Mark around Circumference of Head Stamp on Factory Brass?

[GTDX12S]

Good evening,
Am looking for guidance on possible cause(s) of a mark on the base of the brass after shooting factory Hornady 6.5 Creedmoor 140gr ELD Match ammunition. Unable to buy new brass, when I found two boxes at a resonable price the other day decided to fire form and add the cases to my Hornady brass inventory all of which were recycled from 120/140 gr eld match ammo (80 in total up to yesterday). Shot 49 rounds (2 new boxes + 9 left over from a box purchased a couple years back). of the 49 rounds, 13 showed the circular mark (see pics). Measures roughly 0.030 evenly all the way around the case head Some are lighter than others. In the picture the two cases on the outside of the shell holder are the affected two, other two for reference (decaped one, it did not blow the primer) Have not seen this before on any of the Hornady brass recycled from factory ammo I handloaded last year (100 rounds, some cases 2x) and am wondering: 1) what the heck would cause this mark?, and 2) are the cases with this mark SAFE to reload and continue using? Any guidance will be much appeciated!

 

[Bc'z]

Head stamp overlays ring from what I can see.
My thoughts are the rings were there before you fired otherwise head stamp would be distorted.
Take a good look at top left piece.

 

[GTDX12S]

Thanks Bc'z,
That possibility had not occured to me, did not inspect both boxes of factory ammo before firing. The 13 cases with the marks could have been mixed in the boxes.
Sounds like a call to Hornady is in order.
Measured shoulder to base using Hornady Cartridge HS Guage Bushing 400 (with anvil) and the 13 cases with the stamp are uniform to the rest. Same for case length judging from quick visual with Wilson case guage. Aside from the circular ring they appear normal.
SAFE to continue with and Reload? Hate to toss em but don't want to cut any corners on safe brass practices.

 

[D-4297]

I agree with @Bc'z for the most part , but I would do a little bit of Bolt face inspection , just for giggles . As far as reloading them , I don't see why not . If your bolt face is in good shape , they'll probably be flat again after a firing or two . Or stay that way till they wear out .

 

[Walt Krafft]

Load them and shoot them. That comes from a slight setup error in the case forming dies.

 

[243winxb]

My new factory ammo has it, before firing. Right out of the box. A sign of poor quality. Imo. No issues on the 8th loading, so far.

 

[divingin]

If your bolt face is in good shape , they'll probably be flat again after a firing or two . Or stay that way till they wear out .

Kind of doubt that pressure is going to affect the outer part of the rim to any great degree, unless you run really hot.

But I also don't see any problem with using them. It's kind of like using a single manufacturers brass with differently coded headstamps.

 

[Catfur]

My new factory ammo has it, before firing. Right out of the box. A sign of poor quality. Imo. No issues on the 8th loading, so far.

Let's assume that you're running a factory. A factory that is running as fast as you can make it run, and is backordered for years. A batch of goods with a cosmetic defect comes through, this cosmetic defect is minor, and does not affect the function of the item in any way, shape or form.

Do you toss this item? Sell it as factory seconds? Customers are already up in your business screaming for product...

 

[243winxb]

cosmetic defect

There may be other hidden defects, not just one.

 

[Catfur]

There may be other hidden defects, not just one.

There may be, but the existence of one defect doesn't necessarily imply another. If you knew their QC standards, then you might be able to infer with some reliability, otherwise, it's leaping to a conclusion.

 

[pirate ammo]

It's called seconds, I've got some federal 38 spc brass with the same marks, still shoots and goes bang.

 

[GTDX12S]

Thanks all, appreciate everyone's input!

D-4297, bolt face was the first thing I though about and confirmed it is not marred or showing any unusual wear. Looks perfect (rifles has 428 rounds down the pipe total).

Called Horndady, tech there asked to see the pics and after viewing immediately emailed saying the cases weren't right and they would replace them, but it may take awhile. Am 100% satisified with their response and understand they don't have spare 6.5 CM cases sitting on the shelves to ship out at the moment.

Good to hear opinions that cases are safe to load and shoot.

Wondered if the raised outer edge might affect accuracy? It is likely .003-.005 high leaving the center of the case higher than the outer edge. Probably overthinking it but would that "void" on the base of the case allow the case to move toward the bolt on ignition impacting bullet path to lands?

May try a few to see how they group and if they flatten out after a firing or two.

 

[243winxb]

Wondered if the raised outer edge might affect accuracy? It is likely .003-.005 high leaving the center of the case higher than the outer edge.

It may affect accuracy, if the case head is not square to the chamber.

If the primer can back out .005" on firing, gas may leak? A major gas leak can pock mark the bolt face.

After 8 firings, no issue. May be gone after 20 more firings? See photo.

 

[243winxb]

All 3 boxes have the defect.

 

[Bc'z]

All 3 boxes have the defect. View attachment 1261328

How did the 95 gr Vmax shoot for you?

 

[243winxb]

How did the 95 gr Vmax shoot for you?

Not as good as the 140. Just wanted the brass. This Axis is not a good test vehicle. Still testing handloads, but looking like an average 1.25" gun. Ok for hunting.

 

[divingin]

There may be other hidden defects, not just one.

That's true even if all the ammo looks the same.

 

[243winxb]

Wondered if the raised outer edge might affect accuracy? It is likely .003-.005 high leaving the center of the case higher than the outer edge.

On firing, the primer backs out an extra .003" to .005" to reach the bolt face.

Had 2 rounds today showing gas leakage on the 7th firing. No bolt damage. Load- IMR 4350- 40.5 grs, 140 Barnes Match Burners, Br-2 primer. Col 2.825"

Neck Tension- 1 case out of 20 has thin neck walls. A .289" bushing provides light neck tension. Except the 1 case that allows the bullet to fall into the case. Brass needs neck turned or use a .288" bushing.

GTDX12S, did Hornady ever send you new brass?

Old Thread Warning.

 

[fkimble@charter.net]

Take a piece of fine sandpaper on a flat surface an hold a case head down on it and make a couple circles, should start removing the ring. Keep doing it and checking the progress. Shouldn't take long to knock off that ring. Same method used to thin the top of a shell holder when a sizing die is a little too long. Do it before resizing and you should be good to go.

Frank

 

[Coyotefurharvester]

I agree, remove the ring. Or stop using Hornady, especially if they force vaccinations on workers. Then it will be easy for them to "catch up on backorders".