Cracked sholder - bad brass?

mbsams

Bought a new 22.250. new dies, and new brass. Saw this crack after the 3rd reload. One virgin piece had a crack like this before it was even fired. A few of the pieces show a bright thin line on the shoulder where a crack might develop. It looks just like the bright line you see with an incipient case head separation. This lot was new virgin Remington brass. What do you think


Answerw here to save a post.
sizing die is set to touch the shell holder. Load is moderate 36gr of H380 and 55gr. V-Max, no signs of pressure at all and again, one case had the split from the get-go. This sligt ring in the pix is a normal pressure ring and not a head separation, I know the difference. Wish I had saved the virgin piece now. Please explain why I would remove the firing pin assy? No I didn't

FrancF

Wonder if it missed the annealing process? Only other things I can think of is head space and overworked brass or to hot of a load.

Rocky Raab

That photo also shows what might be a bright ring just above the web. Most common reason: gross oversizing which sets the shoulder back enough to create excessive headspace - and rapid case failure. Two things happen: either case separation above the web or split shoulders.

That one has both.

bpost

You could send it back to Remington for analysis. That ring at the base does not look like an incipient head separation, it looks like a shadow and a normal pressure ring to me.

Can you back the sizing die off and still close the bolt on a sized case with the firing pin assy. removed?

How did you set the sizing die

Odawgp

3 loadings is all i get out of my 250 brass if i don't anneal them when they are new

then i can stretch them 5 or 6 loadings before i have to do it again

the 250 is a smoking hot round to begin with

the ring at the bottom is where the die stops sizing the brass

unless they make a small bass die i don't know about for the 250 that is what they will look like

IF it has a bright shiny ring running through the center of it then it is in fact a head separation in the making

JustC

a PROPERLY sized case, in a chamber that is NOT oversized by a fair margin, should go 10 loadings or better. OR it should wear out primer pockets before a case-head seperation.

Do a search on "partial full length" sizing.

If you run a case neck thickness micrometer on the cracked cases, either it will show a thinner wall thickness at the cracked area (factory defect), or they will have missed the annealing process (factory's fault). Unless you have an oversized chamber in the neck area, and they are stretching wayyyy too much during firing.

skyfish

I have been getting 1-4 per 100 of brass that has a thin line like that when new, usually fails on the 2-4 resizing, not when fired. Usually. I believe it is a manufacturing defect, brass just didn't fill well enough. I have had it on the last 3 types of brass I have bought lately(last 3 years). 204 Ruger, 223, and 25 WSSM.

And I only try and push the shoulder back a minimum, I measure with the Stony Point/Hornady gauge. A very few crack on the very first sizing. Not a real big deal IMO.