To inside ream or neck turn

[woodnut]

Hey guys. I have been reloading for a lot of years and have not had to ream or neck turn for quite a while and have either forgot or refuse to admit what I should do about a problem I have with brass in 6.5CM.
When loading some same brand brass, I found some bullets seated with noticeably more effort than some others. I segregated them and at the range saw it made a pretty big difference. I had already sized and primed once fired brass b4 I noticed the difference. Apparently, some were fired in one rifle and others in another, one being a gas gun. Only reason I can see for the difference.

Sooo, b4 I jump in and do something I will regret, having forgot which order to do it and how best to do it: should I 1) resize THEN turn necks or ream, or 2) not resize and turn necks or ream? I hate to think about turning necks as it is v-e-r-y slow and laborious. Help!

 

[J E Custom]

Over the years, I have tried about everything known to man and found reaming the necks not to be satisfactory and inconsistent. When I reamed, the neck wall was not the same thickness because the reamer found it's own center. I set up in a lathe and it still happened although
not very much. The best way I found was to use a sizing mandrel to size the neck to perfectly fit the turning mandrel. With the neck wall thickness exactly the same the chamber will do the rest if it is concentric. I have had several other neck turners that just used caliber specific mandrels and they never realy fit that good, and I ended up making a mandrel almost every time I turned necks to get a good fit.

Once I went to the sizing type (I use the Sinclair with the sizer and turning mandrel) There were no more issues. As said before, I prefer turning the necks before they are fired so the first firing trues the neck concentricity, Most brass will have some run out before it is fired. by truing the neck wall thickness first the chamber will do the rest. Since going this route, I can find no run out in the fired brass
inside or out. another advantage of turning before firing is that when the neck expands to fit the chamber there is no wall thickness difference to move the neck bore off center. (If the neck wall is .001 thousandths different on one side, the bore will move .001 thousandths to the other side , moving the bore center off by .001 to the barrel center.

Turning necks correctly is very necessary in my opinion if turning doesn't produce concentric cases, then all it does is thin the necks.

J E CUSTOM

 

[woodnut]

RATS ! I kinda figured that would be an answer. And I appreciate it! Thanks J.E. !

 

[BountyHunter]

Neck turn, reaming never comes out smooth. PITA

 

[CVCOBRA1]

And now you know, keep your gas gun brass separate from your bolt gun brass. Shoot brand A in one and brand B on your other. Yes, just another hassle.

 

[woodnut]

Thank y'all ! Yes, CVCOBRA1, need to keep those gas gun brass separate! I just ordered Neck turning parts for my Forester turner/trimmer. Should make it a lot easier and quicker, once I get it all set up and running.

 

[ar10ar15man]

cancel that order and buy real neck turning gear.

Thank y'all ! Yes, CVCOBRA1, need to keep those gas gun brass separate! I just ordered Neck turning parts for my Forester turner/trimmer. Should make it a lot easier and quicker, once I get it all set up and running.

 

[woodnut]

AR10, I do have that, and only because it's so slow and laborious is why I'm adding this. I may wind up doing just that. Even with the differing tension, I can sort them, zero each and go long to see where they are there. Oddly, my 6 CM was done through 2 guns, one a gaser, and no difference. All brass, both cal.s, was Hornady. However, I think some of the 6.5s were a different "brand" of Hornady, which could explain the difference in necks.

 

[SealT5]

I use a K&M turner with a little ryobi electric screwdriver. I turned 150pcs of brass on the couch Saturday while watching Tech whoop up on Michigan. Doesn't get much easier than that.

As far as reaming k&m has a mandrel that cuts donuts inside the neck but that's all they are good for

 

[woodnut]

Thank you!

 

[Mike AVM]

You might try a Lee Collet Sizing Die. They work very well, obviating the need for neck turning unless in BR competition. It sizes against a mandrel so the inside diameter for bullet tension is consistent. I use in every caliber I can. They work for repeatable bullet tension. I also use a factory crimp die to set a crimp for more consistency.

 

[rickjoty]

I also use the K&M system with a reaming mandrel. No donut, no problem. Variable speed drill on very low with some lube and it does a really nice job. I will say I bought Lapua brass for my 223 and the necks were perfect to start and they all weighed the same. No need for trimming or weight sorting.

 

[woodnut]

Mike, I have a sizer that has a button that I thought would do do the same thing: make uniform tension. Apparently, it did not do that as I suspect the brass thickness varied. So maybe the button isn't correct, too?

 

[turbines]

I turn my necks only one time during the life of the casing. What I do to keep a consistent neck tension (grip on the bullet) is to keep my brass correctly annealed. I anneal after every 3rd shot. This will help control metal spring back throughout your batch of brass. I also stopped using steel needle wet tumbling. I only use ultra sonic cleaning. Granted it's not parade brass or shiny looking but shiny won't get you home either.