218 Bee rechamber?

Rat44

New Member
Glens 218 Bee thread reminds me that I have model 43 Winchester in 218 Bee that has a gouged up chamber. My guess is Bubba used a screwdriver to get a stuck or separated case out. Ive shot it a little and never had extraction problems, but it pretty much screws up the brass. What could I rechamber it to? A new barrel would be nice, but I don’t want to put a bunch into it. What do y’all think?
 

Rat44

New Member
There are several gouges, all in the body of the chamber. Some metal around the gouges is proud of the chamber so it leaves indents in the brass. A Bee reamer may eliminate that, but not the gouges. I guess setting the barrel back a thread or two would clean it up, but now we are into stock work...and more money.
 

Michael

Active Member. Uh/What
Maybe rechamber/rebore to 32-20, might clean things up if the gouges further up the case body or could go with a 218 Mashburn Bee.
 

Rat44

New Member
Don’t really want to rebore , so 32-20 is out. I would do Mashburn Bee, but isn’t the case body the same dimensions up to the sharp shoulder? I don’t think it will get rid of the gouges. No opinions on the Fireball? I had one in a contender that shot lights out.
CW, that is a peach of a 43! Gotta drag mine out to check barrel-stock fit....you may be on to something!
 

Jeff H

NW Ohio
Now, don't throw rotten eggs when I say this, but,... JB-Weld comes to mind.

Look up"Leroy's Ramblings" site and look for the article titled Ramblings of a Retired Gunsmith. Scroll down to Tip# 41.

He says he has (no rotten eggs, now) "repaired" such molestations by CAREFULLY waxing a new case or cartridge, plugging the bore ahead of the chamber, smearing JB Weld in the chamber and chambering the waxed case and let cure. Afterwards, he used the case, slathered with something to polish out the chamber. Something like that.

I know it sounds like lunacy, or made-up even, but there's some resourceful old fellas out there who have pulled of some spectacular stunts.

I'm not so sure I'd try it MYSELF, but if I knew an old gunsmith I trusted (getting hard to find) and he said he could fix it that way, I'd think about it, at least. Me, I'm lucky to JB-Weld a set of wooden handles to a set of LEE 6C mould handles without making SOME kind of a mess.

He offers another option for "low pressure" rounds, wherein he bored out the old chamber, threaded it, screwed in new metal and rechambered it.

He's retired, but there may be someone out there who could still do this.
 
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fiver

Well-Known Member
i'd shoot for a polish to relieve the high spots, and go from there.

i don't know the measurements but the 22-K hornet might be your only close-nuff big nuff option.
 

Michael

Active Member. Uh/What
The Mashburn Bee has most of the body taper blown out. https://www.handloadermagazine.com/218-mashburn-bee
Could just go with an Ackley Bee.

Re the Fireball, I really don't think a 43 would be up the task pressure wise 40K cup vs. 52K for the Fireball.

Also check in with the folks over at: Saubier.com
If it's small bore, i.e. .224, .204, .19, .172, .14 cal. etc., they have it covered, not so much on cast bullets, none the less they are a nice group.
 

BudHyett

Active Member
Bite the bulllet, this is a shooter:
  1. Set the barrel back enough to clean up the gouges.
  2. The barrel channel will open with no, or little, rework.
  3. Recrown.
  4. Shoot.
  5. Enjoy!
I'm shooting 1680 in both my .22 Hornet and .218 Bee; QuickLoad shows powder burn is complete in first half of barrel travel.
 

richhodg66

Well-Known Member
What real advantage does the Mashburn Bee have over the regular Bee?

I have a .218 Bee I haven't done much with. Oddly, I have a set of .218 Mashburn Bee dies, I wonder if the rechamber would be worth it?
 

Rat44

New Member
Jeff H, I love stuff like that! Theres nobody like that around here though. All anybody wants to work on is ARs.
I‘ve thought about polishing fiver, but no idea how to go about it.
Michael, I never thought to look up pressures.
 

RicinYakima

High Steppes of Eastern Washington
First I would find a machinest to make a plug of SAAMI max diameter and have it hardeden. Then rotate it in the chamber to push back any raised parts. Believe it or not, this is how Springfield Armory finished National Match chambers, called burnishing.
 

Michael

Active Member. Uh/What
What real advantage does the Mashburn Bee have over the regular Bee?

I have a .218 Bee I haven't done much with. Oddly, I have a set of .218 Mashburn Bee dies, I wonder if the rechamber would be worth it?

Sharper shoulder angle for better headspace control, less body taper, thus less case stretch and about 10-15% increase in powder capacity and corresponding increase in velocity potential.

Worth it... in a normal world where Bee brass can bee found, maybee. Now days.. perhaps not. Just go with a 221 Fireball in an appropriate action.
 
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Rick

Moderator
Staff member
What real advantage does the Mashburn Bee have over the regular Bee?

I have a .218 Bee I haven't done much with. Oddly, I have a set of .218 Mashburn Bee dies, I wonder if the rechamber would be worth it?

Photo from the above posted link to the Handloader article. 218 Bee empty and loaded on the left. Mashburn Bee empty and loaded on the right. As I posted recently in another thread, the Mashburn Bee was my first experience with the red mist varmint shooting. The added powder capacity is significant. The added performance is impressive.

218 Bee-Mashburn Bee.jpg
 

Glaciers

Alaska Land of the Midnight Sun
First I would find a machinest to make a plug of SAAMI max diameter and have it hardeden. Then rotate it in the chamber to push back any raised parts. Believe it or not, this is how Springfield Armory finished National Match chambers, called burnishing.

I had a 43 in 218 quite along time back, but it had a bad spot in the chamber that would mark the case. Took it to Langley’s Gun Room and the gunsmith there, “Peacock” looked at it and my sample case, said he thought that it could be ironed out. No idea what Bill was talking about, but I said go for it. He explained the process, which I’d never heard of then, or since, until now. But it cured the chamber problem, great shooting rifle. Not sure it’s the same procedure but sure sounds like it.
Peacock was one hell of a old school Gunsmith. He built a couple of rifles for me and worked on some of my takedown Winchesters. Sadly he fell into a bottle and never came out.

CW that’s a beauty!!
 
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Bret4207

At the casting bench in the sky. RIP Bret.
Most of what I might add has been covered. I don't think there is a 218 or 32-20 based cartridge that will clean up what you describe. The 43 action is marginal even for hotter loaded 218 Bee loadings, so anything with more pressure is out. I think you have 2 choices- you can set it back and re-cut the chamber. Or you can do what I'd do first and thats a combination of what Ric and Fiver mentioned. Burnish the chamber to remove the high spots and then use an epoxy to fill the low spots. What have you got to lose? If it works, great! If it doesn't, you can still set it back. If the gouges are very mild just the burnishing may solve most of the problem. It all depends on what you have.
 

Rat44

New Member
Thanks to all for the great info and suggestions! I found a smith about 60 miles away that sounds promising. I am gonna take the rifle and a couple fired cases and get his opinion on my options. I will report back with what I find out!