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Post by arokcrwlr on Apr 7, 2016 15:00:19 GMT -5
I have a few tight chambered customs and an FA (all with recessed cylinder chambers) that I have difficulty getting bullets to seat fully. They drop right in except for the last little bit to get the case heads seated in the recess. It is aggravating to say the least. For this reason if I ever have another custom made, it will not have the chambers recessed for case heads. I have a couple of customs with tight chambers that are not recessed - no problem reloading for them. I reloaded a pile of bullets and only about 10% seated fully.
I know there are several here with customs - what is the trick to make ammo that will work every time in these guns? I have been using Hornady dies and have the sizing die adjusted all the way down. I am missing something...
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Post by mhblaw on Apr 8, 2016 8:47:27 GMT -5
Seating issues could also relate to the sizing of the bullets. I have a 41 Special that will not fully seat cases loaded with bullets sized .412 but works great with .411.
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nicholst55
.375 Atomic
Retired, twice.
Posts: 1,047
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Post by nicholst55 on Apr 8, 2016 13:23:06 GMT -5
Seating issues could also relate to the sizing of the bullets. I have a 41 Special that will not fully seat cases loaded with bullets sized .412 but works great with .411. It can also be related to the size and configuration of the chamber throats. Long LFN-type bullets can have this problem by interfering with the beginning of the transition from chamber to throat. Sometimes reaming the chamber throats to a slightly larger diameter will help. |
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Paden
.375 Atomic
Lower Goldstream Creek
Posts: 1,132
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Post by Paden on Apr 9, 2016 18:01:07 GMT -5
I think I would have my chambers cut a little longer before I would open up the throats. JMHO.
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Post by brionic on Apr 9, 2016 19:14:40 GMT -5
Could a couple issues.
1. Are you sharing ammo between/among revolvers? Are you resizing to minimum spec?
2. How clean are the chambers? Do you scrub them? Are you firing combinations of shorter/longer cases, e.g., .454 and .45? I am amazed at some of the crap that comes out when I go to work with Chore Boy and old brushes.
I feel your pain. I've had problems with seating cartridges in tight revolvers, and it's no fun.
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Post by 2 Dogs on Apr 9, 2016 19:48:22 GMT -5
Here, try this. Pull the cylinder out of the sixgun BEFORE you start to load for it. Your cylinder IS your case gauge. Size a case. Wipe off the excess lube if any. TRY it in the chambers. If it is not a slip fit, you cannot continue to load with that die at that setting. Obviously, when belling the case it wont go in the chamber but you can check your loaded rounds. You might have too stout of a crimp, or the bullet may too fat or whatever. But remember, when loading for a custom, you are loading precision ammunition for a custom chamber. Thus, your cylinder becomes your case gauge. For example, my 257 Jack Rabbit by Harton has extremely tight headspace. If the primer sticks out even a tiny bit, the cylinder will not rotate. Thus, I have to uniform all my primer pockets and then seat the primers. Even then, I drop them into the cylinder and make sure it rotates. These are custom sixguns. The tolerances are going to be tighter. They require carefully crafted ammunition.
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Post by arokcrwlr on Apr 9, 2016 21:44:14 GMT -5
Great suggestions, thank you. The bullets push through the throats with little effort. I suspect what 2Dogs is saying is spot on - I need to modify how I load for these guns. I must admit that I have not done anything different for these "fickle" guns short of ensuring that bullets push through the cylinder. I have dropped in sized brass and they seat fine, so it's something between sizing and finished ammo. I do use a healthy crimp normally - that may be the culprit. I will experiment further... My customs that don't have cylinder recesses never have an issue, hence my frustration/confusion.
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Post by bradshaw on Apr 9, 2016 23:24:31 GMT -5
I have a few tight chambered customs and an FA (all with recessed cylinder chambers) that I have difficulty getting bullets to seat fully. They drop right in except for the last little bit to get the case heads seated in the recess. It is aggravating to say the least. For this reason if I ever have another custom made, it will not have the chambers recessed for case heads. I have a couple of customs with tight chambers that are not recessed - no problem reloading for them. I reloaded a pile of bullets and only about 10% seated fully. I know there are several here with customs - what is the trick to make ammo that will work every time in these guns? I have been using Hornady dies and have the sizing die adjusted all the way down. I am missing something... *** Two separate issues here: 1) chambers COUNTERBORED for the case rim, and 2) tight EXIT HOLES, a.k.a. THROATS. A rim too wide for the counterbore----or dinged up----prevents proper seating of the round. A bullet thicker than the throat, and which bearing surface protrudes from the case, prevents full seating. David Bradshaw |
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Post by Encore64 on Apr 9, 2016 23:31:05 GMT -5
With brass and ammo manufacturers running behind on lots of products, I have noticed more variations in brass consistency in the last couple years.
Especially in the rim diameter and thickness area.
This could easily account for the problem encountered. I'd measure to make sure and compare it to brass which does fit the chambers of your gun.
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Paden
.375 Atomic
Lower Goldstream Creek
Posts: 1,132
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Post by Paden on Apr 10, 2016 13:25:00 GMT -5
The OP states his sized, unloaded brass chambers fine, so that rules out rim size issues. He also states his bullets push through the throats with finger pressure, so they're sized correctly relative to throat diameter, or at least not oversized. Once loaded however, the cartridge will not chamber to full depth... That tells me he's running into a length issue, wherein the combined diameter of brass and bullet is engaging the chamber's taper to throat. Solution: shorten brass slightly, or lengthen chamber slightly.
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Post by 2 Dogs on Apr 10, 2016 13:37:52 GMT -5
My money is on too much crimp at the last stage. Rock Crawler, let us know how you fixed this issue please.
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Post by Encore64 on Apr 10, 2016 13:40:40 GMT -5
I do have a couple guns that require taper crimping after the roll crimp is applied to seat. One revolver and a 38-55 Single Shot rifle.
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cj3a
.30 Stingray
Posts: 403
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Post by cj3a on Apr 10, 2016 19:37:08 GMT -5
I followed two dogs advice when loading for my FA. I used the cylinder every step of the way. Tight cylinder keeps you on your toes.
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Post by 2 Dogs on Apr 10, 2016 20:11:10 GMT -5
I do have a couple guns that require taper crimping after the roll crimp is applied to seat. One revolver and a 38-55 Single Shot rifle. Why crimp a single shot at all??? |
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Post by 2 Dogs on Apr 10, 2016 20:12:12 GMT -5
I followed two dogs advice when loading for my FA. I used the cylinder every step of the way. Tight cylinder keeps you on your toes. Thank you, that's why us old guys are here, or why we should be here anyway, to offer our best whenever we can.  |
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