Brass Covered in Powder Residue NEED SOME HELP HERE GUYS..

[DOC-404]

I have a .308 which I use for hunters class bench-rest. I have found my 'hole-in-one' load.
My problem is that all my brass is covered in powder residue.What is the cause of this..?
Hope you lads can help..!

 

[James.Grage]

Docman

I went on line and found some information on this...

I have a .308 which I use for hunters class bench-rest. I have found my 'hole-in-one' load.
My problem is that all my brass is covered in powder residue.What is the cause of this..?
Hope you lads can help..!

remodel
No, it is normal.

Powder smoke/fouling gets between the case neck & chamber in the instant before the case expands fully and seals the chamber.

At worst, a dirty chamber could exacerbate it.

Might give the chamber a good scrubbing with a bronze bore brush & solvent just to be sure.

Other then that, make sure the guard screws are properly torqued.

Could try pressure-point bedding by putting a cardboard shim in the barrel channel just behind the forearm tip. (just enough to put upward pressure on the barrel)

Could try some ammo with plastic-tip bullets. (Not sure what that is in .308, but Nosler Ballistic-Tip style bullets.)

dagger dog
Here are 12 items to check for accuracy problem as listed by Reid Coffield, a writer for Shooting Times


1. Check the shooter, might have some one else shoot your rifle and see how they fare.

2. Consider the ammo, as rcmodel stated go to a known accurate factory loading

3. Check the action screws, too tight too loose.

4. Barrel fouling, is your rifle absolutley clean, some times copper fouling can be bad but it won't show with cleaners made to clean powder fouling, go to a copper cleaner.

5. Throat erosion, here is the take it to a smith and have it scoped scenario.

6. Worn or damaged crown, burrs on the crown affect the bullet as it leaves the barrel.

7.Loose scope mounts enough said here.

8.Bad scope, but you've ruled this out.

9.Bedding of the reciever, again rcmodel has given you the tip here.

10. Fore end bedding DITTO

11. Barrel contact with other parts , action screws too long ?

12. Two peice stocks, but again, you're shooting a M77 Ruger.

Just some pointers to pass along areas to look at in your quest for a bug hole shooter.

bornagainbullseye
+1 powder on the neck is normal. That is a pretty normal group for a MkII ruger. Play around with different loads and you may find on that shoots better than the other. I would bed the action in the stock. and try to freefloat the barrel. Try the 150grain Federal Premium Ballistic tip line. In my fathers MKI .270 they shoot MOA. My lil brother has a stainless MKII in .243 and it shoots 1.5-1.75 like your gun does. We have not played with anything on it yet, as he is going to college and is on the Ramen noodle and Koolaide budget. I help him where I can with reloads. I think if we get a trigger and bed the action on that one we should have MOA if we are lucky. Kind of hit and miss with the Rugers. My father has never cleaned his barrel with any type of brush or solvent and swears if he does the groups will open up to munute of barndoor. I will take his word on that.

 

[sestoppelman]

Usually it indicates a wimpy load or inappropriate powder choice. Often this will result in powder residue on the case because the case does not expand fully to seal it off. Boost the load a bit and see if it doesnt go away, I bet it does. Its not really a problem but over time it will dirty up the chamber enough to have to clean it. You dont state what your load components are.

 

[DOC-404]

Thanks Guys.
The rifle is a CZ 550 varmint laminated with free-floated bull barrel.I'm using fire-formed Lapua brass,the new design Sierra 155gr Palma Match (part # 2156) and 44gr of Somchem S335,which is .5gr off maximum.My brass is neck sized only and I'm using CCI BR-2 primers.My rifles are cleaned with Bore Tech's copper remover and their Eliminator products-my wife reckons I'm a pain in the ass when it comes to reloading and keeping our rifles clean..! This problem has only developed over the last 20 or so rounds.I have seen this happen with 'wimpy' loads-as Ses puts it-but never with top-end loads.There must be something else that I'm missing or doing wrong..!

 

[sestoppelman]

If everything was the same and it just started happening then that is strange. Did you change powder lots or primers? Not sure the American equivalent to your powder but Im guessing close to IMR3031 by a quick check on the net. That would make your load a near max load all right. Possible sizing issue or soft brass. How many reloads on the brass? Annealing issue? Try a different primer, something a little hotter? I guess it could be a million things but the key is if started all of a sudden using the same components.

 

[DOC-404]

Hey Ses,
Gunsmith buddy reckons I must shoot 3 factory rounds,if they come out clean it eliminates any damage to the chamber.He says then I should slowly boost the load IF I am seating very shallow (which I am) or I should seat a little deeper.I'll let you guys know what happens-might help someone else in the future,who knows..!

 

[James.Grage]

Docman

MY mistake for not asking the question...

i just assumed you measured each bullet for length with a gauge.

 

[Calhoun]

My guess is that you need to increase the load if it isn't maxed out. I had that with my 7mm BR xp 100. It shot super & I won a couple State championships with it shooting this way. It required more cleaning until one day everything went <*>*. After inspecting the barrel with a bore light it showed i have barely any throat left in it. The load was maxed out at one time. After running it over the chronograph my speed had fallen drastically. By increasing the load my speed came back but it is over the recommended charge. The blow back is gone! I don't really recommend this - but after this season i will be rebarreling that gun & it will be back to the testing!