Long Ranger .223 - failure to extract

[Doc_Holiday_1873]

Took the Henry .223 out for the first time yesterday, and ran 100 rounds through it. Unfortunately, the rifle is failing to extract about 80% of the time. The spent-casing is getting pinched at an angle with the rear of the casing stuck to the bolt-face, and the head of the casing wedged against the roof of the receiver.
This condition did improve over the course of the firing, and I did start to see SOME normal extraction starting at around round 70 or so ... maybe after another 100 rounds or so, it will go away completely.

On a positive note, this rifle is an absolute tack-driver. It consistently shot 10 round groups sub-MOA at 50 yards.

[airbus 330]

I am assuming that you cleaned all the factory grease and lubed the action prior to that initial session at the range. Were these groups with the open sights or did you put a scope on it already? More than likely you have the rifle without the open sights.

[Hogstir]

Even with a scope, 10 shot groups at less than 1/2 inch is unbelievably accurate.

[CT_Shooter]

Thanks for the range report, and welcome to the forum, Doc_Holiday_1873! Please keep us posted about that extraction issue with your Henry. If it continues, place a call to Henry Customer Service and let us know how it turns out.

[JNG3]

Just curious, was it .223 REM or genuine 5.56 NATO pressure ammunition?

[RetiredSeabee]

Thanks for the report. Were you using one brand and batch of ammo?

[Doc_Holiday_1873]

First, a correction, I was shooting 1-MOA at 50 yards yesterday ... not sub-MOA. My mistake.
Second, I do have a Bushnell optic mounted, set to 6 power.
Third, the ammo I was shooting were my reloads, which, as I found out today, was definitely the reason for the accuracy, and in large part the failures to eject ... though not entirely.

So, I headed back out today with factory ammo to see how the rifle would perform ... and here are the results @ 50 yards.
1. - 10 rounds 55gr Federal .223 = 1.15" group and - I am happy to report - ZERO failures to eject.
2. - 10 rounds 55gr Remington Peters .223 = 1.12" group with ZERO failures to eject.
3. - 5 rounds 55gr Lake City 5.55 = a terrible 1.8" group and TWO failures to eject (40%). Side note - the tolerance on the chamber in this rifle is extremely tight, it would not chamber any of the 5.56 that I had reloaded and trimmed down to .223. The bases of the 5.56 brass had expanded too much to fully seat into the chamber.
4. - 10 rounds 55 gr Wolf Gold .223 = 1.67" group and FOUR failures to eject (40%).

To ensure that the failures with the 5.56 and the Wolf .223 were not due to fouling, I went back to the Federal and fired 5 more rounds with no failures to eject. In fact, I noted that the Federal rounds spit out with gusto, whereas the Wolf rounds that successfully ejected, merely fell out of the receiver.

So, taking measurements on the casings from these two cartridges, I find the Federal casing to measure 1.737" in length, while the Wolf measures a longer 1.752". The reloaded cases I was having problems with yesterday, measure the longer 1.752"
So, thankfully, it seems there is nothing wrong with my Henry, it is just picky about what I feed it. Trimming cases down a bit more and using a full-length resizing die should resolve future issues with ejection.

[Hogstir]

FYI, 1 MOA at 50 yards is 1/2". It's 1" for every 100 yards. Is the Long Ranger rated for 5.56 or just 223?

[Doc_Holiday_1873]

FYI, 1 MOA at 50 yards is 1/2". It's 1" for every 100 yards. Is the Long Ranger rated for 5.56 or just 223?

The Long Ranger is rated for both 5.56 and .223.

[Hogstir]

I was having trouble with reloads for an AR in .204 and I ended up having to full length size with a small base die to bump the shoulder back a bit. That cured my failure to chamber and extraction problems.

[JEBar]

glad to hear your Long Ranger shoots well and that you have a handle on the ejection issue .... please take a look at our How Many ? thread (link below) and add it to our community total

http://henryrifleforums.com/viewtopic.p ... 272#p41272

[Doc_Holiday_1873]

Even with a scope, 10 shot groups at less than 1/2 inch is unbelievably accurate.

Under 1" at 50 yards ... sorry for the misdirection ... I will abandon minute-of-angle references moving forward.

[Doc_Holiday_1873]

I was having trouble with reloads for an AR in .204 and I ended up having to full length size with a small base die to bump the shoulder back a bit. That cured my failure to chamber and extraction problems.

Thank you for the feedback Sir. That is exactly where I am heading.

[PT7]

Doc_Holiday_1873....Welcome to the Forum from the Show-Me-State.

Interesting first thread on your extraction issue. But I also found a "side detail" interesting. The flag you have chosen to fly is Switzerland. Do you hail from there, or are you now living there? If you are living there, I (and probably other Henry Folk also) would be interested in hearing anything you might share about that country. And we all especially like to look at photos.....of your firearms, range targets, any shooting stuff... along with the area where you are at. If you'd like to share, we'll be glad to look & listen!

[Doc_Holiday_1873]

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[Doc_Holiday_1873]

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[Doc_Holiday_1873]

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[Doc_Holiday_1873]

Doc_Holiday_1873....Welcome to the Forum from the Show-Me-State.

Interesting first thread on your extraction issue. But I also found a "side detail" interesting. The flag you have chosen to fly is Switzerland. Do you hail from there, or are you now living there? If you are living there, I (and probably other Henry Folk also) would be interested in hearing anything you might share about that country. And we all especially like to look at photos.....of your firearms, range targets, any shooting stuff... along with the area where you are at. If you'd like to share, we'll be glad to look & listen!

Thank you for the kind invite. Sorry to disappoint, but O am not from, nor have I ever been to Switzerland. I just like their flag ... Just a means to project my inner Templar I suppose.

[PT7]

Not a prob. I like the Swiss flag also, plus really like the very similar product medallion on all my Victorinox knives. Just thought to learn more about that country, if you were from there. That way is a lot better than just doing internet reads.

Doc_Holiday_1873....Welcome to the Forum from the Show-Me-State.

Interesting first thread on your extraction issue. But I also found a "side detail" interesting. The flag you have chosen to fly is Switzerland. Do you hail from there, or are you now living there? If you are living there, I (and probably other Henry Folk also) would be interested in hearing anything you might share about that country. And we all especially like to look at photos.....of your firearms, range targets, any shooting stuff... along with the area where you are at. If you'd like to share, we'll be glad to look & listen!

Thank you for the kind invite. Sorry to disappoint, but O am not from, nor have I ever been to Switzerland. I just like their flag ... Just a means to project my inner Templar I suppose.