I am having a hard time ejecting case's from my .416 - bolt handle is hard to lift, with obvious pressure signs on the case. Rifle is a Remington 700 Big Game Synthetic. Loads chamber fine, load is 400 grain Hornady Softs over 78 grains IMR 4064. Double checked load and everything is fine. OAL is at 3.555

Just had the gun returned from gunsmith where he installed a Sako extractor. Any ideas what the problem may be - could it be headspaace ?

I would guess that your load is a little hot, did you chronograph it??

Yes I did, it is just a hair under 2400fps.

Your .416 Rem headspaces on the belt so the symptoms you describe can't be attributed to that. If you were resizing too much you would have head separation or at least a bright ring ahead of the belt.
If this load has performed well in the past take a look at several things....(1) does the case need to be trimmed..check the max case length allowed; (2) if the brass has been sized a lot the necks may have become hardened to the point they are exhibiting excessive nect tension (remote but possible); (3) the powder may be off spec at bit and generating more pressure; (4) don't look at O.A.L. for the round, you need to check how far off the lands you are. If this bullet and length have worked before, sometimes different lots of bullets have a different ogive. I would check #1 first then #4 but at any rate I would back off before you hear a loud noise followed by friends picking splinters out of your face.

My friend left some solvent in his chamber, when he would start shooting the brass would 'slip' and push the case head against the bolt face leaving enxtractor marks and requiring a lot of force to open the bolt.

After he dried it out, this did not happen again.

This was the first I heard of this.

[This message has been edited by Bill (edited 06-27-2001).]

[This message has been edited by Bill (edited 06-27-2001).]

I know that some books call for 80 grs of 4064, but others such as Barnes call for 72 grs as max...You could be a little hot with a tight chamber, I'd start by cutting 2 grs. or using RL-15, and see what happens, then I'd take a look at what the smith did....Did the gun lock up prior to his work on it?? That could be a clue...This is most often caused by a rough chamber, hotloads, or a few other quirks that crop up in the bolt.
If the first couple of suggestions don't work then let me know and we'll have you check some of the cocking parts on the bolt that could possibly been soften in the conversion process,but thats doubtfull...

------------------
Ray Atkinson

ray@atkinsonhunting.com
atkinsonhunting.com

Thanks for the info. I did try backing off on the powder - no change. I shipped the gun off this morning to a gunsmith, so I will see what he finds.I will keep you posted.

Peter