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Thread: AAC Reloading problems!

  1. #1
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    Default AAC Reloading problems!

    Had this happen twice. Trying to find the cause. The shell fires but fails to eject because it is stuck in the firing chamber and the primer is blown out of the primer pocket. Ran into this when I first started reloading and the cause was to much gun powder. Now, I'm vary careful about the correct amount of powder going into each shell and I never use the maximum amount of powder, always the recommended about. I suspected my digital scale was off but that has been checked and it is accurate.

    In the picture notice the shell casing is swelled out casing serious sticking in the firing chamber. It looks as though the shell backed out of the firing chamber about 1/8" swelled and seized up. Again, the primer also get blown out. The shell puller and ejector also damaged the shell as you can see.

    After removing the shell, I test fired some store bought ammo it worked flawlessly, proving the problem is my reloads.

    After returning home I pulled a few bullets and weighed the powder inside each shell and it was the exact correct amount of powder for each bullet pulled. The powder I use for my 300 Blackout is H110 and I'm using a fresh 1 lb jar of the powder.

    Is it possible there is something wrong with this powder? I seems the problem surfaced using this powder. Should I undercharge my reloads using this powder and by how much?

    My other reload calibers, 223 and 9mm are working fine but I'm not using H110 in those loads.

    Hope someone can figure this out.
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    Last edited by jim Glass; 05-20-2018 at 10:59 AM.


  2. #2
    Senior Member kyratshooter's Avatar
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    Jim, you left out the two most critical numbers in the question.

    What is your bullet weight?

    What is the powder charge?

    There is a third factor in this situation also. That is the lack of really good data for the 300BO. It is like the wild west out there with all sorts of load information on the internet from unknown sources.

    Are you using the Hornady website data? I noted that there was a max load stated but no starting load given. Undercharging can cause difficulties just as overcharging does. Do not cut that recommended max load by more than 30%.

    H110 is an old and established powder, easy to load and consistent. I believe it was originally developed for the M1 Carbine and is pretty good in most of the magnum pistol loads. It has been around for more than half a century. I also noted that the charges recommended as max loads were not very large. I use more H110 than that in my .357 and .44 magnum.

    I have seen cases like that before. You are probably approaching critical mass on that load!

    If you damaged the extractor and the ejector plunger you might want to take a close look at the locking lugs on that bolt.
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  3. #3

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    My manual doesn’t have it.
    There’s a good article in this months NRA shooting illustrated. Reading the signs. Differences in blown vs popped primers and case head swipe. Basically over pressure, gas block tuning and/or the load.
    Last edited by rebel; 05-20-2018 at 11:12 AM.

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    Thanks for the response:

    I'm using 150 gr Hornady Interlock with Lead colored tip, 15gr of H110 as recommended by Lee reloading. Max load 16.2 never use that much.

    Also using 180 gr Rainier, 13.5 gr of H110 as recommended by Lee reloading. Max load 14.5 Never use that much

    I have reloaded these rounds before and did not have this problem. Something is going on. I'll run out and recalibrate my scale and check again. OK, the scale seems to be fine, pulled another 150gr bullet and the powder load was 14.5 which is below the recommended charge. Scale seems OK.

    I'm about ready to convert this 300 Blackout to another round that I can reload, or just fire commercial ammo through it!!!!!
    Last edited by jim Glass; 05-20-2018 at 11:26 AM.

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    Senior Member kyratshooter's Avatar
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    the Hodgen site lists 17.2 as max for the 150 grain bullet and 15.6 as max for the 180grain.

    It is their powder so I tend to believe them and you are inside the safe levels by their calculations.

    The only other thing I can think of that might be the problem is that you are "overgasing". The gas bleed off through the gas port and tube is hitting too quickly and too hard and the bolt is opening too soon, the case is ballooning as it leaves the chamber and sticking. Since the AR does not have an adjustable gas port the only thing that might help would be to buy and adjustable block and tune it down.

    One sign of that is the bolt blowing off the case head leaving it stuck in the chamber.

