357 cartridges won't go completely into cylinder

[george_lehr]

For what it's worth.
I had a problem with reloads that would not fully chamber in my Chief's Special. It turned out that the problem was the bullets I used. They were round nose flat point lead Carroll bullets I had picked up at a gun show. The distance from the crimp groove to the end of the straight cylindrical portion of the bullet (before the round nose shape begins) was greater on the Carroll bullets than it was on other make round nose flat point bullets and they would hit the throats before the cartridges were fully chambered.
The reloads were not a problem for my K frame .38s.

 

[05CarbonDRZ]

Do all of the problem rounds have the same headstamp?

 

[Steve C]

If the hang up is at the bottom of the case as described for me this usually happens when using cases that where previously fired in S&W's and then loaded and used in the tighter cylinders of my Colt Revolvers. The fix I've always used is to turn the sizing die down a bit so that it sizes the bottom of the case completely.

 

[skrazo]

Thanks for all the replies. Unfortunately, I am up to my neck in alligators with family issues right now, so shooting and further investigation of this problem will have to be put on hold for a while. But............I "will" report back on this subject.

 

[haris1]

Another "newbie" question. I reloaded 50 rounds of 357 today. 158 gr LSWCs. At about 1/8" to 3/16" from being fully seated in the gun cylinder, four cartridges would not seat completely. The cases looked slightly bulged where the bullet was seated. I removed the bullets & powder, resized the brass (nickel), installed primers and powder. They were better, but still were "tight" at the "final seat" position in the cylinder. I am pretty sure they are not "over crimped", but not positive. Help please. I'm frustrated.

Invest a very small amount of money in a cartridge check die from midway or dillon. L.E. Wilson Max Cartridge Gage 357 Mag
I bet its your technique and you have bulged the cases.
First you decap the primer and next you bell the case mouse and then drop powder in it(the dillon does it at the same time.)Be careful NOT to over bell the case mouth, You should bell the case ever so slightly so the case is expanded just a drop so the bullet will enter the case. You then seat it and the crimp should not overdo it or you expand the case. The check die will insure you didnt overdo it and swell the case. Hope this helps

 

[mikld]

A case gauge is a nice tool to have, but it won't tell you more than your gun's cylinder. In fact a case gauge is just a chamber machined to SAAMI specs...

 

[harleygeorge]

Cartridges

Just in case, purchase a Lewis Lead Remover from Brownells. Do both cylinder and bore. They have short video showing the proper procedure. If you use lead bullets it's a handy tool to have around.

 

[Maximumbob54]

If you have loaded and shot 2000 .38's in that gun then you have carbon build up in the chambers. Soak a swab in solvent and rub the chambers down to soak them with solvent. Let the solvent do it's job and set for a few minutes and repeat until the carbon starts breaking up. You shouldn't have to scrub at it much if the solvent is working. No nead to tear up a bronze brush if you allow the solvent to do its job.

 

[rwsmith]

Same problem...

I had the same problem. I would have to snap some of the cartridges in the last 1/8" or so. Then they would be hard to extract. The bullet was long gone, so I couldn't blame the bullet. One thing I've learned is not to be so ham-fisted with the crimping. If you get any bulging it's going to show. I've never figured out though, why the bullets would 'snap' in I was proud of the last batch I made. Great plunk for all of them except one case I bent because the bullet got hung up on the edge of the rim when seating. It didn't take any pressure at all to mess it up. Some people here say they've never messed up a round in reloading. I took the lesson to be more careful and take my time, but I haven't achieved perfection yet.

PS: I started using .357 brass for .38 loads to keep the crud ring away, since I always shot both at a range outing.

 

[scooter123]

Just because you are using Lee dies doesn't mean that you are using a Lee Factory Crimp Die. Because the FCD is ONLY included in the Lee 4 Die Set. If you are using a Lee 3 Die Pistol set the final die is a combined Seat and Crimp die and with 357 Magnums it is EXTREMELY easy to buckle a case during the crimp operation. I know because I've been there done that frequently enough that with 38 special and 357 Magnum I now use separate Seat and Crimp stages.

BTW, the Lee Factory Crimp Die can be used to make slighly buckled cases useable BUT you must set the FCD up for chamber sizing the full length of the case. Which means that you need to set the die up to crimp a 357 Magnum WITHOUT the spacer ring. I have a Winchester 1892 in 357 Magnum that has a "tight" chamber so I've purchased 2 Lee FCD's so I can have one dedicated to 357 Magnum and the other dedicated to 38 special. I've also used Birchwood Casey Super Blue on the Magnum FCD so it's easy to determine which is which.

