Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Help: Ammo won't chamber!! (but brass will...)

If it is a tight neck and it is fired with thick brass...probably about shoulder level.

Short throat. I have brass that I slot at the neck. It holds a bullet just tight enough to chamber a bullet set out long, and pushes into the case once the lands are contacted. That will always give you an idea of where a given bullet will "kiss" on a given chamber.

A sharpie is definitely a necessary tool on any reloading bench. I can't tell if the case neck has any marks, but it appears not to, and a virgin case chambering fine seems to indicate a short throat as well.

No marks on the case neck. I will color up a Virgin 243 and chamber to look for marks and post picture.

You knew what I meant..

Typing from phone..

Good news is, it looks like you are clear as far as neck issues. The neck is solid black with no rubs or scraping.

That bullet looks like it is seated very long, but maybe it is just the picture. OAL should be the same for the AI version as the standard, I would think. What is the OAL on that round? And, how much clearance in the magazine with that round the way it is?

I'm not near my 243 loads now, or I'd measure a bunch of loads that worked fine in my Cooper 54 .243 Winchester, just to see.

I guess if it is a short throat and you were set on using some of those factory loads, you could always bump them in a touch with the seater die. Like mentioned above, shooting them like that will no doubt cause a huge pressure jump. Just barely touching the lands is one thing, but jammed tight will be risky to say the least.

Plenty of room left in the magazine.

This round is a paltry 2.715 COAL

And just to show a 243 Virgin that chambers with ease. No marks on the neck. Now I wonder how short this throat really is.

Was that photo of a factory round? I would be disposed to return the rifle if it can't fire factory .243, unless somewhere in the fine-print in the specs for the rifle it indicates it comes with a short throat.

In any case, I'd purchase the Hornady tool that gives you the distance to the lands for each bullet.

Hornady Lock-n-load Overall length gage

You'll need one of these too:

Hornady modified case

And as previously mentioned, Cooper used the BlitzKing for the test target group.

No. It was a handload with the 87 VMax using Virgin 243 brass.

5-30-13???

But this right here is a factory, straight from the damn box factory load that it won't chamber. Again, not talking crush fit. Bolt will not close.

Yes. Gun crafted in the early months of 2013, finished up by May and sent to the dealer that ordered the gun. No buyers, until I came along. It was an expensive rifle that had over $1,000 in upgrades from Cooper, as ordered by the dealer. French walnut, checkered bolt knob, upgraded stock checkering, SS barrel.

Dealer dropped the price to try and move it. I found it, jumped on the deal.

I don't understand the hard circumferential ring around the bullet itself. That is where you are encountering the hard stop.

I've only ever seen marks from the lands (which you have) but not a hard ring around the whole bullet.

Did they forget to cut the leade or something?

Dakota - That may be from me attempting to close the bolt, extracting, and repeating the process. I can remark the bullet and try again.

As a handloader I'd be happy with the short throat unless the bullets require seating so deep their ogives go below the case mouth.

Thats one way to look at this. I'll be interested to see how deep I have to seat the 87 Vmax to chamber with a kiss to the lands. Will report back with my findings.

Same with the 80/85 Barnes. Hoping to make that my hunting bullet and the 87 my plinking bullet, running both in AI fire formed chambers to 3300+

Just keep bumping it back till the bolt closes then see were you are at.

Looks to be a short throat.

Good news is you can chase lands for about damn ever!