At my wits end reloading .308

[MartyZ 692]

Ok, so up till no i've been reloading .223, .45, 9mm, with no issues what so ever. Today I started setting up to reload .308, I have 900 Hornady 150gr Interlock SP that I got from the LNL rebate last year and figured I should start reloading for my AR10.

I have had nothing but trouble with these bullets. So i'm setting up my bullet seat die and the first problem I find is, with the case trimmed BELOW suggested trim length, trimmed to 2.000 (recommended 2.0005) and the cannaluer (sp.) goes down below the rim of the case with OAL at 2.685 (factory AE ammo is 2.693 AOL), so I can't crimp. 

Second problem is that even below factory ammo AOL the rim of the bullet gets stuck in the chambers of both my AR10 and my Savage BA, see pic below. I already destroyed my cleaning rod trying to knock the bullet out of the AR10 chamber. You can even see the bullet being pulled out when extracting.

I went thru at least 10 cases and 10 bullets and I still can't get this to work. Is there something wrong with these bullets? Are they designed to be loaded long and used in extra long chambers?

Any and all help is greatly appreciated.

 

 

Disclamer, I was just testing bullet seating depth, there was no primer or powder in the bullet.

[Pizza Bob 1,488]

Not sure I follow. What is the longest OAL that will fit in your mag? When you say "...the rim of the bullet..." what do you mean? The rim of the case (case head), or the case mouth at the base of the bullet?

[MartyZ 692]

1 minute ago, Pizza Bob said:

Not sure I follow. What is the longest OAL that will fit in your mag? When you say "...the rim of the bullet..." what do you mean? The rim of the case (case head), or the case mouth at the base of the bullet?

I did not test for longest OAL that will fit in the mag, but maximum OAL, by the book, is 2.8, but I am loading it to 2.685. The factory AE 150gn FMJs are loaded to 2.693 and the canolluer is where it's supposed to be.

When I say rim of the bullet I mean the par sticking out just past the case, above the canolluer and before the ogive. If you look at the picture you will see a horizontal scratch where it gets stuck in the chamber.

[Pizza Bob 1,488]

It would seem that you have a short free bore and the bullet is getting stuck in the leade. See how deeply you have to seat the bullet in order to preclude it getting stuck.

You can't go by what factory ammo measures unless it uses the exact same bullet - not just the same weight. The ogive of a lot of the 147 gr bullets, for example, starts very quickly because those bullets were designed for use in machine guns, so they require shorter bearing surfaces to keep heat build-up down.

Do you have a Hornady manual? Or is there info on-line for that specific bullet? Increase in bullet seating depth will increase pressure, so commensurate reduction in powder charge will have to be made.

Are you using small-base dies to load these? (No impact on current problem, but trying to reduce the probability of future problems.)

Adios,

Pizza Bob

[MartyZ 692]

No, using standard hornady dies. I have the hornady 10th addition manual and an older lee manual. Also using hodgon's website for cross reference since I will be using CFE223 for plinking ammo.

So are you saying that I need to load it short? I don't think I have a short free bore on both barrels.

What about the canalluerm why would it be so low?

[Pizza Bob 1,488]

It may just be that the bearing surface of that particular bullet is long so the full diameter is forced into the leade. The cannelure my work for other calibers, I.e. .300 Win Mag. Where it would be needed more due to the increased recoil impulse.

[Longranger 16]

MartyZ,

Hornady 9th lists the cartridge OAL for the 308 WIN as 2.735" when loaded with the #3031 bullet.  You can chamber a factory 308 cartridge in those guns with no problems, right?

-Longranger  

[MartyZ 692]

1 minute ago, Longranger said:

MartyZ,

Hornady 9th lists the cartridge OAL for the 308 WIN as 2.735" when loaded with the #3031 bullet.  You can chamber a factory 308 cartridge in those guns with no problems, right?

-Longranger  

That's correct, factory ammo works just fine.

[10X 3,296]

35 minutes ago, Pizza Bob said:

The ogive of a lot of the 147 gr bullets, for example, starts very quickly because those bullets were designed for use in machine guns

Shhhhhh!!!

Do you want the morons in Trenton to start a campaign to outlaw deadly machine gun bullets?

[Longranger 16]

And the bullets are flat base, not boat tail, and they really do weigh 150gr, right?  Just trying to make sure Hornady sent you the right thing and take out a few more variables.  What are you measuring OAL with?  Can you stand one of your reloads next to a factory cartridge and just eyeball for any obvious differences?

-Longranger

[Bully 749]

If they are a flat base, they will most likely be a short, fat bullet.  The boat tail takes up some weight.  

That would be my guess anyway.  

Switch to a boat tail.  Might have better luck.  I think I have some 168's or some such floating around.  Nosler's.  Shoot me your address via PM and I'll send them to you.  

[MartyZ 692]

 

AE 150 on the left

7 minutes ago, Bully said:

If they are a flat base, they will most likely be a short, fat bullet.  The boat tail takes up some weight.  

That would be my guess anyway.  

Switch to a boat tail.  Might have better luck.  I think I have some 168's or some such floating around.  Nosler's.  Shoot me your address via PM and I'll send them to you.  

Thanks Chris, I was going to buy some sierra match kings also for the Savage. But I was going to use these for plinking ammo, I have 900 bullets, I need to use them somewhere.

[Old School 611]

My opinion is you have a die set up problem with too much crimp.

I'll send you a pm with my phone number.  308Win. is one of the easiest cartridges to load for. 

[MartyZ 692]

Just now, Old School said:

My opinion is you have a die set up problem with too much crimp.

I'll send you a pm with my phone number.  308Win. is one of the easiest cartridges to load for. 

No crimp

[Longranger 16]

I'm thinking along the same lines as Old School.  Mis-adjusted die mashing the case mouth.  In your photos, the case mouth looks like it has a bulge or ring at the very top.  Do the cartridges look like that before chambering?  Is it the bullet or the neck that's getting stuck in the chamber?  Can you chamber one of your sized cartridges without any bullet seated in it?

-Longranger

[MartyZ 692]

That roll was caused by the cheap lee deburing tool, it was there before I seated the bullet. But that could be it. I will check it when I get back home.

[MartyZ 692]

So I came home after a couple drinks at my friends house, and with a clear head, figured i'd do the sharpie test. And it was definitive, I feel like a total idiot, should have done it hours. So the problem isn't the bullets or the crimp, the problem was the shoulder. Two batches of brass, one resized with lee die and one with hornady die, both with the same issue. Even though the dies where bottomed out, the shoulder was still a few mm too high. I had to cam over to bump the shoulder back enough. So now, the canolure (I will never be able to spell this correctly) is in the right place, am able to put a slight crimp on it, and getting a OAL of 2.76, and both guns chamber perfectly. Thanks for all your help guys, much appreciated.  

Notice scratches in sharpie marks around shoulder.

[njJoniGuy 2,131]

2 hours ago, MartyZ said:

... I have 900 bullets, I need to use them somewhere.

My vote would be for Trenton.

Don't worry, we'll give you a nice sendoff if sh1t happens.