[Warboar]

Like the title says i'm having issues with a new Left handed Hawkeye in 243Win. The problem is two fold. First I noticed that I had a very difficult time chambering reloaded ammo. At first I thought maybe it wasn't sized properly or perhaps the bullets were seated out to long but when I got home from the range I measured them and they were within specs. A couple of bullets were seated a tad longer than book but not longer than the Max OAL. I put a few factory loaded blue box Federal 100gr rounds through it and they chambered a little easier but still had a little resistance when closing the bolt. I am thinking that the chamber might be a little on the tight side.

The second issue is when I pull the rounds out of the chamber they are scratched. At first I thought they were like this prior to chambering but when I noticed it I started looking each round over prior to inserting in the chamber. What I found was 4 or so scratches on the brass. Not to deep but noticeable. I don't think that the scratches are deep enough to cause shortened brass life but i'm thinking that it's not a good thing overall.

When I got the rifle home I cleaned it really good and tried to find the burrs in the chamber. I couldn't insert my finger in there so I ran a cotton ball in there to see if the burrs would grab any of the fibers. I could see several fibers collected at the 1-2 o`clock position in the chamber.

So with all this would you recommend I contact Ruger and see what they say or should I try and polish the chamber and see if it corrects both issues?

Thanks

I forgot to mention that the rifle looks like it's going to be a shooter. The few 55gr Noslers that chambered and shot were able to print three just under the 1" mark. The factory Federal 100grs were a smidge over an inch.
In comparison my remington will shoot the 55gr Noslers at about 3/4" and doesn't care much for the Federals. They print at 1.5"-1.75" at best. However handloaded Sierra 100gr Gamekings will print at .75"

 

[BassMan]

Gunsmiths that chamber rifles take it upon themselves to make a near perfect chamber, one that is completely mirror smooth inside.

From what you have written yours is not because your brass has 4 scratches on it and the internal roughness is such that cotton fibers get snagged.

My suggestion would be to contact Ruger and tell them all about your problems and then send the rifle back to them like 2 day or speedy ship or whatever with 2 or 3 cases having identical scratch marks on them. Ruger can then go through the chamber polishing it and checking headspace.

This should not have happened and an adequate inspection including test firing should have revealed the problem.

 

[Warboar]

Thanks for the reply. I will write them an email and send some detailed pictures if they will turn out. Then I will see what they have to say. It's funny, when looking in my safe I have more Ruger's than any other manufacturer. Three rifles, and 5 handguns. Remington is next one.

 

[Slowshot]

Thanks for the reply. I will write them an email and send some detailed pictures if they will turn out. Then I will see what they have to say. It's funny, when looking in my safe I have more Ruger's than any other manufacturer. Three rifles, and 5 handguns. Remington is next one.

Ignore my reply in your other thread on this rifle. I understand what you are saying. There should not be scratches on your brass. Any scratches can shorten brass life if reloading.

You are a bit ahead of me. I have only two Ruger rifles and one Ruger handgun in my gun safe. There is still time for me to catch up. Last year, I was visiting a gun show here in Tacoma WA. A seller had a fine Ruger MK III target pistol with custom left handed grips. I picked it up. It fit my large hand (long fingers) perfectly. I did not have enough cash. I went to my bank but got back too late. That will never happen again.

 

[Yellowhouse]

Try partial or neck sizing and see if that helps.