re sizing problem

[1911man]

Hey guys, I have decided to to start hand loading for my grendel in order to get the most accurate load possible. I am not new to reloading by any means as I have been loading for my .308 bolt gun for years and I have been loading 7.62x39 for my AR for the last year and had great results. The dies I use for those calibers are Lee dies. I have Hornady dies for this caliber so it was just a little different getting set up.

I followed the instructions that hornady provided in setting up my dies and sized up one piece of hornady brass to test that was once fired and I had already prepped. I loaded it with primer, powder, bullet etc. Set it to 2.250 OAL. I loaded the round in the magazine and racked the action to feed it. The carrier pushed the bolt in the chamber but would not seat it completely. The action is like 1/8th of an inch from being completely closed. I then tried to extract the round and it was very difficult. The bullet itself had a couple of nicks on it and the brass has a small gauge where I am guessing the extractor grabbed it.

I am guessing I set up the re-sizer incorrectly, and that I need to make an adjustment. Anyone have any ideas or tips as to what my problem might be? BTW I have a BHW 264 lbc chamber if that makes a difference. Thanks in advance for the help.

[kmon]

Does the bullet have any rifling marks on it? What shell holder are you using, rare but have seen instances where cases were not fully sized when shell holder was a different brand

[1911man]

That is a good point, my shell holder is a Lee brand Shell holder.

[NugginFutz]

I found that with my Hornady dies, the sizing die will push the shoulder back too much, when I followed their setup instructions.

This caused a condition much like you are describing. IIRC, you are instructed to raise the ram, lower the die to contact the shell plate, and then add another 1/8 to 1/4 turn. This is fine if you use a Hornady shell holder, but other makes might have a thinner plate, which moves your case higher into the sizing die.

[coastguardchas]

This is an age old problem. take a resized case and see if it will chamber. if not, inspect for reason. in my case the die would not reduce the case body enough to chamber. had to have another resizing die chromed to reduce body size more.

Chas

[VASCAR2]

Was this Hornady brass, AA/Lapua or what kind of brass. AA/Lapau brass is thicker than Hornady brass. If I tried to size AA/Lapua brass using Hornady dies and instructions I would get a crease in the brass just above the web. I had to back my die off to get my AA/Lapua brass to chamber and not get a crease. I bought a Wilson case gauge from Alexander Arms and I use it to quickly see if my sized brass in spec.

[oldbarnowl]

I had trouble with 7.62x39 Fiocchi brass. The base diameter of 7.62x39 brass is supposed to be 11.35 mm (Wikipedia) and 6.5 Grendel (Wikipedia) is supposed to be 11.15 mm. In practice I have found that 7.62x39 in PMC, Winchester, Federal et al is slightly undersized, from 11.35, while Fiocchi is dead on 11.35. The brass appears to be tougher as well, it is nice quality, but I have to fight to get it down to the last bit. I have made it a point not to buy Fiocchi used brass, for Grendel conversion. fyi...


BTW I use a Sheridan slot gauge, helps out a lot... :

http://www.sheridanengineering.com/images/SG65GRN_2.jpg

[lwminton]

I suggest you get an Instant Indicator to properly measure your chamber. Buy some factory ammo. Shoot it. Run it thru the Indicator. The answer is a good estimate of your chamber. Now measure unfired Lapua brass. This gives you an idea of your chamber relative to "standard". Now adjust your sizer die to make the Indicator measure about .003 to .005 smaller than the fired case. Now your reloads fit your chamber for an AR function. Do this on 2 and 3 times fired and you will see the numbers move as the fired brass better fits your chamber.
The Instant Indicator is the BEST tool for this and also the fastest. You will use it all the time and your rounds will fit just right.

[arnie]

I wonder if the bullet isn't seated deep enough and is hitting the rifling too soon.

[Gary]

What bullet are you using? If I use 120 gr. A-Max, I cannot close the bolt on my AA 24" Overwatch at 2.250" because it is jamming into the lands. I can load the 123 gr. A-Max to magazine length.

[EPeterson]

I would advise getting a Case Length Headspace Gage. They're inexpensive from Midway and will save a lot of headache. When I began reloading, I resized ~2000 pieces of 223 slightly out of spec in a big batch....thankfully one of my rifles shoots them just fine, the others would chamber just like your describing, ie the shoulders weren't set far back enough, causing the bcg to not go into battery fully.

This is the one I use:

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/277624/le-wilson-case-length-headspace-gage-65-grendel?cm_vc=ProductFinding

[SG4247]

Get a RCBS .308 win precision mic from RCBS.

Using a piece of Grendel brass cut and trim it to .456". This length happens to calculate to be a perfect zero on the precision mic when measuring a "go" Grendel headspace gauge.

Using the trimmed brass as a spacer in the bottom of the mic base, measure some fired brass from that guns chamber, and note the number on the precision mic.

My spacer in the photo has been precision ground, just for durability.

Adjust your die until your resized brass is .005" shorter than the fired brass.

Accurate, repeatable and cheap. Done thousands of precision rounds this way. Gave the Sheridan gauge to a friend, basically worthless compared to the precision mic.

image.jpg

[Zapp]

I bought a Wilson case gauge from Alexander Arms and I use it to quickly see if my sized brass in spec.

Can you double check the name on the side of that gauge?

[Zapp]

Get a RCBS .308 win precision mic from RCBS.

Using a piece of Grendel brass cut and trim it to .456". This length happens to calculate to be a perfect zero on the precision mic when measuring a "go" Grendel headspace gauge.

Using the trimmed brass as a spacer in the bottom of the mic base, measure some fired brass from that guns chamber, and note the number on the precision mic.

My spacer in the photo has been precision ground, just for durability.

Adjust your die until your resized brass is .005" shorter than the fired brass.

Accurate, repeatable and cheap. Done thousands of precision rounds this way. Gave the Sheridan gauge to a friend, basically worthless compared to the precision mic.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]6597[/ATTACH]

So you are just checking the headspace measurement, correct? I make the Sheridan gauges to do a few other checks, besides just headspace. It really is more for a complete chamber check. I don't think the 308 precision mic will be too good for a Grendel chamber checker Different tools, different jobs.

You could get an actual number off the gauge relative to your fired cases, if you use calipers. That is IF the fired case fits in the gauge. A simple headspace comparator is probably quicker and easier for that.

[VASCAR2]

Can you double check the name on the side of that gauge?

Old age strikes again my case gauge is a Sheridan, sorry for any confusion.