What Happened Here? .308 case ribbed

BigBlack

Anyone care to guess what happened to these, .308 Federal Case. They were picked up at the range and feel as if they were fire formed to a chamber with rifling's cut in. They were also very sooty all over as you can see in the rim and neck area. They were nearly completely black from soot.

Anyway would like your thoughts!

Gil Martin

It depends. My first assessment is that the cases were fired in a rifle with a very dirty chamber. Some military rifles have fluted chambers that cause ribs in the cases. However, I stand by the dirty chamber theory. All the best...
Gil

TRBLSHTR

I've found many cases like that-usually fired from an H&K of some type,Not sure if it will affect reloading-but I chose not to use them just in case of a "case failure".They use that chamber fluting to aid in extraction from a dirty hot chamber,or so the story goes.

ElyBoy

The entire case looks like it has been butchered.

No way would I reload them.
It's not worth the risk.

.308 cases come a dime a dozen, so there is no sense taking a chance using these.

Eric

Dimitri · Super Member Joined: Nov 25, 2005 Posts: 5946

I will put my money on them being fired in the delayed blow back action of a HK G3 rifle or clone. They use fluted chambers to aid in the extraction of the cases (as they'd get stuck otherwise) and leave those kinds of marks.

Dimitri

roklok

Definitely fluted chamber, like was said. HK G3, Cetme, PTR91. This is the biggest reason I would not even consider one of these rifles. The flutes in the chamber are designed to channel small amounts of gas back around the case.

Duce · Member Joined: Mar 01, 2008 Posts: 124 Location: Kentucky

Bigblack check the reply over at ammobrasstraders forum the answer is there.

Lou

BigBlack

I do not plan to reload these. They caught my eye and I had to bring home for further inspection but was still clueless so I posted this question on several boards and did not know the response was going to be so great. But hey I "learnt sumtin" today

ElyBoy

OK D. and Roklok.
If it comes from a fluted chamber, is this brass safe to use, or should a guy pitch it.

This is all new to me, so give me the details on this one.
It's pretty interesting.

Eric

Dimitri · Super Member Joined: Nov 25, 2005 Posts: 5946

As I understand it its generally not considered re loadable.

Dimitri

roklok

I have read of a lot of people reloading them but like Dimitri said, it is generally not advised. Thats why I have no interest in these rifles. For quite a while, the spanish CETME was available really cheap and is probably the most common of these rifles around.

PaulS

A friend of mine had an H&K 91 or 93 (I can never remember which one was the 308) He reloaded his cases but only got two loadings out of them before they couldn't be sized again to fit his chamber. The flutes never come all the way out and they get worse with every loading.

Handloader

roklok wrote:

Definitely fluted chamber, like was said. HK G3, Cetme, PTR91. This is the biggest reason I would not even consider one of these rifles. The flutes in the chamber are designed to channel small amounts of gas back around the case.

All the PTR91s I have seen have smooth reamed chambers. We sell four or five a week.

roklok

I have never examined a PTR 91, but every thing I have ever read about them says they have fluted chambers. I even personally asked a PTR 91 owner and he said the chamber is fluted.

www.horusvision.com/news_0007.shtml

www.thehighroad.org/sh...p?t=342204

www.hkweaponsystems.co...1&t=000552

Dimitri · Super Member Joined: Nov 25, 2005 Posts: 5946

if they stopped fluting them then extraction issues will start till the gun just stops working.

HK maybe snobs when selling to us average joes but they do make good firearms designers and added the costly flutes for a reason.

Dimitri