reloading model 700 pss .308

[4wheel]

I am new to reloading and am having a problem with some of my rounds. I am loading 308 and have trouble with some of these when I try to close the bolt it is like they are not fitting in the chamber right. I dont like force to lock it in. Now all the thickness are at the high side of the book. now I can compair new round to these and the new ones are .005 to .007 thinker on my reloads. The new one work well, no problem. A friend told me to really clean the area where the round goes. I did this with no good results.

Anyone have an idea for me?

Thanks for any help.

Not sure I should put this here or at the bottom.

Ok here is what I did today. I took first time brass and 2nd reloaded brass. I run both through necking dies and full length dies. The 1st time reloads are just dandy With the full length dies necking dies are a little tight, but workable. Now with the full length dies with the 1st reloads is very good, but the 2nd reloads are about .004-.005 larger at the neck and they are harder to lock in.....to hard to use. I am afraid they will get stuck. I am using RCBS brand new from the Cabelas. Anyone tell me why they would be a different size? I would have thought they would be the same if they go though the same dies.

Thanks again in advance.

[toby]

Do not force them if the bolt wont close then stop. check over all lenth? check trimmed case size,easier to do with no bullet in the case, recheck your die for adjustment, and make sure you do a full pull on the press handle each and every time. unless these rounds will fit another gun you will have to redo them?

[Someguy925]

We should probably start from the top.

Is the brass new or once fired?
Did you run the brass through a full-length resizing or neck sizing die?
Did you trim the brass to spec?

[damilfman]

did you use a case gauge???

[Nessal]

I once loaded a round that was fire formed to another one of my bolt guns. The round got jammed into the rifle and would not extract AT ALL. Anyways, I now keep all fire formed brass seperate religiously and full length size the ones that I am not sure about.

[4wheel]

I had reloaded this brass one time before using full length dies, this time I used only neck dies. I use the brass only in one rifle. I trim them all and check length. I do not have a case gauge.

[4wheel]

Do not force them if the bolt wont close then stop. check over all lenth? check trimmed case size,easier to do with no bullet in the case, recheck your die for adjustment, and make sure you do a full pull on the press handle each and every time. unless these rounds will fit another gun you will have to redo them?

I do not force them.....I just set them aside.

[toby]

Sheeet happens I have some I had trouble with and found that the shoulder had moved?? lenth is good,seating depth is good. but the bolt won't close, this was 6 rounds out of 100. Sticky die? not enough lube? have not yet determind I set them aside and moved on. Never a problem since.

[mrkubota]

I am new to reloading and am having a problem with some of my rounds. I am loading 308 and have trouble with some of these when I try to close the bolt it is like they are not fitting in the chamber right. I dont like force to lock it in. Now all the thickness are at the high side of the book. now I can compair new round to these and the new ones are .005 to .007 thinker on my reloads. The new one work well, no problem. A friend told me to really clean the area where the round goes. I did this with no good results.

Anyone have an idea for me?

Thanks for any help.

... are you comparing the diameter of the case necks, or the thickness of the neck brass?...
You may need a different neck sizer bushing, or perhaps to neck turn those that are thicker than the ones that do work for your rifle.

Blacken a problem case with a permanent marker then try to chamber it and carefully extract it to see where it's rubbing in the chamber.

[gau17]

two solutions.
1. Full size the brass
2. bump the shoulder back .2 - .3

Bolt with properly sized cases should close with ease. I would not shoot rounds that you have to force the bolt to close. You might cause pressure to spike up.

Send me a PM if you have any question. Don't be afraid to ask. Better safe than sorry. Also might help to get a book.

[EOD3]

two solutions.
1. Full size the brass
2. bump the shoulder back .2 - .3

Bolt with properly sized cases should close with ease. I would not shoot rounds that you have to force the bolt to close. You might cause pressure to spike up.

Send me a PM if you have any question. Don't be afraid to ask. Better safe than sorry. Also might help to get a book.

How about .002 - .003

[Fjold]

Check the adjustment of your seating die. It's a very common mistake.

The seating die should be adjusted:

Back out the seating plug until it doesn't touch anything.

Unscrew the seating die body 5 or 6 full turns short of the shell holder with the ram raised.

Place a resized but empty case in the shell holder and raise the ram all the way so that the empty case goes into the seating die.

Screw the seating die in until you feel it touch the top of the case mouth.

Now, back the seating die out one full turn and lock it down.

Insert a loaded round into the shell holder and then adjust the seating plug down until you get your desired OAL.


Many times the case mouth hits the step on the inside of the seating die which pushes the case mouth back and bulges the loaded case right below the shoulder, preventing it from chambering.

[bjl333]

I had reloaded this brass one time before using full length dies, this time I used only neck dies. I use the brass only in one rifle. I trim them all and check length. I do not have a case gauge.

Are the bullets sitted in far enough. If you loaded the shell once and only neck sized for the 2nd time. I would think the actual case would be ok for the chamber, considering you only use it in one gun. Check the bullet sitting by marking the bullets with a marker, load them in to your chamber and see if the marker got scratch off. If the marker got scratch off then your bullet is contacting the rifling, which means you'll have to sit deeper. Be very careful when you check, observe all safety.

[bjl333]

Also check the primer to make sure its not sticking out, see if its flush with the bottom of the shell. Lots of times the primer pocket is dirty or media from the tumbler gets stuck. That'll cause the shell not to completely chamber as well.

[EOD3]

Well, his grammar leaves something to be desired but, the advice jbl333 offered is spot-on.

The only thing I can think of, and it's pretty far-fetched, is the possibility your chamber "might" be just a tad bit out of round. I have a VSSF in the safe that had to go back to Remington because of a bad chamber.