trouble chambering 22-250

[22savage]

hey guys, i have a problem. i'm on my second and third reload with my 22-250 brass, all winchester white box, and am having trouble chambering the rounds.  the bolt goes all the way forward but takes considerably more pressure to push down than do factory loads.  i full lenght resize all my brass and was wondering whaat might be the problem?  couild the shoulder be pushed too far forward?  the bullet is not  the lands, cause the distance to the lands is 2.515" and i am using oal of 2.480".  
ps, the latest loads were consistantly making cloverleafs at 100 yds.

any suggestions woudl be appreciated

travis

[KN]

Are you trimming you brass? If not it may be too long at the neck and is trying to push the neck into the throat. If thats the case DO NOT FIRE THEM. It will probably create extremely high pressure. If this is not the case and you say you are full length sizing them, then are you sure your die is set deep enough to bump the shoulder back? As you size the brass the shoulder will move a little bit forward and it needs to be bumped back. Hope this helps.  KN

[Thomas Krupinski]

I believe KN has hit it, your cases have streached and need to be trimmed.

[Wlscott]

I agree too.

I had the same problem with a Winnie Featherweight in 300WSM.  Some rounds would chamber really hard.  

At the advice of others on this board, I "bumped the shoulder back".

Try trimming the cases first (if they need it).  If that doesn't fix it, you'll have to resize the troublesom cases.  To bump the shoulder back, screw your sizing die all the way in as you normally do until it touches the shell holder.  Then lower the ram, and turn it in just a tiny bit more.  Size a case and try it in your rifle.  If it still goes in hard, turn in your die a little bit more.  Keep doing this until the case will just chamber with no resistance.  Don't go too far past.

[22savage]

hey guys, i fired some of those rounds and they shot allright. no flattened primers or other pressure signs that i could see. i don't have my reloading gear with me, as i am away for the summer, so i don't have acess to a caliper to measure the lenght of the bullets.
something i did notice though, is that all of the brass has a mark on the head, almost looks like the bolt is leaving a slight swirl mark on the brass, maybe from chambering or extraction, i'm not sure. is this normal, i havent' noticed it with factory rounds,.

thanks
travis

[Wlscott]

Savage, that mark is from the extractor slicing off a small peice of brass that is extruded into the groove in the bolt face.  

It's generally considered a sign of high pressures.  Are you sure that the primers weren't flattened a little bit?

I'd pull those bullets that chamber hard, and follow the instructions in my last post.

[Carl l.]

22 savage,

The other guys gave you good advice. I would like to add try loading with out full lenght resizing. I had this trouble years ago and I only neck size for the last 40+ yrs. If your casings are shot in the same gun you should not have to full length resize  Try some casing's that have not been full length resized and give them a try. Check your shell holder and see if you have the right size. If it is to big it will curl up the head when you pull it out of the full length resizer. I hope you get it worked out and let us know when you do  . Carl L.

[The Shrink]

22Savage

Go back to what KN said.  If your cases are too long you will increase pressure by this fact alone, and it looks as if this might be happening.  You are playing with extreme pressure if you are getting deformation of the case head, in the area of 80,000+ psi.   Do not fire these cases any more!  You have stretched the head and webbing, it is likely that the primers are a loose fit, and the cases are more likely to fail in the future.  

I hope it is needless to say Do not fire any more of this ammunition!!!  Pull the bullets, measure the cases.  If they are not long your load is way too hot.  If they are long, trim them and continue loading as you have been.  

Say a prayer of thanksgiving that you and your rifle are still in one piece.

Wayne the Shrink

[22savage]

thanks guys, i'll put those bullets away and pull them as soon as i get back home. how about the brass that i already fired, is it re-usable or should i throw it in the trash? oh yeah, the primers did seem to seat alot easier this time around, so the case was probably stretched like you guys  mentioned.

thanks alot guys, would sure hated to blow my gun up(or me) for the sake of some bad ammo.

travis

[BruceP]

I had the same problem when I first started reloading. After firing one or two rounds that chambered hard, when inspecting the brass I could see the the case mouth was a bit shiny just on the very end. It was the first reload after firing the factory round. I did not understand,until I asked a friend that reloaded, since all I had read about stretched cases had to do with high pressure on the previous firings and or multiple firings. Long story short, I was not lubing the inside of the case neck and it was stretching as it was pulled back over the expander ball.
BruceP

[The Shrink]

Travis

First let me say that I tend to the conservative when it comes to reloading.  After saying that, the cases with expanded bases are more likely to release the primer upon firing causing blowback.  Cases are a lot cheaper than eyes, so I would crush them so no one else could possibly use them and toss them.  

If you have any desire to section a case to see how it's made this is the perfect opportunity, or if you desire to make a dummy round with the perfect bullet placement for setting your bullet seating die these cases are perfect for such use.  Just don't put a primer in them!

Go with God, He's been good to you.

Wayne the Shrink