Prepped .223 brass drops into JP case gauge--but sticks in chamber

[kamikaze1a]

Holy freaking hell Batman. This thread is enough to give a newbie like me a heart attack! Very informative. I've just started reloading 223 on my 550. I have been neck sizing only for a bolt action rifle. Had several rounds that were extremely difficult to extract and some moderately difficult to chamber. ALL of them fit great into the Dillon case gage. After reading this my faith in case gage is completely blown...

Thank you thank you thank you to Ed for the great illustrations and advice in this thread. The case separation pic was especially scary...

After reading all of this I am certain that my issues must also be due to improper shoulder size/aspect....as overall length was <2.255, cases trimmed to 1.74-1.75, 55gr PSP bullet...

Now I just need to learn how to "bump the shoulder" that people are referencing! Obviously its done with a FL die...(right?) or one of these specialized dies. It would seem Neck sizing isn't worth the trouble and probably doesn't make much of an accuracy difference.

How in the world is one supposed to find out about all these odd fixes/problems (grinding dies, specialized shell holders, bullet comparators etc etc) it's enough to just buy factory ammo and be done with it!

Night

Aren't you thankful for the internet and for great forums like be.com?

I have been reloading since 1970 and in those days you had to actually read the manual! No DVD's or streaming videos online. Sometimes you might find an article in a periodical or buy a special edition reloading magazine. Other than that, you would write a letter to the manufacturer or call them "long distance". No cell phones with included long distance in those days...

Thank you Prof Kleinrock!

[perrysho]

Take a look a Lee Factory Crimp Die # 90817, Don't go crazy crimping, but may just help.

Be SAFE

Perry