I had a case stuck in the chamber. The extractor ripped the portion of the case where it engages. We were out in the field when this happened so we tried to jerry rig a stack of .308 cases to push it out. This only compounded the problem once I got home.

At home I found out one of the .308 cases expanded in the throat and would not let me get the proper rod down the barrel to push it out. I drilled in from the back of the case to try and get a screw in to pull it out. Problem was another .308 case was inside the cartridge and would only spin when trying to drill. I had to make a larger hole to get the other .308 case out to get at the smashed case in the throat.

In the process of drilling I ended up going through the sidewall of the brass case and putting a couple small nicks in the chamber. One about 1-2mm deep.

I wanted to know what can be done to fix it, should I not worry too much and just keep shooting or is the barrel ruined?

Why are you posting this in the 50 cal forum?

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=194003475

- Clint

He is talking about a 50BMG Barrett

Ed

Probably going to need a new barrel.  Someone may be able to cut back and re-chamber your barrel, but I don't know if that'll work on the M82 or not.  not familiar with the recoil system it uses.

You could try to shoot it again and see if cases get stuck now because of the cuts in the chamber, and if it doesn't cause any problems, just live with it, but if they get stuck from the brass expanding into those holes, a new barrel is in order

Did you cut into the chrome lining really deep? The barrel can be sent back to Barrett and have the brass punched out and the chrome stripped from the chamber.
Then have the chamber polished in a lathe to see if the cut can be polished out. Some deep scratches can be polished out by an experienced person. I did a bunch of them when I was there.

The barrel would then need to be sent back to chrome to have the chamber lined again.

This route is better than buying a new barrel. Call them and see what they can do for you.

The best way to get a stuck piece of brass out of an 82A1 is to use a steel M2 cleaning rod from the muzzle end and a rubber mallet and a few light taps. That usually gets it unstuck. If you are having stuck brass issues, something is going on. A dirty chamber, excessive pressure, very dirty rounds. Those are usually the culprits.

What kind of ammo?

The suspected ammo was a reload I made but I found out it was part of a bad batch of powder purchased from Pats. I wasn't sure which ammo was affected and was hoping to shoot the ones that didn't have any sign of bad powder. I quess a couple rounds looked fine but were actually bad. Now I will just have to dispose of the entire lot of 100 rounds.

This is the only reason I could think of a case getting stuck.

Thanks for the info I will give Barrett a call and I think I cut about 2mm into the chrome. I can get a fingernail in it. Good news is that I was able to get the brass out and that is when I saw the marks.

Any Idea how much chrome there is to play with? Is there any danger other than getting a stuck case or damaging the brass if I just shot it as is?

Thanks again.

Thanks that is what I was thinking.

I am worried about tearing up the brass even if it will extract. I guess I will either have to send it in and hope they can get it up and running or buy a new barrel. :(

Is there any special trick to remove the brake other than taking out the screws and the washers? I really don't need anything else to fix by messing up my brake.

You need a T-30 Torx wrench to remove brake screws, and a dead blow hammer to strike the left side of the brake.
BARRETT INSTRUCTIONS:
Begin by facing the rifle muzzle looking down the barrel.  Place RH side muzzle brake on a hard wooden worktable while
suspending aft end of rifle.  The LH side of the muzzle brake should be approximately 1/4 inch above table.

Use a large dead blow hammer to strike the left side of muzzle brake.  When loose, unscrew by hand.

Were they hot loads?

The chrome is laid in only half a thousanth thick per side. You had to get pretty aggressive to get the drill to cut the chrome.
It can most likely be polished out after stripping the chrome lining out of the chamber. We used to do it a lot.
The taper of the .50 cartridge doesn't lend itself too well to rechambering. The barrel key has to oriented correctly and can only be set back one revolution, which is only .070" on the Barrett threads. That won't work. Any farther and under recoil the barrel key will slam the impact bumper and destroy it in short order.
I would go the strip chrome, polish heavy, and lay in new chrome.
It can be done unless the gouge is really deep.

Already removed the brake scews. Thanks for the info is there any heat needed for this procedure?

No, the loads were actually underpowered since a portion of the powder did not burn and just was a clump of yellow bad powder. The unburnt residue from the previous shots is what I think caused my case to stick in the chamber.

How did a "clump" of powder get in your case? Are you not weighing or measuring each load?

Unfortunely there was some bad powder going around a few years back. I know, I bought some of the 5010 that turned out to be on its last legs. If you loaded up some rounds and they might have gotten a wee bit warm for a period then tried to shoot it. I have heard that there were problems. Frankly I thought that the round were burning faster / hot. I remember someone was at the FCSA last year that their rounds were actually smoking. So, reloads could be found with clumps of powder due to the age of some powder that was pawned off on reloaders via internet sales.

Measured each one to with in .1 gr. of the bad 5010 powder. The clumps are the actual powder going bad while it is in the round. The bad powder seemed to "clump" together in the powder jars and in the cases. The bad powder would not burn and was forced out of the cartridge when the rest of the powder that was still ignitable pushed it out.

I shot about 15 rounds through my ferret that had the bad powder and the only thing that happened was rounds falling far short of there intended target. I was shooting at 800 yards and the  bad rounds were impacting around 400 to 500 yard. I don't know if it was because I shot these rounds over a year after I loaded them and they deteriorated to the point where so much of the powder was unusable that they couldn't get me the same F.P.S. that normal rounds could do.

Talked with the Barrett tech and they spent around 30 minutes with me talking over what can be done to rectify the damaged chamber. During the conversation the tech came up with a couple of remedies to the problem:

1. Send it back in and they can take a look at it and determine if they could polish and re-chrome. This was probably out after he said take a look in the chamber and if you can just  barely feel/see the scratch they may be able to help but when I told him I can put a fingernail into the gouge he was not very enthusiastic about being able to polish the scratch out and be able to return the chamber to dimensions that I could actually reload the brass I used (the chrome lining is only .5 thousands of an inch).

