1903a3 is bulging brass

[biologicole]

I have a Remington 1903a3 (sporterized stock)that is bulging the brass about 1/2" from the base. The bulge is a small, almost indistinct ring all the around the case. It is more easily felt than seen but it makes re-sizing extremely difficult. I noticed this recently while reloading for the 1903a3 and Garand. Some of the brass wouldn't hardly fit through the re-sizer. I examined the brass and saw where the re-sizer was hanging up at a certain spot on certain brass, but not others. Since I have 1903a3 and Garand brass mixed together I wasn't sure what was causing the problem so I shot them both and kept the brass separate. Sure enough, the 1903a3 brass were bulged. I have checked the headspace and everything is fine. Is it possible that the chamber is somehow ruptured or otherwise comprimised? It looks fine with the borelight, but the brass are telling a different story. Any help is greatly appreciated.

P.S. I bought this gun from a retiring co-worker several years ago and I have no history about the gun.

 

[Molly429]

From your description of 'a small almost indistinct ring about a half inch above the base of the brass', allow me to state the obvious partial explanation that you have already suggested - that being that somehow, the outside diameter of the brass is 'fire forming (outwardly)', apparently due to a corresponding indentation in the breach. If the circumscription signature on the brass is completely symmetrical, I think a 'fracture' of the breach may be ruled out.

Is it possible that the original barrel was replaced and does not quite physically contact the breach segment?

Further stating the obvious, it may be speculated with fair confidence that, due to the fire-formed 'bulging' of the brass and the consequent slight increase of diameter, combined with the process of 'resizing' the bulged brass, it may indeed compromise the molecular integrity of the casing at the issued 'circle' and introduce a real hazard of case head seperation (even if only reloaded one time).

IMHO, it would be prudent to 'err on the side of caution' in this (reloading/refiring) regard, until further investigation rules out the considered case head seperation hazard.

 

[chris in va]

What is your reloading recipe?

 

[gyvel]

Usually that is a warning sign of "incipient casehead separation," and is generally caused by excess headspace, but you state that you have checked the headspace and it is OK.

The only other reason I can think of is that you have a barrel with an oversized chamber, and that the barrel was possibly at the cusp of maximum allowable tolerances for wartime expediency (reloading of brass not being a consideration on the battlefield), or it could possibly have been a reject barrel which had its chamber reamed slightly oversize by mistake.

To check to see what it is doing to your brass, take a paper clip, straighten it, make a very small 90 degree bend at the tip, and very gently drag the tip along the inside wall of the case near where the bright ring is. It takes a little practice, but if you do it correctly (and I have to stress gently), you may feel a shallow depression on the inside wall. If this is the case, this is where the brass is being stretched and deformed and where the case head separation will occur.

 

[biologicole]

I appreciate the responses and that this may be normal with the wartime 1903a3 chamber. My main concern is that the gun is safe for me and my son to shoot.

The barrel is a Remington 2 groove dated 12-43, receiver serial number places manufacture at 4-43, a very nice Weatherby style walnut stock (full glass bed with aluminum pillars) and an adjustable trigger stamped "Armory Inc."

It shoots about 1.5 MOA with my loads using 150 gr FMJ and 47.5 gr IMR4895.

 

[Molly429]

Gyvel's evaluation seems to very well account for the whys and wherefores of your rifle's status, bio. As long as you don't re-use the brass from whatever you fire one time per (new/unfired) round, imho, it's probably entirely safe and good-to-go-hunting or on-range. Please take care to mark the post- incidentally fired brass and dispose of it - perhaps 'nip' it with a large sheetmetal scissors - in a manner where it will-not/can-not be reloaded again by anyone.

 

[hotcha45]

I'd cut open a case or three to really see if you have significant thinning where the expansion is occurring. When you full-length resize these cases they will get thinner & weaker just above the web (base area). My solution would be use once-fired cases and keep them separate and neck-size only. That way only the neck gets worked and the brass should not get any weaker. O'course that brass will likely only ever chamber in that rifle, but it might actually improve accuracy with cases now tightly fitting the chamber.

