Bullet seater marking V-max bullets, problem?

[jhe888]

My Forster micrometer seating die in .223 Remington is making a ring on 50gr V-max moly bullets when I seat them in a case filled with 27 grains of Varget. It is a ring, and not the line where the plastic tip is. I have the feeling the moly makes the ring more noticeable that it might be on a plain jacketed bullet. This load is slightly compressed, and the ring was less pronounced over lighter,and less compressed) loads. The 27 gr load gives better accuracy than lighter loads. Is the ring hurting anything? I have no other seater, so I can't control this variable. Should I switch to another powder that doesn't give compressed loads? Are there different stems?

 

[SF340Driver]

The ring won't hurt anything.

If you want to get rid of it, take the stem out and lap the ridge in the stem a bit with a dremel and some lapping compound.

 

[NorCalMikie]

John: When you are working on a "compressed" load, after you fill the case,try tapping on the side of the caes.,just a little ) Put your finger over the neck. It might help settle the powder in the case better.
When I get a full case for my .221 Fireball, a few light taps makes the powder settle below the case neck. Works for me. HTH. Mike.

 

[Silverfox]

Another method of getting the compressed load of powder to settle lower in the casing is to use a long drop tube.

 

[NorCalMikie]

Between the long drop tube,the tapping on the case and the polished seater stem, the problems should be solved??

 

[jhe888]

I do tap the cases, and it settles the powder some, but it still is a little compressed in this load. I do not have a long drop tube. I'll get one when I buy a better powder measure.

Thanks for all the help. This is a knowlegable bunch.

 

[USAPatriot]

I get the same ring on my Redding micrometer dies and it doesn't affect anything as far as I can tell. It's metal on metal contact so there's probably going to be some marks no matter what. How much will depend on the neck tension and the two angles formed by the sleeve and bullet jacket. Lightly polish the sleeve smooth and it'll at least become less noticable. -Rod-

 

[Forum Boss]

You can reduce the mark the seating stem puts in the bullet jacket by lightly honing the inside of the seater stem. What I did was coat a bullet with Flitz, chuck the bullet in a drill, and spin it inside the end of the stem. There are probably more efficient ways to smooth the radius inside the stem, but this worked. I still get a very faint line with flat-base bullets that have a pressure ridge, but the boat-tails seat fine.

The more neck tension you have the more probability you'll get that line on your jackets. What's happening is the bullet is resisting going further into the neck so the jacket becomes the point of least resistance for the seater die.

 

[Preacher]

Another little trick for compressed loads is to swirl the power into the case by holding the case and the funnel at a pretty good angle when you drop the powder into the very edge of the funnel. It will swirl around in the funnel before going into the case.
Try it you'll like it.....

 

[sewwhat89]

After seeing this post, I went back and checked my .243 VMAX loads, and every single one has a scuff on the finish in the exact same position. To make things more interesting, I rotate the case twice while seating the bullet to try and cut down on any runout. The scuffs have not affected accuracy to any discernable level, but it is interesting.

I guess after I shoot up all the bullets or at least get them all loaded up, I can pull the bullet seater and see if there is some imperfections on it or something.