Over-pressure or just scuffs?

[japhar81]

I guess the title says it all.. I loaded some 6.5 Creedmoor, .5 grain below the hornady book max. They fired great, pretty happy with accuracy, no oddness, but the cases look odd to me. Scratches of some sort, and some brown marks on them that I've never seen before.. I didn't have any factory ammo with me to compare, so thought I'd ask the experts here.. is this a sign of anything other than the paranoia of a newbie?

 

[TSFineGuns]

Primers look to be cratered. Which is a sign of high pressure......

.....but I will let the pros weigh in as there are many here with much more wisdom than I

 

[jrh84]

Nothing too crazy, maybe a little warm. The primers being cratered are more concerning than anything else on the case itself. I'm going to assume it's primarily due to a factory rifle with a loose firing pin bore, which allows the primer to flow back up somewhat. Not uncommon. Looks to be a fair bit away from serious trouble based on the rounded edges.

The scratches down the length of the case look to be from the magazine feed lips to me. Nothing pressure related.

Don't be surprised if you get different results with each type of case (Hornady, Federal here).

 

[Monday shooter40]

Federal and Hornady cases have a huge capacity difference.

Federal cases will get you into over pressure before listed max loadings. Still decent brass, just be aware of it.

I have a remington bolt that will crater even at very low charge weights, so get to know your rifle better. they look fine to me though.

 

[CA_Shooter]

Probably need your bolt bushed @carlsbad

 

[Coyotefurharvester]

How far(deep) were the primers below cartridge face, before and after firing?

 

[markm87]

Primer flow on some guns is normal even on loads WAY under max. Rem 700s for example.

I don't see any swipes on the head, so the brass looks fine to me, and those primers aren't flattened out at all.

None of this is 100% proof of no pressure issues, but I wouldn't be worried based on the pics.

 

[whatsupdoc]

The cratering is not good but is not a sign of pressure, typically it is a bad firing pin and boltface fitment. The scratches look to be from the magazine feed lips.

Next time inspect the case then insert the cartridge by hand directly into the chamber and carefully extract it and inspect it for marks after firing.

 

[Scott haywood]

The cratering that you see on your primers are more than likely from the size of the firing pin hole, too much space around the firing pin, bush your bolt face, as others have said ,if you start seeing perforated primers. Normally if your load was too hot, you would not see the rounded edges of the primers, they would be squared off and almost blended in with the case head.

 

[Pawnee Bill]

Yep, bush your bolt face.

 

[Rsadams]

Nothing crazy there....

 

[RustyInBend]

Craters on your primers are pretty much "always" a sign of over-pressure. Back off until they go away.

 

[RustyInBend]

Craters on your primers are pretty much "always" a sign of over-pressure. Back off until they go away.

Oh BTW ... with those scratches, I'd consider honing my chamber. I recommend the following chamber honing tool from Brush Reseasrch, along with their Flex Hone Honing Oil. I had a similar scratching problem with a new barrel, and this totally made it go away.

14723 - Chamber Flex-Hone 6.5MM Creedmoor 800SC

Here's a demo ...

 

[japhar81]

How far(deep) were the primers below cartridge face, before and after firing?

They were flush, but that's about it.. they didnt go below the rim..

 

[DaveTooley]

Oh BTW ... with those scratches, I'd consider honing my chamber. I recommend the following chamber honing tool from Brush Reseasrch, along with their Flex Hone Honing Oil. I had a similar scratching problem with a new barrel, and this totally made it go away.

14723 - Chamber Flex-Hone 6.5MM Creedmoor 800SC

Here's a demo ...

 

[Hoot]

Take some Crocus Cloth and polish the edges of those feed lips. Really helps with those longitudinal scratches, if they bother you. I do all my AR mags with it.

Hoot

 

[Bill K]

Does not show any high pressure. As some said, marks are most likely from magazine lips.
Primers show some cratering, and I would have the bolt face/fire pin hole bushed, should stop that.

 

[Iowa Fox]

All I see is a dirty chamber. I'm not seeing any pressure signs. Soak the chamber with some good bore cleaner and give it a spin by hand with a brush.

 

[markm87]

The cratering that you see on your primers are more than likely from the size of the firing pin hole, too much space around the firing pin, bush your bolt face,

Standard for Rem 700s. We'll get primer flow to where the brass wobble on the crater if you set in on a flat surface.

 

[Webster]

Yep, bush your bolt face.

I consider the cratering from the firing pin hole cosmetic. I wouldn't spend the money for bushing the hole. I have about 20,000 sots in my Rem 700. No problem. If I start to get pressure my first indication is always the ejector hole swipe.