4ked,
here is my process for my LR loads, assuming I am working from a load known to be accurate, using the same componets.
Im going to skip over most of the assembly steps, and let somebody else work on this aspect. If nobody else does, and theres a call for it, ill go over these too.
Brass:
Debur flash hole with RCBS tool, measure case neck thickness to weed out the extremely "out of wack" ones. I don't weigh, and I don't neck turn. I don't use cases with more than .001 variation in neck thickness for LR work. Im one of those guys that is of the opinion that variations in the neck thickness likley means variations in case wall thickness as well. I have been considering sorting by case volume after fireforming, mainly as a path towards low ES. I know others who are doing it, and having some success. I also know some for the guys who shoot regurarly around 2000 sort cases by MV consistancy on a single case Ie: cases with low ES, and like muzle velocity are batched together. Since doing this kind of sorting essentially requires a Oehler 43, or 35 with very long skyscreen spacing, im not going to start any time soon.
Other than that, trim, debur, chamfer, and size....
Bullets:
As of today, and I say that because this is always changing,
Open my box of 220SMKs
sort into batches by bearing surfaceto the .001", then sort those batches into consistant base to ogive length. Trim Meplat either as little as possible so that all of them clean up to the same length (as long as possible) or to a predetermined length that I know will clean up all the bullets, regaurdless of the lot#. The "as long as possible" ones are used for targets at known distances, and the "so they all clean up" bullets are used for unknown distance targets where a reliable BC is more important than the absolute highest BC.
Last of all, I run them across a scale. I don't sort them by weight, all im looking for is that the weight is not wildly different from the rest. Most will be somewhere between .2 and .5 grains in variation. If its off by 2 grains, its a fouler, if its off by a grain, its a sighter.... more than 2 usually means a short core (not enough lead). Ive seen short cores from green boxes that were 12 grains off the wt marked on the box. Rare, but nothing is perfect.
Seat bullet length by bearing surface, and measure every round after its loaded, and stack them in the box accordingly. If a particular bullet seats harder or softer than its companions, its a sighter too.
Powder:
If its going to see more than 600yds of air, every charge is thrown into the case from the measure, then poured onto the scale to be trickled up to weight. I believe that unless you have a very expensive digital, its better to weigh powder on a mechanical scale. Other than that, mke sure its the same lot # as before, and double check that the powder on the label is what you want.
Primers:
I do a visual inspection, and thats about it. If it looks different, its a fouler.
There are guys much more anal about primers than me. I know a few guys who weigh every one, and batch them by weight. They have better groups at 1000 than I do, so im not going to say its a waste of time, however, im not convinced that there is a guarantee that the variations in weight are priming compound, not in the cup, anvil, or foil.
As for adjusting loads, The only thing I do, is check my throat length every time I do a batch (either 50 or 100 rds). It only takes a few minutes, and lets me keep track of throat erosion. It usually takes a few batches to have to readjust, but it makes me feel better, and thats important.
Feeling confident about your rounds is the most important thing to improving performance.
I have to know without a doubt, that when I squeeeeeze my trigger, and that striker drops, that this is the most accurate combination possible. I know that my bedding is solid, the scope bases, and ring screws are tight, and that the scope im peering through is a quality piece of glass, that I have proven to be dependable, and reliable with my own hands. I have to know that if a bullet pokes a hole in something other than what I wanted, that one of two things happened, 1. there was a change in conditions downrange that I missed, or 2. there is a loose nut behind the buttplate, and I have to be ablt to figure out which one it is.
Some great groups have been shot without all of the prep I have listed here. I have 2 on the wall over my loading bench. That don't mean that all of this is in vain however. The more you shoot, the luckier you get, and you can quote me on that. If a guy had the resources, a one time, 5 shot 1000yd group of 2.000" is possible with a 22lr, but im not paying for the ammo.
Some great groups have been shot with more prep than I have listed here. Lots of them better than what I have shot, many of them by much. Many of the things that I don't do have been shown to shrink groups(neck turning), and others would if tested enough (primer sorting???) it all comes down to how good are your componets, and how much time are you willing to invest in making them as perfect as possible?
Its worth it to me to do the things I have listed because I can demonstrate that they shrink groups, and produce more first found hits, and at least for the time being, thats all I know.
