New 300 weatherby extraction issue

[reloader74]

Purchased a new 300 Weatherby mag in the Vanguard sporter model and started barrel break in. I loaded up some 130g Barnes TTSX at minimum charge with 2 different powders and the brass sticks to the point of pounding on the bolt.
1st load
New never fired Remington brass purchased in 1998
Barnes TTSX 130g
IMR4350 81.5 grains
Fps 3520
2nd load
New never fired Remington brass purchased in 1998
Barnes TTSX 130g
IMR4831 83.0 grains
Fps 3440
Bolt lift is normal, I can't re-chamber the spent brass and the bolt stops 3/8" from closing. Belt had minimal expansion 0.0005". Scoped the chamber and it looks horrible. In the included picture of the brass the contacted area expanded by 5 thousandths. Is this a sign of a chamber issue or over pressure? Weatherby wants a test of factory ammo but I'm concerned that it won't open or if possibly could come apart. I have reloaded for more the 20 years for 10 different cartridges and never had an issue on any load.

 

[MikeDeltaFoxtrot]

Sounds like maybe an issue with machining of the chamber. I am no fan of Remington brass; you might try some Norma/Weatherby brass and see if it is better.

I am also curious as to why you choose 130 grain bullets. That seems really light for caliber. I have a 300 Wby mag myself. I shoot 180 grain Accubonds, and thought that was a bit light.

 

[wind gypsy]

That chamber looks like shit. No further testing needed, they should give you a rifle with a chamber that doesn't look that atrocious.

 

[DaleW]

That chamber is horrible. Looks like they did it with a freaking hand drill.

I'd start the warranty process and not waste any more time and components.

 

[reloader74]

Sounds like maybe an issue with machining of the chamber. I am no fan of Remington brass; you might try some Norma/Weatherby brass and see if it is better.

I am also curious as to why you choose 130 grain bullets. That seems really light for caliber. I have a 300 Wby mag myself. I shot 180 grain Accubonds and thought that was a bit light.

I get this question all the time about 130g out of magnums.
1. I live in a state that requires non lead ammo for hunting.
2. The deer are small and are generally light weight under 130 pounds.
3. I like my copper bullets moving fast to avoid possible expansion issues. I have not had an issue but folks I have hunted with have.
4. Long distance for me is 350 to 400 yards and I don't see any benefit at that range going heavier.
5. I can also hand this to my son to shoot.

 

[reloader74]

That chamber is horrible. Looks like they did it with a freaking hand drill.

I'd start the warranty process and not waste any more time and components.

I tried to send it to them but weatherby only accepts factory ammo being shot out of their guns. I can understand that as a policy.

 

[MikeDeltaFoxtrot]

Sounds like maybe an issue with machining of the chamber. I am no fan of Remington brass; you might try some Norma/Weatherby brass and see if it is better.

I am also curious as to why you choose 130 grain bullets. That seems really light for caliber. I have a 300 Wby mag myself. I shot 180 grain Accubonds and thought that was a bit light.

I tried to send it to them but weatherby only accepts factory ammo being shot out of their guns. I can understand that as a policy.

I like Weatherby rifles, but their customer service is generally awful.

 

[wind gypsy]

I tried to send it to them but weatherby only accepts factory ammo being shot out of their guns. I can understand that as a policy.

Are you saying they rejected a warranty claim because you shot handloads in it? Do they know how terrible the chamber looks? It's pretty easy to make the case that handloads didn't cause that shitty machine work.

No shooting confirmation should be necessary for them to fix that. A borescope pic says it all.

 

[reloader74]

Are you saying they rejected a warranty claim because you shot handloads in it? Do they know how terrible the chamber looks? It's pretty easy to make the case that handloads didn't cause that shitty machine work.

No shooting confirmation should be necessary for them to fix that. A borescope pic says it all.

Yes and they didn't want to see the images I have of the chamber. My hope is I fire their ammo and the bolt will stick for extraction. If it won't extract they want me to send a rod down the barrel to knock it loose. I will refuse on grounds of damaging the crown and ship with it stuck.

 

[MikeDeltaFoxtrot]

Yes and they didn't want to see the images I have of the chamber. My hope is I fire their ammo and the bolt will stick for extraction. If it won't extract they want me to send a rod down the barrel to knock it loose. I will refuse on grounds of damaging the crown and ship with it stuck.

