223 Handloads - No ignition

TexasTB · May 23, 2010, 07:27 AM

Guys

New to the forum. Enjoy reading your posts about reloading.

I needs some help with a recent issue. Just purchased Remington R-15 and took it to the range yesterday. It fired all the commercial loads fine. When I tried my handloads it wouldn't fire them. Looked at primer, no dent in primer at all. I looked at depth of primer seating and it appears to be the same as commercial loads.

I'm using a mixture of used brass with Winchester small rifle primers, varget and 55 grn ballistic tips. Any tips and recommendations on where to start with this problem would be appreciated.

TexasTB

flashhole · May 23, 2010, 07:34 AM

How does the neck/shoulder junction compare between the two. Sounds like a headspace issue. Is it possible you could have been too aggressive when sizing the case and bumped the shoulder back too far?

ZeSpectre · May 23, 2010, 07:37 AM

flashhole beat me too it. You should measure your cases and see if the rifle is even going fully into battery.

rjrivero · May 23, 2010, 08:55 AM

I would recommend you get a good case guage to make sure your sizing die is setup correctly. Too much depth and you can loose the round in the chamber, not enough depth and you can't get the round into battery.

As mentioned by the two members above, sizing is where you start, and will most likely find your issue.

chris in va · May 23, 2010, 11:23 AM

Did it even go 'click' when you pulled the trigger?

TexasTB · May 23, 2010, 01:09 PM

Thanks for all of your suggestions. Ordered a .223 Chamber Gauge from Dillon this morning.

To answer one of the replies, the gun "clicked" when the trigger was pulled.

Jim243 · May 23, 2010, 03:02 PM

Please check your head stamps on the reloaded cases and make sure they are not 222 Remington. Remington 222 = 1.690" Remington 223 = 1.750"

**Unclenick** · May 23, 2010, 05:45 PM

In the AR type guns, same as with Garands and M14's, use an internal hammer rather than a cocked combination striker and firing pin. So the click just means the hammer fell. If the bolt is not fully closed, the firing pin will be blocked from going forward even if the hammer falls. That lack of indentation suggests your loads didn't fit the chamber correctly and the bolt did not rotate into closed position. If the rounds are simply too short, they will usually headspace by their rims on the extractor hook and fire anyway. It's more likely incomplete resizing or bullets seated way out too far for their shape.

Check sizing with the case gauge and check what the bullet manufacturer recommended COL for your bullet is?

bullspotter · May 23, 2010, 11:22 PM

If the shoulder was not pushed back far enough to let the gun go into battery, I would think they would stick in the chamber and need a real good pull to clear them from the gun.

May 23, 2010, 07:27 AM	#1
TexasTB Junior Member Join Date: May 23, 2010 Location: North Texas Posts: 10	223 Handloads - No ignition Guys New to the forum. Enjoy reading your posts about reloading. I needs some help with a recent issue. Just purchased Remington R-15 and took it to the range yesterday. It fired all the commercial loads fine. When I tried my handloads it wouldn't fire them. Looked at primer, no dent in primer at all. I looked at depth of primer seating and it appears to be the same as commercial loads. I'm using a mixture of used brass with Winchester small rifle primers, varget and 55 grn ballistic tips. Any tips and recommendations on where to start with this problem would be appreciated. TexasTB

May 23, 2010, 07:34 AM	#2
flashhole Senior Member Join Date: February 9, 2005 Location: Owego, NY Posts: 2,000	How does the neck/shoulder junction compare between the two. Sounds like a headspace issue. Is it possible you could have been too aggressive when sizing the case and bumped the shoulder back too far? __________________ ,,, stupidity comes to some people very easily. 8/22/2017 my wife in a discussion about Liberals. Are you ready for civil war?

May 23, 2010, 07:37 AM	#3
ZeSpectre Senior Member Join Date: June 4, 2007 Location: Shenandoah Valley Posts: 3,276	flashhole beat me too it. You should measure your cases and see if the rifle is even going fully into battery. __________________ "The dogs may bark but the caravan moves on"

May 23, 2010, 08:55 AM	#4
rjrivero Senior Member Join Date: November 17, 2008 Location: NW Ohio Posts: 1,399	Case Guage I would recommend you get a good case guage to make sure your sizing die is setup correctly. Too much depth and you can loose the round in the chamber, not enough depth and you can't get the round into battery. As mentioned by the two members above, sizing is where you start, and will most likely find your issue.

May 23, 2010, 05:45 PM	#8
Unclenick Staff Join Date: March 4, 2005 Location: Ohio Posts: 21,061	In the AR type guns, same as with Garands and M14's, use an internal hammer rather than a cocked combination striker and firing pin. So the click just means the hammer fell. If the bolt is not fully closed, the firing pin will be blocked from going forward even if the hammer falls. That lack of indentation suggests your loads didn't fit the chamber correctly and the bolt did not rotate into closed position. If the rounds are simply too short, they will usually headspace by their rims on the extractor hook and fire anyway. It's more likely incomplete resizing or bullets seated way out too far for their shape. Check sizing with the case gauge and check what the bullet manufacturer recommended COL for your bullet is? __________________ Gunsite Orange Hat Family Member CMP Certified GSM Master Instructor NRA Certified Rifle Instructor NRA Benefactor Member and Golden Eagle

May 23, 2010, 11:23 AM	#5
chris in va Senior Member Join Date: December 26, 2004 Location: Louisville KY Posts: 13,806	Did it even go 'click' when you pulled the trigger?

May 23, 2010, 01:09 PM	#6
TexasTB Junior Member Join Date: May 23, 2010 Location: North Texas Posts: 10	Thanks for all of your suggestions. Ordered a .223 Chamber Gauge from Dillon this morning. To answer one of the replies, the gun "clicked" when the trigger was pulled.

May 23, 2010, 03:02 PM	#7
Jim243 Senior Member Join Date: January 5, 2009 Location: Just off Route 66 Posts: 5,067	Please check your head stamps on the reloaded cases and make sure they are not 222 Remington. Remington 222 = 1.690" Remington 223 = 1.750"

May 23, 2010, 11:22 PM	#9
bullspotter Senior Member Join Date: November 2, 2008 Location: Montana Posts: 308	If the shoulder was not pushed back far enough to let the gun go into battery, I would think they would stick in the chamber and need a real good pull to clear them from the gun.