Hey I just bought a handi-rifle in 22-250 and have shot about 23 rounds through it. I have been Winchester ''White Box" 45 grains in it with fair accuracy out to 100 or so yds. Yesterday I reloaded a few rounds with a Lee Handloader. The six rounds I reloaded won't fit in the chamber. Or to explain it better the round will fit but the gun won't close and lock shut. Upon closer inspection the once fired round has a very small ridge about a quater inch up from the base that is about half way around the case. Is this a normal thing in a Handi-Rifle? When i get a set of dies for my Lee press will it remove this ridge? I need some serious help. Thanks in advance.
22-250 Chamber
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Aaro First off ---welcome aboard--
What set of dies are you using in the hand press , are they lee full length sizing dies , if so are the dies touching the shell holder with no brass in them,
It sounds to me that the dies are not sizing all the way down the shell . I had this problem with my 41 mag awhile back .
Try closing the press and turn the die all the way down till the die touches the shell holder , then open the press alittle and give the die about a 1/2 turn more down this should lit the die size all the way down the case
If the dies are neck sizers only you will need to get a full length sizing die
What set of dies are you using in the hand press , are they lee full length sizing dies , if so are the dies touching the shell holder with no brass in them,
It sounds to me that the dies are not sizing all the way down the shell . I had this problem with my 41 mag awhile back .
Try closing the press and turn the die all the way down till the die touches the shell holder , then open the press alittle and give the die about a 1/2 turn more down this should lit the die size all the way down the case
If the dies are neck sizers only you will need to get a full length sizing die
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Aaro,
while i agree with Tim that the full-length die can make a difference, i wonder why you can't re-chamber a once-fired round that was neck sized with a Lee Loader. it should re-chamber for a time or two being neck-sized.
is your bullet seated deeply enough? i have had some rounds that showed the 'small ridge' you spoke about, but neck-sizing them did not cause a problem as i remember. however, not seating a bullet deeply enough has caused problems for me when trying to chamber a round and close-up the rifle. when i seated the bullets deeper the problem was rectified.
take care,
ss'
while i agree with Tim that the full-length die can make a difference, i wonder why you can't re-chamber a once-fired round that was neck sized with a Lee Loader. it should re-chamber for a time or two being neck-sized.
is your bullet seated deeply enough? i have had some rounds that showed the 'small ridge' you spoke about, but neck-sizing them did not cause a problem as i remember. however, not seating a bullet deeply enough has caused problems for me when trying to chamber a round and close-up the rifle. when i seated the bullets deeper the problem was rectified.
take care,
ss'
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Safety Sheriff has a good point , the bullet not seated deeply enough may very well be the problem i didn't even think of that 
I came upon this situation last night,on the weekend I shot my .243 handi for the first time, close to 40 rounds, I neck sized all these and before I loaded them, tried them in the chamber, 6 of them didn't chamber, so I full length sized them and no problem, so why 30 odd rounds okay to chamber after necksizing and 6not?
Howard.
Howard.
I've had to buckle my dies down to 1/3 turn past contact with the ram for reliable chambering with consistent lockup. I also switched to a sturdier "O" frame RCBS press.
It's been years since I used a Lee Loader. You wack the assembly to resize, right? Or is it a hand-type press?
Try a couple of passes through your re-sizer. I also found that my rifle doesn't like hot loads. I stay in the low to moderate range for best accuracy.
Good luck,
Rick
PS :grin: Welcome
It's been years since I used a Lee Loader. You wack the assembly to resize, right? Or is it a hand-type press?
Try a couple of passes through your re-sizer. I also found that my rifle doesn't like hot loads. I stay in the low to moderate range for best accuracy.
Good luck,
Rick
PS :grin: Welcome
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i've had this type of problem with a couple of Ruger's in 7mm Mag' that were very tightly chambered....having to really 'bump' the full-length die with the shellholder to get the reloaded rounds to chamber. i'm reasonably certain that moving back the shoulder -- like what you are saying -- is what i was able to do that then let the rounds chamber. but, that's an exception to the rule In My Experience, so i thought i'd run the other idea up the flag pole re: this Handi'.quickdtoo said:
either way, i hope we've helped him.
take care, tim,
ss'
ps: those Ruger's were not headspacing on the belt, i don't think. i really believe they're that tightly chambered they're spacing off the shoulder. i did some trigger work on them, per centerfirecentral.com, and they lightened up very well. they both were relatively new models of the 77Mk II in 7 mm Mag'.
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Something that BPCR shooters have done for years.... because most if not all BPCR rifles are single shot rifles, is to index the loaded cartridge when chambering. The reason they do this is that most do not do a full resizing of their brass to save brass life.
This means find a spot on your cartridge that is easy for putting at the 12: O'clock position, so if your using Winchester center the WW at the 12 O'clock position.
After checking your OAL of bullet depth etc....Take note on this and see if it works for you.
Just a thought
This means find a spot on your cartridge that is easy for putting at the 12: O'clock position, so if your using Winchester center the WW at the 12 O'clock position.
After checking your OAL of bullet depth etc....Take note on this and see if it works for you.
Just a thought
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