    There are other options. 4227 gives a lower power curve with almost the same velocity.

    You do realize that your 300BO is giving you about the same power as a hot 9mm load in your "other carbine"?

    Personally, I would do my reloading on a cartridge that seemed to like me more and buy factory ammo for the .300BO.

    You are paying $0.30-$0.50 cents per slug in .308, plus $0.05 for the primer and powder along with the time involved plus you are coming close to blowing up a good upper. You can buy Seller and Bellot 150 grain .300BO for $0.55 cents a shot! $11 per box at Sportsmans Guide.

    I part company with reloading gear when I can buy factory jacketed soft point or hollow point in .223 and .308 cheaper than I can reload it. I do reload .223 for my bolt guns and find that at 100 yards they get a whole 1/2" smaller group than the surplus.

    Sometime there are no real savings, and when there is a problem such as you are having reloading just does not make sense any more.

    One thing about it, you have convinced me not to swap out one of my pistol barrels for a .300BO! Every time I see that 8" .300BO barrel on sale at PSA I think about you.
    Last edited by kyratshooter; 05-20-2018 at 06:51 PM.
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    Funny you mention Seller and Bellot because those were the new bullets I fired after the jam up and the AR worked fine with them. Yep, reloading the 300 blackout has been a challenge for me while reloading the .223, 9mm, 45 ACP has been very easy. I think shooting factory ammo is the best solution. I was thinking about going to Cabela's and buying some 300 Blackout brass and reloading with new brass. I was reading the Lyman reloading handbook today and that led me to believe the shell casings could be a problem. Some have been reloaded many times and I failed to keep them in batches so the brass could be hit or miss.

    There is a chance "overgasing" is the problem as you described. No other way for the casing to enlarge like that inside the firing chamber. Would overgasing cause the primer to be ejected from the casing?
    Last edited by jim Glass; 05-20-2018 at 09:51 PM.

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    Enlighten me, what would a 7.62 x 39 AR be like??? How are those to reload? Does that use it's own magazine or same as the .223? Other recommendations?? How about a 6.8?
    Last edited by jim Glass; 05-20-2018 at 11:03 PM.

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    Most cases of over pressure have blown or ejected primers as a symptom. I have seen them blown out, I have seen the tops of the primers blown and the rim left in the primer pocket, and I have seen them blow two small holes through the primer on each side of the primer dimple to vent the excess gas.

    The AR in 7.62x39 uses a different upper, a different lower, and uses the AK magazines as well as a different bolt face.

    As for reloading the 7.62x39, I would not know anything about that. Why would I want to reload a cartridge I can buy for $0.18 cents a shot, when the slugs cost 25 cents each and primers 5 cents each? It is nearly as cheap as shooting .22 LR. I shoot the stuff at tin cans!

    6.8 uses a separate bolt face, and although I have heard good things about the round it has not been the blazing success everyone wants it to be. It is still going to be limited by case capacity and cartridge length.

    The AR platform has one glaring shortcoming that will always raise its glaring head and that is the restriction of magazine length. Any cartridge loaded for the platform must limit case capacity to what can be crammed into the same overall length of the .223 case so it can fit the magazines of the platform. To get a cartridge with better performance you are going to have to go to a bigger gun.

    It is what it is. I decided to accept it on those terms and use it for its intended purpose, scaring the hell out of politicians that know millions of them are in the hands of the American Citizens. Every American should own one and a case of ammo.

    Speaking of millions,,,, Anderson Arms is just down the road from me and I know a couple of the guys that work there. They sold over a million lowers last year and have almost topped that number already this year. They produce under several brand names besides Anderson, so some of those fancy and expensive lowers pushed by the other firms are actually Andersons with another brand on them.

