Stuck on getting stuck...

[Zero333]

Like already stated by others,... Some reloading manuals have superb "how to" instructions along with many other useful tips & tricks for beginners and advanced handloaders.

Lyman is a good manual for learning the art of handloading. Speer is also another good one. Even the Hornady manual has some good reading, but their load data can be a lil questionable.

Remember that Load data is just a guide and your firearm is the final word on what's safe. Firearm chamber, Brass, primers, bullet & powder lot numbers all affect pressure, so educate yourself on how to read pressure signs. Hard bolt lift and primers falling out means the pressure created was far higher than normal and should never reach anywhere close to that point.

Plenty of reading material on the net about beginning handloading and safe reloading practices.

 

[joshb]

Thanks - I am going to find a local person near Atlanta who is an experienced reloader who can help me out. The whole trimming issue and headspacing and overall length issue is very confusing. Different Youtube videos tell you different things. I am going to get a real reloaders manual and find an old pro in the Atlanta area. and get a lesson. It is almost iimpossible to learn this online..... thanks for the advice and patience....

THANK GOD!! Glad you came here for answers. Double glad you're listening. You need to understand the gravity of what you are doing. You are making an EXPLOSIVE DEVICE that you intend to set off inches from your face. You need to educate yourself as much as possible and then use caution when attempting to reload. Find a mentor. Read your manual many times. Ask questions. Be careful.

 

[CountryMile]

THANK GOD!! Glad you came here for answers. Double glad you're listening. You need to understand the gravity of what you are doing. You are making an EXPLOSIVE DEVICE that you intend to set off inches from your face. You need to educate yourself as much as possible and then use caution when attempting to reload. Find a mentor. Read your manual many times. Ask questions. Be careful.

Dave, please don't "experiment" with anymore loads. Get your Lyman manual in your hands and read it. Study it like your going to take an exam. After you do that I think alot of the mystery to reloading you are experiencing will become much clearer. After reading and studying your manual ask any questions here. These guys are a great group and very knowledgeable. Good luck and be safe.

 

[22BRGUY]

Would strongly suggest keeping an eye on ebay for a decent reloading scale to weigh each charge. Good used beam scales are very reasonable there for starters. You can always post a "WTB" (want to buy) on this site and probably get a great deal as these guys are all anxious to help a new comer and very generous.Once You can always work your way up depending on your budget.
You sound intelligent and open minded to learning. It's really not rocket science but safety comes before anything else. Don't be afraid! Just very mindful, careful, cautious and aware of each step and hang out here to learn from the best. If it isn't perfectly clear in your mind, keep asking for clarification here until it's clear to you. Perhaps write down a step by step process to follow and re read it often as you go until it becomes second nature. Try to understand what you are doing and why you are doing it.
As far as trim length, those reloading manuals will give you a maximum length and a "trim to" length which is usually about 10 thou shorter than maximum. Just never exceed that maximum length. I assume you have a good caliper for measuring case length and other measurements. Once you get the principles of safety down and understood, then the real fun of accuracy improvement begins.

 

[rogn]

HAVE YOU WEIGHED YOUR CHARGES? You stated that they are as dispensed by the machine.

 

[Mike Casselton]

HAVE YOU WEIGHED YOUR CHARGES? You stated that they are as dispensed by the machine.

 

[Mike Casselton]

Dave,
One other thing besides all of the advice given by others. You mentioned priming your cases on the press. Not a bad thing, IF you know how to do it. However, I distinctly remember you mentioning your primer being very flat after you primed the case.
Big red flag here!!
The primer when installed should look just like it came out of the package. It should be just barely below the surface of the case head. Not crushed.
I'm getting the indication you are operating without a scale or a set of calipers.
It sounds like you are using the Lee scoops to load your cases and making an "educated" guess on the powder charge. DONT!

Cooper rifles don't handle over pressure ammunition as well as other firearms. The expanding gases come straight back and pointed right at your right eye. Dont screw around with this!
Get the manual, read it through on the step by step process. Load some dummy cartridges. Learn about die adjustment, trimming, caliper use and measurement.
Learn how to use a scale.
Learn how to use a powder measure.

Then, and only then, add all of them together to put test loads together.
Keep good records of everything including your original bad loads that brought you here.
Keep targets shot with the load data written on them.
It will all begin to come together.
Chase accuracy, not velocity. 100fps extra velocity doesn't mean a damn thing in the real world if you can't hit it or your gun blows up.

 

[snert]

I suspect that you are making a fundamental mistake in measuring powder (use of scale). The proper use of scales is a simple learned skill, but it is not as intuitive as we all seem to remember.

Buy a manual, read it 3x, THEn unbox your equipment again and start from "knowing nothing". You really need a mentor next to you. There is a lot of different advice coming at you, but you cannot sort it out until you have a better grasp of the procedures, and you must have someone double check you as you go until you get those basics.

until then...stop.

 

[fguffey]

So the question is this - what would be the reason for the brass getting stuck in the chamber after firing my reload rounds? Do I need to trim down the length more, or neck size them deeper, or what? I am very confused and frustrated. Has this ever happened to other members? I thought I was being really really meticulous about my reloading process. Maybe I should just purchase fresh unfired brass and quit trying to recondition my used brass....

Another bad habit; you went straight to neck sizing before you understood full length sizing. I suggest you learn to reload first, I recommend you measure before and again after. I suggest you learn to read pressure signs.


F. Guffey

 

[Fotheringill]

I am relatively new to reloading and have made the following observations and have a few recommendations.

Get the Lyman manual. Read, reread and fully understand the first entire section of the manual, which will give you the basics and the steps. You will want to neither ruin your rifle nor injure yourself.

Don't cut any corners on the procedures outlined in the manual. Do not vary the recommended progression of steps, either.

Go slow. If something feels different in a process, i.e. full length sizing, from case to case, stop and figure out why case #'s 1-9 felt one way and case #10 felt another.

Don't get caught up with refinements of procedures. It will drive you nuts. Get to produce several dozen rounds, inelegant as they may be, but are functional. When you get 100% comfortable with that, then go to the next step. Saami overall length specs are there to make sure your rounds fit into a magazine. If you have a single shot rifle, it matters not.

 

[Barlow]

OP refers to "measure powder" should "weigh" powder. He may have just used the wrong term. Barlow

 

[noload]

Like Captainmal said, Get a lesson from an experienced reloaded. If I lived near you I'd like to help out. NY is a long drive. A live lesson is what you need, don't do anymore until you do that.

 

[Webster]

Thanks - One thing I am learning is you have to be really precise.... I think I need to measure the powder put into each bullet on the scale, and not trust the dispensing machine. I also need to trim the brass down to the exact right length before loading it. It seems like you have to be accurate to within hundredths of inches and single grains..... I wish I could figure out the maximum allowable length on the brass....

Does this mean you have never weighed a powder charge? Just thrown them from a powder measure and your guessing at the weight. You could be over 35 grains. If you don't have a scale how did you come up with the powder weight in your post? You don't need to weigh to one grain unless your shooting a $6000 rifle at 600 or 1000 yards. It's a hunting rifle from your description. As long as it shoots acceptable groups at 100 yards it's OK.