Correct neck bushing

[Lkwebb]

What is the correct way to measure a neck bushing to see if it's marked correctly.
I bought a .263 bushing and then bought a carbide bushing on this site that isn't marked on the bushing itself. The baggie it came in shows to be a .263.
I measured a piece of brass necked sized with it and its shows to be .262.
Any thoughts , suggestions or guidance.. Thanks

 

[Lkwebb]

I don't have gauge pins just using calipers

 

[jepp2]

What is the correct way to measure a neck bushing to see if it's marked correctly.

I use my pin gauges. Gets me close. You might think measuring the neck after sizing in the bushing would give good results, but many reasons why not.

 

[jepp2]

just using calipers

Don't count on the result with that method.

 

[Lkwebb]

Measuring the brass after sizing is a .261 . I have a chamber for a .268

 

[jepp2]

suggestions

Regular telescoping bore gauges will not work well on the small ID. You might try these and then measure with a mic. I know, everyone uses dial calipers, but a mic is so much more accurate.

Amazon.com

 

[powderbrake]

Calipers will not measure small holes accurately, so don't even try. The width of the blade hits the diameter of the hole off center. The only way a caliper can measure a small hole accurately was if the caliper had the blades sharpened to a zero width edge.

Generally you need to measure small holes with a Small Hole Gage Set. Small hole set
Then you measure the gage with a micrometer.

The actual diameter of teh bushing is not important, what is important is the final size of the loaded round.

As another poster said, using pin gages is also a way of determining the diameter of teh bushing.

 

[LHSmith]

Are you sure the size isn't marked on the OD. Carbide bushings are usually marked by acid etching and very difficult to see. Usually marked to four decimal places.

 

[JFrank]

Measuring the brass after sizing is a .261 . I have a chamber for a .268

You can stress over tiny differences but results are all that really matter. Which ever bushing shoots the best consistently is the one I use.

 

[Bill Norris]

You can stress over tiny differences but results are all that really matter. Which ever bushing shoots the best consistently is the one I use.

Absolutely, testing @ .002 .003 & .004 will normally show what the rifle/load wants to shoot but I have seen going up to .006 would work best.

 

[Webster]

What is the correct way to measure a neck bushing to see if it's marked correctly.
I bought a .263 bushing and then bought a carbide bushing on this site that isn't marked on the bushing itself. The baggie it came in shows to be a .263.
I measured a piece of brass necked sized with it and its shows to be .262.
Any thoughts , suggestions or guidance.. Thanks

Like some said measure with calipers. If you just measure the necks after sizing you would probably get different neck diameters from neck hardness and spring back variation on the same group of cases. I bought a series of 4 bushings and ended up only using the one that gave me 2 thou tension. Most of us cannot shoot good enough to see the difference between 2,3 or 4 thou tension.

Erik Cortina has a video where he annealed cases at three different times and determined seating force with a pressure guage that produced a plot of seating force on a computer screen. There was no consistancy in seating force. An interesting video. Anything under .5" is good for my GH hunting and casual BR shooting.

 

[mikecr]

Measuring the brass after sizing is a .261 . I have a chamber for a .268

Seems like you're overworking the brass. What is your brass thickness?

 

[Lkwebb]

Are you sure the size isn't marked on the OD. Carbide bushings are usually marked by acid etching and very difficult to see. Usually marked to four decimal places.

No sir! No marking anywhere

 

[Lkwebb]

Seems like you're overworking the brass. What is your brass thickness?

How am I overworking my brass.
This is a 6ppc benchrest rifle. I. Pretty sure I'm doin pretty much exactly how the other shooters are doin it.
I need or I'm shooting for .265 to .266 loaded round.

 

[Lkwebb]

I went out today and I didn't see much difference between the two .263 bushings I had one carbide and the other redding steel bushing

 

[AlNyhus]

Pin gauges are what you need for this. If you have a lathe, you can take a brass or aluminum round down .001 at a time until it j-u-s-t fits. -Al

 

[Bill Norris]

How am I overworking my brass.
This is a 6ppc benchrest rifle. I. Pretty sure I'm doin pretty much exactly how the other shooters are doin it.
I need or I'm shooting for .265 to .266 loaded round.

My 6PPC has a .268 neck diameter chamber. My loaded round measures .2655. The .261 Wilson bushing gives me best groups with VV-N133.

 

[Lkwebb]

I have a .262 bushing but not .261. Guess I can buy those this winter.

 

[Webster]

I have a .262 bushing but not .261. Guess I can buy those this winter.

I bought steel bushings. Been using steel for over ten years without any problems. I see no advantage to carbide bushings no matter what others say. They cost to much. They are not self lubricating.

 

[mikecr]

This is a 6ppc

Ok, well for everyone else it's overworking brass..
It's downsizing ~6thou with a bushing, then re-upsizing ~4thou with bullets.

But if you'd like to see what else there is, you could pull a bullet and measure your neck OD.
The force behind that interference (~.5thou) from loaded neck OD represents your neck tension.
It's what grips your bullets.
Excess from that, with a bushing, is no more than overworking, and buys you nothing.