Thompson Contender 22 hornet neck splitting

[BADUNAME64]

Shooting a t/c 14 " 22 hornet and splitting case necks, both rp and winchester brass. Have trird several different loads to no avail. Shot the same loads in a cz 527 rifle and have never split one neck, any help or suggestions would be appreciated. Thank-you

 

[Ohen Cepel]

Is it a factory barrel? Any chance it was cut to K-Hornet or Improved Hornet?
Haven't seen that issue with any Contender barrels unless they had been rechambered.

 

[bubba15301]

old brass ?

 

[Vern Humphrey]

Probably the brass is work-hardened. Hornet brass is thin, and Hornet chambers are too large for the case (the Hornet was originally the .22 WCF, a black powder cartridge from the 1880s.) Those two factors are a recipe for cracked necks. Try annealing every couple of loads.

 

[cfullgraf]

22 Hornet cases are very thin. It may be that the neck section of your barrel may be oversized causing the neck to be overworked during resizing. A casting of your chamber may indicate that.

I have a 1990 vintage factory Contender carbine barrel in 22 Hornet. Brass life is short, 3 or 4 loadings and failures are usually due to head separation. Neck sizing helps some with case life, maybe another time or two.

i cannot say I remember any neck splits but it has been a while since I shot the barrel a lot.