Lapua 308 Winchester to Lapua 6.5 Creedmoor anyone?

[Gunz n Ammo]

I've seen people talked about it and did it but I haven't seen a step by step process of how they did it... My coworker gave me some 1x fired Lapua brass a while back and I just hate seeing it on the shelf collecting dust, so here's what I did to them...

things you need:

Press (I used Lee Classic Cast)
Lapua brass (I used 1x fired)
1 to 5 test 308 cases (I used federal as they are soft and I have plenty to spare)
6.5 Creedmoor FL die (I used RCBS)
Lee case holder #2 x2 (one sacrificial)
Case lube (I used 0w20 synthetic motor oil)
Cream of Wheat
Toilette paper (I used Kirkland double ply )
Gun powder funnel
Gun powder (I used Titegroup)
Decapping rod
Large rifle primer
RCBS hand neck turner
RCBS #25 collet
Digital caliper
flash hole uniformer
case trimmer (I used forster case trimmer)
forster case trimmer collet #25
forster case trimmer collet #24
Chamfer and Deburring tool
Lee 308 case holder
Drill
1000 grit sand paper
Torch
6.5 Creedmoor rifle

Step 1
Set the FL die without the decapping pin

Step 2
you will have to sand ONE of the Lee case holder #2 .006" off. Once you done this you will no longer use the case holder for any other purpose besides from bumping the case shoulder back. I measured the case holder at .500" and you may have to sand less or more depending on your rifle chamber tolerance...

Step 3
Lube the 308 cases and wipe off excess lube. I suggest to use the cheap cases first for practice. Too much lube will cause some bumps on the case shoulder and it looks ugly


Step 4
use #24 collet to trim the case to 1.914" then chamfer and deburr. Chamber each and every case to your rifle to make sure it chambers with a little to no effort to manipulate the bolt.





(I ANNEALED THE BRASS AFTER STEP #4 your choice)

Step 5
I used Winchester LRP. Cut the TP into 8 pieces, charge the case with 10 grains of Titegroup, then place the TP in the case and do your best to flatten the TP evenly to keep the powder from moving and mixing with the COW.






Push it with a rod or something (I used the Lee decapping pin)



it should look like this



dump some COW in it up to the case neck



place another TP on top to keep the COW in the case to prevent it from spilling



Step 6
Fire em up!!!


Step 7
Use collet #25 on the forster case trimmer and trim to 1.911" (I prefer trimming to this length) Then chamfer and deburr.

Step 8
Use collet #25 on RCBS hand neck turner. Use the case holder and drill to make the process run faster and smoother. The Hornady case mouth thickness I measured at .15" and the Lapua to .18"

(video yet to be uploaded on youtube)

Step 9
FULL LENGTH SIZE the case and chamber the empty case in your rifle to make sure it chambers correctly. Load your favorite 6.5CM load combo. I used the low node of 40.5 grains of H4350 (range training 1400y and closer) and 140 grain AMAX.



Step 10
Shoot em!!! :scsniper3:

here's the case after 17th firing (18x fired if counting when it was a 308 ammo), one tough SOB won't even break after so many firings where the Hornady case fails no more than 15 firings and I'm pushing my luck of letting the brass completely separate from the case body.

I'm a half MOA guy on a good day so I'm happy with these results. I've noticed after the 3rd firing that the case seems to settle/formed perfectly, based on the concentricity readings... Although it is not Benchrest quality/accuracy, there's definitely some room for improvement, my marksmanship to be included



I only carried 20 powder charges since my Hornady brass life ends between 12th to 15th firing whenever I see the base case head separation signs. I screwed up on the first 3 firings after resizing and damaging the case and I have to restart...






