Loads won't chamber

[Aitch]

I finally got all the components together and loaded some 6.5-284 this past weekend.
I used Redding S type FL die w/ a .292 bushing yielding a .294 loaded neck diameter for the .297 dia. chamber. I trimmed all the brass,once fired I think) to the shortest length.
I used a Wilson seater. My OAL calculations, using the SP toot seemed too long. I wanted to be touching the lands. I'll have to go back to the measurement process.
In the end, I had 10 rounds all loaded identically. Two of them would not chamber. Only thing I can figure is that the shoulder on these two needed to be bumped and the other brass did not.
The rifle is new to me, it's a Speedy built on a Rem 700 action with a Krieger bbl.
The good news is that I finally got to shoot it. After bore sighting at 100 yds, the first shot was within an inch in both axis. The next three grouped about .3". After adjusting the scope, the next three ~.125.
I think I need to order the SP headspace gage tool.
I'm a lifetime shooter and have reloaded for 25 years but this is a new game. Your comments and suggestions are welcome by this newby.

 

[Tommie]

There's many possible causes. The first question to answer is whether the problem is with the gun or the ammo. If you can get you hands on some Norma factory 6.5X284 ammunition, see if it'll chamber. If it does, then your handloads need tweeking. If the factory loads won't chamber, then something's up with the rifle chamber.

Tom

 

[rayjay]

I had a few hard to chamber rounds at the last match so today I removed the firing pin assy from the bolt and chambered a bunch of the sized cases. They all chambered with no issue at all. These are bumped back .001" using a Harrells sizing die.

Next I need to see about seating the bullets a bit deeper, .005" at a time. I only ordered 50 preprepped cases and I am loathe to sacrifice one to make a slit neck seating depth checker

You definitely need some way to measure from the shoulder to the base. If you bump them back a thou or two and they still have some resistance to chambering then you may need a full length die or maybe even a small base FL die. That is what I was checking for as I KNOW they are bumped back at the shoulder.

 

[Rustystud]

All people who relaod need to buy measuring insturments and gauges. Then they need to learn how to use them. This sounds like a classic case of improperly prepared or sized cases. The more sophisticated dies one uses the more room for error.
Remember headspace on your 6.5 X .284 is measured from a datum line half way from the shoulder neck juncture and the shoulder body juncture back to the case head surface. I highly reccomened for every reloader to buying a Wilson Case Gauge or equivilent this is a steel gauge that measures your case in a true 3 dimemtions. If your loaded round fits in a Wilson case gauge it should fit in a SAAMI spec chamber. The gauge alsdo showes the loader where the case is in relationship to the maximum and minimum specs.
Rustystud

 

[Aitch]

I don't think there is anything wrong with the gun.

Man, I thought I had all the bases covered with my last Sinclair order but having never needed or used a case gage, that's one thing I didn't get.
Does the case gage mirror the chamber shoulder or does it have a clearance diameter for the shoulder then a through hole the diameter of the shoulder datum line? Does it have the 35 degree shoulder angle? I calculate the datum diameter to be .2439.
I'd like to turn one on my lathe if not too complex internally.

 

[janderson0]

I don't think there is anything wrong with the gun.

Man, I thought I had all the bases covered with my last Sinclair order but having never needed or used a case gage, that's one thing I didn't get.
Does the case gage mirror the chamber shoulder or does it have a clearance diameter for the shoulder then a through hole the diameter of the shoulder datum line? Does it have the 35 degree shoulder angle? I calculate the datum diameter to be .2439.
I'd like to turn one on my lathe if not too complex internally.

.2439 is smaler than the bullet. .2439 is somewhere inside your neck. The area to measure from is mid shoulder.

Jim

 

[Aitch]

I finally figured out how my trig functions malfunctioned. I was working with data from a Hornady illustration. The shoulder/body intersect was dimensioned .200 up from the case head and I crunched the numbers based on a .33 wide shoulder not the .127-.130 I should have been using. A .386 diameter datum makes a whole lot more sense.

Can someone describe how a case gage is built. To my earlier comment, I'd like to turn one on my lathe if not too complex.
Thanks.