New to reloading

[Leatherneck]

I'm just getting into reloading and have a question. I have most everything I need as far as the tools needed. I don't have the components needed to make bullets, yet. I had a bunch of spent brass and set up my FL resizing die to bump the shoulders .0002. All good there, checked resized brass in the chamber with the firing/cocking mechanism and the extractor removed. Bolt handle drops with no help from me. I checked a Hornady 150 ELD-X cartridge and had a bit of resistance on the bolt handle. My Hornady head space gauge only showed a .0001 difference between the resized brass and the cartridge. Is that enough to cause that much resistance or can I assume the bullet is getting jammed into the lands?

 

[GLTaylor]

Do you have the means to measure where your bullets are at "jam"? If not, use the Wheeler method. Find jam and back off 10-20 thousandths to start your load development process.
G

 

[BoomFlop]

Bump shoulders .002 and not .0002. I'm not aware of a caliper that can accurate measure .0001, even if the decimal appears on the caliper.

Also, I'd suggest checking shoulder resistance as you are sizing and not with a bullet. Shoulder bump and jump are two different things.

Steve

 

[Leatherneck]

Bump shoulders .002 and not .0002. I'm not aware of a caliper that can accurate measure .0001, even if the decimal appears on the caliper.

Also, I'd suggest checking shoulder resistance as you are sizing and not with a bullet. Shoulder bump and jump are two different things.

Steve

Yeah I edited it. I added one to many zeros. I know what the differences are between them. I don't have any components yet to measure jump. I have the tool but no bullets, yet. I've watched the Wheeler video and that's why I checked my brass after bumping the shoulder .002. For ****'s and giggles I tried a Hornady cartridge and it was a little bit of effort to close the bolt. there was only .001 difference between my resized brass and a loaded cartridge, not mine. I'm assuming .001 difference wouldn't cause that much effort in closing the bolt, but a bullet not seated deep enough would. Am I correct in assuming that?

 

[ShtrRdy]

I think you're on the right track. If you don't mind experimenting with one of the factory loaded cartridges try seating the bullet a little deeper in 0.005" steps. Maybe 3 or 4 steps should be enough to see if the bullet is touching the lands.

Another thought .... coat the bullet on one of the factory loaded cartridges with a permanent marker. Chamber the cartridge and then remove. Look over the bullet carefully too see if there was interference anywhere.

 

[Leatherneck]

I think you're on the right track. If you don't mind experimenting with one of the factory loaded cartridges try seating the bullet a little deeper in 0.005" steps. Maybe 3 or 4 steps should be enough to see if the bullet is touching the lands.

Another thought .... coat the bullet on one of the factory loaded cartridges with a permanent marker. Chamber the cartridge and then remove. Look over the bullet carefully too see if there was interference anywhere.

I have a bullet puller on the way, I thought about taking a couple rounds apart and experimenting. The marker trick sounds good. Thanks.

 

[Hunterjones]

It sounds like the members are all giving you good advice. My guess is that bullet is touching lands and if you seat it deeper in small increments you will find your bolt will eventually close easy

 

[Tulsa Reiner]

I have a bullet puller on the way, I thought about taking a couple rounds apart and experimenting. The marker trick sounds good. Thanks.

Maybe you didn't understand ShtrRdy: he was suggesting you gradually seat the factory Hornady cartridge deeper and see if that makes bolt closure easier. Re using a marker on the bullet, when he said "chamber the cartridge and remove," I think he meant remove the intact cartridge from the chamber. I don't think he was saying to pull any bullets.

 

[bullet man]

this sounds easy measure a factory round over all length then seat your bullet to the same length. If no resistance than u maybe u are into in to the lands with your original loads. Also look at your reloading manual they list what length they suggest to load that bullet at. Some bullets need to be loaded per the manual due to pressure issues longer bearing distance.

 

[emp1953]

Do your bullets have a cannelure? If they do, seating them deeper will probably cause the neck to expand due to overcoming the crimp, causing more chamber tolerance issues.

 

[.300 Dakota]

One other unlikely, but theoretically possible (especially with Winchester brass with Short Mags, but may be seen in others) is rim (head) thickness OR diameter inconsistencies/irregularities. Since you removed the extractor (assuming not a controlled round feed action), thickness should not be an issue, but I've had cases not fit the appropriate shell holder and others slide in effortlessly in the same bag due to variations in rim/head diameter. This can cause some resistance on bolt closing mimicking a headspace issue. Since your brass is used, I would think the problem is much more likely to be headspacing. Excess rim diameter to the point of giving resistance on bolt closure is rare, but more likely on cases with the largest rims (i.e. Short Mags, Ultra Mags, and now the 6.8 Western)

 

[emp1953]

One other unlikely, but theoretically possible (especially with Winchester brass with Short Mags, but may be seen in others) is rim (head) thickness OR diameter inconsistencies/irregularities. Since you removed the extractor (assuming not a controlled round feed action), thickness should not be an issue, but I've had cases not fit the appropriate shell holder and others slide in effortlessly in the same bag due to variations in rim/head diameter. This can cause some resistance on bolt closing mimicking a headspace issue. Since your brass is used, I would think the problem is much more likely to be headspacing. Excess rim diameter to the point of giving resistance on bolt closure is rare, but more likely on cases with the largest rims (i.e. Short Mags, Ultra Mags, and now the 6.8 Western)

He could sort out the rounds that cause the stiff bolt problem then pull the bolt and see how they nest into the bolt face. Measure those rims and compare those to rounds that do not cause stiff bolt operation. Again using the black marker method, coat the head/rim area and look for difference in wear between the "good" rounds and the questionable rounds. Has there been any mention yet of what caliber or rifle manufacturer we are talking about here.

 

[rgmeddn]

I'm just getting into reloading and have a question. I have most everything I need as far as the tools needed. I don't have the components needed to make bullets, yet. I had a bunch of spent brass and set up my FL resizing die to bump the shoulders .0002. All good there, checked resized brass in the chamber with the firing/cocking mechanism and the extractor removed. Bolt handle drops with no help from me. I checked a Hornady 150 ELD-X cartridge and had a bit of resistance on the bolt handle. My Hornady head space gauge only showed a .0001 difference between the resized brass and the cartridge. Is that enough to cause that much resistance or can I assume the bullet is getting jammed into the lands?

Factory rifle (ie, SAAMI)? or custom rifle (with potentially tighter tolerances)? Did the bolt handle drop with the fired brass before you bumped the shoulders? And the fired brass was in your rifle, right?

 

[HunterMann]

You didn't mention the caliber, but ELD-X bullets are long for caliber. First measure a bunch of the Hornady ammo to make sure you have the right Case Overall Length. If they are consistent (sometimes factory ammo is not perfect, but usable), markup a the bullet around the case mouth. Set the bullet a slightly deeper and see how it feeds. This will not ruin the round, but since you have marked it you will know which round you modified.