Cases smaller after firing. Huh? (6.5x55 AG42b)

spencerhut · November 30, 2008, 07:57 PM

So I tried 20 of my new loads this afternoon and the brass shrank from .010 to .015. All the brass was brand new Winchester 6.5x55 trimmed to 2.155 before loading.

After firing the brass is now 2.140 to 2.145.

I have not seen that happen before, not in a rifle. I've heard of .45ACP doing silly things like shrinking. But a rifle round? Come on. This Ljungman just keeps getting weirder. It's a real joy to shoot. Got a nice couple of groups with the load of
37.8g of IMR4895
140g Sierra Game King
CCI Large Rifle Primers
3.050 OAL
No Crimp
Ammo was dry - Not lubed.

Some notes:
I think the Ljungman AG42b should be fed FMJ's. It was mashing the nose on the Sierra Game Kings as they came out of the magazine and whacked into the two step feed ramp. If you look close you can see the lead smears on the ramp. This thing was made for FMJ's.

Accuracy does not seem to have suffered much, if at all. Hard for me to really tell with iron sights.

Ljungmans should be used with a nice firm primer, #34 Arsenals or standard CCI's at the minimum. Chambering a round leaves a nice dent in the primer, more of a dent than my M1A, Garand or any AR I've fired.

Loading from the standard stripper clips takes a bit of practice with this gun. The stripper clip should be inserted with the middle of the clip engaged into the guide while taking care to line the rounds in the clip up with the magazine.

Once the first of two clips is empty, the empty clip should be pushed from the top front of the stripper clip backward toward the shooter.

The second clip should be ignored and the bolt released. Once released the bolt will flip the clip clear.

The gun does not toss brass that bad. Most of my brass is going ~25 feet forward in the 2:00 direction and ending up in a nice neat 8 to 10" pile. 1 or 2 are ending up in different places between 5 and 25ft, but in the same general direction.

Wildalaska · November 30, 2008, 08:18 PM

Quote:

This thing was made for FMJ's.

Ya think?

Quote:

After firing the brass is now 2.140 to 2.145.

I cant tell you why, but I can tell you that Winchester brass is not correct for your rifle. Any European 6.5x55 should be used with Norma or Lapua brass

Have fun

Wildmemberofthechurchofthe6.5x55Alaska TM

spencerhut · November 30, 2008, 08:27 PM

Quote:

but I can tell you that Winchester brass is not correct for your rifle. Any European 6.5x55 should be used with Norma or Lapua brass

Hey . . . let me loose and destroy some cheap brass before I get the good stuff.

I was half expecting to never see the brass again.

exercion · December 1, 2008, 12:33 AM

If yours is anything like mine, it has a rather generous chamber. The brass expands to fill it, and has to come from somewhere, so it gets a bit shorter as it blows out to fit. Also, for inexpensive Euro-spec brass try S&B and/or Wolf Gold (NNY headstamp)

Eric

Sport45 · December 1, 2008, 03:01 AM

Did you measure the length of the fired brass before or after resizing? The measurement that counts is after resizing.

Don't sweat the tip deformation. I don't think it matters nearly enough to tell with an iron sighted surplus military rifle.

November 30, 2008, 07:57 PM	#1
spencerhut Senior Member Join Date: March 18, 2006 Location: Idaho Posts: 147	Cases smaller after firing. Huh? (6.5x55 AG42b) So I tried 20 of my new loads this afternoon and the brass shrank from .010 to .015. All the brass was brand new Winchester 6.5x55 trimmed to 2.155 before loading. After firing the brass is now 2.140 to 2.145. I have not seen that happen before, not in a rifle. I've heard of .45ACP doing silly things like shrinking. But a rifle round? Come on. This Ljungman just keeps getting weirder. It's a real joy to shoot. Got a nice couple of groups with the load of 37.8g of IMR4895 140g Sierra Game King CCI Large Rifle Primers 3.050 OAL No Crimp Ammo was dry - Not lubed. Some notes: I think the Ljungman AG42b should be fed FMJ's. It was mashing the nose on the Sierra Game Kings as they came out of the magazine and whacked into the two step feed ramp. If you look close you can see the lead smears on the ramp. This thing was made for FMJ's. Accuracy does not seem to have suffered much, if at all. Hard for me to really tell with iron sights. Ljungmans should be used with a nice firm primer, #34 Arsenals or standard CCI's at the minimum. Chambering a round leaves a nice dent in the primer, more of a dent than my M1A, Garand or any AR I've fired. Loading from the standard stripper clips takes a bit of practice with this gun. The stripper clip should be inserted with the middle of the clip engaged into the guide while taking care to line the rounds in the clip up with the magazine. Once the first of two clips is empty, the empty clip should be pushed from the top front of the stripper clip backward toward the shooter. The second clip should be ignored and the bolt released. Once released the bolt will flip the clip clear. The gun does not toss brass that bad. Most of my brass is going ~25 feet forward in the 2:00 direction and ending up in a nice neat 8 to 10" pile. 1 or 2 are ending up in different places between 5 and 25ft, but in the same general direction. Last edited by spencerhut; November 30, 2008 at 08:49 PM.

December 1, 2008, 03:01 AM	#5
Sport45 Senior Member Join Date: May 25, 1999 Location: Too close to Houston Posts: 4,196	Did you measure the length of the fired brass before or after resizing? The measurement that counts is after resizing. Don't sweat the tip deformation. I don't think it matters nearly enough to tell with an iron sighted surplus military rifle. __________________ Proud member of the NRA and Texas State Rifle Association. Registered and active voter.

December 1, 2008, 12:33 AM	#4
exercion Member Join Date: May 7, 2007 Posts: 46	If yours is anything like mine, it has a rather generous chamber. The brass expands to fill it, and has to come from somewhere, so it gets a bit shorter as it blows out to fit. Also, for inexpensive Euro-spec brass try S&B and/or Wolf Gold (NNY headstamp) Eric