Gunsmithing Anyway to fix a F'd up chambering job??

[Aimsmall55]

I knew better than to let this guy do it... I knew. But I relented.
What I'm experiencing is the mouths of virgin cases are being crimped, the shoulder is getting rubbed, and the heads look like I just polished them. This is when I bolt one in.
The action is a Stiller Tac 30 built on a bartlein #9. .308.
My guess is that he cut enough freebore as its fine but cut the chamber way too tight. I measured a fired case mouth and it was .342. Also I think he missed the area where the neck sits by ALOT. To be putting Virgin lapua brass chambering it and getting crimped mouths and a shiny head is not cool. The bolt face looks golden after clambering a few.
Any how , I've got a Bisley match reamer coming in a week or so.. Is there anyway to fix this without chopping the barrel? What are you guys thoughts. I'm pretty sick and pissed at the same time.

 

[ugsly]

I would start by seeing if it closes on a go gauge or not. If he didn't cut the chamber deep enough it would be a pretty easy fix with the same reamer. When chambering a case is it hard to close the bolt?

 

[stangfish]

If the case mouth is .342 you done. If that is the outside dimension of the neck then you are ok. Not sure what you mean by crimped mouths but it sounds like you freebore is bumping the necks/mouth of the case. the reamer may be custom or worn out/broken. What are your case OAL's?

 

[Aimsmall55]

I would start by seeing if it closes on a go gauge or not. If he didn't cut the chamber deep enough it would be a pretty easy fix with the same reamer. When chambering a case is it hard to close the bolt?

Not too terribly hard but yes there's some resistance. It's way too tight. Here's a pic of the case head

 

[Aimsmall55]

If the case mouth is .342 you done. If that is the outside dimension of the neck then you are ok. Not sure what you mean by crimped mouths but it sounds like you freebore is bumping the necks/mouth of the case. the reamer may be custom or worn out/broken. What are your case OAL's?

.342 is outside. Oal is 2.006 to 2.007. It's virgin lapua. What's happening is when I in a straight up virgin brass case and slightly chamber and extract the mouth has got a inward dent right at the end of the mouth. Meaning with loaded rounds it's adding extra pressure when fired

 

[stangfish]

Ask to look at the reamer. It sounds like the step Between the freebore and the neck is goofed up, and like it was short chambered needing about .003 more taken out of the length. Its not ruined yet.

 

[Aimsmall55]

Ask to look at the reamer. It sounds like the step Between the freebore and the neck is goofed up, and like it was short chambered needing about .003 more taken out of the length. Its not ruined yet.

I'll do that. Thanks to everyone. I appreciate it.

 

[Jim See]

was your brass fired in a different gun before this one? That can be the problem your having as the case you showed has been fired and apparently sized. Did you re-adjust your die setting for the new chamber?
if a 100% new, unfired, unsized piece of lapua brass is inserted in the chamber does it leave the same marks?

 

[stangfish]

Hey jim, One of his complaints was that his brass OAL sized to 2.007 was getting crimped on the end of the brass when he chambered a case. Both loaded and unloaded.

 

[insight3b]

If you don't want to remove the bbl you can use a pull through finish reamer like this:
PTG Pull Through Finish Reamer 308 Winchester Bushing Drive Rod

 

[Frank]

Whats the old saying? Screw me once shame on you, screw me twice, shame on me! Sounds like the chamber is a hair short. Hopefully thats all and it can just be reamed a little deeper. But I'd find a real gunsmith to fix it. Stiller, Bartlein and shadetree gunsmith is not a good threesome in my book. Good luck

 

[J E CUSTOM]

There could be several other problems .

First = the reamer cuts the neck length and if the reamer manufacture cut it to short the smith cant change it without out a proper SAMMI reamer.

You might try Trimming the brass .020 shorter on a few cases and try it. (The brass could be to long for the neck portion of the chamber)

This could save you from doing anything to the chamber if this was the problem. I have seen this before and a easy way to check the neck
length is to see if the bullet in a loaded round will go in a fired case. if not the chamber part of the neck is to short or the brass is to long.

Just a thought.

J E CUSTOM

 

[eddieharren]

Question: How does a throating reamer lengthen the neck of a chamber?

 

[skeetlee]

kinda what i was wondering? lee

 

[turbo54]

He misspoke. Be meant a necking reamer.

 

[jsthntn247]

I posted on here a while back about reamer chatter on 5r barrels causing the end of the neck to be almost the same diameter of the bore. Sounds like this could be the problem.

 

[tacguns]

check the headspace if it is to tight then the neck can be to tight

 

[Aimsmall55]

I want to thank everyone for their input. I got really good smith picking it up Wednesday to finish out the rifle. I described what was going on and he said judging on what I told him he could fix it easily or I should say "Clean it up " I'm also going to get it skim bedded. He told me that it was most likely the neck and he could open it up. What's funny is win brass fits fine, but lapua is as you saw, tight. Who knows .... I just pull the damn triggers.
But as someone said ....Bartleins, Stillers, and AICS's need competent smiths. So SHAME on me!!
It's a beautiful rifle and hopefully my guy will get all the kinks worked out.

 

[Stokes]

Sounds like it wasn't too far out to begin with, so the new 'smith won't have a hard time cleaning it up.

Personally, I would have stayed with the original 'smith, hoping that his embarrassment would mean a free fix, especially since he could use the original reamer (in the case that he just came in short). I'm not too keen on the idea of switching reamers in the middle of a job.