[hydeslinger]

I am in the process of reloading a Rem 222 for a family member. I am using their brass and some that I have found in various places including Ebay. (can't verify how many times they have been loaded). All the brass was ran through a new RCBS FL die, trimmed to "trim length" tumbled, sonic cleaned and ready for loading.
The problem.. I am having some tight fit in my test loads.. Some of the loads will not even allow the bolt to close. I have my COL at like .005 longer than my book says, so I am not pushing into the lands..
Some of the brass fits very nicely as it should but some are almost sticky. All slide into the chamber without issue. It's when I try and close the bolt that i am having issues.
I have done all the listed steps above in process so all were sized, then tumbled, trimmed and so on in one step then the next.
What the heck am I doing wrong.. I am using a mix of WW and RP, mostly RP. I have some PMC and some off stamp Dominion??
Any help here would be great!!:banghead:
Rifle is a 700 BDL Varmint if that makes a difference.

[rcmodel]

Your sizing die is not screwed down far enough to FL size and push the shoulder back where it belongs.
Some of the mixed brass is work hardened more then others, and those aren't getting fully sized.

Depending on your brand of press, screw the die down until it hits the shell holder.
Then screw it down another 1/8 or more turn.

That makes up for the slop in the linkage and press frame flex when you are actually applying the extreme pressure it takes to size a case.

Adjust the sizing die like that and try sized but not loaded cases in the rifle until they fit.

PS: Also make sure your seating die isn't screwed down too far and applying an unwanted crimp to the bullet when seated. That can buckle the case shoulder imperceptibly and cause the same problem with chambering.

rc

[GLOOB]

^That about covers it. But I have an additional 2 cents.

Those guns are made with tight chamber, already. And then on top of that, work hardening at the shoulder of a case can prevent it from sizing back to spec, even if your dies are screwed all the way and you're doing everything right.

IMO, your friend should mark the tight cases with a sharpie. And buy you a case gauge. Size, gauge, anneal, size again, regauage. You'll see.

Others might suggest you just grind a bit off the base of your sizing die to size more. But that will undersize your good brass. This is why people keep rifle ammo in separate lots by times fired.

[hydeslinger]

rcmodel, I see the problem. I only have the FL dies screwed down to touch the shell plate when the ram is fully extended. Good to know!!
I do not have the seater die to far down so I am not roll crimping upon seating.

Question: once I have all the brass resized with the FL die, should I be able to use a neck size die from here on? This is the only 222 the brass will be shot through..

[Josh45]

After full sizing them and shooting them and then fire formed to the firearm that they will only be used in, Yes. You should be able to neck size only on them for a few more loadings. Also, You can remove the crimping part of the die. I have. I don't even crimp my 30-06 rounds.

[hydeslinger]

GLOOB, good point. The issue was I was given a zip lock bag of brass. Some was new as we had just shot it. Some of the brass came out of the small cardboard box with a load using BLC-2 and dated 1978. IE: it was a reload in 78. My family member does not shoot all that much and with life, other.., does not seem to have time to reload.
I on the other hand enjoy loading the .22's and smaller so I volunteered. This has plagued me from the beginning. My bad for not putting the FL low enough. Rookie mistake.
That being said, this could be the issue with my accuracy?? I hear about how the 222 is so inherently accurate, but I am only able to get .95 5 shot group.. Now I know I have more work to do. I am loading H-322 and 50 Vmax

[rcmodel]

If you are chasing extreme accuracy?

I highly recommend sorting the brass by headstamp and loading & testing it in batches of all the same cases.

Differences in case capacity between brands or lots of brass can cause quite different pressure & velocity shot to shot.

rc

[YankeeFlyr]

You're not sure how many times they've been reloaded?

You may be pushing it...I wouldn't.

[ArchAngelCD]

I agree, use quality brass with the same headstamp and of a known linage if you want extreme accuracy. Under an inch for a 5 shot group isn't all that bad if you ask me...

