Ok, so I just got my reloading gear set up and made my 1st batch of 90 x .308 rounds last night to do some load development shooting today. I made up 30 each of 175SMK, 168 AMAX, and 155 SMK Palmas all using Federal once fired brass shot in this gun's chamber. All made using Redding S-type competition neck die set.
Anyway, so the reloading process on Sunday goes fine and I chamber check the 1st 5 rounds to verify nothing is amiss. I neck sized only since the brass was only fired once as an original factory round. When I get to the range and start shooting, I find that 1 in 3 to 4 rounds won't chamber. The bolt will physically not close and I'm not willing to take a hammer to it to see how far I can go to chamber it. The ones that do chamber, seem normal - i.e. no excessive force needed to close the bolt, and they all shot normally.
I loaded all my 175s and 168 to 2.815 OAL and the 155 were loaded to 2.780 OAL. I re-checked the ones that didn't chamber out on the range and they were the same OALs as the ones that did chamber fine. Plus there were no rifling marks on the bullet to show the bullet was seated too far out. Another Hide member who was out on the range with me suggested the shoulder was too far out and that was preventing it from chambering. But we all (him included) thought that was unlikely because it was only once fired brass and why would the shoulder already need to be bumped this early? However, we later confirmed that the shoulder was indeed the cause of the round not chambering. So now the next question is why?
So, long story longer, after some detective work - we discovered that the bell in the neck sizer die was hanging up in the mouth as the round was going back out of the die after sizing the neck and that resistance was stretching the neck and shoulder out of specs. I wondered why there was little resistance while the case was going in the neck sizer bushing but I was having to really pull to get it back out. I felt I properly lubed the necks and the bushing - so I don't think that was the cause. I really verified the problem was the bell (ball) that screws over the depriming rod when I removed that and just neck sized some brass without depriming it. No resistance either way and the shoulder was not touched at all. IOW the shoulder was fine and well within spec to chamber because it wasn't being stretched on the way out by the neck bell.
So (sorry for the novel) - did Redding put the wrong bell in my die set or are others seeing this same issue? Its very annoying because I have about 40 rounds to pull the bullet off of and completely body size the brass from scratch. Why would you go to the trouble of sizing the neck down to a spcific diameter and then have the bell just widen the case mouth out again as the shell is extracted from the neck bushing? I'd remove it completely, but its the only thing holding my depriming pin in place.
Anyway, so the reloading process on Sunday goes fine and I chamber check the 1st 5 rounds to verify nothing is amiss. I neck sized only since the brass was only fired once as an original factory round. When I get to the range and start shooting, I find that 1 in 3 to 4 rounds won't chamber. The bolt will physically not close and I'm not willing to take a hammer to it to see how far I can go to chamber it. The ones that do chamber, seem normal - i.e. no excessive force needed to close the bolt, and they all shot normally.
I loaded all my 175s and 168 to 2.815 OAL and the 155 were loaded to 2.780 OAL. I re-checked the ones that didn't chamber out on the range and they were the same OALs as the ones that did chamber fine. Plus there were no rifling marks on the bullet to show the bullet was seated too far out. Another Hide member who was out on the range with me suggested the shoulder was too far out and that was preventing it from chambering. But we all (him included) thought that was unlikely because it was only once fired brass and why would the shoulder already need to be bumped this early? However, we later confirmed that the shoulder was indeed the cause of the round not chambering. So now the next question is why?
So, long story longer, after some detective work - we discovered that the bell in the neck sizer die was hanging up in the mouth as the round was going back out of the die after sizing the neck and that resistance was stretching the neck and shoulder out of specs. I wondered why there was little resistance while the case was going in the neck sizer bushing but I was having to really pull to get it back out. I felt I properly lubed the necks and the bushing - so I don't think that was the cause. I really verified the problem was the bell (ball) that screws over the depriming rod when I removed that and just neck sized some brass without depriming it. No resistance either way and the shoulder was not touched at all. IOW the shoulder was fine and well within spec to chamber because it wasn't being stretched on the way out by the neck bell.
So (sorry for the novel) - did Redding put the wrong bell in my die set or are others seeing this same issue? Its very annoying because I have about 40 rounds to pull the bullet off of and completely body size the brass from scratch. Why would you go to the trouble of sizing the neck down to a spcific diameter and then have the bell just widen the case mouth out again as the shell is extracted from the neck bushing? I'd remove it completely, but its the only thing holding my depriming pin in place.
