Cloudpeak
01-25-2007, 03:58 PM
Below is a copy of a post I made to the 1911 group concerning the occasional feed problems I've been having with the Lee 452-200-SWC in my new Champion. I wonder what you guys think.
*************
First post:
I'm having occasional feed problems with my Champion using reloads with the Lee copy of the H&G 200 SWC. The round will feed part way into the chamber and nose of the bullet will jam in the top of the chamber. I'm thinking that perhaps I need to load the round longer. I've loaded them 1.255" Anyone use this bullet? If so, what do you use for OAL?
This is a new gun and only has 150 or so rounds through it. The rounds seem to feed in my Loaded just fine.
Thanks, Cloudpeak
************
Response to various suggestions:
First: I taper crimped to .469"
I did shorten the Lee loads (with 3.5gr Clays) to 1.238". This puts the case mouth and edge of the front driving band flush so I can't go any shorter with this bullet. Same problem. I'm going to give the gun a good cleaning, especially the breech face.
I ran a bunch of loads that use a 200 SWC Penns bullet in front of 5.0 gr. of W231 loaded to an OAL of 1.255". These loads never miss a beat in my 5" loaded and ran perfectly through the Champion.
So, I think I've narrowed the problem down to one of two things:
Light load. The 5.0 of W231 & 200 gr Penns SWC is kind of a mid range load. The 3.5 gr of Clays with the Lee 200 SWC is very light. In fact, in my loaded, it would fail to lock the slide back on occasion. (This is with the factory 16 lb. spring)
Bullet design. The Lee and Penns look very much alike but may be different in areas that might affect feeding. The Lee is .006" longer than the Penns. The Lee is .018" shorter from the base of the bullet to the front of the forward driving band, which I don't think would make much of a difference.
I think the major difference between bullets that might affect feeding is that the Penns has a nose diameter of .222 as opposed to the Lee's of .186" for a difference of .036". IOW, the Penns has a "fatter" nose which means it would contact the top of the chamberbefore the Lee making the round enter the chamber at a shallower angle than a narrower nosed bullet. Does that make sense? Might that make a difference?
*************
I thought my feeding problems would be over with when I went from the LEE
TL 452-200-SWC to the present bullet. The tuble lube bullet was very short when compared to the 452-200-SWC.
One thing I noticed when lineing up both the Lee and Penns loaded rounds in line with WWB rounds loaded with the 230 round nose is that the contact points of the bullet (ogive match?) where they would contact the top of the chamber looked identical. Not so with the Lee round lined up.
This is the second Lee mold I've bought. If I can't get this bullet to feed, I'm going to have to try a different mold. My guess is that the Penns bullet is a more accurate copy of the H&G 68 design that the Lee.
Thanks, Cloudpeak
*************
First post:
I'm having occasional feed problems with my Champion using reloads with the Lee copy of the H&G 200 SWC. The round will feed part way into the chamber and nose of the bullet will jam in the top of the chamber. I'm thinking that perhaps I need to load the round longer. I've loaded them 1.255" Anyone use this bullet? If so, what do you use for OAL?
This is a new gun and only has 150 or so rounds through it. The rounds seem to feed in my Loaded just fine.
Thanks, Cloudpeak
************
Response to various suggestions:
First: I taper crimped to .469"
I did shorten the Lee loads (with 3.5gr Clays) to 1.238". This puts the case mouth and edge of the front driving band flush so I can't go any shorter with this bullet. Same problem. I'm going to give the gun a good cleaning, especially the breech face.
I ran a bunch of loads that use a 200 SWC Penns bullet in front of 5.0 gr. of W231 loaded to an OAL of 1.255". These loads never miss a beat in my 5" loaded and ran perfectly through the Champion.
So, I think I've narrowed the problem down to one of two things:
Light load. The 5.0 of W231 & 200 gr Penns SWC is kind of a mid range load. The 3.5 gr of Clays with the Lee 200 SWC is very light. In fact, in my loaded, it would fail to lock the slide back on occasion. (This is with the factory 16 lb. spring)
Bullet design. The Lee and Penns look very much alike but may be different in areas that might affect feeding. The Lee is .006" longer than the Penns. The Lee is .018" shorter from the base of the bullet to the front of the forward driving band, which I don't think would make much of a difference.
I think the major difference between bullets that might affect feeding is that the Penns has a nose diameter of .222 as opposed to the Lee's of .186" for a difference of .036". IOW, the Penns has a "fatter" nose which means it would contact the top of the chamberbefore the Lee making the round enter the chamber at a shallower angle than a narrower nosed bullet. Does that make sense? Might that make a difference?
*************
I thought my feeding problems would be over with when I went from the LEE
TL 452-200-SWC to the present bullet. The tuble lube bullet was very short when compared to the 452-200-SWC.
One thing I noticed when lineing up both the Lee and Penns loaded rounds in line with WWB rounds loaded with the 230 round nose is that the contact points of the bullet (ogive match?) where they would contact the top of the chamber looked identical. Not so with the Lee round lined up.
This is the second Lee mold I've bought. If I can't get this bullet to feed, I'm going to have to try a different mold. My guess is that the Penns bullet is a more accurate copy of the H&G 68 design that the Lee.
Thanks, Cloudpeak