BTW, why the 222 Rem instead of the .223? Brass is so much more available for the .223 that's why when I was looking for a varmint rifle I went with a .223... (I was considering a 204 Ruger, a 223 Rem, a 22-250 and the 243 Win)

[flashhole]

Surprised nobody suggested annealing. If your brass is work hardened you can get excessive spring-back and not fully size it. It's things like this that make you appreciate a case comparator. Another trick is to put a shim in the shell holder under the brass. That raises the case up a couple of thou. I sometimes use folded aluminum foil for a shim.

[James2]

BTW, why the 222 Rem instead of the .223?

And why not? The 222 first came out in 1950. It was a sensation. Many were made and bought. The 223 Rem didn't come out until 1964. Perhaps the ops rifle is an older one? My 222 REM was made around 1955. What a sweet cartridge, then and now.

[JLDickmon]

Why the triple-deuce? Why not?

x2 on sorting the brass by headstamp.

I was going to ask, "Make sure it's a .222 Rem die, not a .222Mag or .223.."
(or for that matter, .222 vs. .222 Mag brass..)

[jim147]

If your working with brass over a 30+ year span you might have to check volume also. Some of my older .222 brass has noticeably less capacity.

I use a little slower powder in mine but I think H322 should get you there. If you haven't already, make sure the bore is clean and the crown hasn't been beat up over the years.

jim

[ArchAngelCD]

And why not? The 222 first came out in 1950. It was a sensation. Many were made and bought. The 223 Rem didn't come out until 1964. Perhaps the ops rifle is an older one? My 222 REM was made around 1955. What a sweet cartridge, then and now.
You're acting like I was saying there is something wrong with the 222 Rem, I'm not. It's a good question and I highly doubt it's an older gun since the OP said:
Rifle is a 700 BDL Varmint if that makes a difference.
I'm asking because I don't think the Remington 700 in the Varmint variation is that old and the current caliber list does include the 222 Rem. A lot of Varmint hunters are looking for high velocities to keep the bullet flat and the 223 will do that much better than the 222.

So my question still stands to the OP, why the 222 Rem over the 223?

[flashhole]

My Remington 700 started life as a Light Varmint Stainless Fluted (LVSF) but now sports a Boyd's thumbhole laminate stock. It was offered in 221 Fireball and 223. I chose the Fireball but would have gone the 222 route had it been offered. I reload so that is a strong factor for me. I can deal with less available ammo adn I make my own 221 cases from 223 cases. I could easily do the same for a 222. I like the added neck length on the 222 and with some of the modern powders you really don't give up much velocity over its effective range. Same with the Fireball, I don't give up all that much in utility and the Fireball is a fun gun to shoot.

Having said that, my 223 is a Kimber Longmaster Classic with a 24" barrel. If I ever rebarrel this gun it will be to the 222. I like the 223 but I don't see much charm in the cartridge for a bolt gun.

[hydeslinger]

Arch, it's my uncle’s gun.. His brother bought it new in the mid 70's. Remington 700 BDL Varminter. My uncle was given a Stilh 035 chainsaw for Fathers Day in the early 90's or late 80's. His brother really wanted the chain saw so a trade was made. BTW, wife of the current owner is still sore about that :D

The rifle is in very good shape, crown is clean and without defect of any I can see. The rifle has really not been used that heavily over the years. It's taken on Coyote/Cat hunts and when the squirrels are out, we bang away a few rounds but usually shoot Hornets or he also has an old 5mm. So to answer your question, it's not my rifle, I traded some reloading duties for him driving on a multi day coyote hunt in January.

I turned down the die about 1/4 to 1/2 a turn and resized all the brass I had.. I had primed about 100 rounds so I back off the capping pin and SLOWLY sized those as well. It seems to have done the trick. I cycled some random sized brass in the chamber and the bolt closed as expected.
I feel like a dumb A** not having my dies turned down.. If you only knew how many hours I toiled over this before posting??
I will take it out next week for a final test before I make rounds to take to him. I have the COL about .008 longer than listed in the Hornady book. I did the sharpie on the bullet test and have it set back about .002 from the lands..
I am using a mid range load at 23.2 of H322..
I will post after I make my final test..
Thanks again for all the information from everyone!!

[ArchAngelCD]

I think you're on the right track now. I'm sure you will get good results when you fire the next batch of ammo...