338 Lapua question

M

majog

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I am reloading for my Savage 338 Lapua bolt action rifle. It cycles new brass just fine. My reloads seat and extract fine if not fired but after firing they swell in the chamber and I have to knock them out with a solid cleaning rod or wooden dowel.

I trim the cases to exact spec's in my RCBS reloading manual and full size each round. I seat the bullet to RCBS spec's and overall the shell micro's out to almost exactly the same as my factory round.

I am using Retumbo powder but have tried H100. I have usually load to about the middle of the spec'd powder range but have tried both a slightly hot load and a very light load. In each case the round still stays wedged in the chamber and won't extract.

I have been loading for 20 years and never run into anything like this. Any thoughts from anyone?:confused:
 
The first thing that I would do is try a different powder.

If that doesn't fix the problem, I would have a competent gunsmith make a chamber cast and check the dimentions of the chamber.
 
That is either a high pressure sign or caused by a very rough chamber with lots of toolmarks. Occasionally you hear of a chamber that a wobbling tool put a reverse taper neck into that can also grab a case.

I assume when you say a "light" load, you mean the lowest load listed in the published data. That's where one should always start. I've twice run into guns for which that starting load was already the particular gun's maximum, usually because of a tight bore. Once in a while, it's because of using a brand of brass with less capacity than the brand the load was developed with. I would try using the same brand case and primer as your data lists, if you haven't already.

But if you are getting a case stuck with a starting load and have the primer and capacity right, I would take one of the as-fired cases and put Magic Marker all over it and insert it and knock it back out to look for signs of where it is rubbing or scraping. If you find high spots corresponding to a really rough chamber, I would call Savage. They will probably have you return it so they can put another barrel on it.
 
What brand brass?

I ran I to a problem similar to this with another cartridge. Even with Light loads I had sticky bolts and a couple stuck cases. My brass was too soft and had less case capacity than my other brass. Changed to another brand of brass and my problem was solved. This may not be your issue, but it is worth looking at.

Do you have a way to compare cartridge base to shoulder radius on factory, spent unsized and resized brass?

Also I am curious if you are referring to H-1000 or Hybrid-100v? You did originally write H-100 so I figured worth asking. The load data for the two in that rifle are pretty different so if one got them mixed up that could certainly cause stuck cases. A Max charge of Hybrid 100v is less than the starting charge of H-1000 according to hodgdon. Not trying to say you made that mistake, but we are all human and your OP wasn't clear on that.
 
Is a stretched (sorry about the pun) but your throat may be short and you are indeed up in t he pressure.

Arguing against that is the low charge weight.

If you would list the brass you are using, same or not, the primer as well as the powder and charge with that powder.

Using the new load brass or other?

It tends to a chamber issue but with factory rounds working and your procedures are all solid, hmmm.

Possibly a look with a borescope if access or gun smith.
 
I had a savage BA110 .338 Lapua. I sold it but before i did i developed several loads for it and had about 1,100 rounds down the pipe.

I had huge problems with Hornady brass. This was a known problem for that gunand that brass. I called hornady and they blamed savage for too tight of a chamber. I called savage, sent the gun in, they said it was within spec and the brass must be too soft.

I even had factory loaded hornady rounds yield a sticky bolt.

I tried HSM brand brass (dont know who made it for sure) and things improved but still occasionally had a sticky bolt if i pushed it near max.

I tried Lapua brass and had zero issues. Everything worked as it should, even with hotter rounds using retumbo and a 300 grain match king. I think i was using around 91 gr retumbo with a 300 gr match king. That load would have required me to drive a Hornady case out with a dowel while the lapua cases all handled this fine for over 7 reloads per case (or about 700 rounds)

Try lapua brass and if that doesn't work, and you are not way over pressure, then its your chamber
 
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If its the chamber and not a chamber that is imprinting brass, then polish it or have it polished (you do know you are not supposed to shoot reloads ? - grin)

Savage return is a waste of time unless its obviously flawed.
 
I've had good luck with the Flex Hone chamber hones for resurfacing chambers with even, normal toolmarks, but they will not take deep gouges or grooves out. As to brass, that factor is real.

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Ok, that's the head hardness.
Would the sidewalls be the same hardness, or slightly softer?

Appreciate the info though!
 
Thanks All

Thanks all. I am using H-1000 not H-100. That having been said I have since found the below:

"One other issue you may run across is disparity in what the max length of cases should be. From reading on a few forums as well as experience with my Savage 111 Long Range Hunter in 338 Lapua, it seems that the Savage chambers are cut a bit tight. There are 2 official case trim lengths given out there as well as an unofficial best practice length. LEE recommends a max case length of 2.726″ while Lyman and Nosler say 2.724″. You may want to trim much sooner as some users of the Savage 338 Lapua’s have experienced jamming at beyond 2.720″. I personally experienced high pressure signs in my Savage whenever the trim length got above 2.72″. On the plus side, the tighter chambers on the Savage will mean longer brass life and potentially better accuracy. Personally, I trim to 2.714” using a Lee hand trimmer."

https://www.huntinggearguy.com/reloading/reloading-for-the-338-lapua-magnum/

I tend to agree with Adriel on this. While I am trimming to factory spec's I was at a case length 2.724. I have been trimming to as close to 2.724, which is .002 over what Adriel suggests. My brass is primarily Hornady so Stat Shooter may be right. I will try some Lapua brass. Thank you all for weighing in and giving me some additional things to check. I appreciate it all.

j
 
Majog,

Thanks for following up.

Since I don't own one, I had to look up SAAMI's drawing for the .338 Lapua. It gives the case length as 2.7244 -0.0200 inches. In other words, 2.7244 inches is the MAXIMUM case length. The minimum length is 2.7044 inches. Manufacturers normally target the midpoint between minimum and maximum, as does the handloading trim-to length which, from SAAMI's numbers, should be 2.7144 inches. Since trimming precision has a tolerance of its own (different for each trimmer), going right in the middle gives you the best chance the tolerance error in your trimming operation will not take the length outside the maximum or minimum. It's the same reason manufacturers typically aim at that middle number.

You have to be careful looking at load manuals. Many just copy the SAAMI dimensions without the tolerance. SAAMI linear case dimensions are always maximums with a minus tolerance. This confuses people who are only accustomed to plus or minus tolerances. The unilateral tolerance used by SAAMI is, however, a standard engineering practice when the dimensions in one direction away from the midpoint are critical but in the other direction, they are not. In that case, the critical dimension is given with the tolerance only in the other direction. In this case, critical means, make it any bigger and it can't be squeezed into a SAAMI minimum chamber. Make it too small and it can still be chambered, even if it doesn't work optimally, so too small is less critical and is the direction the tolerance goes in.

You can look up the length and tolerance in the drawings on the SAAMI site.
 
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