Reloading for an M1

[huntswithdogs]

My youngun is having issues with his Garand. About 1 in 4 cases swells so bad that they can't be resized. He started off with some Lake City brass and has tried Rem, Fed and Win with the same results. Any ideas?


HWD

[shot1]

Sounds like head space problems or chamber too large. You need to take the rifle to a REAL COMPETENT gunsmith and have him check it out. You need to keep the pressure down to mid range loads with IMR 4895 or IMR 4064 powder  and use 150 to 168 gr bullets. Any primer but FEDERAL will work fine. Federal will (been there and done that) slam fire on you. You need to not reload a case more than 3 or 4 times with the Garand. It beats them up pretty good around the rim and you can experience feeding and extraction problems.

[sphingta]

sounds like a bad chamber but a few more specifics would help. Are all reloads and what loads is he using. It kind of sounds like the powder he is using is way to slow and the case is being extracted before pressure has has dropped. this will eventually break the gun. powder needs to be in the 4895, varget burn rate range and depending on what grain bullet he is shooting 150 for example should probably be in the 2700-2800 fps range. 165-175 should probably be in the 2550-2650 range. if you're loading for more velocity than that or heavier bullets in a garand you're asking for trouble eventually. they are great guns but were designed around certain burn rates and bullets for gas/op rod optimzation.

[Savage]

Yep, sounds like a powder burn rare problem. Sphingta gave some good advice. If this is the case, a bent operating rod is next.
Savage

[huntswithdogs]

I don't know what he's using powder wise for his reloads but I'll pass along the powder recommendations. The rounds that got his attention first were from LakeCity. They were match grade ammo and I think he said they had a 69 headstamp. I'll get back with him for some more info and get back with ya'll on it.
 Thanks for the help so far.

HWD