Lapua brass & lazy reloader

[Varmint Hunter]

I finally received some Lapua brass for my 6.5 PRC. I was impressed with the very tight weight tolerance I found in the first box of 100. Being a little anxious and a bit lazy I decided to load a few case "right out of the box".

I was amazed at how much the neck tension varied. . Some bullets seated smoothly and with only a moderate amount of pressure. Others were so tight that the seater plug left a distinct ring on the nose of the Hornady and Berger bullets.

I don't think I'll repeat that process again. LOL

 

[Idaho5r]

Tho, not for a 6.5 PRC, I load quite a bit of Lapua brass. Even tho some folks don't bother, I normally run my new brass through a full length sizer die, just so things are all the same to start loading... Idaho-5R

 

[Ken61]

Yep to what Idaho5r

Yes. The reason to size a case is so that it fits back in the chamber, not to change any dimension by "x" amount. Call me old school but I never measure shoulder bump, I size until the cases fit my chamber with the amount of resistance that I want for the application.

Y

Jy
..

Yep to what Idaho-5R said

 

[Longtine88]

Yep to what Idaho5r

Yep ^^^^^ and a mandrel

 

[Deputy819]

I was amazed at how much the neck tension varied. . Some bullets seated smoothly and with only a moderate amount of pressure. Others were so tight that the seater plug left a distinct ring on the nose of the Hornady and Berger bullets.

I don't think I'll repeat that process again. LOL

Yep….I don't ever full-length size new brass….just simply because it's already as "short/small" as it's ever gonna be….but I do hit the necks with a bushing sizer die and then run a mandrel down through them.

 

[BrentM]

Size the brass first so everything is exactly the same. It will run through a sizer super easy and does nothing more than make sure everything is the same. I use a mandrel neck sizer behind a bushing to ensure neck tension is good to go. First 5 loads produced a 10.2 sd which isn't bad for new brass.

My lapau test revealed it shows pressure before the same load in hornady and adg. Lapau brass is fairly soft it appears. In 1 firing the web expanded more than 4x fired hornady by .005-.001. That was a surprise.

 

[Sending156s]

I just finished the prep work on 700 65 PRC Lapua I received after a long wait. My current process on new brass is:
1. Run 0.263 expander through them to ensure necks are a perfect circle
2. Trim to 2.018" on a Giraud. 2.018 was trimming to shortest
3. Uniform flash holes with K&N premium tool on drill
4. Uniform primer pockets with K&N premium tool on drill
5.Run through custom Whidden dies setting neck tension with bushing
6. Wet wash to remove any lube
7. Ready to set primers to uniform depth using 21st century priming tool (7 clicks to seat flush to bottom) & finish loading process.
*Definitely not OCD. I no longer work & face the stiffest competition possible, myself. My goal is bugholes with at most 2 bullets per rifle. I prefer to use only one bullet , a hunting bullet, but sometimes a target bullet does better when you are not hunting.

 

[Varmint Hunter]

Because I starting with quality brass and because my standards aren't as high as some of the sharpshooters here I did an abbreviated prep on the remaining brass.

1. Used expander mandrel to slightly open and round out necks
2. Used Sinclair pocket uniformer tool
3. Ran them all through the FL bushing die

Haven't tried seating any bullets yet but expect them to seat much more uniformly.

Compared case weight to Hornady brass and they are within 1gr of each other. I'm guessing that my loads will be very similar in the new cases.

 

[emp1953]

I full length size all my brass, new, old whatever, with the depriming pin installed. I want it all to have the same starting point, also this exposes any issues with the priming hole. I've found priming holes that were really off center by doing this. It also trues up the case neck. Then I proceed to trimming to a common case length. I want to get as much about the case the same as I possibly can.

 

[BrentM]

Because I starting with quality brass and because my standards aren't as high as some of the sharpshooters here I did an abbreviated prep on the remaining brass.

1. Used expander mandrel to slightly open and round out necks
2. Used Sinclair pocket uniformer tool
3. Ran them all through the FL bushing die

Haven't tried seating any bullets yet but expect them to seat much more uniformly.

Compared case weight to Hornady brass and they are within 1gr of each other. I'm guessing that my loads will be very similar in the new cases.

Should be fairly close but I would recommend caution if copying a good hornady load. My horn load was 2811 fps avg and the lapau was 2819 avg. Horn showed no signs of pressure and lapau was obvious but not sticking in the chamber. Same gig with adg brass. My adg shows no signs of pressure with that load as well. I need to back off .2 and see how it reacts for the 2nd firing.

 

[Sending156s]

Because I starting with quality brass and because my standards aren't as high as some of the sharpshooters here I did an abbreviated prep on the remaining brass.

1. Used expander mandrel to slightly open and round out necks
2. Used Sinclair pocket uniformer tool
3. Ran them all through the FL bushing die

Haven't tried seating any bullets yet but expect them to seat much more uniformly.

Compared case weight to Hornady brass and they are within 1gr of each other. I'm guessing that my loads will be very similar in the new cases.

All sounds awesome. The biggest variable and the one that usually has most room for improvement is the shooter. I don't know if some of the things I do in my reloading process makes a detectable difference. I am positive there are no negatives to it. Since I am retired and it brings pleasure to me to be as good as possible I'll continue to look for areas to improve. Wishing you fun, good health, & many target with the bullseye shot out!

 

[SteveBurton]

I'm a little disappointed to see that Lapua is showing pressure signs when Hornady isn't. I'm saving mine for a new barrel I ordered but would like to read about more people's experience with the Lapua brass.

 

[BrentM]

I'm a little disappointed to see that Lapua is showing pressure signs when Hornady isn't. I'm saving mine for a new barrel I ordered but would like to read about more people's experience with the Lapua brass.

New test tomorrow. 55.5 RL 26 behind a 156 has proven to be a good load with no pressure and low sd in adg and gw brass. Same load in hornady was not seeing pressure signs but sd was 10 on a 9 shot group. Not bad but not great. The suppressor being used was EXTREMELY dirty so it has been cleaned and a retest will be done. I have a ladder of 55.3, 55.4, 55.5 to restest. I have also loaded up new lapau at 55.3 because the 55.5 load definitively showed pressure on the case head with a distinct but not overly aggressive ejector mark. Bolt lift was normal and no bolt lift click. We'll see

 

[Sending156s]

I'm a little disappointed to see that Lapua is showing pressure signs when Hornady isn't. I'm saving mine for a new barrel I ordered but would like to read about more people's experience with the Lapua brass.

Steve, I have fired 38 rounds in a new barrel with zero problems. GAP built, Bartlein 24" CF RH 8-7.5. Using XM size Defiance action.
Started at 56.0 RL26 & went to 58.0. Had pressure at 58.0. Loaded 91 @ 57.0 RL26. Everything is with 156 EOLs. Groups averaged 3/8" on me. I was shooting without bag. Rifle & load capable of bugholes. I've fired 38 so far….zero problems as expected w/Lapua.
Average of 6 thou stretch. Measurements not totally valid as primers are still in.
Attached load info in pics
SD = 6.6
ES = 13
LabRadar