Machinegun brass? How can ya tell?... some machineguns leave vertical grooves in the brass not suitable for reloading. I use lots of military brass, LC 2018 the last 500 batch...All of my 5 308s chamber the same military brass, 2 target rifles, 1 hunting rifle and 2 ar 10s from the same dies. I have Lee, RCBs, Redding, and now use mostly Wilson dies in 308 Win., None are small base dies... same die setting for all rifles... I chambered the 3 bolt guns, same reamer... but the AR 10s are factory 1 Schilen, and 1 Hanson. I use a Wilson 308 chamber gauge and set the die to minimum, with a drop indicator on a surface plate. All the bolt guns are at Minimum...the auto then have about .002 to .003 heads head space play, all 308s chamber the same ammo except some of the over length target ammo 200 CN Sierra MK & 225 ELDM etc...but "regular" ammo fits all the .308 Win chambers. Weight sort them and shot the LC mil brass side by side with Lapua brass...same powder charge, same bullet...The last year or so I have a buddy that bought a few AR10's, and then bought bulk machine gun brass to reload.
I ran the brass through my normal 308 sizing die, trimmed it to length (to 2.005), and it is still does not chamber in his rifles.
Factory rounds do. I measured the base of the cases that I had resized, and they all measure .468 (same as my new factory Lapua brass).
If you have had experience with before, can you point me in the right direction?
Will a small base die size the bottom of the case a few thousands more? I have never used one before, so not sure what to expect.
I am loading 168grn amax to OAL of 2.800
The last year or so I have a buddy that bought a few AR10's, and then bought bulk machine gun brass to reload.
I ran the brass through my normal 308 sizing die, trimmed it to length (to 2.005), and it is still does not chamber in his rifles.
Factory rounds do. I measured the base of the cases that I had resized, and they all measure .468 (same as my new factory Lapua brass).
If you have had experience with before, can you point me in the right direction?
Will a small base die size the bottom of the case a few thousands more? I have never used one before, so not sure what to expect.
I am loading 168grn amax to OAL of 2.800
The last year or so I have a buddy that bought a few AR10's, and then bought bulk machine gun brass to reload.
I ran the brass through my normal 308 sizing die, trimmed it to length (to 2.005), and it is still does not chamber in his rifles.
Factory rounds do. I measured the base of the cases that I had resized, and they all measure .468 (same as my new factory Lapua brass).
If you have had experience with before, can you point me in the right direction?
Will a small base die size the bottom of the case a few thousands more? I have never used one before, so not sure what to expect.
I am loading 168grn amax to OAL of 2.800
Most all military brass is Machinegun brass, as most have semi auto or full auto selector...except the bolt action sniper rifles. The problem is all the old worn chambers in many of the rifles. A no go gauge is perfectly fine if it chambers...they have a larger field gauge to check the chamber...and if that goes in the weapon is still serviceable.. then last is emergency use authorization...the chamber is way out but considered safe enough to use, until it can be repaired. The military doesn't care if the brass is hard for you to resize. The fired military brass cases come in a variety of sizes in spec and out of spec for civilian use. So get a Wilson or similar 308 chamber gauge for the 308 in your case. Next a Redding 308 shoulder bump die, if there seems to be too much spring back with regular dies. Use the gauge along with your dies to get the minimum head space and that which fits your chamber. I use regular base sizing dies and the chamber Guage, to get my head space, plus I have the shoulder bump die to push it back even farther if necessary...but that's not nessary in most cases. Min or .001 above fits all 5 308s I have with all range fired brass including 2 AR 10s., Fired in full auto or semi from the same gun or a SAW depending on the age and condition of the weapon, the military brass comes in all shapes and sizes...some much better than others, so ya gotta work with what ya get, and even discard a few.The last year or so I have a buddy that bought a few AR10's, and then bought bulk machine gun brass to reload.
I ran the brass through my normal 308 sizing die, trimmed it to length (to 2.005), and it is still does not chamber in his rifles.
Factory rounds do. I measured the base of the cases that I had resized, and they all measure .468 (same as my new factory Lapua brass).
If you have had experience with before, can you point me in the right direction?
Will a small base die size the bottom of the case a few thousands more? I have never used one before, so not sure what to expect.
I am loading 168grn amax to OAL of 2.800