Neck turning for a beginner

[Ajwilly96]

Just started neck turning, first does the depth into the shoulder look correct for my cut? Also, is it common with new unprepped brass to get an uneven cut on the shoulder like this? Thanks!

 

[Bill Norris]

I would not cut into the shoulder. Only kiss it with the cutter. The un-eveness will go away once the case is fire-formed.

 

[Preacher]

Deeper than they should be, and usually best to do it after one firing, just to even every thing out.. Then cut just to the very edge of where the neck shoulder junction starts...
New brass is close but not as close as right out of your chamber..
Sometimes though you will need to turn before that for a correct fit.
The finish looks good, keep it up..

 

[jepp2]

first does the depth into the shoulder look correct for my cut?

What is the shoulder angle on the brass, and what angle is your cutter? If you go with a steeper cutter than your case shoulder, it will limit how far down the neck the cutter will comtact. As @Bill Norris said, yours is too far down.

Unless your rifle is tight neck and requires turning before you can fire them, you are better off to fire the brass once before turning. I reformed some 30-06 brass for my 25-06, so I had to turn before firing. Here is how they turned out.

 

[Ajwilly96]

It’s a 23deg cutter. I backed it off a bit and this is what I got. I’ve got 1000 pieces to do, so I might just hold off until fire formed

 

[Preacher]

View attachment 1483706View attachment 1483707
It’s a 23deg cutter. I backed it off a bit and this is what I got. I’ve got 1000 pieces to do, so I might just hold off until fire formed

Spot on, with that cut.. After forming is your best bet..

 

[Dave M.]

Use a cutter with a great angle than the angle your neck makes with the shoulder. For instance on brass with a 30 deg shoulder junction angle, I use a 40 deg carbide cutter and just kiss the shoulder. Use a quality cutting lube and do your Final Cut at a maximum depth of 0.001”, and the Final Cut should be done at a slow and steady speed. Finally, the expanding mandrel and turning mandrel should be a matched pair from the same manufacturer.


Dave

 

[Link]

How about that wobble if you chuck up in a hand drill and use a hand held turner ;]

 

[jepp2]

I’ve got 1000 pieces to do

Your brass, your choice. But a suggestion is you don't have to treat all 1,000 as a single batch. I like to split mine into 50 round batches. You could turn the first batch of 50 rounds after firing. If you find out the accuracy is worse for those that have been turned, you might be very glad you didn't turn the other 950.

The reason for this is if your chamber is factory and is much larger than the loaded neck OD, it isn't a certainty that neck turning will improve accuracy. Yes it will even out the case neck thickness, but there are a lot of variables that go into load development. Turning your case necks also introduces some other factors, like how will your size your brass? Your sizing die probably undersizes the case neck enough, that after turning it will still work. But just things to keep in mind.

 

[Straightshooter1]

View attachment 1483706View attachment 1483707
It’s a 23deg cutter. I backed it off a bit and this is what I got. I’ve got 1000 pieces to do, so I might just hold off until fire formed

Yes, that second picture looks much better, though I might touch the shoulder just a hair more (and I mean a little hair).

And yes, you'll get uneven cuts on virgin brass shoulders. . . and a lot more so on less quality brass. It's best to fire form your brass before turning (unless you have a chamber that requires turning first, then you might have to turn a little again after fire forming to get it just right).

 

[Ajwilly96]

How about that wobble if you chuck up in a hand drill and use a hand held turner ;]

I’m using a 21st century lathe so not as much wobble haha

 

[Ajwilly96]

Yes, that second picture looks much better, though I might touch the shoulder just a hair more (and I mean a little hair).

And yes, you'll get uneven cuts on virgin brass shoulders. . . and a lot more so on less quality brass. It's best to fire form your brass before turning (unless you have a chamber that requires turning first, then you might have to turn a little again after fire forming to get it just right).

This is starline 5.56, seeing if I can get it as accurate as lapua. So far my variation had been from 16thou to 12thou thick

 

[BoydAllen]

The reason for the unevenness of the cut on the shoulder is very likely case neck runout. The necks are at a slight angle to the case body. Check your end of neck concentricity before and after expanding.

 

[DocBII]

This is starline 5.56, seeing if I can get it as accurate as lapua. So far my variation had been from 16thou to 12thou thick

Aj,

You'll find you need to anneal the Starline brass to obtain a consistent neck thickness when turning. Boyd is also giving good advice.

YMMV,
DocBII

 

[pilediver]

Aj,

You'll find you need to anneal the Starline brass to obtain a consistent neck thickness when turning. Boyd is also giving good advice.

YMMV,
DocBII

This^^

 

[GetReal]

Piggy-backing this newb thread with another newb question....

Trying to decide if I should get into turning necks.

I'll prolly run 3-5 matches a year. F-class, 600 / 1k, some long range precision 250 - 1000 yds. Mostly in it to see if I can beat myself. W/o turning necks I'm 0.30 - 0.35" at 100 yd. 6 Dasher. Peterson brass. Rest of my shooting with be fun matches / private range time.

What kind of accuracy improvements etc can I expect? Worth it for me?

 

[6BRA]

I would disagree and turning into the shoulders is ok, you don't want to go too deep. The shoulders are slightly thicker than the neck as well and will have more brass flow. The thinner you cut your necks' the more the shoulders will cut with a matching cutter. Apparently others are doing it this way as well.

6 BRA Hydro Formed & Turned

Just finished this batch of Lapua 6 BRA hydro formed and necked turned to .011 for Mike in Va. DJ's Brass Service 205-461-4680

forum.accurateshooter.com

Zoom in on this hydroformed brass.
.011

 

[chromatica]

I like to use a Pro Shot Gun Care Cleaning Cloth from Amazon on the neck and shoulder after I have finished turning a neck. It has a very fine abrasive and polishes out machining marks.

 

[NZ_Fclass]

Piggy-backing this newb thread with another newb question....

Trying to decide if I should get into turning necks.

I'll prolly run 3-5 matches a year. F-class, 600 / 1k, some long range precision 250 - 1000 yds. Mostly in it to see if I can beat myself. W/o turning necks I'm 0.30 - 0.35" at 100 yd. 6 Dasher. Peterson brass. Rest of my shooting with be fun matches / private range time.

What kind of accuracy improvements etc can I expect? Worth it for me?

Peterson brass is high quality and if your chamber doesn't need it, why bother? I dont turn the neck on my BR Norma. I do turn the necks for one of my 308's as it has a tight neck chamber, and my SLR's as they are made from Winchester brass. But do keep a watch for brass thickening after a few firings.I have just had a delivery of Starline SP 308 brass - but haven't had chance to measure it yet

 

[KMart]

How about that wobble if you chuck up in a hand drill and use a hand held turner ;]

Here is what I do
Start with the case bottomed out in the chuck. The more that the case sticks out of the chuck, the more it will wobble.
If it wobbles, loosen the chuck a little and rotate the case a little and retighten. Most times it will reduce the wobble. May need to reseat the case in the chuck more than once.
And/or loosen the chuck and pull the case out slightly and retighten. This may help correct the wobble.
If the case insists on wobbling, slow your speed down and let it wobble and follow the wobble with your cutter