What am I doing wrong?

[gmar]

I'm trying to reload for my 6.5 Grendel but I keep running into problems with the reloads. When I try to chamber my rounds, the bolt doesn't close all the way and then its tough to eject the round. I basically have to hit the butt of the rifle on the ground and pull the charging handle to get the round out.

I know it has something to do with the shoulder of the brass but I don't know if I'm oversizing it or undersizing it. I've tried two different dies and presses but I have the same results with both. I basically pull the ram all the way up, screw in the die until it touches the ram, then lower the ram and turn in the die another 1/2 turn.

Here are some pics:

The round on the left a factory round and the one on the right is my reload. It may be hard to tell in the pic but it looks like the shoulder on the reload is flatter.

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Can you tell what's wrong or do you have any suggestions?

 

[HMFIC]

Does the shoulder look that sharp before you seat the bullet? The reason I ask is because you might be causing a bit of a bulge when seating.

I'd start out by resizing a piece and then checking it in your chamber before doing anything else. If it does chamber then, your issue might be like I said with a tight seating causing the shoulder to move. If it won't chamber then, look at taking calipers to the case and checking your base to ensure you're getting good resize all the way down the case.

I'd also probably start my die up a little higher and then work into it, checking in the chamer along the way as I tighten a half turn at a time.

 

[Fyrtwuck]

The case length looks different between the two. Are those rub marks on the one on the right? There is definitely a difference on the angle at the shoulder. The one on the right is not as steep an the other. Is there a company that makes a case length gauge for this caliber?

 

[angsniper]

Get a hornady headspace guage set. Measure the shoulder of a fired case then one that won't fit and you'll see the problem. You should set your shoulder back by .004" for a semi-auto. Just screw your die down farther until the shoulder is .004 back.

 

[technetium-99m]

You really won't know for sure what's going on until you buy a comparator like the Hornady mentioned above and measure your cases. Acquire some fired cases from your rifle and use the tool to measure from head to shoulder. Turn the die down until it touches the shell holder and back it out like 3 turns. Then run the case into the die and measure. Screw the die down 1/4 to 1/2 turn run the case in and measure again. Since it's a full length die you'll watch the shoulder get moved forward at first, then come back to what you started with, and finally fall below your original measurement. You want the sized cases to have a shoulder 3-4 thousandths set back from a fired case for a semi auto. If you're getting enough shoulder setback and the cases still stick then you have other issues.

Apparently I didn't read angsniper's post above very well, do what he says, I just got a little more word happy.

 

[gmar]

Thank you for all of your advice. I do have a case gauge and the brass drops into the gauge perfectly before I seat the bullet. When I get home tonight, I will see if a piece of brass chambers without a bullet. I will also order the Hornady comparator to see what's going on. Again...thanks for your help!

 

[gmar]

Get a hornady headspace guage set. Measure the shoulder of a fired case then one that won't fit and you'll see the problem. You should set your shoulder back by .004" for a semi-auto. Just screw your die down farther until the shoulder is .004 back.

You really won't know for sure what's going on until you buy a comparator like the Hornady mentioned above and measure your cases. Acquire some fired cases from your rifle and use the tool to measure from head to shoulder. Turn the die down until it touches the shell holder and back it out like 3 turns. Then run the case into the die and measure. Screw the die down 1/4 to 1/2 turn run the case in and measure again. Since it's a full length die you'll watch the shoulder get moved forward at first, then come back to what you started with, and finally fall below your original measurement. You want the sized cases to have a shoulder 3-4 thousandths set back from a fired case for a semi auto. If you're getting enough shoulder setback and the cases still stick then you have other issues.

Apparently I didn't read angsniper's post above very well, do what he says, I just got a little more word happy.

Is this the Hornady tool you guys are referring to?

http://www.midwayusa.com/viewProduct/default.aspx?productNumber=231904

 

[angsniper]

That one measures OAL at the ogive. You want this one: http://www.midwayusa.com/viewProduct/?productNumber=479704

 

[gmar]

That one measures OAL at the ogive. You want this one: http://www.midwayusa.com/viewProduct/?productNumber=479704

Thanks for the clarification...I'm ordering them right now.

 

[HiredHand]

What components are you using for your reloads? Can you see if your completed reload fits in the case guage?