When I first submitted this post, I was short on time, and didn't explain my position. "Seated to the correct depth would mean to SAAMI specification, which I believe is 3.25", but without the manual in front of me...

Additionally, I have a Win. Model 70 FWT in .280 that digests these rounds perfectly. Next, a box of 140 gr. Rem. Core-Lokts are bitten by the rifling also. Finally, what about heavier bullets?

A short throat is fine for accuracy, but in a hunting rifle, yanking a chambered round out to have powder spill out,the ejector flinging a primed casing out on the ground is less than impressive. More measurements are in order.

The jury is in... I just ran some dummy rounds of various lengths into the Ruger in question. The rounds that fit without biting into the rifling are 3.305". The Sixth Edition Hornady Manual shows a C.O.L. of 3.330 for the same load, same bullet. It's only .025"...but once you consider that these are spire point bullets, not spitzers, one can see where spitzers would limit you even more! Sad, indeed.

Now to start the process of arguing with a faceless corporation over their product.

I think you may be pleasantly surprised at the customer service department at Ruger. I have had dealings with them, and I was truly impressed with their promptness, courtesy, and follow-up. To me these are the the things that spell Customer Service. Good luck and keep us posted.

Geronimo

Why not just seat the bullets to the proper depth in regard to your chamber dimensions? That's the reason you start low, and work up to max loads. The chamber dimensions of factory rifles are made to certain tolerances and the fact that you are .025" under the listed overall length is no big deal. Even the velocity loss of that tiny amount of case capacity would be negligable. Also, if you were to use longer bullets, you'd need to seat them properly based on the chamber throat, not the books listing. You might just find that your rifle is far more accurate than if it had a longer throat.

My opinion , you are making a big mountain out of a mole hole , unless there is something else wrong with the rifle .

If you have an otherwise good shooting barrel , I wouldn't want any warrenty people screwing around with it ; it might come back shooting way worse .

Rugers have mostly in the past had a problem of way too LONG throats.........if you can load spire points to 3.3 inch , the throat is hardly all that short anyway .

"Next, a box of 140 gr. Rem. Core-Lokts are bitten by the rifling also."

If this is a box of factory loaded Remington ammo, then the rifle needs to go back to Ruger with strong letter about their quality control.
If the above assumption is not valid, buy a box of 175 grain ammo and see if it touches the rifling.

There is no excuse for factroy loaded ammo engaging the rifling in this rifle.

I am no lawyer, but I believe that if you sell the gun later knowing this condition, you could be held liable for any injuries caused by this condition.

thanks for the input guys, I may try and find some 175 gr ammo and see what happens.