I did a full day at the range today. This was the first day in two weeks where temps were reasonable, Less than 90*. All went well until I shot the custom 375. I shot several test loads with North Fork soft points and things were going quite well with that load development. Then I spied 10 rounds of ammo that I had loaded for another 375 a few years ago. It was a moderate load with a 300 gr. Nosler Partition. The first round flew well and to the mark. The second round separated at the case head above the belt. The base was extracted and the remains of the case are in the chamber. I should have known better than to shoot belted rounds from another rifle in a different rifle. No harm done to the rifle at all. No complete destruction of the action as so many scribes said would happen should the case blow.I know I am lucky but pre-64's are strong.

Now, How do I get the case remains out of the chamber?????

Try a tight patch on your cleaning rod.
Also possibly a oversized bore brush.
muck

Thanks for the tip.

A gunsmith I use has a special tool for that. It goes in the case then a nut is turned to expand it so it grips the inside, then it's pulled out. It works pretty slick.

The tight patch trick did not work. I will see if my smith has a stuck case puller. Does anyone sell such a thing, Brownells ???? It hasn't happened before, however, I would rather have a tool to fix it.

lb404,

Two tricks that I have used in the past to remove a stuck case.

1. Insert a 45 cal brush into the seperated case until it stops at the shoulder. Remove it with a quick yank. May have to try a couple of times. The bristles of the brush reverse directions and grab the inside of the case.

2. Last resort, I have used a tap that is smaller that the OD of the neck but bigger than the ID of the neck. Thread this into the neck until it is fairly solid then tap the case out from the muzzle end with a cleaning rod. This can feel like a dicey move running a hardened cutting tool into a fine rifle but it centers itself in the neck and has very little chance of touching the bore if done carfully.

HTH,
Tim

lb404; It is obvious that your case separation occurred far enough up the case that you still had a gas seal from the rear of the case. If your case had ruptured to where all the gas going down the barrel could vent into the action, things might have turned out differently.

As for getting your case out, well be careful. I used a 30-06 separated case extractor to remove a case in a match rifle. The front of the case extractor gouged a groove in the throat. So be careful.

Most of the time a case will come out without much trouble if you can push on that case mouth from the muzzle end. Try pushing a cleaning rod with a brush from the muzzle end, if that does not work, maybe the case is sticking due to powder residue. So soak the chamber with cleaning solution. Let it sit, and try the brush again.

As a final resort, get a gunsmith to unscrew the barrel from the action. Once that barrel is off it will be easier to either grab or turn the case.

Be nice to that barrel, pre 64 barrels are very hard to replace.

Thanks for all of your suggestions. I called a friend, Steve Baldwin in Jones Oklahoma. He is an exellent gunmaker/smith/shooter, etc. He packed the residual case with a piece of cotton fabric, tapping it into the case VERY tightly. Once that was done he inserted a cleaning rod into the muzzle end and gave her a rap. The case popped right out. Good Job done.