Shot my own reloads today, HELP !?

Brandon44647 · Jul 10, 2009

I loaded up 8 rounds (.243) & went "testing" today, I was very careful and took my time doing this. Read 3 different books & watched 2 different cd's. When loading I used the following as per Hodgon's load tables. New, never fired Winchester cases,ran them thru resizer die. Checked case length and adjusted as needed,Primed using CCI Lrg rifle primers, Loaded w/41gr of Varget. Bullet used was Nosler 55gr spitzer ballistic tip. First one fired showed what i would call excessive buldgeing in the shoulder of the case, 2nd same results. I STOPPED there. Had some factory rounds w/me also, fired those & they look fine. One thing I did notice was the factory cases were not chamfered, I did chamfere mine as per RCBS recomendations. Any ideas out there as to why this happened or what I might have done wrong ? Any help would be greatly appreciated..

wildbill · Jul 10, 2009

are you sure you used .243 dia bullets?

speelyei · Jul 10, 2009

a bulged shoulder is pretty odd. This is in a bolt action, correct? Have you chambered any of your loads and ejected them without firing them? Did the cases show any distortion? Is the primer bulged? Is the firing pin impact a dimple or a crater?

What was your trim-to length? How did you trim the cases?

Pics would help.

Dan-Dee Sales Inc · Jul 10, 2009

speelyei said:
a bulged shoulder is pretty odd. This is in a bolt action, correct? Have you chambered any of your loads and ejected them without firing them? Did the cases show any distortion? Is the primer bulged? Is the firing pin impact a dimple or a crater?

What was your trim-to length? How did you trim the cases?

Pics would help.

This thread is useless without pics.

toys · Jul 10, 2009

i would pull a couple of your rounds you saved then:

1. rezero you scale.
2. reweigh/verify the charges
3. weigh/veify the bullet weights for the charges used.
4. w/one of the empty cases, reseat (dont crimp tho) one of the bullets to the depth you used and see how the empty case w/bullets chambers. does the bullet get pushed back or? after you retract the case?

pictures would help tho.

btw, i looked at my Hogden book and didnt see any loads for the 243 WSSM, 243 Winchester yes, but no WSSM.

terrylf72 · Jul 10, 2009

Close up of the shell and the crimp area would be good.

But a bulged shoulder sounds like too much pressure. Causes is too much powder, wrong primer (magnum insead of standard). Most manuals suggest decreasing the powder charge by 10%... Did you do that?

243 (WSSM) and 240 Weatherby Mag. No load data for a 55gr. bullet..but I did find this link..

http://gunsandammomag.com/cs/Satellite/IMO_GA/Story_C/.243+Varmint+Loads

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http://www.varminter.com/particles/5mmcraig.html
Using Crimping Shoulder - A crimping shoulder is built into the seating die, ... carefully examine cases after firing for evidence of excessive pressures. ... new primers fit loosely, bulging of cases, cases becoming difficult to extract, etc. ... Loading Tips. Case Trimming & Deburring. To ensure best accuracy and ...
www.varminter.com/particles/5mmcraig.html

orygun · Jul 10, 2009

Was the shoulder really where you saw the bulge, or was it the base just above the extractor groove? For a shoulder to be distorted in an outward manner confuses me, unless the sizing die was really set too low. If the brass was sized in a small base die (or something close to that) then I wouldn't be surprised to see some expansion at the base. When I full length size my 30-06 cases I see a bulge. If I neck size only, it comes out of the chamber looking just like it went in.

I think that the previous responses are also full of excellent ideas. Especially the one where you are asked to double check your scale's zero and re-weigh your powder charges. I've used an RCBS inertia puller for quite a while. Looks like a plastic hammer. Pretty cheap and it works well. Doesn't distort case or bullet, either.

One other thing, when using new cases I've never resized them. Just double checked the length and ran. The factories don't resize a case after they make it, either. So by comparing a resized cases properties to a new factory load's properties is kind of like comparing apples to oranges, especially if you are using a different brand of case.

terrylf72 · Jul 10, 2009

orygun said:
I think that the previous responses are also full of excellent ideas. Especially the one where you are asked to double check your scale's zero and re-weigh your powder charges. I've used an RCBS inertia puller for quite a while. Looks like a plastic hammer. Pretty cheap and it works well. Doesn't distort case or bullet, either.

Bimart has them for $18, I use one now.

Brandon44647 · Jul 10, 2009

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Brandon44647 · Jul 10, 2009

Having a hard time figuring out how to post a pic,sorry guys.......

orygun · Jul 10, 2009

Set up a Photo bucket account. Free and easy. (if I can figger it out, anyone else can!)

If you can do that, then then me and the rest of the peanut gallery can at least look and say, "Oh".

Scott · Jul 10, 2009

I would pull it and check your powder weight in all of them and measure the cases again. Check your headspace as well. But like everybody else said pics will help a great deal. Good luck. Also make sure your scale is working properly as few grains gain make a big difference.

Scott

OFADAN · Jul 11, 2009

Brandon44647 said:
One thing I did notice was the factory cases were not chamfered, I did chamfere mine as per RCBS recomendations.

Please describe or define what you mean when you say it was or was not "chamfered?"

johnboy · Aug 14, 2009

Cant say I have ever had a bulge on a case shoulder ever.....chamber should prevent that from happening but with enough pressure I suppose brass could be forced upward to the shoulder to cause a "bulge", but it would be very slight...

ZeroRing · Aug 14, 2009

Yeah a bulge on the shoulder does sound odd. Usually IF a bulge happens it's near the base. Either way, it is definitely a pressure issue.

Brandon44647 · Aug 15, 2009

Problem solved , it was a pressure issue. Case length was found to be .003 - .004 long (stupid mistake) which meant bullet seating was to deep , creating the pressure problem.

Throckmorton · Aug 16, 2009

be sure to measure your cases AFTER they are sized,not before.This could be where you messed up.
glad the case took the brunt of the abuse and not the rifle and shooter.You're living right ,or just plain lucky.

ZeroRing · Aug 16, 2009

Throckmorton said:
be sure to measure your cases AFTER they are sized,not before.This could be where you messed up.
glad the case took the brunt of the abuse and not the rifle and shooter.You're living right ,or just plain lucky.

Definitely a key step!! :s0155:

rudedog04 · Aug 19, 2009

how does case trim effect bullet seating? col.

rudedog04 · Aug 19, 2009

how about this two things that would buldge the neck to tight of crimp -buldged because of force in the seating or crip die or buldge when you closed the bolt im guessing the problem maybe you set your seating die wrong and gave it excessive crimp