I'm having problems with my handloads chambering in my Springfield Armory Standard M1A. I'm using LC brass, a small base die, and 150 grain round nose Speer bullets. The tag that came with my gun said that it was headspaced to 1.632. I had headspaced the brass to 1.629. Every book says the max bullet length is 2.810 and my bullets length was 2.795. Does anybody why my bullets aren't chambering all they way.
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Reloading M1A
- Thread starter M1abender
- Start date
"Does anybody why my bullets aren't chambering all they way."
When don't the CARTRIDGES chamber all the way? Are you letting the bolt slam home by itself? Or are you riding it down, holding on to the op rod?
Let the bolt slam home by itself.
Are you using a full magazine, or just one or two rounds in it? Or maybe single loading???
Can you insert the cartridges fully into the chamber by hand, without them getting jammed in any way?
When don't the CARTRIDGES chamber all the way? Are you letting the bolt slam home by itself? Or are you riding it down, holding on to the op rod?
Let the bolt slam home by itself.
Are you using a full magazine, or just one or two rounds in it? Or maybe single loading???
Can you insert the cartridges fully into the chamber by hand, without them getting jammed in any way?
In a rimless, necked rifle cartridge the OAL of the completed round isn't what determines whether the bolt will close on it or not. Why? Because the round headspaces on the shoulder datum which sets both the distance from the shoulder to the base and the shoulder to the case mouth.
Most of the time when a round won't chamber fully the issue is that the shoulder to base distance is too long such that the bolt face contacts the base before the lugs fully engauge, not the shoulder to the mouth length.
One must use a case gauge to ensure that the shoulder is set correctly to the base and the mouth. That's why you hear of handloaders 'bumping back' the shoulder a few thousands.
Most of the time when a round won't chamber fully the issue is that the shoulder to base distance is too long such that the bolt face contacts the base before the lugs fully engauge, not the shoulder to the mouth length.
One must use a case gauge to ensure that the shoulder is set correctly to the base and the mouth. That's why you hear of handloaders 'bumping back' the shoulder a few thousands.