Sticky bolt sometimes.

[John Russell]

I had to go to town today so i picked up a new set of dies to try. The load might be a bit hot it is max in the book but I'm not getting any pressure signs, the picture i loaded earlier is the load I'm using. I know it shoots just as good with half a grain less. The ammo was warm as well, the primers are still very tight going in on the brass and no split necks so far. I measured the inside of my lee die and it was roughly .470" and the RCBS i picked up measures roughly .458" ill give it a whirl. could the reloader 15 powder getting hot cause pressure spikes? once i get it sized ill neck size. how many reloads do you get before having to fl size on average?

RL powders are known to produce higher pressures when they are hot. You can not get pressure "Spikes" - A spike would mean it went high, and then (immediately) went back to normal...
... this is a spike ______/\______ powder can not do that.

You can get increases in pressure when some powders get from sitting in the sun, or sitting in a hot chamber.

 

[Mtstalker]

Ok. thats a bummer because this gun loves re15.

 

[Mtstalker]

Ok so when shooting groups and the 5th round sticks the bolt this is a powder issue

 

[powderbrake]

I had a 22-250 which would be hard to open occasionally, and I did not believe it was my load. I polished the chamber with JB Bore Paste, then with Simichrome. I used a brass brush with a patch over it, and an electric drill. This took almost no time to polish, not trying to remove metal or resize the chamber. I neck sized only, both before and after the polishing. It worked very well, and the difficulty in opening ceased. I believe there was roughness in the chamber.

 

[Toby Bradshaw]

If you know enough to separate the wheat from the chaff, (some of) this thread is worth reading:

http://forum.accurateshooter.com/threads/neck-sizing-or-full-length-problems-advice-needed.3840627/

Personally, I load all of my rifles to their maximum safe pressures, which is where most of them shoot their smallest groups. I FL size every time, with a properly-fitting die, as does every competitive benchrest shooter that I know. I don't give up any brass life by doing this, because the brass is not worked much if the die fits as it should.

As for accuracy, see for yourself on the attached charge/seating depth test (3 shot groups, 100 yards, 30BR).

 

[Mtstalker]

Now thats shooting! i wish my groups looked like that. i sized some brass with the new die and am not bumping the shoulder back on some and some it gets moved less than .001" , it all chambers great not like virgin brass but not as hard as some that has been neck sized to 2x. heres the kicker outta 10 peices i have one that the shoulder didnt move at all and is still trimed length but is really hard to chamber. i measured . 2" up from the base and it reads .460" and fired is almolst .461". There stretching .002" in o.a.l after sizing is this acceptable and whats with the one that wont chamber?

 

[Mtstalker]

I wish i could go shoot some with the new die but a big snow storm is moving in so the wind is about mach 2 right now. thanks again for the help.

 

[Webster]

If it was too hot of a load wouldnt it do it every time? it measures almolst .462" after sizing .002" shoulder bump.i sized 3 peices and 2 of the 3 chamber great the third is hard to chamber. maybe my die is messed up.

Why don't you try something as simple as a lighter load and see if the problem goes away? Sounds like hot loads to me no matter what measurements you come up with.

From reloading manuals which may be conservative?

50 gr bullet
Berger manual: 36.8 grs Re-15 max load 3847 fps
Sierra manual: 36.0 grs RE-15 max load 3700 fps

Your shooting 38 gains?

 

[Mtstalker]

Yeah and according to alliants info 38.1gr is max and in my hornady manual is 38grs. so i could back it down it shot good at 36.5 but shot better at 38. at 36.5 im averaging 3620 fps and 38 im averaging 3790

 

[Toby Bradshaw]

Now thats shooting! i wish my groups looked like that. i sized some brass with the new die and am not bumping the shoulder back on some and some it gets moved less than .001" , it all chambers great not like virgin brass but not as hard as some that has been neck sized to 2x. heres the kicker outta 10 peices i have one that the shoulder didnt move at all and is still trimed length but is really hard to chamber. i measured . 2" up from the base and it reads .460" and fired is almolst .461". There stretching .002" in o.a.l after sizing is this acceptable and whats with the one that wont chamber?

You might find this helpful:

http://www.accurateshooter.com/technical-articles/die-issues-when-bumping-shoulders/

The bottom line is that if you run max safe pressure loads (and why wouldn't you, if they give great accuracy?), you need a full-length sizing die that matches your chamber, resizing (in the 0.0005"-0.002" range, depending on your preference) the neck, shoulder, and base. A factory full-length die will resize the case to fit in a SAAMI minimum chamber with room to spare, but will overwork your brass, leading to short case life and so-so accuracy unless your chamber is at the SAAMI minimum (not likely). It's pretty clear that the FL dies you have don't match your chamber.

