Hornady Modified Case for OAL Gauge

[SteelBanger]

Hey guys, this is my first run at loading for bolt action rifles and I've ordered the Hornady OAL gauge and the Short Action Customs headspace / bullet comparator set. I'm as handy as they come but don't have a lathe or drill press so I was thinking about sending a couple cases off to Hornady for them to drill and tap. Their instructions say to send them fired cases, but not resized / deprimed. Obviously we can't resize the necks, but wouldn't it make sense to resize the body and bump the shoulder so that the modified case matches the sized cases you'll be shooting ... or is it just not that big of a deal? I did a little searching and was watching a video Sam from Panhandle Precision made about this topic and he did exactly as I described - body size without touching the neck diameter so that his modified case matches the same 2 thou shoulder bump as his reloads when chambered.

If that is correct, how can I accomplish only the body size with a forster FL resizing die without touching the neck? The way I understand the die, both the body and neck would be sized, then the expander ball sets the 1 thou neck tension on the way out of the case. Would I just need an oversized expander ball to open up the neck enough to slide a bullet in?

 

[WeiserBucks]

Copper Creek sells modified cases for almost everything.

 

[P7M13]

Either a bushing sizer die, or a FL die for a cartridge with same dimensions but larger caliber.
I just used a fired case I could rechamber and close the bolt without any resistive force.

 

[SteelBanger]

Copper Creek sells modified cases for almost everything.

Thanks for the heads up, looks like they do custom cases (I'm dealing with a wildcat) for cheaper than Hornady.

 

[Naymola]

I've been using the Hornady OAL gauge for years and have a bunch of modified "wildcat" and standard chambering's that I've sent them to have drilled and tapped. Don't worry about sizing the case. Just confirm the fired case chambers well. I'd use a case that had a average load as opposed to a hot load that swelled too much and is difficult to close the bolt. Redding "full length bushing die"would be your solution if you want to bump just the shoulder, without using a bushing, but again not necessary. I guess you could bump it a couple thousands if it made you feel better. You would see that difference just measuring Bullets.

 

[redneckdan]

I use a body die to bump .001 and then drill and tap it on a lathe.

 

[naja302]

The case fits your chamber correctly AFTER being fired in it so you will get a more accurate measurement. If you resize the case it's a tiny bit of a looser fit. The neck shouldn't be sized so that it's loose enough for a bullet to slide through it

 

[Naymola]

I'm pretty sure Hornady will drill out the case mouth for the ease of bullet movement

 

[ScottB338]

I use a cordless drill and a T-handle on my tap. No press or lathe needed.

Works good for me.

 

[Naymola]

i bought the Die and made a gallant attempt to drill it with a cordless and it didn't go so well. Difficult to make a straight parallel hole. Now if I had a drill press- maybe. Too easy to send it off to Hornady.

 

[tnek13]

Your fired case is the best gauge don't size anything - the spring back built into the brass is sufficient.

 

[Muddyboots]

I bought the tap, drilled out a small piece of pine stock equal case body (did not have any thing like a collet to use), placed in drill press vise, tightened enough where I could drill out in sequential drill sizes to minimize case slippage to the tap diameter I needed and then tapped using good lubricant. Just cleaned up the case in tumbler so nice and shiny, deprimed with universal Lee deprimer die. Just needed to be patient drilling since I really don't have the sophisticated machining tools available so make do with what I have to make it work.

But I have also sent in fired cases that Hornady tapped and sent back actually pretty fast return time so was very satisfied with their process as well.

 

[Buck Fever]

Drills will self center if you go up in size gradually. Some drill bits have their tips ground with a large relief which can let them take too big of a bite and wallow out the hole. It's hard to describe but if you know what to look for it's not too hard to drill a good hole with a hand drill.

As for resizing, your CBTO should be based on the case touching the bolt face but if your headspace is on the large size, you might be off by 0.003" or so. If you are chasing the lands, that might cause issues.

 

[shawn mcjunkin]

If you really into sending it out you can also look up Vaughn precision as well. he does the same and requests unsized brass, but he says he has body dies for most cartridges. He has a video " custom cases for Hornady OAL Gauge"