Seating Depth Measurement Thoughts?

[Olde Man]

I have noticed that there are inconsistencies in my seating depth measurements. My Wilson seats by pushing on the front of the bullet to seat. When I measure the result at the ogive with my Stoney Point or Sinclair nut I find that the results vary a couple of thousands. I believe this is due to bullet inconsistencies. I have tried to measure using the base as a common reference but it gets sloppy with the accumulative tolerance and my limited measuring equipment. I ended up seating the bullets .020 short of the desired ogive length and them measuring them and recording the results for each bullet along with the pressure required to seat them. I then add or subtract the actual from the desired and use this to dial my Wilson seater in. It seems to yield .001 results. It would seem logical to me that the most accurate way would be find a way to use the datum to ogive instead of the base to ogive of the bullet. How do you push on bullet tip and measure at the same time the datum to ogive measurement and record seating pressure. Big Bucks???? I want royalties.

 

[Dusty Stevens]

I use newlon blanks which have a seating plug big enough to seat a bullet at the same spot id measure it at. when i used the little wilson seater plugs they sometimes stuck to the bullet tip and caused inconsistency

 

[pirate ammo]

I use newlon blanks which have a seating plug big enough to seat a bullet at the same spot id measure it at. when i used the little wilson seater plugs they sometimes stuck to the bullet tip and caused inconsistency

see,,I just now learned something,,things get stuck,sometime,,and it would hard to feel with your press,,

 

[dmoran]

Variance in the bullets (base to ogive) is a very probable cause.
As well as seater stem contact.

 

[LA50SHOOTER]

+1^^^^^^^^

Also Wilson makes a VLD Seating stem for their dies which I’ve found has a larger opening and meets the bullet further down the olive.

As was stated, base to olive is most probably the culprit. That’s why we sort them. To reduce / rid that variable.

- Ron -

 

[jimmymac]

I use newlon blanks which have a seating plug big enough to seat a bullet at the same spot id measure it at. when i used the little wilson seater plugs they sometimes stuck to the bullet tip and caused inconsistency

Hey Dusty. Threaded dies or hand dies?

 

[Dusty Stevens]

Hey Dusty. Threaded dies or hand dies?

newlon only makes threaded dies. ive never seen a hand die with a stem big enough but it wouldnt be hard to make one from a barrel stub