I've had better days...

Do you ever get the feeling that it's just not your day?

Today's plan was simple. Dig out the .310 Cadet and test fire some of my recently (and painfully) homemade rounds. For those of you who read this drivel - you may recall I have spent way too much time this lockdown, trimming 32-20 down into .310 Cadet.

Throw in the .22 to practice some "off sticks" shooting for next month's big CWD adventure.

Then lob in the .243 for a wee sit up until last light.

Get my mate to bring his .308 (zeroed by me in the summer for him) as he has had an "incident" with the scope and needs to re-check that it is all still true.

I arrive early and set up the targets at 100m, the spotting scope and the shooting sticks. I have been here now for fifteen minutes; it time I started making headway into my packed lunch. It has often been my practice to each my "refs" on the way to the actual job - a hangover from my working days. For those of you who know - you know.

My mate arrives and I unwrap the .310 and give him it's glorious history. I then show him the box of 100 rounds that I have made and offer him the rife and the rounds to have a go with. Long short. He cannot chamber a single round. Well he is obviously messing around because I made these rounds and I checked each one of the fcukers in the chamber in my Man Cave so don't tell me they don't fing fit.

Turns our they don't fing fit. None of them. Not a one. Well this is awkward. Can rounds grow in size? That must be it. The shitty little feckers must have swollen since I made them. No other explanation is possible.

Any hoo.

On to the .22 - stick practice for our CWD adventure next month. Do not worry, I have brought 300 rounds of .22 ammunition and they are factory loads so no drama with "home loads".

The second shot left the barrel - which is more than can be said for the brass cartridge. No matter what I tried it would not eject. Well now. This is going well. I pack away the remaining 298 rounds of .22. The rifle (as I type) still has the brass stuck in the chamber. I will attend to that in the morning.

So far I cannot get the .310 rounds in and I cannot get the .22 rounds out. I dare not even look at my .243...

I do mange to get my mate's .308 back onto zero - it was shooting low and right. This was following a high seat climbing, strap tangling, rifle dropping episode last month.
Well at least he is good to go.

The weather has turned windy, there is rain on the way and we only have about an hour and half of light left. We were very close to sacking the stalking and going home in the light.

Honour prevailed and we both trudged off for our last "Hurrah".

I was carrying binoculars and TI - so during the course of my ninety minutes I found it relatively easy to identify the three walkers and two dogs that came trespassing through my life.
One lady and her lab were off to one side and moving away from me so, "no harm no foul".

The two ladies with the ESS (whom I heard long before I saw) were in no mood to engage in "social distancing" with me. I saw their dog run to my truck and "mark" its front wheel. They then walked past the truck until I hailed them from the seat and gently let them know they were off the footpaths and encroaching into a "live fire" area. Both ladies, (very well spoken) claimed not to have seen the signs that they were stood next to or to know that they were "out of bounds". However, they both immediately leapt over the barbed wire fence which the clearly knew to be the boundary and shouting apologies, continued on their merry way.

Needless to say - I saw no deer, I have 100 rounds of duff .310 and my .22 is blocked.

Yes I have had better days.
 
What .22 is it? My CZ Model 99 started to leave the case behind. I stripped it and the two little recesses that the two extractor claws ride past the rim into were full of lead shavings and wax. A good clean later and it’s never left one behind since.
 
Do you ever get the feeling that it's just not your day?

Today's plan was simple. Dig out the .310 Cadet and test fire some of my recently (and painfully) homemade rounds. For those of you who read this drivel - you may recall I have spent way too much time this lockdown, trimming 32-20 down into .310 Cadet.

Throw in the .22 to practice some "off sticks" shooting for next month's big CWD adventure.

Then lob in the .243 for a wee sit up until last light.

Get my mate to bring his .308 (zeroed by me in the summer for him) as he has had an "incident" with the scope and needs to re-check that it is all still true.

I arrive early and set up the targets at 100m, the spotting scope and the shooting sticks. I have been here now for fifteen minutes; it time I started making headway into my packed lunch. It has often been my practice to each my "refs" on the way to the actual job - a hangover from my working days. For those of you who know - you know.

My mate arrives and I unwrap the .310 and give him it's glorious history. I then show him the box of 100 rounds that I have made and offer him the rife and the rounds to have a go with. Long short. He cannot chamber a single round. Well he is obviously messing around because I made these rounds and I checked each one of the fcukers in the chamber in my Man Cave so don't tell me they don't fing fit.

Turns our they don't fing fit. None of them. Not a one. Well this is awkward. Can rounds grow in size? That must be it. The shitty little feckers must have swollen since I made them. No other explanation is possible.

Any hoo.

On to the .22 - stick practice for our CWD adventure next month. Do not worry, I have brought 300 rounds of .22 ammunition and they are factory loads so no drama with "home loads".

The second shot left the barrel - which is more than can be said for the brass cartridge. No matter what I tried it would not eject. Well now. This is going well. I pack away the remaining 298 rounds of .22. The rifle (as I type) still has the brass stuck in the chamber. I will attend to that in the morning.

So far I cannot get the .310 rounds in and I cannot get the .22 rounds out. I dare not even look at my .243...

I do mange to get my mate's .308 back onto zero - it was shooting low and right. This was following a high seat climbing, strap tangling, rifle dropping episode last month.
Well at least he is good to go.

The weather has turned windy, there is rain on the way and we only have about an hour and half of light left. We were very close to sacking the stalking and going home in the light.

Honour prevailed and we both trudged off for our last "Hurrah".