 

[HiBC]

The Springfield uses a cone breech setup.The breech is a funnel to guide the cartridge into the chamber.The important part is,the case is unsupported at the case head.I am not sure it is unsupported for 1/2 in,but,it is unsupported for some fraction of an inch.
What needs to be determined,1)is the chamber out of spec,leaving a longer portion of the brass unsupported.Cutting the cone too deep,or putting too much blend radius on the chamber would do this.
2)If the ammunition is an issue.I suspect the thickness of Springfield vintage military brass was greater,particularly in the length of the solid case head and the radius inside the brass that blends up to the case wall.
You might try sectioning brass of different mfg to see which has the greatest thickness.
You might consider not shooting the same ammo in both your Springfield and
M1.
Try to avoid setting the shoulder back more than .002 on the Springfield.There is a neck/size/bump die that might work out.You definitely cannot afford stretch thinning.
I would avoid hot rodding the loads.
Somehow I would verify where that cone meets the chamber is in the right place.
The cone allows clearance for the bolt and extractor.That is all the deeper it needs to be.If there is a problem,likely it can be set back one thread,or,?I think Criterion/Kreiger makes a replacement duplicate barrel

 

[B. Lahey]

I have an 03a3 that has a slightly oversized chamber. When I took it to the gunsmith to get checked out before I shot it, he did a chamber cast and told me that it was on the far edge of acceptable. The barrel is in beautiful shape, and was produced toward the end of the war (don't have it in front of me, but I think I recall it's 1944 production). It shoots nicely.

I have not noticed any mangled brass, but maybe I haven't looked closely enough, I don't reload yet.

 

[moose fat]

I reload for Enfields. One of the "tricks" is to load min. powder loads and fire form the brass to that chamber, with new brass and work up from there, trimming if neccessary. You would have to keep the 03A3 and Garand reloads separate. Just an idea.

 

[Scorch]

Do a chamber cast, measure tha cast, and quit guessing.

If the chamber is just minutely oversize, it could be due to someone being overzealous while polishing the chamber. Fortunately, it would be easy to fix; remove the barrel, cut off one thread, recut the cone breech, recut the barrel shank shoulder, recut the chamber, then reinstall the barrel. I cannot imagine a smith charging more than 1.5 hrs of shop rate for a job like this, possibly $100 or so.

Next.

 

[Gunplummer]

I agree with HIBC, the body diameters were huge on '03s,Enfields,and Krag chambers. A chamber may appear oversize on the body diameters, that was the specs back then for the military. If you stick with domestic brass, try Remington. Of the "Big Three Loaders" they seem to have the brass with the largest diameters. Off the top of my head, I think SAMMI brass mfg specs for body diameters has a .010 tolerance, which is quite a bit considering older military brass can be over SAMMI specs. It is pretty normal for them to really stretch brass, but Scorch is right, if the exposed brass between the cone in the barrel and the solid portion of the brass case is too much it could cause trouble. I remember someone that made the extractor cut in a barrel too deep and the first shot blew the side of the case out. Same concept on your rifle, except the whole back of the case is not supported.

 

[gyvel]

Setting the barrel back would give you a tighter chamber, and since the rifle is already sporterized, it's not going to hurt an collector value.

 

[HiBC]

If I am understanding the OP right,the bulging is not the case body that is supported by the chamber,it is the portion of the case that is outside the chamber,unsupported,in the cone area of the breech.Does it seem almost as if the case is trying,in a small way,to become a belted magnum?
If this is true,there is nothing to be concerned about regarding the chamber being oversize in diameter.Again,the case is fine where it is supported inside the chamber.
A chamber cast is a good idea.
I am inclined to believe,if there is a problem,it is that the cone was cut incorrectly.Too much brass is hanging out unsupported.
Small base dies could be an issue.
How are your primer pockets?If they are staying tight,its not likely the solid web is expanding in diameter.
Now if the case head is OK,and the body forward is expanding,I recall seeing this after I chambered a 30-06 improved.Turns out everything about the chamber was fine,the brass was .005 undersize.
As far as tightening chamber dia by setting it back a thread,case taper is a pretty shallow angle.Think rise over run,you will get a little reduction,but not much.