ligonierbill
New member
After patting myself on the back for success with the Mauser, I started my next action, grouping my .22 K Hornets. Didn't get far.
I have two Savage 23 D rifles that were reamed to the Kilbourn wildcat at some point. The first I've had for about 6 months and put over 100 rounds through. The second I just got and hadn't fired yet.
I had two loads that I've tested over the chrono. They seem to work pretty well and are well within published data. So I had 10 of each to see which had the better group: 45 Sierra (#1110) over 11.1 or 11.5 Li'l Gun. The first one goes 2,947 avg/21 SD, the second 3,010/27 SD.
So the first shot from the "old" rifle goes in the bull, but the second one is off, and I can't extract the case. Bolt opens fine, but the case is stuck. Hmmm, maybe one of those danged PPU cases split. Well, I know it's a good load (shooting the 11.1), so I chamber one in the "new" rifle. It's a little snug, but it chambers OK. The scope on this one is only bore sighted, but let's see where it hits. Guess what, bolt opens fine, but another stuck case. Go home.
At home, both cases came out easily with a cleaning rod. And there is a different problem with each. The danged PPU case didn't split, the case head separated. We all know what that means, excessive headspace. I should have seen it before, but like I said, lots of rounds have been fine. But now, I sized a couple fire-formed cases with the die tight on the shell holder and compared to a couple fired cases. Don't have a case gauge for this thing, but a close look verifies a significant difference in shoulder location. Solution, back the die off to move the shoulder little or none. I should mention that my first shot, with no problem, was a Hornady case, but they'll fail too if I keep stretching them each shot.
Now the "new" rifle. Well, standard Hornets chamber just fine, but even newly resized cases fire-formed in the other rifle are tight, especially at the base, in this one. Solution, fire-form cases specifically for this rifle.
My lesson: You really have to pay attention with a custom chamber, unless your smith did it to your specs. This will work out fine, but it sure had me scratching my head for awhile.
Followup: Confirmed the problem this morning, with a new lesson. Fire-formed 30 in the "new" rifle without a single split case. Obvious that my first one has a "generous" chamber.
I have two Savage 23 D rifles that were reamed to the Kilbourn wildcat at some point. The first I've had for about 6 months and put over 100 rounds through. The second I just got and hadn't fired yet.
I had two loads that I've tested over the chrono. They seem to work pretty well and are well within published data. So I had 10 of each to see which had the better group: 45 Sierra (#1110) over 11.1 or 11.5 Li'l Gun. The first one goes 2,947 avg/21 SD, the second 3,010/27 SD.
So the first shot from the "old" rifle goes in the bull, but the second one is off, and I can't extract the case. Bolt opens fine, but the case is stuck. Hmmm, maybe one of those danged PPU cases split. Well, I know it's a good load (shooting the 11.1), so I chamber one in the "new" rifle. It's a little snug, but it chambers OK. The scope on this one is only bore sighted, but let's see where it hits. Guess what, bolt opens fine, but another stuck case. Go home.
At home, both cases came out easily with a cleaning rod. And there is a different problem with each. The danged PPU case didn't split, the case head separated. We all know what that means, excessive headspace. I should have seen it before, but like I said, lots of rounds have been fine. But now, I sized a couple fire-formed cases with the die tight on the shell holder and compared to a couple fired cases. Don't have a case gauge for this thing, but a close look verifies a significant difference in shoulder location. Solution, back the die off to move the shoulder little or none. I should mention that my first shot, with no problem, was a Hornady case, but they'll fail too if I keep stretching them each shot.
Now the "new" rifle. Well, standard Hornets chamber just fine, but even newly resized cases fire-formed in the other rifle are tight, especially at the base, in this one. Solution, fire-form cases specifically for this rifle.
My lesson: You really have to pay attention with a custom chamber, unless your smith did it to your specs. This will work out fine, but it sure had me scratching my head for awhile.
Followup: Confirmed the problem this morning, with a new lesson. Fire-formed 30 in the "new" rifle without a single split case. Obvious that my first one has a "generous" chamber.
Last edited: