Reloading issue.

Pro953

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I have just started to dip my toe in the water on reloading and working up loads for some of my rifles.

I have only loaded new brass at this point but I have noticed on my .270 cases upon resizing these stretch marks along the bottom.

From a bit of reading it looks like “Incipit case head separation” would any of you agree? I looked at some of the cases from factory ammo I have shot recently and it seems to show the same markings.

Any idea of what I am looking at here? Would love to reuse the brass but not looking to blow up my guns.

This is only from my .270 brass through a older Tikka T3. All of the .300 Win Mag brass looks good.

Hand load Hornady brass on the left. Middle is brass from Barnes Vortex 130’s and right is a federal case. Both were box ammo not reloads. This makes me think it’s a rifle issue and not a process issue with reloading.

Any feedback would be appreciated!
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rayporter

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factory ammo will typically be short enough to show marks like your brass has. the trick is to learn how to set up your dies to minimize the stretch.

take stiff wire and bend it so you have a small hook on the end and reach inside of the cases to feel for the beginning of a separation. a rough spot is normal at the point of the ring but a valley that can be felt with the wire is not good.
 

TheHardWay

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Once you have fire-formed your brass to your chamber, you can look into getting a neck die to use instead of full length. Your brass will last longer with a neck die.
 
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**My opinion** (lets let some more experienced reloaders confirm this!)
It looks to me like the die is resizing the brass from the neck down the body and is not doing any work below the "mark" that you see just above the base of the brass. This is normal and you are just not used to seeing it. The Brass is getting worked in the resizing die correctly. The brass dimensions do not stretch and grow very much at all at the base of the brass. The brass here is much thicker and does not deform with firing as much as the top of the body and neck will.
Unless you are running really hot loads you should not have problems with case head seperation. The primer pockets will loosen up and the brass will be thrown away before that becomes an issue.
 

muddydogs

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Brass looks normal to me, take a look at your sizing die and you will notice that the bottom of the die is tapered for easy case feeding so the die doesn't size all the way to the case holder in the press. Your also probably not sizing the bottom of the case much if any due to the brass isn't getting expanded much down there, your not seeing stretch marks.

I would recomend http://www.cabelas.com/product/Horn...hrsHQ2mv9xa3T3R7aJRoCkoMQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds. Its an easy way to measure fired brass then use it to set your dies so they are only pushing the shoulder back .002" or so which increase your brass life.
 

muddydogs

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Might I also suggest you check out The High Road and there reloading forum as there is a wealth of info about reloading over there.
 

dah605

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One element to consider is that the web of the brass at the base makes it thicker and less susceptible to expansion. Combine this with that muddydogs said about the sizing die, this looks very normal.
 

FURMAN

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That mark is normal. The only real concern is if the cartridge is difficult to extract or chamber. If your loads are overpressure the case will expand too much in the case head area and can cause case head separation.DO NOT NECK SIZE ONLY. It makes no sense. It is hard on the bolt lugs. Full length size every time. If the die is setup properly you should be bumping the shoulders around .002. There are tools to measure this.
 
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Pro953

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Thanks everyone. Thanks makes me feel a bit better. I will do the paperclip test to see if any valleys are forming.

Muddy I just ordered a OAL gauge so I will look at playing with that a bit.

This reloading stuff is so much fun. Just want to make sure I am understanding everything as much as possible. So much to learn.


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Pro953

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That mark is normal. The only real concern is if the cartridge is difficult to extract or chamber. If your loads are overpressure the case will expand too much in the case head area and can cause case head separation.DO NOT NECK SIZE ONLY. It makes no sense. It is hard on the bolt lugs. Full length size every time. If the die is setup properly you should be bumping the shoulders around .002. There are tools to measure this.

Thanks RFurman. I am interested in your comment about not neck sizing brass? It seems like rather common practice these days in the precision reloading crowd. I would think working with fire formed brass would be nicer on bolt lugs as the expansion is less. Though clearly I have NO clue what I am talking about with all of this stuff.

I was staying with full length as these are hunting rounds vs target shooting rounds and stories of stiff bolts and rounds not loading due to tight cases is something I do not want to deal with while hunting.


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FURMAN

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It is EXTREMELY uncommon in the precision "crowd". Most in the precision crowd have custom dies made to full length size to their specifications. The part that galls lugs is the excessive force from trying to "crush" unsized brass as you chamber.
 

FURMAN

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Not saying his or my opinion is the only way to go but I think Erik knows a thing or two. I do not know why you would neck size only until the round wouldn't chamber and then all of a sudden change your routine to fix a problem. Consistency is key to accuracy. Full length every time and make it repeatable.
STOP NECK SIZING YOUR BRASS!!!! - YouTube
 

muddydogs

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I was staying with full length as these are hunting rounds vs target shooting rounds and stories of stiff bolts and rounds not loading due to tight cases is something I do not want to deal with while hunting. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

What I do and a lot of others is a somewhat modified FL sizing. Take a fired case from your rifle, measure said case with a headspace tool then adjust your die to set the shoulder back on that case .002" to .003". Your basically FL sizing the case but not pushing the shoulder back to specs and working the brass more then needed. Your die will probably still be touching the shell holder but the ram won't be camming over as hard as it does with traditional FL sizing. I've been doing it for years with 15 different calibers and never had a problem, I even size my autoloader 223 brass this way except I size all my 223 brass to .003" under the tightest chambered AR I own so the ammo will run in them all.
 
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mtluckydan

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Are you checking length after sizing. Usually the case grows the most after the initial firing. You should be trimming lengths if they are over spec. Also, that would be a good time to uniform the flash hole.

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Pro953

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Yeah I am trimming after sizing. I did not uniform the flash hole though, just cleaned the primer pocket. Did not know that was common practice. So much to learn.


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