Need Help reloading? I think I have the necessary equipment.

[Colt Kodiak]

I have just shot 200 Lapua rounds in my 20 Vartarg and have two more 20 caliber guns to do the same thing. Now, I've developed the load I want for the summer prairie dog hunting in the 20VT. I have the Redding full 3 set with NK sizer for all three guns with the proper bushing. I have the Bench Source annealer. Bought it but have never used it. I have the tumbler with SS inserts, the liquid vibrator, and the media vibrator. My 20VT rifle is set up with a .235 neck diameter to take the Lapua brass without neck sizing. I've heard a lot of different opinions on here and would like to follow the best. Before, I would have only neck sized the brass with a .230 bushing and cleaned them up and loaded them for the next round, but maybe my brass might not last that long. It would be very interesting to hear what you guys have to say.

 

[Rsadams]

My opinion only... But alot have gotten away from neck sizeing and gone like I have to full length sizeing with the die of course only resizing the minimum... I also have all the cleaning methods you do but pretty much only use the Walnut or Corncob vibration tumbler.... Since your hunting , I would resize a touch more for reliable loading... Hopefully you have a headspace comparator to set up full length dies with , if so your brass should last awhile , annealing when needed but since you , from what I am reading don't use it , get some junk brass to practice annealing on till you get it down... Other than that just enjoy....

 

[Colt Kodiak]

My opinion only... But alot have gotten away from neck sizeing and gone like I have to full length sizeing with the die of course only resizing the minimum... I also have all the cleaning methods you do but pretty much only use the Walnut or Corncob vibration tumbler.... Since your hunting , I would resize a touch more for reliable loading... Hopefully you have a headspace comparator to set up full length dies with , if so your brass should last awhile , annealing when needed but since you , from what I am reading don't use it , get some junk brass to practice annealing on till you get it down... Other than that just enjoy....

Thanks, I know some anneal on every firing. I am retired so can do that also if the proper thing to do. You are saying to use the FL die but to only size the cases NOT to the case shell holder, but just a little bit?

 

[Dusty Stevens]

Size them back .002 or so just til the bolt closes good on them. Dont bump the shellholder

 

[Rsadams]

Size them back .002 or so just til the bolt closes good on them. Dont bump the shellholder

Yes sir....+1....

 

[INTJ]

Yes, bump the shoulder about .002 vs neck only sizing. I have an AMP annealer and now I anneal after every firing. Since I am now back in LR BR this year I acquired an Auto Trickler, Auto Throw, and a Sartorius Entris scale.

Blaine Painter
Springfield, OR

 

[hoz53]

I have just shot 200 Lapua rounds in my 20 Vartarg and have two more 20 caliber guns to do the same thing. Now, I've developed the load I want for the summer prairie dog hunting in the 20VT. I have the Redding full 3 set with NK sizer for all three guns with the proper bushing. I have the Bench Source annealer. Bought it but have never used it. I have the tumbler with SS inserts, the liquid vibrator, and the media vibrator. My 20VT rifle is set up with a .235 neck diameter to take the Lapua brass without neck sizing. I've heard a lot of different opinions on here and would like to follow the best. Before, I would have only neck sized the brass with a .230 bushing and cleaned them up and loaded them for the next round, but maybe my brass might not last that long. It would be very interesting to hear what you guys have to say.

yeah youve got good advice--almost nobody uses neck sizers anymore. probably would have been better off spending that extra money(plus some) on strait line seaters look at redding,forster, or the wilson hand dies. also do you have a way to measure your bump -if not hornady or sinclair tool for it. Ive been to Salem a few times-- are you turning the necks of your cases?

 

[Bc'z]

Imma neck sixer
. Bump this and bump that, whatever flips your crank. Sorry it's
sinko Di my o. And I'm freakin hamered.
I personally neck size only" cuz I think it's more accurate.
I've spent so much time chasing my ass trying to bump size I've giving up on it.
If you find a round that won't chamber, pull the bullet, full length it and move on.
It boils down to what works for you.

 

[Leftybee]

In some cases just the simplest Lee reloading fl dies and seaters will work just as good as anything else. Here's some things to keep in mind- Keep the case neck running true. I use a FL die every time. I use the Hornady Comp die with neck bushing and grip all bullets the same (change the bushing out for the various neck thicknesses) and keep all (bullets and case necks) running straight as possible down the center line. About a .001 in. run out. 90% of the work is with the barrel. Some factory barrels will never shoot well regardless of how much fancy reloading equipment you use. The list of things will go on and on. Just try to keep it simple.

 

[dgeesaman]

I've been reloading for 5 months now and used a Lee Collet die to neck size only. At modest loads the brass body forms to the chamber and it's up to me how much bolt stick I want to allow before resizing. Runout is very low when I bother to check it. I've had very few that required shoulder bump in 5+ firings. Not sure how much accuracy I'm missing out on but my factory sporter is shooting 1/4" groups at 100y.

I'm just now getting into consistent FL sizing with an FL die properly matched to my chamber.

I completely understand why bench shooters and shooters shooting at near-max loads avoid the neck sizing game. But for moderate loads it can be quite effective.

 

[Texas10]

There is a whole lot of physics behind full length sizing, and a lot of good reasons to do it, and do it correctly if it is desirable to shrink your group size to bug holes at what ever distance you're shooting. Competitors will have a sizing die made from the same reamer used to chamber their barrel. Doing this assures that the brass will not end up "banana shaped" from excessive stretching during repeated sizing and firings.

But for many of us more mundane hobbyists, the investment required is not worth the trouble. I am not a competitive shooter, nor do I aspire to be one. But that doesn't mean I don't try to improve myself and my group size. I'm retired and just have limits to what I'm willing to spend.