As I said above, my experience with Weatherby customer service is that is awful. They do not care about their customers after the sale. Unless you just want to go to war with them, I'd either sell the rifle or fix it myself. Easiest thing would be to have somebody pull the barrel, cut a bit off the back end, and rechamber.

I need to buy a borescope and start taking it shopping with me.

 

[wind gypsy]

A guy shouldn't have to waste $60 on a box of factory ammo to have a visually obvious defect addressed. Even if it functions with factory ammo, it's still defective. It's akin to if they hacksawed 2" off the barrel, sent it out the door and then asked you to spend $60+ on ammo to prove something is wrong..

Maybe the "weatherby is circling the toilet bowl" thread could use some infusion with this topic

 

[reloader74]

As I said above, my experience with Weatherby customer service is that is awful. They do not care about their customers after the sale. Unless you just want to go to war with them, I'd either sell the rifle or fix it myself. Easiest thing would be to have somebody pull the barrel, cut a bit off the back end, and rechamber.

I need to buy a borescope and start taking it shopping with me.

I shouldn't have to eat the cost since it's less than a month old and I couldn't sell it knowingly having an issue. I really don't know a good gunsmith in my area and never really need one. Borescopes can be helpful and I use it all the time inspecting after shooting.

 

[reloader74]

A guy shouldn't have to waste $60 on a box of factory ammo to have a visually obvious defect addressed. Even if it functions with factory ammo, it's still defective. It's akin to if they hacksawed 2" off the barrel, sent it out the door and then asked you to spend $60+ on ammo to prove something is wrong..

Maybe the "weatherby is circling the toilet bowl" thread could use some infusion with this topic

I could of lied to them and said it was factory ammo but in the warranty it clearly states factory ammo to be used. what if it operates fine with factory ammo and my brass is too soft? I will know on Saturday how factory ammo will operate. Chamber does look like a threaded pipe and needs some work.

 

[wind gypsy]

I could of lied to them and said it was factory ammo but in the warranty it clearly states factory ammo to be used. what if it operates fine with factory ammo and my brass is too soft? I will know on Saturday how factory ammo will operate. Chamber does look like a threaded pipe and needs some work.

When buying a rifle, people expect more of the chamber machining than just to be good enough such that a fired piece of brass can be extracted.

The only rem brass i've used wasn't particularly weak. Quite a bit more stout than what i've seen from hornady or federal in similar cartridges. That was over a decade after '98 though so hard to say. It does look like barnes data is way hotter than other books for 300 bee 130ish grain loads using non-barnes bullets.

Curious what the measured dimension of your brass was that grew 5 thou is and how does that dimension compare with what is in the SAAMI cartridge/chamber dimensions? That might tell part of the story if there is more to it than just an atrociously rough chambering job.

 

[reloader74]

When buying a rifle, people expect more of the chamber machining than just to be good enough such that a fired piece of brass can be extracted.

The only rem brass i've used wasn't particularly weak. Quite a bit more stout than what i've seen from hornady or federal in similar cartridges. That was over a decade after '98 though so hard to say. It does look like barnes data is way hotter than other books for 300 bee 130ish grain loads using non-barnes bullets.

Curious what the measured dimension of your brass was that grew 5 thou is and how does that dimension compare with what is in the SAAMI cartridge/chamber dimensions? That might tell part of the story if there is more to it than just an atrociously rough chambering job.

View attachment 642626

Cartridge dimensions 0.5117-0.004 contact zone on brass in image
0.5060 average never fired 10 pieces
0.5135 average once fired 10 pieces
0.5110 averaged resized 5 pieces
Added some more pictures

 

[reloader74]

Update factory ammo stuck in the chamber worse and I've never seen a primer look like that either.
Factory ammo
Hornady 165 grain
Billed Fps 3390

 

[MikeDeltaFoxtrot]

How did this end up? @reloader74

 

[reloader74]

How did this end up? @reloader74

Mike,

It went back to weatherby and I just received back last week. Weatherby stated the chamber was too tight. So they reamed it again and gave it a decent polish. I loaded up some 165g CX bullets and it preformed very well. I was without the rifle maybe 18 days.