Problem with Once-Fired Brass

[JackEllis]

I recently bought some once-fired .243 cases (not from a Calgunner). Yesterday I discovered none of them would chamber in my Tikka .243. I had the same problem with Prvi Partizan ammo that used once-fired cases.

I checked the cases for proper length but I also noticed that after trying to chamber just the case with no projectile, the case remained stuck enough that I needed to gently (very gently) tap it with a cleaning rod.

I'm guessing the shoulder needs to be moved back a bit. I have about 50 cases that have primers in them but no powder or bullets and another 160 that are fully charged. It seems like I'm going to need a full size die to move the shoulder. Can I use a full length die without the decapping pin if it has one, or will I have to deprime all of the cases first? I know I'm going to have to pull bullets and powder, which will be tedious enough all by itself.

Thanks for any and all responses.

[Devilmonkey89]

Re-size with no pin. Should be fine. Just try not to get lube in the primer.

*When I-re-size i like to load a resized piece of brass, slowly close the bolt and use the forward assist to seat it. If it doesn't close I re-adjust and try again. Haven't had one issue usng that method. Although that is in an auto loader.

[AGGRO]

If these are someone else's reloads I wouldn't trust them if they didn't take the time to resize the cases. Get a bullet puller dump the powder, resize and recharge correctly.

It may not be a big deal as they are fire formed to someone else's rifle but to me, it's just not worth it for 100 bucks worth of ammo.

[jericho89]

Anytime you use any brass that was not fired in a particular gun you need to full length size the brass. When the round is fired for the first time the brass is fire formed to that chamber. If you only use that brass for one chamber then you can usually get a way with not having to full length size every time. But if you have multiple guns that use that round and you are not keeping your reloads separate for each gun it is recommended that you full length size every round.

And as stated just pull the pin out of a full length resizing die and run the primed brass though it. It is not recommended to do that to a loaded round for safety reasons even though I have seen people do it.

[baih777]

If these are someone else's reloads I wouldn't trust them if they didn't take the time to resize the cases. Get a bullet puller dump the powder, resize and recharge correctly.

It may not be a big deal as they are fire formed to someone else's rifle but to me, it's just not worth it for 100 bucks worth of ammo.

^^^^^^^this
Either the person did not know what they were doing or its fire formed to his chamber..
Yes you can fl resize without the decapping pin.

[JackEllis]

I did the loading on these and I may have assumed they were full-length sized since they were allegedly "processed". If there's anyone who didn't quite know what they were doing, that sits with me.

Thanks for the responses.

[Christopher761]

There are two types of .243 Winchester. Regular and "improved." Which do you have?

Yes, full length resize. And then trim if necessary.

[jimmythebrain]

maybe they did process the brass but just with dies set to their chambers shoulder location.

[JackEllis]

It's the regular, not the "improved".

[hermosabeach]

Once fired

maybe they did process the brass but just with dies set to their chambers shoulder location.

If they processed the brass then it is not once fired.....


I always full size unknown brass or where I have more than 1 gun in the same caliber-


Unless you are shooting a match rifle, I full resize so the ammo fits in every firearm...

[Divernhunter]

You need to full size any brass not fired in your rifle the first time. After than you can neck size or partly size.

DO NOT remove the decap pin assembly. If you do the brass will not be expanded to the proper diameter by the expander ball which expands the neck to the correct diameter after the die sizes it down to under the correct diameter.

What you do is just move the assembly up so that the pin does not touch the primers. Then the expander can do its job but just in a different spot in the cycle of the ram. With RCBS type dies this just means to loosen the lock nut and thread(screw) the stem up out of the die further.

Simple solution for your problem.

[fguffey]

It seems like I'm going to need a full size die to move the shoulder.

What die were you using to size your cases with. The first die a reloader starts with is a full length sizing die, many reloaders never learn how to use it so they go straight to the small base die etc..

F. Guffey

[fguffey]

And then there are those 'and then' moments. Life is much simpler for a reloader when he learns to measure the case when determining if the case got sized. There is a possibility the case has more resistance to sizing than the press can overcome; in that situation the press lost and the case won.

F. Guffey

[robert101]

Case processing "once fire" to me is not resized. It is cleaned and de-primed. I size to my chamber and not necessarily full length - I push the shoulder back for my chamber. I expect after the first firing that I now have a good fire formed piece of brass. I always resize before reloading, then check for fitness in my chamber before reloading an entire batch of cases.

[pacrat]

You need to full size any brass not fired in your rifle the first time. After than you can neck size or partly size.

DO NOT remove the decap pin assembly. If you do the brass will not be expanded to the proper diameter by the expander ball which expands the neck to the correct diameter after the die sizes it down to under the correct diameter.

What you do is just move the assembly up so that the pin does not touch the primers. Then the expander can do its job but just in a different spot in the cycle of the ram. With RCBS type dies this just means to loosen the lock nut and thread(screw) the stem up out of the die further.

Simple solution for your problem.

^^^^^WHAT HE SAID^^^^^

Whether cases are range pickups, purchased as once fired or "processed", and even new factory cases. First thing first is to run them all through your chamber. If they fit, without excessive bolt bind, you can neck or partial neck size them and all is good. If they are snug or stick. They will need to be FL sized.

JM2c