Savage re barrel

[4runnerman]

Hello all. Time to help this old fart. Any help would be great
Model-Savage 6MMBR
New Barrel. Problem I am having is- Hard to close and open bolt. I am using Full Length Sized brass- Forester Comp Die set- Caming over did not help. I colored one case with marker. When I chamber round and get it out,the only place it is hitting is right above groove in base. I used go/no go gauges. Took barrel off today and used old barrel as a key- Brass that did not chamber easy in new barrel was used in test. When I put that sized brass in old barrel and let it fall in, It fell just as far in new barrel. Leads me to thinking brass or barrel is not the problem. This is with brass only-No primer or bullet,just sized brass. Could I have set my headspace to tight?.. Go gauge-Bolt closes. No Go Gauge-Bolt will slide forward but not even start to close. Brass is trimmed to Min length. Not sure if it makes a difference-Barrel is Match,chambered for VLD's.

[LE-28]

The only suggestion I have is try small base dies but I'm a little confused. Did you have this problem with the old barrel or has this brass never seen either barrel?

[Eppie]

You're in the wrong forum. This is more of a beginner forum, you need to post this over at http://forum.accurateshooter.com/index.php?board=1.0

The original name wa 6mmBBR.com

[4runnerman]

LE-28- This brass has been fired in my old Barrel about 6 times.

[Nathan]

So, all brass barely gets sized at the base of the case. So, what you are seeing is the as fired size mostly.

I would try 100 new brass first. If that doesn't work, I would loosen the headspace.....well, actually I would FL size a new case with minima(basically 0) l cam over.

Then headspace on that case. After the nut is tight, but not fully torqued, check GO and NO-GO. I'll bet they're both OK. Also, try your 5x fired brass, I'll bet it's ok too.

You could just headspace on your FL sized fired case, but just make sure the NO GO is no go.

[4runnerman]

Eppie- this is far from a beginner forum. Some in here might take offense to that statement. Very wise people in here . It's more of barrel replacement question anyhow.

[Snyper]

Does the bolt work easily with no cartridge in the gun?

[4runnerman]

Nathen- Yes it is just the very bottom of the base that the marker is getting rubbed off. Will try your idea also

Snyper- Bolt works very easy with no brass at all in.

[Brian Pfleuger]

Just to make sure I'm understanding you right...

This is brass that was fired in the old barrel?

This same brass, after being full-length sized, does not fit in the old barrel any better than it fits in the new barrel?

If so, does it fit the old barrel WITHOUT being sized? (I would think it would have to.)

How well does it fit the NEW barrel without being sized?

If it fits the old barrel without sizing but NOT after sizing, this sounds like a die problem.

[Eppie]

4runnerman said: Eppie- this is far from a beginner forum. Some in here might take offense to that statement. Very wise people in here . It's more of barrel replacement question anyhow.

You are right, my apologies no offense intended.

Any way it seems to me that you're not resizing your brass enough. All the books and manuals that I've read they all say that the shoulder should be set back 0.002 from it's ejected size.

Having said that, Tony Boyer's Book of Rifle Accuracy says that the bolt should close easily half way and then be firm the second half on a properly sized case. My experience totally substantiates his writings.

[4runnerman]

Brian- Brass fits in old barrel fine. Now that I have taken new barrel off and just have barrel in hand, Brass fits in both barrels just fine. This is why I think it is not barrel or brass. Brass was fired in my old barrel 6 times and resized the same all 6 times. The die set has resized all my cases and has never been a issue. I think if possable I set my headspace to tight.

Eppie- You may have a point- I see in your post-Firing pin assy removed. I did not do that as I was told you do not need to.

[olddav]

I know you've checked that the front action screw is not jamming the bolt head.

[4runnerman]

Olddav-- Check. Thanks. I am really wondering if I set headspace to tight.

[Brian Pfleuger]

Almost impossible to set headspace to tight. Extractor and ejector out of bolt, with gun vertical place go gauge on bolt, close bolt, thread barrel on until it stops, tighten nut. Done. Everything there is essentially solid steel. You'd pretty much need a machine to over tighten it to the point that you could be under "go".