I'll shoot the case some more by next week or two... :thumbup:

EXPENSES:
Lapua brass - $70-$80 per 100 pcs BNIB, $40-$50 1x fired per 100 pcs & $30-$40 for the 1x fired LC brass(I got mine for free)
Large Rifle Primers - .04 per = $4.00
Cream of Wheat - $5 (it's good for atleast 1,000 cases) so .50 cents/100
Pistol Powder - .03 per case = $3.00

So I'm looking at $90 per 100 NEW cases, $60 for 1x fired or cheaper, like free

Anyone out there have tried these? Any range reports? Thanks

 

[Comrade Terry]

Excellent description. You did a good job!

Thank you.

 

[357Mag]

GUnz -

Howdy !


I've been working on a 6.5mm wildcat, in the 6.5 X 47L - 6.5 Creedmoor class.

Case oal & neck OD allowed me try try use of .260Rem brass... initially.
As it turned out. the Rem brass has widely variable neck wall thickness ( including after cases had shoulders set-back & shoulder angle sharpened ).

The wildcat will be run w/ .012" neck wall thickness, but..... many of the .260Rem -derived cases had neck wall thickness ( after case forming ) as-low as .0115 in some spots.

Since at the time, I could not obtain either .308 or 7mm-08 brass; I opted to go w/ .358Win.
Redux in caliber from .358" to 6.5mm ensured that neck walls were plenty " thick ", and allowed for outside neck turn of the cases to final .012" neck wall thickness desired....... and w/o having any cases that indicated sub-.012" thick.

+ ...... .358Win brass is fairly easily obtained.

My case forming methods/ process differs some from yours, but.... I do get the point.


With regards,
357Mag

 

[lal357]

did almost the same thing hornady brass i was only getting 4-5 firings before the primer pockets opened up so i started making my own from others (243,22-250ect) settled on lclr and lcmatch i use a redding bump die to form mine then trim,turn the necks and done on the 10th reloading and still going strong and i get the lclr for free (as well as lc nato stamped ;D )

 

[kombayotch]

You shouldn't need the COW step going from a bigger case. I've created a lot of 6mm Crusader from 270 and 30-06 brass, and now I'm making 7mm Kraken (my own wildcat) from 300 RUM brass.

The trick is to knock down the shoulder with a die that has a 20 degree shoulder, anneal, and then use the die with the 30-35 degree shoulder.

Here are the steps for the Kraken with 20 degree bushings that get progressively smaller:



Here is the case cleaned up with some 0000 steel wool (still needs to be cut down) next to a fired 7 WSM (left) and an unfired 300 RUM (right):



The picture doesn't show it well, but the body-shoulder is a bit sharper than the factory case. There is no puckering at the neck-shoulder, and no rounding of the shoulder (on the part that is supposed to be flat) like you get when trying to bump down the shoulder with a 30 degree angle shoulder die.

 

[spclark]

Yep, if you're motivated and have the time to invest in this kind of thing it's always fun to try and usually rewarding.

A few years back I thought maybe Lapua's then-new Palma brass with its small primer pockets would be intetesting to use for 6XC. Took me awhile to work out the tools needed and most efficient workflow, but after ruining just 2 cases the other 98 work great!

(Does 6.5 Creedmoor brass use a small primer? It's size would lend it to conversion to 6XC but if I have to use LR primers it's not worth the trouble....)

 

[kombayotch]

With 308 size cases, you can just use off-the-shelf trim and form dies. 7mm-08, 260, 243, etc... All have 20 deg. shoulders. You can often pick up used sizing dies for a pitance. Just cut them down.

Not many steps when you do it on the XL650.

 

[Wildwillalaska]

Admit I want some of those babies--BAD. Not bad enough to go buy cream of wheat though.

Just kidding. With a toddler and too much work, times a premium around my homestead--so would cut into my shooting/hunting/fishing time--so will have to wait and hope and pray Lapua steps up and makes the creedmoor soon. Or pay some fine forum member to make some.

 

[watercam]

It seems it would be easier to just start with Lapua 22-250 brass...

 

[arnie]

I made about 75 out of 308 lapua palma with the small primer pocket .It worked fine but used a 7mm08 die for first down size .

 

[Grimstod]

All that work and you could have just had a 6.5x47