Thread: Mystery problem when reloading... Help.

Hi guys, today I tried to reload some of my own once fored brass with targex 125's and 165's.
1st problem. When I had finished the finished projectiles were too long, even though I had worked out the BTOL. So I reseated them so my overall cartridge length was 2.74. Now they all fitted in the magazine of my howa 1500 .308. Question. Doesn't this mean my distance to the lands is now much bigger?

Problem 2. Now my bolt wouldn't close even though I had done a full length resize as recommended by my instruction book. What causes that? Other cartridges that I reloaded cycle just fine.

Problem 3. How do I get the projectiles and primers out without blowing myself up?

I do realise in hindsight I should have checked the first couple to see if they fitted and cycled before going any further.

Question. What is the point of measuring btol if it makes your bullets too long to fit in the magazine and you have to seat your bullets deeper anyway?

You can remove the bullets safely and without damage by using a hornady bullet pulker fitted with appropriate colket for your calibre.
Did you trim your brass to the correct kength as specified in your manual? If the cases (brass) is too long you will not be able to chamber, regardless of resizing in a die.

Firstly, you have to seat your projectiles to fit the magazine, otherwise you've got a single shot firearm. Its that simple
Secondly, if your bolt wont close you need make sure the case is trimmed to the specified length. If so, then you'll have to resize the cases so as to "Bump" the case shoulder back a bit - like half a turn of your die. Try a case in the chamber and repeat the process until the bolt closes easily. If its hard to close in an unfired case, it'll be impossible to open in a fired case.
3. Beg, borrow or steal a collet-type bullet puller. You can pull all the projectiles easily and reload them later. You can also save the powder back into the ORIGINAL container.
4. Unscrew the primer stem from your sizing die and then you can resize the case (to bump the shoulder) safely. You don'thave to
de-prime the cases

Often its the long slender projectiles with a high BC that wont fit magazines.Eg Barnes, Bergers, ELDX's
You might have to compromise with shorter "softpoint" type projectiles

If you have seated the projectiles in deeper then there will be more jump to the lands.
You may need to adjust the seating die further. I generally raise the ram on the press and screw die till it contacts the shell holder then adjust down a further 1/8 of a turn. If the shells a still tight you can go down a little more, be careful not to push the shoulder back.
Removing the projectiles I use a kinetic bullet puller and for the primers if I can I leave the decapping pin out of the sizing die and run the shells through like that, it will resize the brass but your primer will stay put.
If the decapping pin is hard to remove, put some safety glasses on and just size the brass like it was fired stuff. I have done heaps like that and it works fine, I even keep the decapped unfired primers and use them again in target loads. Never had one not go off yet when re used.
Always pays to run the brass through your rifle after the sizing process.

@poodle ; Where are you situated?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Greetings Poodle,
Lots to learn eh.
Problem 1. It is quite common for some cartridges to have the projectiles seated well clear of the lands so the cartridges will fit in my magazine. My
308 does but still shoots extremely well. Don't worry about it.
Problem 2. It is possible that your cases have been bulged when you seated the projectiles deeper. If you screwed the die down rather than just the seating stem the crimp shoulder may have contacted the case mouth and bulged the case. If however any of your .308 cases won't chamber. Full length size another case same as before and check. If it won't chamber your die needs to be adjusted until it does.
Problem 3. There are lots of projectile pulling devices on the market. You can even run the cartridge up through the hole in the press and grip it with some side cutters. Pulling the handle up will pull the projectile. You don't need to remove the primers to resize the cases, just take the decapping pin out and size normally. Some dies with fixed decapping pins will need the decapping stem removed for sizing. After reassembling the die run the expander in and out of the case mouth, but no further, to expand the neck.
You have just learnt some valuable lessons. It gets easier from here on. Check. Check. Check.
Regards Grandpamac.

Milton, South Otago.

you have learnt valueable lessons....overall length is like chronicgraph measured speed......for sub 400 yard animal shooting, its not really important, unless ,like some, you want to shoot in earhole....
one of my previous .308s would chamber about 50% of resized loads only...nearly drove me bonkers trying to sort it out...in the end I poked already resized cases through an OLD 30/06 die with guts removed to squeaze sidewalls down at base in a wee tad more.....seemed to work even if it shouldnt.... have heard of some rifles needing small base dies...which sounds like they do what I fluked on... the bottom bit is smaller/skinnier by a fly poop.
take a dark coloured felt pen and colour one of you non chambering rounds...in SAFE PLACE with muzzle in SAFEST DIRECTION.... try chambering and sit there moving bolt back n forwards a bit when you find resistance.....then eject round and see where its making contact....doing that will answer a heap of questions and possibly create solution.

I aways cycle my Brass through the Chamber I am reloading for.
of course I'm not doing large numbers.
used to reload for a 243 Lever that drove me Batty with a very tight chamber. Had to full Length-Size every Round
even then 50% would not chamber.

Z

I am down the road in Clutha and am willing to give you a hand. I have a collet puller you can use as well.