It has been my experience that for the small calibers ( I have a couple of 223's) I can get away with neck sizing only. I use the Lee collet die for my 223's, never F.L. size and have near perfect run out on case necks after dozens of loadings. And well tuned loads shoot incredibly accurately with this technique.

When I tried this technique on 22-250, I had to F.L. size every second or third load to get it to chamber reliably. 6mmBR is of course every time, as with 6.5CM, 308, and 338 LM that I load. Your experience may be different, however if you don't already have them, buy some good inspection tools so that you can set up your dies properly, and to know if they are a close enough match to your guns chamber.

I do anneal, and frequency depends upon how much I work the brass, using the dies I'm blessed with. I use the salt bath method. Easy set up, just turn it on and wait for it to hit 1000 F.

As always, YMMV.

 

[Colt Kodiak]

I understand to bump the shoulder back .002" using the FL die, but I want the neck to be .230" to fit into my chamber. How does one arrange that without using the neck sizing die? Maybe use both?

 

[284winner]

I understand to bump the shoulder back .002" using the FL die, but I want the neck to be .230" to fit into my chamber. How does one arrange that without using the neck sizing die? Maybe use both?

FL neck die. Nothing wrong with neck sizing. If you want consistent neck tension, you'll be neck sizing.

 

[Colt Kodiak]

FL neck die. Nothing wrong with neck sizing. If you want consistent neck tension, you'll be neck sizing.

Looks like I need to buy the Redding Competition Shellholder sets in order to bump back the shoulder precisely.

 

[Colt Kodiak]

Now then, when do you clean and maybe anneal the fired brass.... before setting the shoulder back/ neck size or after?

 

[powderbrake]

denwit1: Your neck sizeing only for prairie dogs is just fine. If you have an accurate load and neck size only, and use those cases in only one specific gun, you should not have any problems.

I neck size only for my prairie dog rounds. I use Redding Competition neck sizers on my 223, 22-250 and 6BR. I use those loads only in the one gun they were fired in. I do not turn necks. The advantage is speed and simplicity in reloading. I trim, then tumble in corn cob to clean. (I found that the trim operation leaves little pieces of brass which will scratch the necks). I neck size (with no lube, with a TiNitride bushing), and prime on the press. I use a Dillon 550 and the Redding micrometer seater works great. Having not used any lube, the loaded rounds go directly to the ammo boxes, and they are accurate.

I agree with the others, that few people neck size for high accuracy anymore, so when I load for my benchrest gun or my 6br for long range, I full size, using a Harrels die and check the sizing with the Wheeler Method. I also use the Wheeler method to find the lands to set my seating depth.

Reloading for benchrest or f class etc, are small numbers, compared to preparing thousands for a prairie dog hunt, and if you miss a dog, you shoot again. It is too much work to prepare p dog rounds in the manner of competition rounds. So I suggest you keep doing what your are doing now, and if you wish to strive for greater accuracy, then take the time to full length size

 

[Colt Kodiak]

denwit1: Your neck sizeing only for prairie dogs is just fine. If you have an accurate load and neck size only, and use those cases in only one specific gun, you should not have any problems.

I neck size only for my prairie dog rounds. I use Redding Competition neck sizers on my 223, 22-250 and 6BR. I use those loads only in the one gun they were fired in. I do not turn necks. The advantage is speed and simplicity in reloading. I trim, then tumble in corn cob to clean. (I found that the trim operation leaves little pieces of brass which will scratch the necks). I neck size (with no lube, with a TiNitride bushing), and prime on the press. I use a Dillon 550 and the Redding micrometer seater works great. Having not used any lube, the loaded rounds go directly to the ammo boxes, and they are accurate.

I agree with the others, that few people neck size for high accuracy anymore, so when I load for my benchrest gun or my 6br for long range, I full size, using a Harrels die and check the sizing with the Wheeler Method. I also use the Wheeler method to find the lands to set my seating depth.

Reloading for benchrest or f class etc, are small numbers, compared to preparing thousands for a prairie dog hunt, and if you miss a dog, you shoot again. It is too much work to prepare p dog rounds in the manner of competition rounds. So I suggest you keep doing what your are doing now, and if you wish to strive for greater accuracy, then take the time to full length size

Thanks. I am thinking that I could fire 6-9 times and not have to bump back the shoulder until maybe then the brass won't chamber. I'll just neck size and see where it goes.

 

[ranger3]

Looks like I need to buy the Redding Competition Shellholder sets in order to bump back the shoulder precisely.

The forster bump die works well for me

 

[Rsadams]

Looks like I need to buy the Redding Competition Shellholder sets in order to bump back the shoulder precisely.

Nothing wrong with that , but you can just screw the die in or out further to achieve the same affect , although the shell holders may be alot faster if useing the same dies with different rifles... The other thing to me with brass life is to not hot load them... Remember the fastest bullet may not and often will not be the most accurate... Especially if your only shooting say 300 yards and under... Some very simple testing with a crono and some paper targets can find what your looking for... Plus you get to go shoot , a win , win...

As stated above , it's easy to get cought up with the accuracy bug , but as powder brake said if you miss a shot it's not the end of the world , you just get ready for the next... Since you say you have your summer time load worked up , I would put some on paper during the same temps you will be shooting in and make sure , you don't want to get there and find out it's not what you thought and start seeing pressure signs due to heat... After that get loaded up and go have some fun...

 

[hoz53]

I understand to bump the shoulder back .002" using the FL die, but I want the neck to be .230" to fit into my chamber. How does one arrange that without using the neck sizing die? Maybe use both?

your sizing die is a redding S die right? or do you just have a standard sizing die?