Changing barrel issues...Need help

[Shooter71462]

I swapped the barrel from a stock 22-250 to a 243 Win. Went with the a new Shillen 26" varmint. According to the "Go" and "No Go" gauges spacing is right. Then I tried to chamber several pcs of brass and none would chamber. Always stick and some would not allow the bolt to go down. These were all full sized and primed. I checked them and they are within tolerance. Any ideas?

[RustyShackle]

I swapped the barrel from a stock 22-250 to a 243 Win. Went with the a new Shillen 26" varmint. According to the "Go" and "No Go" gauges spacing is right. Then I tried to chamber several pcs of brass and none would chamber. Always stick and some would not allow the bolt to go down. These were all full sized and primed. I checked them and they are within tolerance. Any ideas?

A chamber should be .005 larger than than commercial ammo(ideally), the no-go gage is +0.005 over a go-gage and the field-gage is 0.009 over the go-gage, this would give commercial ammo .014 head space when fired in a chamber that a field-gage fit in.


GO: Corresponds to the minimum chamber dimensions. If a rifle closes on a GO gage, the chamber will accept ammunition that is made to SAAMI’s maximum specifications. The GO gage is essential for checking a newly-reamed chamber in order to ensure a tight, accurate and safe chamber that will accept SAAMI maximum ammo. Although the GO gage is necessary for a gunsmith or armorer, it usually has fewer applications for the collector or surplus firearms purchaser.
NO-GO: Corresponds to the maximum headspace recommended for gunsmiths chambering new firearms. This is NOT a SAAMI-maximum measurement. If a rifle closes on a NO-GO gage, it may still be within SAAMI specifications or it may have excessive headspace. To determine if there is excessive headspace, the chamber should then be checked with a FIELD gage. The NO-GO gage is essential for checking a newly-reamed chamber in order to ensure a tight and accurate chamber.
FIELD: Corresponds to the longest safe headspace. If a rifle closes on a FIELD gage, its chamber is dangerously close to, or longer than, SAAMI’s specified maximum chamber size. If chamber headspace is excessive, the gun should be taken out of service until it has been inspected and repaired by a competent gunsmith. FIELD gages are slightly shorter than the SAAMI maximum in order to give a small safety margin

Hope this helps

[J.Baker]

Pull the barrel and measure the following:

1. How much of the go-gauge sticks out of the chamber
2. How far your FL sized brass sticks out of the chamber

Could be you got a slightly short gauge, a slightly long set of dies, or the chamber in the barrel is a little short. The gauge and FL sized brass should both stick out roughly the same amount, precisely 0.120 to 0.125" IIRC.

[Robinhood]

^^^^ This. what you have is a prime example of why many guys have purchased a case inspection tool like Hornady LNL Case Head Space Gauge

[Shooter71462]

I will pull it down tonight and measure everything. The odd thing is that I had some 100 gr loads that were laying around from my other 243 (sized in the same dies) and they do chamber. They are tight but with minimal pressure the bolt will close. Thank you for the response and I'll let everyone know what I come up with.

[Shooter71462]

OK I pulled the barrel off last night and took some measurements. I found the issue and the issue was me. Where the chamber is a much tighter fit than my other 243 it will chamber factory 243 ammo without any problems. The issue was I had neck sized around 100 pcs of 1 shot brass and placed them in a bag marked "full sized and primed". The base of the case was expanded and does chamber perfectly in the old barrel, but will not in the new barrel. Guess tonight I will be full sizing a bunch of primed brass so I can take the gun out tomorrow. As always thanks to all for the response.

[DrThunder88]

I'm glad you got it figured out. I'm also glad this reloading "oops" wasn't catastrophic!