process that you need to have a handle on.

 

[Yeah]

I have this same problem with my 22-250
my resizer is suppose to be full length

it always appears to be the bottom part of the brass that has exspanded when fired

Which dies? Not all are the same and they certainly aren't produced to the same tolerances. The same is true for chambers and there is often overlap.

 

[Haycoxjason]

It's the same for me...it's like the brass has a line toward the bottom of the brass where it's getting caught in the chamber

 

[Aszerigan]

If he's shooting a bolt gun, it shouldn't matter if he's FL sizing or just neck sizing. Once the brass has been shot in his gun, he can use either.

I'm guessing its a matter of adjusting the sizing die. The shoulders may not have been pushed back far enough. Also, make sure you chamfer the exterior of the case mouth - you may have a slight bulge that needs to be trimmed off.

 

[sloughfoot]

What he said.

I'll add this much. Next time you have a pile of brass and you're ready to start reloading run one piece of brass through your resizing/deprimer die and then try to chamber it in the gun. If that piece of brass is to toight for your chamber, then turn your resizing die a quarter of a turn. Run your piece of brass through it again and then see how it fits in the chamber of your rifle. Keep repeating this until you're happy with how it's working out for you. This is one of those areas where you can get your brass to fit your chamber as perfectly as you set your reloading dies.

After you've done all that, then fully reload one round and check it in the chamber (do this safely and carefully). If that round feeds and extracts fine, then you have properly setup your dies. If not, go back to setting your dies.

Teddy12b said it all. It really is very simple. It doesn't sound like your cases are being sized enough. That ring you see near the base of the case will still be there with a properly resized case and not relevant.

 

[Haycoxjason]

I talked to my buddy and he said that we're resizing them all the way to the bottom of the casing...He also said that he talked to a guy at our local gun shop and was told that savage has an adjustable bolt???...I'm new to this so I guess I just don't understand...I appreciate yall's help!

 

[teddy12b]

I talked to my buddy and he said that we're resizing them all the way to the bottom of the casing...He also said that he talked to a guy at our local gun shop and was told that savage has an adjustable bolt???...I'm new to this so I guess I just don't understand...I appreciate yall's help!

Not trying to be rude but they are both wrong. Savage bolt heads float and that's part of where they get their accuracy. The resizing die probably just needs another 1/4 turn. trust me.

 

[Haycoxjason]

I just don't get why the ammo that I reloaded that didn't come out of my gun loads and ejects just fine...but the ammo that I reloaded that I shot out of my gun won't....the dies were set up the same way.

 

[Slapstick]

Not trying to be rude but they are both wrong. Savage bolt heads float and that's part of where they get their accuracy. The resizing die probably just needs another 1/4 turn. trust me.

^^^^^This^^^^

Either the die needs to be adjusted properly or it may just be damaged but if you are truely doing a full case resize then it should be back into spec and not causing the problem you're describing. You might want to pick up a set of Lee dies for .223, they're good dies and inexpensive.

You posted before I hit the "Save" on this post so I edited it. You might want to check the case length and trim if needed. You might be stretching the brass a bit if the first reloading working , even if it's if brass not from you gun, but after a few reloading you need to check the case length.

 

[BURNSURVIVOR725]

It's a learning experience for the three of us involved. Jason has never reloaded neck down cases and I have never reloaded at all. The guy helping us has a lot of experience but has never encountered this problem before. I Mic'd a round that would feed and a round that would not and there was minimal differences between the two. The position the bolt stops I would imagine the difference being more than the .002 to .003 I'm seeing.

 

[Slapstick]

Well it's back to the basic but the common reason for this problem is improperly resized case, case needs trimming, overall length of the loaded bullet is too long, or using a bullet that is not the proper size. So with that said who makes the brass, the dies and what bullets are you using? Also did you check the dimensions of the bullets that will not chamber?

 

[03A3]

When you chamber one of your reloads, does it take any extra force to close the bolt? That is an indicator of a case that is not sized correctly, or at least not fully.
I've neck sized a bunch of cases for bolt action rifles. Often there is a little resistance when closing the bolt. Not alot, but some. After a few firings the case will need to be full length resized. I've not had any extraction problems. Again I've neck sized alot of .223, 22-250 and 25-06 and alot of these have been max or near max loads.
What I'm getting at is if you are not sizing your cases enough, you should be seeing signs of it when you chamber a round, and I just don't see it causing an extraction problem, not in a bolt action rifle. Certainly not to the point that you need a mallet.

 

[kludge]

Dumb question: Have you trimmed the brass?