Home Forums Reloading Big Game Rifles Used brass for new .280...

A bud who rechambered his .280 to AI gave me some twice fired .280 Rem brass. I stashed it away. Since I have this new Rem M700 CDL I decided to segregate that brass from my other 700 for fireforming in the new gun. I FL resized, trimmed, deburred the mouth and flash hole. And I will be damned if it wont chamber in the new M700! Even FL resized! FL resized brass, trimmed to length, twice fired in another 700 wont chamber in my gun??????????????????

Thoughts? Have I missed something?

Tight chamber?

FL resized 7mm-08 from my 700Ti won't chamber in my brother's Kimber 84M 7mm-08 either.

You need to measure to the datum line on the shoulder with a Stoney Point headspace gauge and compare that to the same measurement from a round fired in your rifle. Try FL sizing without the expander ball. Did you try the brass in your rifle before any sizing?Rick.

Rick,

I didn't try the brass in my rifle because it had been given to me after being fired in another rifle, and not completely FL resized. I thought I'd just FL resize them. My father has told me since I posted this that he has a 300WM that wont accept brass fired in any other rifle even after full length resizing. So, I guess I can either buy some new brass, or buy some factory stuff and fire form while breaking in. I just never figured on Rem M700 would be so different in dimension from another as to not allow FL resized brass to chamber. And, I can chamber it in my other .280, though its tight, leading me to believe that it has something to do with the rifle the brass was first fired in. My new .280 might have the tight chamber.

280:
Try over-adjusting your sizing die and try it again. Preferably, in a heavy press.
Smitty of the North

Without knowing the dimension to the datum line, you don't know if the shoulder is too far forward and by how much. You can adjust some presses to cam over and move the shoulder back as suggested. Another method would be to purchase the Redding competition shell holders so you will know just how much you are moving the shoulder. You didn't say how you adjusted your FL die but your finding is not uncommon.Rick.

rick:
He seems to know that they don't fit. There are other dimensions, besides distance to a datum line to consider.
Smitty of the North

Smitty, you are correct but "over-adjusting your sizing die" is not the only answer.Rick.

280Rem,

I have had the same thing happen on a number of occassions. It was always rectified by lubing the cases very well, and then full-length sizing them with the die set to bump the shellholder hard, or "overadjusted" as suggested above.

There must be plenty of lube on the cases. Don't worry about the hydraulic dimples you get. They will iron out on the first firing. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Ted

I don't consider setting the die to touch the shell holder and cam over a bit overadjusting at all. Some guns have tight chambers and that's what you have to do. I have a .22-250 like that. I can only use a set of Lee dies for it because the RCBS I have are just a tad longer and the bolt still closes hard on brass from them. The RCBS work fine for the other .22-250.

No big deal, that's just the handloading game.

Rick:
I agree. My suggestion was to "try" over-adjusting, and to use a heavy press. Without a heavy press, you can get too much flex, and even when you do size it enough, it won't be consistent, and/or the necks will be out of alignment.

As Yukoner says, a lot of lube is necessary in such situations, and at one time, that was my biggest failing, not using enough lube. I didn�t realize how important it was.

I agree with Lightfoot too. There are differences in chambers, and dies. Some dies won�t size enough, or just barely enough for some chambers, even though they are what I�m calling �over-adjusted�.
Smitty of the North

adjust the dies as outlined above then trim to length as it will strech the cases an will not allow the bolt to close..