308 not able to chamber

[cpatbay]

Just remember ... Reloading is not for those who strive to save time and cut corners. You have to be thorough and meticulous. Be as anal as you can be. You must be of the mindset that EVERY SINGLE reload you make is reliable and safe; not 1 out of every 500.

[Willwork4ammo]

I have learned that it is best to chamber each piece of brass after sizing, rather than encounter a few later that fail to chamber when you are on a mountain top freezing your butt off!

If your dies are set correctly, you don't need to do this. How long does it take you to do 100 rounds with this process?!?

[ar15barrels]

That's what is throwing me for a loop. They fit in the case gauge just fine but didn't chamber. It's a Wilson case gauge so I know it's a reputable company that made it.

Wilson did not chamber your gun.
It's more important for the ammo to fit the gun correctly than it is to fit the gauge correctly.

[cpatbay]

Wilson did not chamber your gun.
It's more important for the ammo to fit the gun correctly than it is to fit the gauge correctly.

The case gauge is made more for ARs. But if it meets 308 specs, it should chamber for bolt guns as well. Reloading for bolt guns is different.

[ar15barrels]

The case gauge is made more for ARs.

Please show the documentation where Wilson says the gauge is for AR's.

[ExtremeX]

The case gauge is made more for ARs. But if it meets 308 specs, it should chamber for bolt guns as well. Reloading for bolt guns is different.

The Wilson gauge is a simple SAAMI min/max gauge... AR / Semi / Bolt doesn't matter.

As I mentioned above, the gauge is oversized on purpose by Wilson to fit fired brass, its not to be used as a drop in gauge to check to see if a round will chamber correctly... its to be used as a min/max for case length and case headspace.

[ar15barrels]

308 not able to chamber

You can use a simple wilson or dillon case gauge for taking comparative measurements, but you need an accurate way to measure.

Here is my protrusion micrometer:

[LynnJr]

As you tighten down your full length sizing die it starts squeezing in on the cases body.This squeezing moves the shoulder forward as the brass has to go somewhere and this is the path of least resistance.As you keep tightening it down the front of the die will make contact with the cases shoulder and start bumping it back.
On a 700 Remington you want about 0.0015 shoulder bump.You need a caliper to do this and they run < $10 at Harbor Frieght.

To find out if its a shoulder bump issue or the area in front of the web near the case head simply hacksaw one hard to chamber case in half and chamfer it so it isn't full of burrs.
Drop it into the chamber and see if the bolt closes or not.
If it closes you are not bumping the shoulder enough.
If it still won't chamber the brass is to fat at the web area and a small base die or sanding the top of your shellholder would solve that issue.

[ExtremeX]

Randall,

Is that a Starrett or some other brand?

I see their Micrometer Heads but did you make your own collar to interface with the case gauge for measurement?

[ar15barrels]

Randall,

Is that a Starrett or some other brand?

I see their Micrometer Heads but did you make your own collar to interface with the case gauge for measurement?

I make and sell those gauges.
It's a starrett or mitutoyo micrometer head with my own sleeve that will allow you to drop fired and sized cases into a chamber gauge and then measure the difference between them to help you precisely adjust a sizing die.
It's basically a backwards depth gauge that fits over a case head that is sticking into or out of a chamber gauge.

[ExtremeX]

I figured you made the sleeve… I like the product… popping out all sorts of fancy on that lathe.

[bohoki]

don't know what your problem is i use lee rgb dies then trim with the little lee trimmer

debur the ouside with a file while its spinning on the lee tool inside with the lee thimble debur tool

[mark501w]

They love those Wilson gauges on EBay .