    By the end of this year one out of each 150 American will own an Anderson made AR. And that will just be in a two year time frame for one maker.
    Last edited by kyratshooter; 05-21-2018 at 02:54 AM.
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    I guess I'll stay with the 300 blackout. I know people that went bankrupt trying to save money. I think I'll try the 4227 powder and possibly the adjustable gas block. I watched a Youtube video on how to adjust the gas block. I'm somewhat determined to figure out the source of the problem because it just recently surfaced. The only thing different is the new jar of H110 powder so trying different powder altogether would be a good test. The 300 blackout rifle is almost 2 years old, seems odd it would need an adjustable gas block now. It is also odd the new box of Seller & Bellot shells worked fine.

    I'll report back on this. I'm going to pull bullets and reload with the with the 4227 powder and go from there. If firing only commercial ammo in the 300 blackout works then I'll go with that. That's cheaper than building another rifle of a different caliber just so I can reload. I sure like the 9mm AR, I wonder what a 45 ACP AR would be like.

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    I do not think .45 ACP is on the menu, or will be.

    The reason the 9mm works so well is that the bolt face/case head size of the .223 and the 9mm are almost identical.

    In fact, there is a .223/9mm wildcat made for the AR platform just like the 300BO. .223 case necked up to 9mm. I do not know what the performance specs are but it has all the same restrictions we have discussed so I am sure it would be about equal to the .300BO at any given bullet weight.
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    Hey Jim!

    I was just down to the AR store, yes we have an AR store here. I asked about your plight and the owner said that he could not get 300BO reloads to work either unless they were made from reformed military brass!

    He said he had the same trouble you are having with one thing after another going wrong until he realized all the problems were happening when he reloaded commercial brass.

    This guy is a retired engineer who worked QC for Anderson, and seems pretty smart in spite of that, so I believe his story.

    Just one more variable you can add to the now growing pile of cramp.
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    Interesting: I pulled bullets from 20 rounds loaded with the H110 and reloaded with 4227 powder. just left the stone quarry 2 hours ago after test firing the reloads with the 4227 powder and they fired off just fine. Then I test fired the reloads with the H110 powder and they fired off fine as well. Tuesday i'll have the adjustable gas block ordered from Brownels. At this point I'm lost. I expected the H110 reloads to jam but they didn't. If I can't get the problem to repeat how do I isolate the problem. Is my problem the H110 powder, the brass or the over gasing. I don't know. Tuesday I'll install and tune the gas block and hope the problem never comes back.

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    Sorry Jim but at this point I got nothing for you.

    It is just going to take more shooting, more data collected, more trial and error.

    I know it is a tough job but someone has to do it!

    I just swapped three scopes around so I now have three sight in jobs to do. That might take as much as 20-30 rounds of ammo and then I will have to reload them all over again.

    Plus it is about time to shoot EVERYTHING just to make sure all the scopes are still in sych, no bugs have crawled down the barrels and no spiders have made nests inside the scopes.

    Life should not be so tough on us old retired guys.
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    Yes, I don't know how I ever found time to work

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    Ain't that the truth.

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    Between sleeping late, taking naps and working on projects I can barely get any fun time worked in.
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    Wait..............those ARE the fun things anymore.
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    Yeah, if my boss saw me today he'd say nothing has changed. Less naps, maybe.

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    Tonight the plan was to install the adjustable gas block. I removed the forearm so the gas tube and block were visible and I noticed the gas block on the AR and a blind hole for the gas tube, the adjustable gas block had a through hole for the gas tube. Both gas blocks had provisions for the tiny cross pin. There was a phone number on the package the new gas block came in so I called the them and they said the through hole was fine because the gas tube had a plugged end. So, I removed the original gas block and gas tube but could not separate the tube from the gas block, even with the cross pin removed. The job is on hold until I can find another gas tube. I'll leave the gas tube and gas block stuck together. The adjustable gas block will have a designated gas tube. I sure hope the gas tube is a standard size and has a plugged end. I don't remember the gas tube having a plugged end when I assembled the AR 2 years ago.
    Last edited by jim Glass; 05-30-2018 at 07:21 PM.

  20. #20
    Senior Member kyratshooter's Avatar
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    Has it been two years?

    Seems like we were discussing leading you astray for the first time just a few weeks back.

    Do you have a local source for parts? You might have to pay a buck of two more but you could have it quicker.
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