 

[rwsmith]

I use my gun...

Invest a very small amount of money in a cartridge check die from midway or dillon. L.E. Wilson Max Cartridge Gage 357 Mag
I bet its your technique and you have bulged the cases.
First you decap the primer and next you bell the case mouse and then drop powder in it(the dillon does it at the same time.)Be careful NOT to over bell the case mouth, You should bell the case ever so slightly so the case is expanded just a drop so the bullet will enter the case. You then seat it and the crimp should not overdo it or you expand the case. The check die will insure you didnt overdo it and swell the case. Hope this helps

I use the gun itself for a check. I don't like going to the range and having bum ammo.

 

[Simson-Suhl]

With lead bullets you can also "under crimp," just for drill take two of your loaded rounds that will not chamber and increase the crimp small stages at a time. you may reach the point that they will chamber.

 

[redcar]

I had the same problem and just added a little more crimp and they fell in. My shells weren't buldged however.

 

[Moe Mentum]

If you shoot a lot of .38 with lead bullets, you may have a lead band in the cylinder , where the bullet leaves the case in the cylinder, lead will build up...check and clean with chore boy over a wire brush.

 

[arjacobson]

If you shoot a lot of .38 with lead bullets, you may have a lead band in the cylinder , where the bullet leaves the case in the cylinder, lead will build up...check and clean with chore boy over a wire brush.

That would be my guess also. If you are using cast bullets try belling with a lyman m die. It will prevent the bullet from getting swaged down when they are seated. A lee factory crimp die sized my bullets down too much and caused accuracy problems with cast bullets. Either you have a dirty chamber-the bell isn't being ironed out all the way when crimping-your crimp is smashing the case just a bit... BTW I always seat the bullets in one operation and THEN go back and crimp. It does add another step but you accuracy will improve.

 

[scattershot]

Does an empty case fit? If not, clean the chambers thoroughly . If the empties fit, then check your sizing die to make sure it sizes the case all the way down. Then back off on the crimp die a little if that doesn't work. One of these three things is most likely your problem. Good luck!

 

[Jellybean]

I didn't see this mentioned as far down as I read, so I'll throw it out there.

It is normally suggested to seat and crimp in two separate operations because some cases have a tendency to bulge during seating. The mouth is crimped as the bullet is still being pushed down. This may be due to longer case length, but happens without it more often than not.

Looking at the clues you've given this sounds like the most plausible cause. And I hope you are getting those gators under control.

 

[m657]

Question: is it the same cylinder/s where they all don't fit? Or will these (4) not fit ANY cylinder?

re: "(before the round nose shape begins) was greater on the Carroll bullets than it was on other make round nose flat point bullets and they would hit the throats before the cartridges were fully chambered."

A couple times I too have run into this situation and had to seat the boolit a bit deeper into the case to avoid the ogive shape.

By now OP has probably solved the issue anyway.

Didn't see a resolution above.

Rather that purchase a case gauge, sometimes I use the cylinder from a Colt SAA as such.

Sometimes there can be an otherwise overlooked thin sliver of lead shaved to make the round out of spec. The balance in the case mouth flare between too much/not enough must be observed regardless of brass thickness or boolit configuration.

 

[gibekim]

I don't quite understand why a bellied or bulged case at or near the crimp could be the problem. If it is too big then it shouldn't chamber at all. The OP's problem is that it chambers all but the last 1/8" of the round. His problem has to be lead and/or carbon buildup in the cylinders from shooting cast 38 special loads in a 357 chambered revolver.

 

[rwsmith]

Are all of your cases???

I don't have any pics. Do crimp at the cannilures(sp?). One thing that makes this frustrating is only a few cartridges have the problem(4 in 50, typical). I have experimented with different amount of crimp. One thought I have is just to keep the non-seating cartridges separate and not reload them, keep using the cases that do not bulge, and try to determine if the same cases are having problems each time I reload. Could be some cases with weak walls.

I don't think the bullets are faulty because I have "never" had this problem with 38s (using same bullets).

Whew! Time for bed.

Are your cases consistent length? There's usually no reason to trim pistol brass, but if they aren't consistent you may consider it. I use an inexpensive Lee Trimmer chucked into a drill press and it only takes a few seconds per case. If I do trim them at the beginning, especially mixed brass, it will not need it again before the case gives out.