This is why shooters who really care about accuracy and long case life use tough brass with uniform dimensions (e.g., Lapua), spec their chambering reamers to match the brass, and spec their resizing dies to be compatible with the reamer dimensions. [You can also work backwards, buying a factory FL die and having a chambering reamer made to be compatible with that.]

For the PPC and BR/Dasher family of cartridges using Lapua brass, all of this has been standardized to the extent that a benchrest gunsmith can supply you with a chamber that works with the brass, and the Harrells can supply you with a $75 full-length bushing die that is fit to the fired/tight brass that you send them. Problem solved.

With a factory rifle/chamber you may be able to find a factory die that works, or use some combination of dies (neck die, body die, ring/base die) to get the job done that one properly-fitting full-length die should be able to do. But there are no guarantees, and the process is painful compared to the PPC/BR/Dasher alternative.

 

[Mtstalker]

Yes 38 gr is just starting to barley flatten primers and i get the best accuracy. ill load some up with the new die and see if it helps. it feels better than the lee die. when i burn this barrel out ill rebarrel. i want to go to 22 dasher? has any one used one for praire dogs?

 

[Mtstalker]

But back to one question when full length sizing what is a acceptable amount of stretch in overall length?

 

[Tim Singleton]

But back to one question when full length sizing what is a acceptable amount of stretch in overall length?

None.
With Lapua brass and a die that matches the chamber. Once fire formed well 2-3 shots and minimal sizing the brass doesn't grow

 

[Mtstalker]

Thanks for the explanation. so pretty much im getting as good as i can with factory rifle and dies. im just trying to make reliable rounds for this rifle. ive never had this problem before with 243,338,270,300 etc..... nothing sucks more than missing a shot on a coyote because my bolt wont close or has trouble opening. ill try the newly sized brass this weekend and see if it helps. also i noticed on some brass there are very very light marks from the ejector on the head, its a c shape. after tumbling its gone or barley present. but no flattened primers

 

[Toby Bradshaw]

Yes 38 gr is just starting to barley flatten primers and i get the best accuracy. ill load some up with the new die and see if it helps. it feels better than the lee die. when i burn this barrel out ill rebarrel. i want to go to 22 dasher? has any one used one for praire dogs?

For high volume shooting of PD-sized critters you might want to look at a 20 Practical or similar. Ballistics are comparable to a 22 Dasher or .22-250 but with much longer barrel life and potentially cheaper brass.

http://www.6mmbr.com/gunweek061.html

 

[Mtstalker]

I like it.

 

[Toby Bradshaw]

Thanks for the explanation. so pretty much im getting as good as i can with factory rifle and dies. im just trying to make reliable rounds for this rifle. ive never had this problem before with 243,338,270,300 etc..... nothing sucks more than missing a shot on a coyote because my bolt wont close or has trouble opening. ill try the newly sized brass this weekend and see if it helps. also i noticed on some brass there are very very light marks from the ejector on the head, its a c shape. after tumbling its gone or barley present. but no flattened primers

As everyone has noted, your loads are hot. Nothing wrong with that (although RL15 is temp sensitive and can get you into trouble on a hot day), but it does put a premium on die-to-chamber matching.

I hate to miss coyotes, too. From last week, with my .222 (24.0gr H322, 40gr NBT):

 

[Webster]

Yeah and according to alliants info 38.1gr is max and in my hornady manual is 38grs. so i could back it down it shot good at 36.5 but shot better at 38. at 36.5 im averaging 3620 fps and 38 im averaging 3790

If the bolt is slightly more difficult to lift the only cause I can think of is that the case enlarged enough to hang up in the chamber. Guess what causes this. Your obsessed with max loads.

 

[Tim Singleton]

Having a 22-250 and not being able to stretch it out.
Would be like having a corvette and never being able to go over 35mph
No reason it can't run on the upper end he just has to get set up to do it

 

[Mtstalker]

Im not obsessed with max loads. i simply want to get the performance the legendary 22-250 is known for, like Tim said. i have tried diffrent powders and bullets and yes i can get respectable speeds with mild loads but 5 shot groups are around 1.5 inches. Reloader 15 and 50gr fbhp are what this gun likes. I guess ill back it off and call it good. I think 3600fps is a little slow for 50gr bullets. where i live and hunt its not uncommon for a 400yd+ shot thats the reason i picked the 22-250. And its not hard to lift or sticky all the time its at random. and i looked at all my brass and even at 34grs there are slight ejector marks so i think it could ne the hornady brass?