Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters chronic misfires

I purchased a new set of Lee Precision dies. I adjusted the FL resizing die according to instructions e.g Raise the press ram with the shell holder until it hits the bottom of the FL resizing die. Lower the ram slightly and turn the die clockwise another ¼ turn. Then lock it in with the ring.
My problem is when I went to the range eight out of 12 rounds had light primer strikes and did not fire.
Is it possible I set the shoulder back creating enough headspace that the cartridge moves forward thus receiving a weak strike.
Could I remedy this by not adjusting my FL die the full ¼ turn?
When I got home I pulled the bullets and powder primed and resized the case with only a 1/8 turn, chambered the round with no powder or bullet and the primer fired and showed a much deeper primer indentation.
Am I ok to test this fix with live ammo.?

You getting primer strikes, dents?

You could have over sized to excessive headspace.

Tight die, loose chamber?

DF

Well, if I were the OP I would get a box of factory ammo, and try that first. This would be faster than adjusting dies and going to the range to fire a bunch of ammo until the problem is found. If the factory ammo fires as it should, then a problem with the firing-pin mechanism is taken out of the picture, at which time he can concentrate on his reloading methods.

I have new Nosler brass and if I prime a case and fire it with no powder or bullet it works with much harder primer strikes.

Are you sure the primers were fully seated the first time. Did you try firing them a second time and if so did they fire?

I received advice to raise the ram to the top with the shell holder in place. Screw the sizer down until it contacts the shell holder. Unscrew the sizing die two full turns, not 1/4.

Seems to work for me.






P

Measure head space off a fired case and a loaded case. It'll tell the story.

Don't know how you could resize too much unless the rifle has a headspace problem (doubtful). The die hits the shell holder and it must stop. I follow the old Redding instructions which are to screw the die to the shell holder. Then a little more until the press linkage toggles over which is about 1/8-turn. The idea is to take tolerance and spring out of the equation so the shell holder meets the bottom of the die when fighting resistance from the case getting squeezed down.

My first thought was primers not fully seated as mentioned above. Primer pockets reasonably clean?

I am experiencing a variation of this...except it is with Factory Ammo!
Tikka 595 in 243 (my son's rifle). Never a problem. Lined up on a big buck ...and "click". I thought he pulled on an empty chamber. Buck looked at us, he racked the bolt, and out popped a loaded round. He was rattled by then and the buck was taking off, so he missed the second shot. This rifle has fired every round since then. First thought was a broken firing pin. I disassembled the bolt and it is fine. Next thought was debris inside the bolt...Nada. I went back and found the round. It had a tick mark on the primer, but definitely not a full strike. I'm going to measure the cartridge headspace on that round and compare it to the unfired factory and the fired cases.

This. Foolish not to.

Nighthawk,
This is precisly what I did, e.g. Screw the die down until it hit the shell holder then 1/8 turn , (not the 1/4 turn in Lees instructions ) I then resized ten cases and primed them: Left out the powder and bullet and fired them Every one fired with a solid hit to the primer.
I will try ten loaded rounds at the range today

thanks
tack

16 Bore , Any way to measure headspace other than a 6.5 Creedmoor gauge?
tack

Comparator with the right insert is best, but you can use a fired pistol case over the neck to give you an idea of what's moving where. There's also putting layers of tape on the back of the case until you feel resistance when closing the bolt. Remove the firing pin and you'll have much better feel.

Just got back from the range. Changing the resizing die adjustment from a 1/4 turn to a 1/8 turn solved my FTF problem. fired 12 rounds at the range and every one fired.

Thanks so much to everyone who helped me . I was feeling pretty low when my new Bergara 6.5 Creedmoor would not put a hole in the target.

Getting good solid advise from experienced shooters makes the "fire" the wonderful place that it is.

With no powder or bullet, you have no pressure. Pressure will make the primer strike appear differently.

Chances are you've created the problem yourself by sizing them too short. Setting up a die the way you did ( by the directions) is asking for the problem you have. You need to know how much you need to bump the shoulder back, and to do that you need a way to measure fired cases from your rifle. Bump the shoulder back 0.003 for hunting rifles and 0.002 or less for bench guns once you learn what you're doing. Some may find that some brands of factory ammo is a fuzz to short to fire in a certain rifle as well. A different brand of ammo might measure as much as 0.005 or so longer than another, and give you the resistance to get a good strike on the primer...

Bottom line... If you're going to reload you need a way to measure headspace when you're sizing. You also need a way to measure where your particular bullet needs to be seated according to where it is in relation to the lands are in YOUR rifle. You need these.

https://www.ebay.com/p/Hornady-HK66-Lock-n-load-Headspace-Gauge-Kit-With-Body/2254448765

https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1...llet-comparator-basic-set-with-6-inserts

https://www.brownells.com/reloading...ock-n-load-modified-cases-prod32817.aspx

Grovey,
Thanks to your insight I think I am better understanding the root of my problem.
With the 6.5 Creedmoor dies I also purchased New Nosler brass to reload.
I just finished measuring the length of that brass; it is all within a couple of .000 of 1.900"
Factory specs for 6.5 Creedmoor case length is 1.920"
Die companies make their ajustment recomendations based on this spec.
With the new cases being .020" short I should have adjusted my die out more to compensate,
Am I on the right track to understanding what caused my FTF problem?

If you resize according to directions, as you are, your case will be within industry specifications unless you have a bad die which I've never heard of. If the rifle's chamber is not within industry specifications (over large) the only way to really know is measuring it with headspace gauges or possibly a chamber cast. Once you know where you're at you can compensate with your resizing method. Headspace is measured from the base of the cartridge to a point on the shoulder. Your reloading manual should explain headspace. Overall length of the case is entirely different.

The overall length of a cartridge can be too long but not too short. What should stop the cartridge from going forward is the shoulder of the cartridge bumping up against the shoulder cut in the chamber. If you look at a drawing of a chamber you will see relief cut to allow for the diameter of the case neck. The case should be short enough so that the neck does not hit the end of the chamber relief and stop the cartridge from making contact with the shoulder.

If the case is too long and stopped from going forward it can compensate for a headspace problem but it's not the right way, you want the cartridge stopped at the shoulder. There are better ways.

Reloading dies are carefully made and it would be extremely rare that an out of spec one would slip by. There are industry-wide standards for each cartridge like SAAMI that everyone uses.

If you get headspace gauges follow the instructions precisely. It's easy to get false readings if you don't.

i understand the basics of headspace and that OACL is not related. I am still trying to find out why my misfires stop when I adjust the FL die at 1/8 extra turn instead of 1/4.
Thanks again for your help and patience. I am 85 years old and my intellectual dexterity isn't what it used to be.. I have been reloading since 1964 and never owned a HS gauge kit. I used to smoke my case necks and set my FL die as soon as it barely bumped the soot on the shoulder.

thanks again.