hunter1026 Report post Posted October 1, 2013 I have a tc encore I've been reloading for and recently the brass has been coming apart I shot my loads they split, I shot my friends loads they cracked, I shot another friends loads and they cracked I call Thompson center 4 weeks ago they were supposed to send me a shipping label but I haven't gotten one so I threw the gun back together and went to shoot some factory federal loads and shoot a .3" group!! With no splits! Do you think the gun is safe to shoot or should I send it in? Split brass all split the same way Group shot with factory ammo Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ctafoya Report post Posted October 1, 2013 How many times have the shells been loaded? How hot of a load are yours and your friends reloads? I've had a few shells split atfer several reloads and I also load pretty hot. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hunter1026 Report post Posted October 1, 2013 They weren't the hottest loads I think they were 2 grains under max Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rkv09 Report post Posted October 1, 2013 Ya they were 60 grains of H4831, max is 62 for the 130 grain bullet I believe. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PRDATR Report post Posted October 1, 2013 Case seperation is common in 223 but it usually is not a factor until the case has been sized and trimmed a half dozen times. What is that a 270? Shoot Mike an email, http://www.bellmtcs.com/store/ 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jarheadhunter Report post Posted October 1, 2013 From the looks of it they have been sized one to many times. I had the same thing happen to me. Always fun to get the stuck case out of the chamber. I usually close the bolt and put balls or cigarette like tissue down the barrel and follow it with a cleaning rod to compact it. After I have about half of the case full I open the bolt and shoot a blast of compressed air down the barrel and it usually falls right out. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hunter1026 Report post Posted October 1, 2013 Ya that's a 270 and to get the shell out I use a brass brush I shove it into the case and it pulls it right out Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Scooter Report post Posted October 1, 2013 Those cases were more than likely weakened by sizing dies... You might want to double check the alignment of the ram and die to be sure equal pressure is being applied 360 degrees around the case when you run it into the sizing die. If there is even a slight alignment issue it can cause uneven case wall thickness or shape. Do you anneal your brass? If your loads were all splitting like that I would have to say with 95% certainty that your full-length sizing die or a misaligned shell holder/ram is the culprit. You shoot an Encore... Why not use just a neck sizer? You'll get more loads per case! 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
azgutpile Report post Posted October 1, 2013 What you have is a case head separation, which is usually caused by excessive head space or to many firings of that brass. The best way to check the head space of the rifle is to take it to a gunsmith and they can use a go/no go gauge and see if it is within spec. Another easy way to check for excessive head space is by placing scotch tape over your case head and see if the bolt or breach will close. Do this with a new case and one of your reloads. If the bolt closes on your reloads and not on the factory you either are setting the resizing die up incorrectly or the die is out of spec. If you have already used the brass several times, the brass just be getting old. You can make your brass last longer by either neck sizing your dies or getting a head space gauge and set up your current dies to bump the shoulder back just slightly. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
STOMP442 Report post Posted October 1, 2013 +1 to what gut pile has said. I'm betting on headspace issue if splitting or cracking new brass like that. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MULEPACKHUNTER Report post Posted October 1, 2013 Headspace Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Scooter Report post Posted October 2, 2013 +1 to what gut pile has said. I'm betting on headspace issue if splitting or cracking new brass like that. He said the new factory brass didn't split- just the reloads. I do agree to some extent with the people who blame it on headspace because most times case-head separations happen because of headspace issues... As I look at the split case, I can see the sizing marks pretty clearly and there's a significant section towards the case head/rim that looks untouched by the sizing die. That tells me this case has been loaded several times. If that same sizing die was used for his friend's reloads too- that could be the culprit. Maybe check the scale too- could be out of tolerance by a grain or two. You just don't see very many headspace issues with single shot break action rifles- especially from T/C... but can't rule it out completely! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Benbrown Report post Posted October 2, 2013 The brass is stretching when it is fired. When it is resized, the shoulder is pushed back and the excess goes into the neck. This is why you have to trim cases after several reloads--the neck gets too long to allow the round to seat properly in the chamber. This situation is worsened when ammo is fired in a break-action such as the T/C, as they do not lock up as tight as a bolt action and allow the case to stretch a little more. The hotter the loads, the worse the problem becomes. When cases separate, they almost always do it at approximately the same place as those in the photo. You can check to see whether your cases are getting close to separating by taking a paper clip and straightening it out with only a small "L" right at the end. Push it down into a fired case until it bottoms out, then scrape the point of the "L" against the side wall as you pull it out. If the case is thinning almost to the point of breaking, you will feel a slight tug as the point of the "L" drops into the thinned line of brass where the case will separate when it lets go. If you feel this, discard that case. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
azgutpile Report post Posted October 2, 2013 />The brass is stretching when it is fired. When it is resized, the shoulder is pushed back and the excess goes into the neck. This is why you have to trim cases after several reloads--the neck gets too long to allow the round to seat properly in the chamber. This situation is worsened when ammo is fired in a break-action such as the T/C, as they do not lock up as tight as a bolt action and allow the case to stretch a little more. The hotter the loads, the worse the problem becomes. When cases separate, they almost always do it at approximately the same place as those in the photo. You can check to see whether your cases are getting close to separating by taking a paper clip and straightening it out with only a small "L" right at the end. Push it down into a fired case until it bottoms out, then scrape the point of the "L" against the side wall as you pull it out. If the case is thinning almost to the point of breaking, you will feel a slight tug as the point of the "L" drops into the thinned line of brass where the case will separate when it lets go. If you feel this, discard that case. +1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MULEPACKHUNTER Report post Posted October 2, 2013 Squeeze with pliars and when you hit thin wall it will be soft. Factory ammo is still soft so it didn't split since it was not hardend from firing. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
