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Old March 14, 2012, 05:37 PM   #1
er775
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Help with 223 bolt not closing

I have a Remington model 700 in 223 Rem, I went out to shoot some today and fired two rounds then, I couldnt get anymore rounds to chamber, the bolt would not close all the way. I got home and just checked the OAL and they are 2.19 to 2.20 my hornady manual calls for the OAL to be 2.20 for the round Im shooting which is the hornady 55 gr sp. could primers be too high maybe? any help would be appreciated, thanks.
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Old March 14, 2012, 05:50 PM   #2
mrawesome22
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You are not pushing the shoulder back far enough.

Screw the size die in little by little until they chamber.
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Old March 14, 2012, 06:04 PM   #3
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If the primers are high at all they are too high.

As you may be new to all this,if you are loading military surplus brass,study up on "crimped primers " and removing primer crimp.That can sure cause high primer problems.

Another issue I suspect;When you set up your bullet seater die,did you run it all the way down for a bump on the shellholder?

That does not work out .That die has a crimp function built in at the top of the stroke.If you force a too heavy crimp on a loaded round the shoulder will collapse.The case distorts,and the case diameter gets larger at the shoulder.That is what gets stuck.

Try backing up your seater die maybe 4 turns,then put a piece of brass in the shellholder,no bullet,run it up in the die ,full stroke and leave it.Then turn your die in till you feel it contact the case neck.Back it off an eighth or quarter turn,and lock the die down with the lock ring.

You might try using your calipers to check the diameter of your trouble rounds right at the shoulder and compare it to a piece of sized brass.Is the diameter bigger on the loaded round?

One other thing to check,is there any chance a portion of cartridge case is stuck in the chamber?

Keep looking till you find your problem,do not force the bolt closed!

Bad things could happen.
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Old March 14, 2012, 07:11 PM   #4
er775
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Im using new winchester brass, the primers are seated as they should be and I tried screwing the seating die in, bolt still not closing, the rifle is brand new, never had a round fired through it except from the factory.
I `ve heard the horror stories about forcing the bolt closed so I will not do that. I`ve tried three different loads. one is 55 gr v max I loaded OAL IS 2.19
the other is 55 gr sp at 2.20 and the third is some rounds a buddy loaded , they are 55 gr sp also but his were a bit higher than mine at 2.23.
I screwed down the seting down and took them all the way down to 2.16 and still bolt wont close...
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Old March 14, 2012, 07:42 PM   #5
mrawesome22
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Pushing the bulley farther into the case isn't going to do anything.

You need to full length size the brass and push the shoulder back.

Do you have a reloading manual?
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Old March 14, 2012, 08:19 PM   #6
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Think I got it figured out!! Have you ever watched the looney tunes cartoon when they character feels like a jackass and they put a jackass head on the character? well I feel like that,,,as I stated it is a brand new rifle bought at wally mart never been shot by me, I tried putting an empty case into the chamber so I could see what was going on up in there and the case would not go all the way into the chamber, so I decided to clean it, and I cleaned the hell out of it, I couldnt believe how dirty it was, I mean the saturated patches that I ran through the barrel with cleaner came out as black as if I had been shooting it all day!
so, after a good cleaning I attempted to chamber a round, and presto!! it chambered my v max flawlessly but, I still had a bit of trouble with some rounds loaded with lake city brass, I`m not too worried about that cause I`m gonna give those back to the guy that loaded for me and I`m gonna stick with winchester brass,,thanks for all the help and input guys
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Old March 15, 2012, 05:19 AM   #7
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No disrespect to your buddy,it is wise to be very selective about whose reloads you shoot.

Since you are getting started,I suggest you get two reloading manuals and read the material about the reloading process carefully.Which manuals?Matter of opinion.I like to have one for the bullets I use,and one for the powder I use is good.,example,a Nosler or Sierra and a Hogdon .
I have heard it said a Lee is a good one to get.

And,just so you do not have to learn the hard way:

Buy your powder in new,sealed cans.No opened gun show 1/2 cans.You won't truly know what powder is in them.

Read the label twice,and even say it out loud on the powder can,primers,too.

Those powder cans all look alike,sometimes.

Using the wrong powder by mistake can be really bad.


And,just have one kind of powder on the bench.
,Keep asking questions.
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Old March 15, 2012, 06:48 AM   #8
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When I ever I buy a new gun, I always make sure I clean it. The barrel and the chamber can be dirty. I am also afraid of what could be left in the barrel after the factory.

Please be very cautious about using someone else's reloads in your gun. If the person who gave them to you is a very good reloader, he has tailored them to his gun. He may be able to shoot the bulls-eye out, but that does not mean they will work for your gun.

Just out of curiosity, how did you come to choose the 55 grain V-max bullet? (It is a good bullet and I use it in both 50 and 55 grains.)
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Old March 15, 2012, 11:52 AM   #9
er775
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after I bought the rifle I went and bought dies and everything needed to load 223, i chose hornady 55 gr sp just to shoot at targets and pop cans and whatever else but I have heard so much about the v max I decided I would use them for coyotes and other small game. I have never been a fan of shooting someone elses reloads but at the time these were loaded for me I didnt have my own set up, now that I do I am sending his loads back to him and he can shoot them out of his own guns. I have taken no offense to anything anyone has said and yes I know the guy that loaded for me but, Im not impresssed with them, he is, atleast I thought he was an experienced loader but I`m new at this and did what I think is a better job at loading than he did, atleast mine will chamber in the gun now
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Old March 15, 2012, 11:53 AM   #10
er775
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Oh and I chose hornady 55 gr bullets as they seem to be the most readily available bullets most anywhere I go to get supplies
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Old March 15, 2012, 12:59 PM   #11
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And it's probably not Lake City brass, per se (good stuff), but what fired it last that's the issue. Lot's of it is once-fired machine gun feed, and the rims are often bent back by that experience, but not all over. Set them up on a table and see if any of them lean to the side. If not, it's probably still just a matter of them having been too long at one point and springing back a lot coming out of the sizing die.
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Last edited by Unclenick; March 15, 2012 at 01:06 PM.
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