338lm headspace

[pittbull46]

I am having case head separation bought a go gauge from Brownells and the bolt won't close on it what to do thanks

[Wayne Nixon]

Not an expert but if bolt won’t close on GO gauge then it seems head space is too tight and needs set. If you have tools easy to set yourself, if no tools smith can do it.


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[celltech]

Did you break down the bolt head before trying the gauge?

[pittbull46]

I called savage and they said send it but how do I get the stock off

[Robinhood]

Case head separation happens when brass is sized to short for the chamber. If you are reloading and and continuously "oversize" your cases, the will expand repeatedly to the chamber due to the heat and pressure. As the brass gets harder at the shoulder the thinnest area of the case walls begins to stretch and rip apart.

If you do not already have a way to check fired brass against resized brass you have no way of knowing how much you are bumping the shoulder. You should not be bumping the shoulder any more that .003" for a bolt gun. Maybe .004" for a case that size...for that I'm not 100% certain.

Be certain that you have a go and not a no go.

[tobnpr]

Remove the two action screws from the bottom of the stock/chassis. I'm assuming from your lack of knowledge on action screws that you do not handload and are shooting factory ammo.
Symptoms are odd...did you have difficulty closing the bolt on ammunition? Bolt closing on factory ammunition,but not on a go-gauge doesn't compute.

No matter, the .338 LM is not to be trifled with if you're having cases separate on first firing- send it in ASAP. I suspect the barrel may have been incorrectly short chambered before install, exposing too much case above the casehead which would cause the separation.

[pittbull46]

Got the front screw out can't get the butstock off want to cut down on weight and length to ship

[pittbull46]

Got action out need to look closer maybe new glasses haha can I send barreled action usps

[hafejd30]

Is this factory ammo or reloads?? The fact that a “go” gauge doesn’t close but the ammo seems to fit fine is kinda strange. Normally a “no go” gauge in and the bolt closing would indicate long headspace and be a culprit for the case head separation. If we could get more info before you send it in we may be able to help more. If these are reloads that are extremely oversized would be about the only issue I could see with this

[tobnpr]

Got action out need to look closer maybe new glasses haha can I send barreled action usps

Yes- USPS Priority Mail is the fastest, and most economical way to ship a rifle (or in your case without the stock, it's considered a receiver)- and you'll get the necessary tracking for proof of delivery.
Unlike common carriers like Fedex and UPS, no special requirements with USPS.

[pittbull46]

Thanks for the information