Condensation on case

[David_h]

So you can change out the Savage floating bolt head without any special headache except maybe lapping the locking lugs? Might work. Check for debris around the firing pin and spring. That is a pretty handy feature of Savage to allow that. I bought a used Savage Left Hand .243 model 16 weather warrior for my son and it shoots great; possibly better than my other more expensive rifles and does so with pretty much any ammo.

 

[lyle2231]

I just hate it when they do that. At least they honored your warranty. That said, it would have been nice to know what (if anything) was wrong. Does make you wonder though. Hmm...

I'd say it was the best thing Browning could have done both in the short and long run.
No back & forth shipping, customer support/good will etc. just my 2c

 

[C-130 Dude]

I'd say it was the best thing Browning could have done both in the short and long run.
No back & forth shipping, customer support/good will etc. just my 2c

My comment was a joke. But I still say it would have been nice for Browning to state what, if anything, was wrong with the OP's gun. If for nothing else than being able to know what's going on if it was ever encountered again. My 2c worth.

 

[lyle2231]

My comment was a joke. But I still say it would have been nice for Browning to state what, if anything, was wrong with the OP's gun. If for nothing else than being able to know what's going on if it was ever encountered again. My 2c worth.

No worries buddy

 

[lancetkenyon]

Moisture on a case will not let it expand and grip the chamber walls like a dry round, and allows the case to slam back into the bolt face. It can create false overpressure signs.

Were you testing RL26 by chance?

Last weekend, in AZ, it was raining like a cow ****ing on a flat rock while I was at the range. My 7SS, shooting a known mild load, had a very stiff bolt on one wet round that I single fed with wet hands too. Velocity was within my normal ES/SD, POI was exactly where it should have been. Primer was flattened too.

Also, as for cold temps and powder, I have heard (but not experienced myself) that some powder can indeed create more pressure at cold temps. Could be flawed data on the people claiming this, but the rumor is out there. Retumbo is one I have heard this with. Could be (and probably is) that other factors are causing it though...like moisture on a case/chamber?

 

[Weaver93]

You probably already looks at the firing pin, but I ran into the same situation while forming .260 AI brass. Turned out my firing pin chipped on the very end and was cutting. Damage was so small it was hard to see. I was .5 grains below max for .260 so I wasn't expecting anything pressure related in the AI chamber.

 

[Rflshootr]

I've never experienced this, but I'm thinking if condensation is forming on the outside of the case, wouldn't it form on the inside as well? Especially if it is going in an already pre-heated chamber? What effect that may have, I have no idea....but I wouldn't think it would be good.

 

[Mikecr]

if condensation is forming on the outside of the case, wouldn't it form on the inside as well?

It's possible, if you loaded cases in a warm space with high relative humidity(RH).
But Ideally you would load in a comfortable 70degF air conditioned shop with ~40% or less RH.
Martini shaken (not stirred) and dew point under ~50degF.

If your powder holds the moisture content that it should, and you load in low humidity, there should be no movement of that moisture. Even if you drop the temperature of your ammo, it's still right there, in your powder.
Like if your ammo is taken to -10degF, then all the moisture in that case is still held by the powder.
The only way this might be different is if you purposely heated cases, and then suddenly cooled them so that moisture taken from the powder into air(while it was warm) could condense onto cold inner case walls.

 

[C-130 Dude]

It's possible, if you loaded cases in a warm space with high relative humidity(RH).
But Ideally you would load in a comfortable 70degF air conditioned shop with ~40% or less RH.
Martini shaken (not stirred) and dew point under ~50degF.

If your powder holds the moisture content that it should, and you load in low humidity, there should be no movement of that moisture. Even if you drop the temperature of your ammo, it's still right there, in your powder.
Like if your ammo is taken to -10degF, then all the moisture in that case is still held by the powder.
The only way this might be different is if you purposely heated cases, and then suddenly cooled them so that moisture taken from the powder into air(while it was warm) could condense onto cold inner case walls.

Moisture reduction efforts? Possibly you could expose the powder to a RH level less than the moisture level of the powder as it was in its container for an adequate period. Re-bottling it may be a bit fun with the intent of preventing any moisture creep back into the container. Not a process I would get involved in. IMHO.

 

[Mikecr]

How does humidity affect powder?

You may have heard about a relationship between humidity and bullet velocity either in a book, on a reloading forum, or from a crusty benchrest shooter right after saying they get better ES/SD&#821…

chronoplotter.com

 

[Josh06]

I don't think the condensation on the case caused high pressure. There weren't any other signs of pressure. I don't think high pressure even caused the pierced primer. I believe the culprit was the bolt head. I did more research and found others who have had this problem with savages. I ordered a bolt head with a squared face which is supposed to correct the issue. I also closely inspected the firing pin and didn't see and couldn't feel anything that would be cutting into the primer. Thanks for all the replies, I'll try to report back after I get the new bolt head and shoot it.