I was carrying binoculars and TI - so during the course of my ninety minutes I found it relatively easy to identify the three walkers and two dogs that came trespassing through my life.
One lady and her lab were off to one side and moving away from me so, "no harm no foul".

The two ladies with the ESS (whom I heard long before I saw) were in no mood to engage in "social distancing" with me. I saw their dog run to my truck and "mark" its front wheel. They then walked past the truck until I hailed them from the seat and gently let them know they were off the footpaths and encroaching into a "live fire" area. Both ladies, (very well spoken) claimed not to have seen the signs that they were stood next to or to know that they were "out of bounds". However, they both immediately leapt over the barbed wire fence which the clearly knew to be the boundary and shouting apologies, continued on their merry way.

Needless to say - I saw no deer, I have 100 rounds of duff .310 and my .22 is blocked.

Yes I have had better days.
Deep breath....in through the nose...hold...2,3,4 & exhale....aaahhhhhh

Tmrw is another day chief...you will have fixed your 22lr and haven’t done any lasting damage to the .310 or the meandering dog walkers.... 👍
 
I bet we have all been their one way or a other, took the rifle to fit a new night sight in my excited hurry got to the ground target up ammo out, rifle out, s..t no bolt.
 
I bet we have all been their one way or a other, took the rifle to fit a new night sight in my excited hurry got to the ground target up ammo out, rifle out, s..t no bolt.
Funnily enough I did that this evening but forgot the trigger part of my Blaser....even More annoying as I couldn’t fire at a fox as a result.... alas at least I know it’s movements now!
 
What .22 is it?
Anschutz 1417.

Have had it for fifteen years without any drama - notwithstanding the stripping and cleaning of the mod in Lockdown I.

Once I have smashed the offending brass out with a length of scaffolding and a sledgehammer, I will pay particular attention to the lugs on the bolt with a selection of my wife's finest scouring pads.

NB

I am not a real gunsmith.







What could possibly go wrong...
 
Please do let us know what the issue with the .310’s turns out to be, interested to find out the problem 😁
Right then.

This makes no sense but stand by.

As above; the empty (trimmed down) 32-20 case chambered and ejected fine.
I have gone on to make 200 (count them - 2 fing hundred) rounds of the Frankenstein monsters.

When I took the rife into the field on Monday we could not chamber a single of the little feckers.
I have this morning (through the tears) looked closely at the situation and it seems that I now need to trim a tiny bit off the rims to get them to chamber.
Why this is only so once they have been made up, I am at a loss to explain.

Now to the point.

How does one go about trimming a tiny bit of the rims of 200 live rounds...

I fully expect the following to top the list of answers:-

1) You don't it's too dangerous.
2) Get over yourself and start pulling the damn things.
3) I did try and warn you off this project.
4) Why oh why do untrained folk insist on 'playing gunsmith"?
5) It's time you thought about another hobby.
 
O dear! If the empty cases chambered fine initially it could be either your neck ( no - not YOUR neck) is too wide after resizing or the bullets are resizing on seating. On reflection.........
 
Right then.

This makes no sense but stand by.

As above; the empty (trimmed down) 32-20 case chambered and ejected fine.
I have gone on to make 200 (count them - 2 fing hundred) rounds of the Frankenstein monsters.

When I took the rife into the field on Monday we could not chamber a single of the little feckers.
I have this morning (through the tears) looked closely at the situation and it seems that I now need to trim a tiny bit off the rims to get them to chamber.
Why this is only so once they have been made up, I am at a loss to explain.

Now to the point.

How does one go about trimming a tiny bit of the rims of 200 live rounds...

I fully expect the following to top the list of answers:-

1) You don't it's too dangerous.
2) Get over yourself and start pulling the damn things.

3) I did try and warn you off this project.
4) Why oh why do untrained folk insist on 'playing gunsmith"?
5) It's time you thought about another hobby.
:tiphat: :love:

1) You don't it's too dangerous.
2) Get over yourself and start pulling the damn things.

3) I did try and warn you off this project.
4) Why oh why do untrained folk insist on 'playing gunsmith"?
5) It's time you thought about another hobby.
 
:tiphat: :love:

1) You don't it's too dangerous.
2) Get over yourself and start pulling the damn things.

3) I did try and warn you off this project.
4) Why oh why do untrained folk insist on 'playing gunsmith"?
5) It's time you thought about another hobby.

In your face Tim! I am a Reloading God!🤥

This from FH on SD
"Measure the case body width above the rim then measure the case width where the bullet is seated, l bet the bullet has expanded the case width not allowing you to chamber any of your hard won .310 rounds, if this is the case run your rounds back through the FL sizer die but obviously remove the total decapping pin assembly leaving only the bare FL die body"

Eureka!

Two things.

I promise you I did this before I read FH's post.

Just ran back down to the Cave with one round and did exactly that. Fits like a glove.

Huzza!

Only 199 more to go.

Thank you FH - spot on.
 
In your face Tim! I am a Reloading God!🤥

This from FH on SD
"Measure the case body width above the rim then measure the case width where the bullet is seated, l bet the bullet has expanded the case width not allowing you to chamber any of your hard won .310 rounds, if this is the case run your rounds back through the FL sizer die but obviously remove the total decapping pin assembly leaving only the bare FL die body"

Eureka!

Two things.

I promise you I did this before I read FH's post.

Just ran back down to the Cave with one round and did exactly that. Fits like a glove.

Huzza!

Only 199 more to go.

Thank you FH - spot on.
Well done.......... :hind:
 
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