280 AI modified cases for Hornady/Stoney pt. tool

[Weaselthis]

Gentlemen:
Does anyone have an opinion as to whether or not one can use the 280 Remington "modified case" for the Hornaday/Stoneypoint OAL tool to get bullet seating depth with the 280AI round? I can't seem to find anyone that sells a modified 280AI case and I have neither the time,skills,or equipment to make one! LOL
I appreciate any thoughts or direction you may have to offer.
Take care.

 

[7STDUBBERU]

Gentlemen:
Does anyone have an opinion as to whether or not one can use the 280 Remington "modified case" for the Hornaday/Stoneypoint OAL tool to get bullet seating depth with the 280AI round? I can't seem to find anyone that sells a modified 280AI case and I have neither the time,skills,or equipment to make one! LOL
I appreciate any thoughts or direction you may have to offer.
Take care.

Yes a regular 280 case will work. If you want a 280AI send me two pieces of your once fired brass and I will do it for you. I bought the stuff to do it myself. PM me if you are interested.

 

[Varmint Hunter]

Yes a regular 280 case will work. If you want a 280AI send me two pieces of your once fired brass and I will do it for you. I bought the stuff to do it myself. PM me if you are interested.

Hornady, who bought the rights to the Stoney Point OAL tool and renamed it to the Lock-N-Load OAL gauge, will also modify any case you send them. However, you'll probably do better with 7STDUBBERU.

 

[MTBULLET]

I'm in Montana, will do it for you also if you want. pm me if you want .

 

[Doug in Alaska]

I've got the same set-up and have the same problem with my .22-250AI. Also had the same problem with my 7 RUM before they offered a "modified case" for it. Anyway, I started splitting the necks on resized brass and using them to find seating length to lands. This method seems to work better for me, especially in my rifles with tight chambers. I still use the bullet comparators but rarely use the Hornady OAL tool.

 

[Weaselthis]

MTBullet: Thanks a million for the kind offer. 7STDubberu graciously offered as well and I will send it to him as per previous pm. I appreciate your off greatly!

Doug, I gues I'm senile but I've never had any luck w/ using that method. The problem is that I'm too "THICK" to know what I'm looking at when it comes out of the chamber. I HAVE had some success using a couple of small wooden dowels to "sandwich" the bullet back and forth until I feel resistance in the rifling, then use a rubber band around the the scope and the dowel touching the bullet base to hold it there while I mark the one in the barrel. Crude, but all I have until I get one made. I just got the gun last week and fireformed 40 cases from RP 280 Rem factory ammo and I have 100 pcs. of Nosler brass ready to load up, but this being a wildcat and a custom chamber job to boot, I'm proceeding cautiously. I wanna hear "boom-kawhop" and not "kaboomm-oh****!"

Thanks again to everyone here for your willingness to help and share what you know.

Off to the range this morning to begin work w/ 168G Bergers & Retumbo and 140g Bergers & H4831sc. yaaay!
ceeya

 

[fj40mojo]

If you've purchased the tool you may as well purchase the appropriate tap and tap drill so you can make your own modified cases from once fired cases. Small investment compared to what Hornady asks for their generic ones.

 

[Weaselthis]

fj40mojo
I've heard from someone else about the "standard" modified cases SOMETIMES giving erroneous readings and causing problems. More the argument to make custom-to-one's-chamber modified cases from fired brass.
Kind folks here have offered to do this and I will take them up on the offer this one time. Hornady will do it for ya for $15. I don't have a drill press but MIGHT be able to hold steady enough to drill and tap. Do you know what tap and drill is needed?

ps......can ya tell I don't even know how to SPELL machinist let alone be one?! lol Everyone has a different skill set. Mine is being able to make it down the hallway without falling down MOST nights! LOL
Thanks to all for the education.
Take care.

 

[fj40mojo]

5/16-24 thread Tap Drill would be a Size 1, but double check, this is second hand info as I don't personally own the L-N-L OAL gauge. If in doubt find a machinist in your area and take your tool to him/her and have the thread pitch checked. You can get the nominal size by measuring the major diameter of the thread with a set of dial calipers, 0.3125=5/16. Set your calipers at .250" and count the number of complete threads that fall between the jaws, 6 complete threads would compute to 24 TPI or set at 0.125" should be 3 complete threads.

 

[Autorotate]

I purchased the tap at the link posted in VHA post below. Works great, easy to do. If you can change oil, you can make your own Stony point OAL tool cases from your fired brass.

Comparators & Bullet Depth Seating Gauges - The V.H.A. Forum

"You can get them here..

MSC Item Detail

They are 16.80 each for the tap.

For drill bit information use this...

"Proper size is .282-.286 diameter. Best fit is 9/32 at .2812 or "K" at .2811."

Tap:
The thread is 5/16 - 36. This is a special thread pitch."

 

[MTBULLET]

I purchased the tap at the link posted in VHA post below. Works great, easy to do. If you can change oil, you can make your own Stony point OAL tool cases from your fired brass.

Comparators & Bullet Depth Seating Gauges - The V.H.A. Forum

"You can get them here..

MSC Item Detail

They are 16.80 each for the tap.

For drill bit information use this...

"Proper size is .282-.286 diameter. Best fit is 9/32 at .2812 or "K" at .2811."

Tap:
The thread is 5/16 - 36. This is a special thread pitch."

+1 on this, do it right or case will not be accurate ! best if done on lathe with collet chuck, but can be done by hand if your careful.

 

[fj40mojo]

Thanks for chiming in Autorotate, I hate giving bad info.

 

[Weaselthis]

Thanks for all the great info, gentlemen. And NONE of it is bad. It's all good!
U guys are smarter than the average bear! And........you further my conviction that I neither have the skill nor equipment to accomplish this! LOL. Thanks a million to Shawn for making me one. Can't wait to get it here. The intial load work up was w/ a seating depth that is at best a w.a.g. and still was 1.04" for 3 shots at 300. I'm hoping I can improve on that w/ a custom modified case. I appreciate all the input.
Off to Cancun for two weeks! And I'll be thinking about all ya'll..........NOT! LOL

 

[fj40mojo]

OK Weaselthis, now I'm gonna highjack your thread. I've been mulling this over in my head and want to know what some of you think as all that have chimed in here seem to be knowledgable.

Q: Do you think it is best to use a fire formed case to make your modified case from or a case that has been full length sized in your sizing die as you have it set up.

Ideology: (Keep in mind that I'm not speaking about belted cases that headspace off the belt here or for those of us that just neck size) Wouldn't the measurement obtained from a full length sized case headspacing as your loaded round would in the closed chamber be more accurate than the measurment from a fire formed case? Isn't the object to simulate conditions as they would be in the chamber prior to firing the round rather than after so that you are controlling just how far the bullet is traveling before it engages the rifling or am I splittin hairs here?