I have rebarreled a Yugo mid length 98 action to .243 and cannot get the rounds to feed into the chamber. They get stuck at the point where they should pop out of the rails and slip up under the extractor. Instead they jam at an fairly sharp angle as though they are too short to create the leverage needed to lever them up out of the rails or under the extractor. If the cartridge were longer (or the bullets of larger diameter) they would feed, however I am using cartridges at recommended max.length for 243 win. Any help on this one??

Does this problem happen regardless of how many cartridges are in the magazine? If it will feed single rounds but not when several ones are in the magazine,it could be the mag spring is too strong.

Remove the bolt and use your thumb to push a cartridge forward and observe when it pops out of the mag. If it jams on your thumb then the problem is likely related to the feed rails/mag spring.

Check the fit of the case rim in the bolt head by removing the bolt and snapping a case head in. It should snap in with just snug and not spring the extractor outwards too much. If its too tight the cartridge may be jamming under the extractor. The 8x57 cases I have on hand are narrower in the extractor groove than some .308/.243 cases I compared it to.

The Mauser extractor is designed to move a few thousanths forward and back. Push and pull the extractor to check for free-play.

Remember too, that the .243 is wider at the shoulder than an 8x57 and feed rails may have to be widened accordingly. I would approach this with much caution after exauhsting other avenues.

[ 11-20-2003, 14:52: Message edited by: Bobster ]

You may need to recut the extractor to not lift the round so soon...Several things could be wrong as the Mauser wasn't designed to feed the 243...rails need work, extractor and timing..maybe a block in the rear of the action..the shoulder of the 243, being much larger than that of an 8 or 7 mm, is probably a problem also...Any good smith can fix it I would think.

I chambered my Mauser in 6MM Remington to avoid this problem. I still had to fit the extractor to let the case head slide smoothly up the bolt face.

You need to open up the feed rails a bit.

Just read an old article by Roy Dunlap yesterday about mauser feeding. He noted the 243 as one of the hardest to get to feed, due to short length and sharp sholder.