Competition Dies Necessary?

[cbhester]

I have been handloading for a couple of years now, mostly 220 Swift and 30-06. None of the loading I have done has been intended for competition, however I am looking to get into bench rest shooting as soon as I can find a rifle that suits my needs. I will be mostly shooting for fun at first at a local range near my home and maybe an actual competition match here and there just trying to get my feet wet.

In the past I have used RCBS standard FL sizer die, neck sizer die and bullet seating die, but have always just used the ammo I load for varmint hunting, deer hunting and the occasional bench rest shooting here on the farm. As I get more interested in HIGH accuracy shooting (mostly between 100 and 300 yards for the time being), will it be necessary to purchase competition grade dies or are the standard quality RCBS dies I am accustomed to using sufficient?

Also, does anyone have any good info on some tips and tricks of competitive reloading skills that I may not know about? Thanks!

 

[1holeaddict]

Everyone has their opinions and if your were to listen to 50 different guys you will get so confused that it will become discouraging. Start with an upper end name brand die set and try some loads. Remember a die is only a small % of the entire package. To compete its all about the WHOLE package. Do what works for you and your budget not what everybody else does.
Good Shooting

 

[BoydAllen]

The type of competition that you plan on taking part in will determine the caliber that you shoot. What sort of matches will you be shooting in? The first thing that I would suggest is that you attend a few of these matches, and get to know some of the more successful shooters. After that you need to choose what gunsmith you will be working with. Choose one that SHOOTS competition, builds winning rifles, and has a good reputation. You may have to go out of your area to find one. It is more important to get the right smith than that he be conveniently located. As to specifics on dies...just because dies are sold as match or competition does not mean that winning shooters are using them. Find out what they are using, and why, from the shooters, at matches. I can tell you that most one piece dies over size necks and when the expander ball is pulled back through, the amount of pull on the case pulls neck out of alignment with the body of the case. In many cases this is extreme enough that you can see it by rolling loaded ammunition on a flat surface and watching the bullet tips. If you want to get an idea about the tools used in more advanced reloading, I suggest that you order a Sinclair catalog. Here is a link to that web site. http://www.sinclairintl.com/ If the link doesn't work, do a search for "Sinclair International reloading". One caution, the quality of a rifle and the design of its chamber are major factors in whether it will show improvement by using fancier reloading equipment. More than one shooter has found this out the hard way, after spending a lot of money on reloading equipment. Accuracy comes from the combination of many factors.

Added later: I have shot competitive short range benchrest, and have rifles of all levels of accuracy. Having the right dies is at the top of the list of what is important for producing the best ammunition. Choosing them can be a complicated subject for someone that is new to advanced reloading. If I had to choose, I would rather have everything else be used and have the best dies, than have average dies and the rest of the equipment be fancier. Dies are key.

 

[1holeaddict]

The type of competition that you plan on taking part in will determine the caliber that you shoot. What sort of matches will you be shooting in? The first thing that I would suggest is that you attend a few of these matches, and get to know some of the more successful shooters. After that you need to choose what gunsmith you will be working with. Choose one that SHOOTS competition, builds winning rifles, and has a good reputation. You may have to go out of your area to find one. It is more important to get the right smith than that he be conveniently located. As to specifics on dies...just because dies are sold as match or competition does not mean that winning shooters are using them. Find out what they are using, and why, from the shooters, at matches. I can tell you that most one piece dies over size necks and when the expander ball is pulled back through, the amount of pull on the case pulls neck out of alignment with the body of the case. In many cases this is extreme enough that you can see it by rolling loaded ammunition on a flat surface and watching the bullet tips. If you want to get an idea about the tools used in more advanced reloading, I suggest that you order a Sinclair catalog. Here is a link to that web site. http://www.sinclairintl.com/ If the link doesn't work, do a search for "Sinclair International reloading". One caution, the quality of a rifle and the design of its chamber are major factors in whether it will show improvement by using fancier reloading equipment. More than one shooter has found this out the hard way, after spending a lot of money on reloading equipment. Accuracy comes from the combination of many factors.

Added later: I have shot competitive short range benchrest, and have rifles of all levels of accuracy. Having the right dies is at the top of the list of what is important for producing the best ammunition. Choosing them can be a complicated subject for someone that is new to advanced reloading. If I had to choose, I would rather have everything else be used and have the best dies, than have average dies and the rest of the equipment be fancier. Dies are key.

A+++

 

[in2deep]

In a nutshell Harrell's make semi-custom dies for some common calibers and you send him a few twice fired cases and $70. and he sends you a really nice full-length bushing die as close to a $200. custom die as your going to get and without a long wait.
Lots of trophies were won with his dies.
Then just get a seater of your choice.....preferably a Wilson style hand die and your golden.

 

[MarkS]

cbhester

I use Harrells F/L bushing dies for the ones they make, Redding F/L bushing for others. Then Wilson seater with a arbor press. This setup will cost about what Comp die set will cost, but the next set will cost you less.

Mark Schronce

 

[watercam]

If economics are an issue (when is it not!) and the loads you load have .002" (every one really wants zero) TOTAL run out or less, they will shoot well enough for you to have fun. To a point. What competition dies give you is control over neck tension as well as concentricity. They have no expander ball and one can use a bushing to size the neck to exact tension you desire. Seater dies have a floating sleeve that holds the bullet and case in alignment to keep bullet run out to a minimum. A micrometer adjustment knob helps when one is changing your seating depth and/or chased your eroding throat to keep seating depth optimal.