nosler ammo question

[eastcoastguy]

I just switched to nosler accubond. After ther shot its hard to work the action.its very tight.is anyone having this issue  or know why its happening? Its never done it with any other ammo brands.

[Bob33]

After the shot the bullet is gone so it is not the issue. The ammunition is loaded to slightly different specs. The cases have expanded and are tighter in the chamber. It is often a symptom of higher pressure. I assume factory ammo?

[eastcoastguy]

Yes factory ammo.  I know how is doing it just not why. The bolt is extremely hard to open after the shot. I've shot Hornady gxs with no problem and on paper it a little higher in specs. Could be just this box.

[grundy53]

You're probably right. I bet it's just that batch. Getting a little higher pressure.

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[300rum]

Sign of over-pressure.  What do your primers look like?  Throw up a pick. 

What rifle/round are you shooting and what year was it made?  I have seen over pressure more then a few times with factory ammo, usually in lever actions such as the model 88 or pump guns but have seen it in bolt guns too. 

[fastdam]

Certain factory loads do that in my 300 RUM.   Find a different ammo.

[MarkyMark]

Federal Fusion did that in my Savage 300 wsm. Barnes or Federal Premium does not.


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[300rum]

The best thing to do (if you shoot factory ammo) is to buy rounds from all the various manufacturers, Remington, Hornady, Winchester, Federal, etc.  Over a period of time, shoot them for accuracy at 100yds and find out which one wins.  When you find what works best in your rifle, buy a case of it (or more) especially if you can get the same lot.   

I have done this for a few rifles that I don't or don't want to reload for.  One of them, a 1960's Remington 700 7mm mag., loves Winchester Ballistic Silvertips so I shoot those, they clover leaf at a 100 yards prone off a bag.  I purchased all the boxes I could in the same lot and finally ran out a year or two ago.  I was worried that the lot difference would change the poi with a new lot but it didn't.  10+ years later and the poi is the same, irregardless of the lot.

It is expensive to do (now days) but well worth it.  I am now in the process of doing it with an LR-308 long-range setup.       

[eastcoastguy]

The rds keyhole at 100yrds. The cases are my only issue.thought about buying 1 more box to see if its a fluke.my gun loves the bullet. I shot rem core lok an they shoot just as good  unless i jump up to a heavier bullet.i tryed hornedy gmx and couldnt get better than a 5inch group at 100. I just don't want to ruin anything.

[fastdam]

It has the potential to ruin your exctractor. I ruined one in a rem 700 testing hot handloads.

[eastcoastguy]

I'm using the rem 700 platform. More testing i guess.

[300rum]

If you are not getting primer flow or flattening I would stick with them because of the accuracy.  Is the bolt "sticky" or can you just not get it open without beating on it?   

[TVHunts]

It is likely they are a little hot but, here is another angle. 

Try thoroughly cleaning your chamber. If you don't have a chamber mop/cleaning kit make one out of a wood dowel. Under size the dowel to accept a thick cotton t shirt and scrub the heck out of it.  I was having this issue with an A-Bolt in 300 Win Mag using hand loads that were in no way hot loads and it solved the problem.  It's worth a try.

A picture of your primers would help. 

Good luck

[Bob33]

The rds keyhole at 100yrds.

That would be enough for me to choose a different load.

[eastcoastguy]

I've tried to get a picture on here and it wont let me.ill try again when i get home. I just went tnrough the gun before i shot it so eveything was cleaned and lubed.i know its not that. I looked last night at hornady and it says they have a higher bc then nosler and no issue with the cases.might have to look for a different Rd but we shall see.oh and bob33 why would you choose a different ammo if its key holing at a 100yrds?

[bobcat]

So when you say your bullets are keyholing do your targets look like this?

[eastcoastguy]

Ahh nope they dont. The 2nd hole is touching the first. Both straight it, guess we all use different  terms. Key holing to me is when the 2nd rd almost makes it through the first hole but makes the hole a hair bigger  on the side it hits. If that makes sense. Sorry for the confusion

[bobcat]

Okay, well the term keyholing normally is used when the bullets aren't being stabilized for whatever reason and are tumbling, and hitting the target sideways.

So basically what you're getting is one hole groups. That's what I would call it.

[fastdam]

If your commited to the accubonds you could always start handloading. I doubt you will regret it.  There are other good bullets though.

[eastcoastguy]

Any recommendations?  I want a hard hitting bullet. Around the 140 to 150g range

[Bob33]

Ahh nope they dont. The 2nd hole is touching the first. Both straight it, guess we all use different  terms. Key holing to me is when the 2nd rd almost makes it through the first hole but makes the hole a hair bigger  on the side it hits. If that makes sense. Sorry for the confusion

http://hunting.about.com/od/guns/g/definition-of-keyhole-bullet-keyholing.htm

[2labs]

Any recommendations?  I want a hard hitting bullet. Around the 140 to 150g range

Ttsx or tsx or maybe the good ole partition.

[fastdam]

I would do what 300 RUM suggested by testing different factory loads and see what you learn from the tests.  Your gun will tell you what to use

[Rich_S]

Since you are using factory ammo, like others said, find what works and stick with it. Accuracy isn't worth a dime if you can't get your bolt open in the field.

If I were loading my own, I would start by making sure my chamber is clean and relatively dry. It shouldn't be wet with oil. I would check the seated length of the bullet regards to the start of the rifling. If your chamber puts the bullet in contact with the rifling, that can lead to overpressure and a sticky bolt. Next I would get a chamber cast on your rifle to see if it is within standards. If it's a bit short, the case length could be causing problems. Either trim the cases or get the chamber reamed to specs.

Is the bolt difficult to rotate or hard to pull back? Two different symptoms with different causes. So much fun to diagnose and finally cure. The latest problems I've had were with Ruger single-actions. Teo of them were with .30 carbine revolvers. Both of them had chambers which were right at minimum length. Trimming the cartridges a bit shorter than SAAMI standards cured the problem, but the next owner might find the same thing if he shoots factory ammo. The third problem child is a Ruger Hawkeye single-shot pistol in .256 Win Mag. This turned out to be both a short and tight chamber. Since I alter .357 mag cases to .256 win mag, I was able to shorten them and squeeze them down. I don't shoot factory ammo because it's mostly out of production or custom-made and very expensive. What I've got is for display only.

You probably don't need another hobby so stay away from reloading. You'll never save a dime (in the long run) and it's addicting. 

[300rum]

I am going to take a guess that it is headspace issue but you still haven't said what cartridge you are shooting? 

Out to 400 yards or so (farther really) the bullet that you use hunting doesn't mean a whole lot out of the tried and tested big game bullets.  Accuracy is and always will be king.  Since your bullets are touching at 100 yards, you have solved the accuracy issue (the most important), that is plenty accurate, so you you want to keep this ammo if at all possible.  What we need to find out is if you are on the edge of over pressure.  If there isn't any primer flow and maybe just some flattening, that is fine, I'll take that.  If you can't get your bolt open, that's a problem..... 

Again,is your bolt just a tad hard to open or do you have to beat on it to get it open?  If it is just a tad stiff and there isn't primer flow, stay with the load.  The load is telling you that it is on the edge of overpressure and you are getting about all you can out of it.  A Chrono would help you solve this too....