loading for a ar10?

[huntxtrm]

huntxtrm,
Suggest you use the .308 SERVICE RIFLE DATA in the Hornady manual as a guide. Dont use "range" or brass that has been fired in another rifle. Start new. If you want to use Berger bullets stick to the .30 caliber CLASSIC HUNTER or .30 caliber OTM bullets. You will be full length sizing and trimming every time. Also suggest that you get an L.E.Wilson cartridge case gauge in .308 Winchester as a quick check of sized/trimmed rounds. Bullets in the 150- 175 weight range are the most commonly used. Dont expect bolt action rifle accuracy right out of the box. Most military style rifles like this are guaranteed 2 MOA. Anything more is a gift. If you want bolt action rifle accuracy out of this style of rifle. Stand by to spend some $$$. Of course you MAY luck out ant its a tack driver right out of the box. Lets hope so!

Will do. I do have the hornady manual. I noticed there where 2 different listings. That was going to be a question also. Thanks for the input.

 

[huntxtrm]

Go on then, tell us what you bought.

It has a Armalite lower. It is a built rifle. I got it through some horse trading with a guy. He says he bought it and never shot it. The fella he got it from built it and shot it some. That's all he knows. Looks like it hasn't been shot much. Finish is in like new shape, rifling looks close to new, fit is tight. No fancy stuff on it, that I can see. It does have a weight in the rear of the bolt, so somebody was tweaking some loads through it, i'm guessing. I'm gonna put some rounds through it, before I spend too much on it. It should be fun.

 

[huntxtrm]

Ok, I dug up some lead around my bench. I have some 150gn hornady interlock SP's. I also have some 180gn hornady interlock BTSP's. I am thinking on loading the 150's for starters. To plink around with. Those 180's might be good for longer shooting, later down the road.

 

[Bart B]

If the bolt face isn't square, would you be able to tell by looking at a fired round? Shouldn't the case head be out of square? If that's the case? I'm just trying to figure out a way to check it.

Stack a bunch of cases head down against a straightedge on a really flat surface. Push them together head to head. Look down across their mouths; they won't be in a perfectly straight row if the case heads are out of square. Twist them all about 1/3 of a turn and notice how each one is now a bit off from where it was before. You can use two cases in place as a reference then put each case between them and turn it to see how much its mouth is not aligned with the other two.

For a 2.000" long .308 case, for every .001" out of square at one side of a case head across to the the other side, the case mouth will be about .005" off center from a vertical line made straight up from the case head center. The diameter of the head that rests on the flat surface is about .400" or 1/5th that of the case length.

Some years ago, I was talking with the captain of the US National Guard Rifle Team about reloading fired cases from semiautos. He said they tried all sorts of reloading dies and techniques reloading fired match ammo cases in an effort to reduce ammo costs. Nothing even came close to what new cases produced.

 

[huntxtrm]

Good advice. Thanks