Are the best presses for minimal run-out necessary?
- Thread starter SavageHunter11
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birdiemc
Well-Known Member
I just read the info on reddings site you linked to, and I was tracking up to the part about examining primers under magnification....what are they getting at there?
It gives the position of the case on the bolt face and in the chamber when the case was fired.
Savage 12BVSS
Well-Known Member
Good Read, covers the basics well. You can mark the cases with a sharpie when load devolping and they are already marked with case position after firing. My answer to SavageHunters original question in thread title would be a definite Yes. Dave
birdiemc
Well-Known Member
Are they implying that the bolt face might not be square with the bore?
Looking at the primers under magnification you can usually find a telltale machining mark or other blemish that was imprinted from the bolt face. This will give you an index mark with reference to the chamber. Mark this index mark on the cases with a felt tip marker and go about checking the concentricity. If the runout is random to your index marks the problem is not the chamber. Further examination will show the same correlation with the good and bad brass.
SavageHunter11
Well-Known Member
Dang... Is it cold down there that deep in the rabbit hole? That's a level of dedication and detail I never knew existed mate. Right on.
It comes from the links in post 44.
SavageHunter11
Well-Known Member
I'm not chastising you, I just didn't know some people got that deep into reloading. I dig it
I didn't take it that way. There is a lot of good info out there.Sometimes you have to take a little time to find it.
I get great run-out measurements on a Rockchucker. I believe there are several factors in achieving straight ammo. Good brass to start with, size your brass only enough for easy consistant chambering (.002"-.003" shoulder bump). Anneal your cases every few firing to maintain consistant neck tension. Use good bullet seaters(I like Forster). A good high dollar press is nice but straight ammo can be easily achieved with good reloading practices and good dies in my opinion.
Savage 12BVSS
Well-Known Member
I agree with everything you said, I also believe removing expander buttons from dies is a plus. A mandrel neck sizer is quite a help as well (lee or sinclair). Forster seater dies are the best in my opinion. But with all that said when I retired the RockChucker to depriming duty and switched to a Summit press there was a noticible decrease in concentricity issues with no other change. There is a reason the newer models (they are both RCBS made) are changing in how they handle case to die alignment. Actually the new press was about $40. more in price, not really high dollar. The RockChucker scored the best in concentricity tests in the 14 press comparison of the C or O type presses. The Summit scored best of the new somewhat different in design presses. Case doesn't move, die comes down to it. Case can move both lateral and fore and aft to align with die. Just like in the evaluation I find it loads straighter ammo.
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