bolt lift click

[lpreddick]

i've seen this topic before but don't recall the cause(s). my 257 roberts... fl size and bump shoulder .003, chamber and lift bolt. easy at first, the stops...more force and click! bolt closure is easy. is this brass too hardened? it annealed nicely. thanks.

 

[82boy]

Brass eventually wears out, and there is not fix for it. Sounds like that is what happened.

 

[shooter63]

how many firings what kind of brass could be back of case isnt getting enough sizing

 

[artbosco]

I've seen this topic before but don't recall the cause(s).

Here are the causes and cures from Jim Carstensen:

"If the action bolt is clicking or popping at the top of the bolt lift, it indicates that the brass is too big near the base [the web]. Throw the brass in the garbage."

"If the bolt closes and opens hard throughout the whole stroke “without the pop at the top,” the shoulder needs to be pushed back."

"I feel that the front of the case just below the shoulder should be resized about .0005", and the base resized .001". I also think the shoulder, or datum line needs to be pushed back no more than .001". This is what I strive for compared to brass that has been fired several times."

Source:
JLC Precision (Jim Carstensen)
jlcprec@netins.net
13095 450th Ave
Bellevue, IA 52031
Shop phone: (563) 689-6258, cell: (563) 212-2984

 

[260Ravage]

I had the same experience with a .220 swift. I had it loaded to the max for that's what it liked. With new brass, I backed off the load just a bit and got away from the 'click'. I believe in Carstensen's theory that the case is too big at the web. I believe it was caused by high pressure in my cases.

 

[alf]

I wouldn't be tossing the brass, as long as pressure is not the culprit.

Otherwise, it's a mis-match between the chamber and dies. The chamber is tight at the web, and your dies don't squeeze it down enough, so the click remains.

Proper annealing won't help the back end.

The barrel can be pulled, and the back of the chamber can be polished out a thou or so, then your present dies should work.

Get a small base die to squeeze the base first. Unlikely you can find one for a Roberts. A SB 308 would work if you had a shop cut the top half off.

Maybe a different brand of brass is a better fit.

 

[hedditch]

Does it click without any brass in the rifle? Open the bolt slow and easy when you try it. I have two rifles doing the same thing with or without brass in the rifle. If so, brass isn't the problem.

 

[1shot]

Several posters have hit the nail squarely on the head.
1. Your die isn't sizing the base small enough, and it's probably because of:
2. You running max. Pressures or you have a die that is to big at the bottom or isn’t set up correctly.
I had a 6.5x284 doing the same thing and the cure was to get a smaller FL size die at the base. I was running it at max pressures, as that is what was needed for my discipline to be competitive. Follow the advice of at least one of the posters and back it off a little, and make sure that you are sizing the base. If the base is expanding .001 or more, you are to hot and bumping the shoulder more than the same amount is over working the brass and is un-necessary.
I hope all this helps,
Lloyd

 

[noload]

After shooting out 3 barrels I ended up with a lot of brass some good some 3-5X's fired and some lots more. some chambers are smaller diameter at the base. If you can not size the base down enough for a small chamber then you get the click lift at the end, or real bad lift.Its trying to snap the case out of a snug fit chamber. If you "mike" the base of a new fired case from your gun, any case measuring larger than that will stick at the base, at bolt lift. even its only .0002". Another way to check the case for fit....size it, shine it so there are no marks and chamber it a couple times. Eject it, you will see slight scrub marks at the base under a magnification light . Thats your culprit. I suggest a small base die . Large chamber will shoot a small base case, but not the other way around.

 

[lpreddick]

a small base die to the rescue! i used a 25-06 fl die since this case at the base measures the same as the 257 roberts and the shoulder isn't touched and the problem is almost gone...some still have a small click, but tolerable. if i pushed the case far into the 257 redding die the shoulder got pushed back too much. a 30-06 small base die will be tried when my friend brings it over. i must admit i shot these cases at max pressures, so i'm culling the ones that have no click and will be more gentle.