Tight brass..?

[dcali]

Something is out of spec. SAAMI ammo will always fit a SAAMI chamber. (This is the entire point of a spec). My money is on the chamber being off.

 

[hrlincoln]

Something is out of spec. SAAMI ammo will always fit a SAAMI chamber. (This is the entire point of a spec). My money is on the chamber being off.

Your 100% right....and I'm guilty of fuzzy thinking (deleted fuzzy thinking post). After looking at SAAMI chamber print again, Max. headspace is 1.640 and Min. headspace is 1.630. If his fired brass is measuring 1.624, that would indicate his chamber is reamed .006 shy of Min. Correct?

 

[hogan]

If you're getting such out of spec results from Federal Gold Medal ammo, they owe you another box...

 

[dcali]

Your 100% right....and I'm guilty of fuzzy thinking (deleted fuzzy thinking post). After looking at SAAMI chamber print again, Max. headspace is 1.640 and Min. headspace is 1.630. If his fired brass is measuring 1.624, that would indicate his chamber is reamed .006 shy of Min. Correct?

Yes, but I don't think it's safe to say the actual headspace of the cases is being measured. It depends on the tool used. I would check the chamber with some proper gauges. I'd bet it's short by some amount but you never know.

 

[Texas10]

Your 100% right....and I'm guilty of fuzzy thinking (deleted fuzzy thinking post). After looking at SAAMI chamber print again, Max. headspace is 1.640 and Min. headspace is 1.630. If his fired brass is measuring 1.624, that would indicate his chamber is reamed .006 shy of Min. Correct?

Headspace on a Savage is set by screwing the barrel into the receiver against a go gage and tightening the barrel nut. It's adjustable, hence my suggestion to move the barrel forward a few thou IF his dies bottomed out before setting the shoulder back (they don't). So no big deal.

 

[hrlincoln]

Headspace on a Savage is set by screwing the barrel into the receiver against a go gage and tightening the barrel nut. It's adjustable, hence my suggestion to move the barrel forward a few thou IF his dies bottomed out before setting the shoulder back (they don't). So no big deal.

Good to know....learned something new.

 

[T-shooter]

Yes, but I don't think it's safe to say the actual headspace of the cases is being measured. It depends on the tool used. I would check the chamber with some proper gauges. I'd bet it's short by some amount but you never know.

The Hornady tool can't measure the exact case headspace unless it were modified. It would have to be faced flat with no chamfer/radius on the edge and have to be exactly .400" inside diameter. The rounded edge allows the case to sit a little deeper reducing the reading. But it is repeatable and a good comparison.

Yes I just talked to a friend and he laughed and said the same.. He's been a trainer for 20 years.. Iam not going to be shooting factory anyway and I threw a couple of dummy rounds that are sized for my old .308. At 1.623 and they were fine ... I think it's just not a sloppy chamber so it will be fine..

Thanks everyone for your time.. This is my first precision rifle and its just tight compared to a hunting rifle... I really apreceate the replies.. Everything is a learning curve.. Makes me appreciate what some of you have to go through for your super high dollar high accuracy rifles... Just when you think people are wasting time you realize why it takes so much to shoot well..

The Hornady tool will not measure the case headspace accurately. To work, the face would have to be machined flat to remove any chamfer into the bore. Then, the bore would have to be exactly .400" diameter. This tool is good for comparisons and you can come close by measuring a case fired from your rifle as a baseline. This is what I measured on mine. The chamfer of the bore lets the case sit in a bit more making the actual measurement smaller.

 

[SheepDog]

Assuming you have exactly the headspace number for your chamber. They are not all alike.