Case head separation

[Keith Glasscock]

Can you section one or two of the cases? Might be educational.

 

[Erik Cortina]

Please, I need to ask if this should be called case head separation or case body separation? I have had case head situations with Lapua 308 and it happens lower on the case. This looks like the place the annealing stops. Could this be a problem with head space and annealing or just annealing? Anyone?

It could be a combination of both where annealing too much (not the piece of brass) but annealing every firing might cause this but I've never had a problem annealing every firing. Then again I only neck size.

I anneal and F/L size every time, I have never had an issue.

 

[ballison]

I tried to take a better pic, but this site limits the file size. Some of the case are actually split the whole way through, some are just showing the "stretched" signs that I've seen on other separations. But all in the exact same location. And I agree that the location is odd as I've always seen it closer to the head. Since it was the first time using my new annealer, I'm leaning towards that. I tested a bunch of cases, used 2 different temperature Tempilaqs, and the necks never turned orange/red that usually means overheating.

I'll try and take some more pics and post a link.

 

[ballison]

**UPDATE**

Well, what I thought was a separation might just be a small surface scratch. I took the worst of the cases and lightly buffed them with a 600 grit sandpaper and it came out. I guess this would point to something in the chamber?

Sorry for the wild goose chase, but here is what the case looked like before I buffed it. Sure looked like it was separated.

 

[37Lincoln1]

Use the bent paperclip method and check the inside of your case for a "catch" where the ring is forming.

Better be safe then sorry.

 

[ballison]

Use the bent paperclip method and check the inside of your case for a "catch" where the ring is forming.

Better be safe then sorry.

That's what got me to try buffing. I didn't feel anything on the inside of the case, so I wanted to see how deep the crack was. Looked a lot worse than it was.

 

[searcher]

The seperation does look just a bit farther up the case than what I have seen develop on cases. Regardless - if the cases were over-annealed, that would have contributed to the rapid demise of a poorly "headspaced" piece of brass.
That a bunch of them expired at the same number of loadings would likely have occured whether the annealing had any influence on them or not.