Case Head Separation: How to Remove a Stuck Case

Range day was going great until I switched to my 22-250 to try some new handloads. The first seven shots were uneventful. Then came shot eight, and the bolt handle wouldn’t lift. A sharp rap on the handle with the heel of my hand popped the action open, but it only brought short-term relief, as only one-quarter of the cartridge case extracted. The head had separated from the body, and three-quarters of the case was firmly stuck in the chamber.

The Cause

Case head separation has happened to me before, and I’ve helped other shooters solve this issue as well. Excess headspace is a common cause, especially in handloads, if the shoulder gets pushed back too far each time the case is resized. Cartridge design can also contribute to the problem, especially if the case has a lot of body taper, as in the .22-250. Action design can be a contributor, because if there’s flex or stretch in the locking system, it contributes to case stretching and thus head separation. Handloads which are too “hot” will also contribute to case head separation, as high pressures will cause brass to flow and stretch more than normal. When I got home, I pulled the bullets from the unfired ammo and probed the inside of the cases, feeling for a tell-tale groove just forward of the web. Sure enough, a significant number of cases had it. Groove or not, they all got dumped in the trash. But I still had to extract that leftover case from the chamber.

First Try

The quickest and easiest way to remove a stuck case is with a brass cleaning brush. Just grab one that’s a bore size or two larger than the firearm involved, push it in from the breech end until the leading bristles can be felt getting squeezed by the case neck, then pull back sharply. All those little brass fingers grabbing the neck don’t want to reverse direction, and the case will pop out—if it’s not stuck too tight. Mine was stuck too tight, and after numerous attempts and a couple of ruined brushes, I gave up.

Second Attempt

If the brass brush trick doesn’t work, all is not lost. There’s another method, but it’ll take a little more time, effort, and a few bucks' worth of supplies. Here’s the list of what’s required:

• Isopropyl alcohol or some other degreaser

• One long-handled, cotton-tipped swab

• One foam ear plug

• Putty-like epoxy

• A long, thin probe, skewer, scribe, or dowel

• A sturdy cleaning rod.

Step one is to clean the inside of the cartridge case of any residue so the epoxy, which will be used later, can adhere to the case walls. This is best done with isopropyl alcohol and a long swab. Simply wipe the inside of the case walls clean and then let the alcohol evaporate.

Step two is to plug the case neck, which is what the foam ear plug is for. For smaller bores, cut the plug in half. Use the probe to stuff it down into the case neck and ensure it is solidly in position.

Step three is to prepare the epoxy putty by mixing it according to directions. With the problem barreled action positioned vertically, small bits of epoxy putty are positioned down into the offending brass case using the probe. As the broken case fills with epoxy, press it down as much as possible to make sure it’s contacting the walls of the case. While it’s not necessary to completely fill the case, the odds of success improve the fuller the case becomes. With the epoxy in place, it’s time to go do something else while it hardens.

Step four is simply sliding a cleaning rod in from the muzzle, and with a sharp sliding motion, knock the case out. If the plug remains solid, as mine did, it’s important not to hammer on the cleaning rod, as this will ruin the swiveling end of the rod. It’s one of the reasons I keep a set of long brass rods in the shop. I found the rod with the best fit to the bore size, inserted it, and smacked it with a hammer. The broken case popped out, ear plug, epoxy, and all.

Clean Up

With a little luck, all that’s left is cleaning up the barrelled action, tools, and work site. This time, I wasn’t that lucky. A check with a bore scope showed some significant residue plastered against the chamber walls in a circular pattern in the zone where the case separated. Some work with bore brushes large enough to scrub the chamber walls, as well as solvent and patches came next, and while it removed some residue, it didn’t get it all. When that happens, the solution is found in Brownell’s J-B Non-Embedding Bore Cleaning Compound. Simply smear a small amount of this paste on a previously fired case in the area where head separation occurred and insert this case into the chamber. Push the bolt in behind it and lock it down. Then, with repeated up and down cycles of the bolt handle, let this paste do its work, scrubbing residue from the chamber walls. Repeat as necessary, then clean the chamber, bore, and locking lugs thoroughly of any stray bore paste.

This is as far as I’ve ever had to go in removing the remains of a case head separation. If these steps don’t solve your problem, it’s time to visit a gunsmith.