2. Send the whole rifle back to replace the barrel.         Minimum $1800 deal

3. You will love this: JB WELD in the gouge! He told me how to prep it, the putty knife I needed to buy and how to shape the knife to get the scratch in the chamber completely filled then how to wipe off any excess I may get in the chamber. His instructions after that were test fire it and see if it doesn't mess with the brass if it does see step 2.

Option 3 sounds the cheapest LOL. Hopefully it can be polished out. Did he mention what the cost would be if it could be polished and rechromed? Why do they need the whole rifle if replacing the barrel?

I can not believe they said to JB weld the chamber! Not doubting your word. Just the shear lunacy of that idea is ridiculous. No way JB weld will withstand the chamber pressures for any length of time.

I would take a chance on letting them look at it. If they want to rebarrel it, say no thanks and send it to someone like K&P Customs. They won't charge near that much to rebarrel an 82A1. They will use your existing bolt and barrel extension and machine the exterior to match the mating surfaces of your barrel stop and  front barrel bushing.
Hell, call K&P anyway and see what kind of change they will set you back.

Who is K&P Customs? How can you contact them?

It is definitely the cheapest and Barrett rep said they will not sell just a barrel that I would have to buy a complete upper (he said for liability reasons and head spacing) for around $3400 but if I sent the entire rifle in that they would take off the old barrel and put on a new one check the head spacing and test fire the rifle.

No, I did not ask how much the polished and re-chromed was once I told him how deep the scratches were we both thought it was a long shot but if the JB weld doesn't work I will send the whole rifle in and get a price on the polishing and re-chroming then hope it can be polished out.

I could not believe it any more than you but after the tech went over the process, related how the JB weld is just mainly going to be a filler in a scratch and have no real pressure other than compression and maybe a little movement over the top from the shell extraction and that I just need to watch the brass to make sure it is not being marked up or causing any FTE. I did not ask and he did not say how long it was expected to stay in place but I have the very same concern as you and I am slowly trying to wrap my head around a thousand plus dollar mistake.

On the other hand it has been about 18 months since I shot the M82 (mostly for fun and in case of the zombie invasion) and I don't usually shoot more that a hundred or so rounds when I do take it out. I shoot my Ferret more since it is easier to transport and more accurate when I do but, the dilemma for me is I always like to have all my rifles combat ready JUST IN CASE and my feeling with a JB weld in the chamber is not one of a combat ready rifle.

I was unaware of aftermarket barrels for the M82 (just have never needed to worry about this before). Do they look the same with the flutes? Are they just as good or better quality? Is K&P a reputable company with M82 experience?

I did look for a website for K&P and found nothing but the phone number. We are talking about the folks in Raton, New Mexico right?

I could take the chance to let Barrett look at it but the shipping charges alone can eat into a starting portion of the replacement barrel and after the tech doubting the capability to do it I don't know if I want to spend more on trying to save a barrel that may be down for the count.

I will try the JB weld option and see if it is something I can live with for the time being but I will also start shopping around for shops that can re-barrel mine for less than Barrett's quote starting with K&P.

This may take some time as I have plenty on my plate right now and no pressing need to get it back into service and even once I do the nearest range in the Dallas area that takes 50's is a two hour drive. I will post when I do get a chance to fire it and let everyone know if JB weld can cut the mustard.

Yes, K&P is very reputable. The barrel will look  exactly like a Barrett. A lot of competition shooters use K&P barrel set ups.
They are the ones in New Mexico.

I would be very leary of a "repaired" chamber. I personally would not do it to one of my guns, any of them.

Is there any way you can get any kind of pic of the scratch?

Hi Tony - where you at these days?

Any idea what K&P charges for an 82 rebarrel?

Mort

Hey Mort! Doing good.
I don't know what the charge is anymore. You might want to ask on the FCSA board. I know there are plenty that have had it done by them.
I had no idea that Barrett charged that much now. Considering what they pay for the barrels from Kreiger.

Searched and found the phone number to K&P in raton, NM but  the number is out of service (505) 445-1311. Are they out of business or does anyone have a current phone number? If they are closed are there any other recommended shops for a barrel retrofit?

I don't see were #3 is that bad of an idea. a little gouge is not going to do anything to the structural integrity of the chamber. The JB weld would only stop the brass from flowing into the gouge making it hard to extract and non reusable. The chambers of gun are made so over board it would have to be a good size chunck before i was worried about a chamber exploding. I've seen pics of WW1 guns that with the enviroment and ammo back then looked pretty bad and they still did there job.

K&P moved from Raton to South Dakota about 2 years ago:

K&P Gun Company
Phone: 605-341-7780
22321 Dyess Ave., Rapid City, SD 57701

Thanks I will call them Monday.

Finally got a hold of one someone at K & P (left 3 message over the week with no returned call) and they no longer take in rifles they just make barrels. When I questioned them about what I could get from them they seemed disinterested and told me they would call me back with a quote for the countored barrel. That was three days ago and they have yet to return my call. I am losing confidence in what they have to offer and without sending my rifle back how will the headspacing, rubber buffers and other measurements be taken? If anyone has any others that will work on the barret please pm me or just post it.

Wow. Really sorry to hear that about K&P.
You may have to return it to Barrett and see what happens. I would ask them to just strip the chrome, polish the hell out of the chamber and rechrome it.

Anzio Ironworks may be another option for rebarreling, but at $1900 it appears to be the same if not more than the Barrett route.

http://www.anzioironworks.com/BARRETT-M82-UPGRADES.htm