New guy/reloading help

Back the die up a few thousandths so the fired case shoulder is bumped back only about .002".

Using the standard die setup, shoulders get bumped back a lot more. That leads to short case life because the case stretches so much with each firing. Accuracy is less, too because the case head is more out of square as it doesn't stretch back evenly all the way around; case area with the thinnest wall thickness stretches out more.

A good way to set up a full length sizing die.

1. Use a Hornady LNL or RCBS Precision Mic to measure fired but cleaned case headspace; the distance from the case head to its shoulder reference. Note the reading on the tool.

2. Full length size that case.

3. Measure its headspace again.

If it's less than.002" less, unlock the die then screw it dpwn about 1/32 turn or about 1/10th inch on its circumference then lock it in place.

If it's more than.002" less, unlock the die then unscrew it up about 1/32 turn or about 1/10th inch on its circumference then lock it in place.

4. Full length size another case.

Repeat step 3 and 4 until sized case headspace is about .002" less than fired case headspace. There'll be a couple thousandths spread across all cases, but that's fine. As long as none of them require extra force to chamber; they all should chamber without binding the bolt at all.

If you compare that "perfectly sized case to a new one, it'll have a greater headspace dimension than the new one. But each time its resized, the brass will be worked much less and last a lot more firings and resizings. You'll still need to trim it back a few thousandths once in a while to keep it from jamming its mouth into the chamber mouth when its fired.

Or..... get a set of Redding Competition shell holders then use the one that limits the die's sizing on fired cases when it's set up according to its instructions so fired case shoulders are set back only .002". They come in .002" height increments above the .125" standard
 
Ya thanks Bart. I hope this isn't a dumb question but in my mind I'm picturing a tapered case. I'm assuming the shell holders sit lower so they don't push the case as far into the die. Wouldn't this cause the rest of the case to not be sized correctly? Not doubting you one bit, just trying to fully understand how all this works in my mind. Thanks for your patience and help everybody.
 
Re: Adjusting Dies in the Press

A word of caution regarding turning a die to change its position.........

Oft times, it's said to turn the die 1/4th turn then resize another case. Grade school math tells everyone able to do it that 1/4th of a turn on a 7/8-14 die moves it up or down about .018"

1/14th inch is about .072" (1 divided by 14) and ,072" divided by 4 equals .018"

We're working in thousandths of an inch, not fifty-fifths of an inch which one fourth of a turn moves the die. A .002" change in die position requires 1/36th of a turn of the die. Here's an aid to help you adjust your die position in increments suitable for reloading precision:

http://i860.photobucket.com/albums/ab170/jepp2/DieAdjustment-1.jpg

Make then use them correctly and they'll look like this one marked in .002" increments:

DieAdjustmentLabelonDie.jpg
 
.......Wouldn't this cause the rest of the case to not be sized correctly?......

A 338 Winchester case has .012" of taper per inch of case length. Changing the depth the case is pushed into the die by .008 of an inch will change the diameter of the case less than .0001".

A .002" difference in length would make a difference in the case diameter that is so small it can't be accurately measured with conventional measuring tools.
 
A 338 Winchester case has .012" of taper per inch of case length. Changing the depth the case is pushed into the die by .008 of an inch will change the diameter of the case less than .0001".

A .002" difference in length would make a difference in the case diameter that is so small it can't be accurately measured with conventional measuring tools.

Ya makes sense. I didn't think enough before I typed.
 
jomp198q,

Note that the standard shell holder height (base to top flat) is .125" rimless bottleneck full length sizing die shoulder headspace (yes, dies have headspace; dimension from the shell holder base to the reference diameter on the die's shoulder) when they're touching the shell holder is typically .005" less than SAAMI .338 Win Mag chamber GO gauge headspace of 2.1253", or 2.1203". The die set to touch the shell holder at the top of the ram stroke will set the fired case shoulder back to 2.1203" from the case head, then spring back a thousandth or two after it's pulled back out of the die.

Your rifle's shoulder headspace in its chamber is probably somewhere between 2.1235" and 2.1253"
 
One more thing I was hoping to clear up if you guys don't mind. Started playing around with the 22-250. All my brass is once fired factory hornady and winchester. I'm seeing a couple of things that concern me. I don't have a lot to base this on but I think I've got somewhat flattened primers and a ring around the case about 1/4" up. I know the couple of loads I've tried and all the factory rounds are under pressure so I know it can't be a pressure issue. I think I'm on the right track with thinking this is a head space issue. Possibly my chamber is slightly long? I'm sure there's a term for that. I'm hoping by adjusting my die and not bumping the shoulder back so far I can help minimize this. Guess I'm just looking for confirmation from the experts. Hopefully I'm learning. Thanks a lot guys.
 
That ring 1/4 inch up is caused by the case body expanding more than the case head. Very normal with all new cases and all loads from reduced ones to maximum. Not a problem at all.
 
try 35.5 grains of IMR 3031 under a 55 grain Vmax. Seat the bullet .002"/.003" off the lands, and use a Federal primer. Not the fastest, but without question the most accurate in the three Savage 22-250's I own. Seems to work well in every rifle. The best groups were sub .20", and the worst would be right at .30" (five shots at 100 yards) I suspect that same load would work well with the new 53 grain Vmax.
gary
 
Thanks Bart that's good to know. That saves me a lot of worry. Thanks gary I will definitely write that one down. The two powders I have to work with right now are imr4064 and cfe223. I'm a little concerned because a couple bullets in my test rounds seemed to hit the target sideways. I'm hoping as I get close to max they start stabilizing. Also not sure I can get that close to the lands. They seem a long ways out in my rifle. I'm gonna measure it again and post the results.
 
Thanks Bart that's good to know. That saves me a lot of worry. Thanks gary I will definitely write that one down. The two powders I have to work with right now are imr4064 and cfe223. I'm a little concerned because a couple bullets in my test rounds seemed to hit the target sideways. I'm hoping as I get close to max they start stabilizing. Also not sure I can get that close to the lands. They seem a long ways out in my rifle. I'm gonna measure it again and post the results.

Work up from 34.2 gr. to 35.0 gr. of your 4064. Should find accuracy somewhere in that range.
 
Warning! This thread is more than 9 years ago old.
It's likely that no further discussion is required, in which case we recommend starting a new thread. If however you feel your response is required you can still do so.

Recent Posts

Top