Try closing the bolt on brass without the stock on the gun.

[olddav]

Do you have any new brass to try?
I had some 30.06 brass that would not chamber after multiple reloads.

[reynolds357]

Try a different shell holder. As dumb as this sounds, try one that is made by the manufacturer of the dies. If that does not work, shim the go gague to 1/2 of no-go and set up on that.

[Clark]

I have cut chambers and threads on a couple 6mmBR rifles and I have worked on a couple Sav 110 actions, but this problem is most like....

I chambered a 1903 Turkish Mausers in 45acp in 2002.
Not with a 45acp reamer.
I noticed that 45acp brass came out of the 0.467" Lee carbide die at 0.469"
So I chambered with a straight fluted 0.469" reamer until the brass would fit, and then chambered with a throater until a cartridge with a 230 gr FMJ 1.175" could get the bolt to close.

The same problem you have quickly popped up.
The brass would interfere with the chamber, just in front of the extractor groove. The die was not sizing it there.

My options were to:
1) Make the brass smaller
2) Make the chamber bigger

Trying path 1):
a) I took a Lee #2 shell holder or an RCBS #3 shell holder [same as you] and ground some off the top. This won't work for you, as you are not straight wall.
b) I ground some off the bottom of the die. This won't work for you, as you are not straight wall.
c) I seated the brass deeper in the die without the shell holder and then pounded it back out with a big drift. This won't work for you, as you are not straight wall.

For you to do path 1) you need a smaller base die. I make lots of single purpose dies 1/2" long like that from 7/8-14 threaded rod. If you were next door, I would make you one.

I have turned brass near the web, to get 7.62x54R brass to fit in a 410. That is nothing you want to do on a quantity basis.

Path 2) :
Or I could put your barrel in my lathe and put my 6mmBR reamer in it.... but you are not next door.

[Jim243]

If you can, bring your sizing die down another 1/8 turn and resize one of the new cases and see if that will do the trick.

Jim

Or buy a gauge to make sure your shoulder is where it is suppose to be.

While this case is off only slightly, it will not fit in my AR Match Chamber.

[4runnerman]

Ok guys. I took the first video I found on internet to do job ( first time ). I see a few things I have done wrong already.
1st- I did not remove pin or ectractor
2nd- I screwed barrel on tighten nut and then tried gauges.
It has to be something simple. As I say- barrels off in my hand brass fits in both the same distance and go/no go gauges fall in to the same depth in barrels also. I will try again tonight and do it right.
Also one more question. In this video he says to use some form of thread sealant?. Is this true?. and if so what kind.

Thanks for all the help guys. I will do a follow up later tonight after I get home from work and put it together.

Update- Went down and did it this morning before work, used tips from in here and did it right. All is good in my world now. go gauge closes,no go gauge does not and all my brass that was chambering hard is now working awesome and smooth. Thanks a Million to all.

[Brian Pfleuger]

We knew you'd get it.

[olddav]

Regarding the thread sealant, many have said it is not necessary. I have been informned repeatedly thant if you tighten the barrel nut properly you should not need to use the thread sealant. I did not apply any when I swapped my barrel and all seems well so far but I have only shot a few rounds through it.

[Brian Pfleuger]

Thread sealant...

I assume you means Loctite?

I've read rumors that Savage uses it on the factory barrels... I saw no indication of it on mine.

There should be no reason for it. The tension between the action/barrel and barrel/nut should be more than plenty.

[Eppie]

I haven't changed my barrel on my Savage yet, so I can't speak to that. But I do know they use Loctite on the bolt screw. The first time I cleaned I had to use a lever to break it.

[Brian Pfleuger]

Hard to be sure but I suspect Savage's reasoning is more along the lines of keeping less determined people out rather than being worried about it accidentally coming loose.

[4runnerman]

Ya- I did not use any either. There was some on old barrel when I took it off. I put a smear of RCBS Case lube on threads just to make it spin easier and away I went. Thanks for all the help guys.