Thread: Case head separation imminent

Originally Posted by Marty Henry

You "sleeve" the chamber and can either take pride in having just designed a new wildcat that you will need new brass for or you fish it out. Either way shooting stops for a while.
A pull through/ bore snake run down from the muzzle can often get the split case out.

Thanks Marty, so no real health hazard? Just an inconvenience?

Originally Posted by Gibo

Thanks Marty, so no real health hazard? Just an inconvenience?

Some rifles that don't have good gas safety features can make it a nasty experience, modern well-designed bolt actions that divert a lot of the gas away or trap it in the action you might not even realise it.

Good section and write up - possibly worth while adding that with a lot of cases if they are fired in a rifle they'll chamber back in the same rifle quite happily. In that case it's a little bit hard to use the 'until it doesn't chamber' thing to guide your headspace setup. I prefer the method of marking the case neck and shoulder and running the case into the die until the marks are just touching the case's shoulder. Then you should be just bumping the neck back on each sizing...

Originally Posted by No.3

Some rifles that don't have good gas safety features can make it a nasty experience, modern well-designed bolt actions that divert a lot of the gas away or trap it in the action you might not even realise it.

Good section and write up - possibly worth while adding that with a lot of cases if they are fired in a rifle they'll chamber back in the same rifle quite happily. In that case it's a little bit hard to use the 'until it doesn't chamber' thing to guide your headspace setup. I prefer the method of marking the case neck and shoulder and running the case into the die until the marks are just touching the case's shoulder. Then you should be just bumping the neck back on each sizing...

Could you put up some pictures of the marked cases before and after please

Originally Posted by Moa Hunter

Could you put up some pictures of the marked cases before and after please

I'll work on that - reloading gear is a bit of a mess at the mo as I'm in the process of relocating it...

Originally Posted by Gibo

Thanks Marty, so no real health hazard? Just an inconvenience?

Not as bad as finding out you have a head case problem...