New to 6BR Reloading

[3jaysdad]

I am in the process of putting together a 6mmBR Tube Gun using Gary Eliseo's R-5 kit. My plan is to buy a few hundred rounds of Lapua factory ammo to get going and use the cases as a basis for reloading rounds. I would appreciate any advise on how to prepare the fired cases, e.g. Should I turn the necks? Should I uniform the primer pockets? What type of sizing die should I use,FL vs. neck-bushing type)? This is my first foray into real precision reloading,as opposed to bulk .223 stuff for my AR) and I welcome any words of wisdom....

Phil

 

[jb1000br]

If you can shoot factory ammo don't do any further prep.,this means you have at least a .271nk, preferably .272")

If there is a bur in the flashhole remove it,without chamfering) If not, don't touch it. Pay attention, make sure you don't alter the diameter of the flashhole. If you do, then you need to do them all.

Don't bother turning necks or reaming the primer pockets until this proves deficient.

I have been running my 1000yd BR rifle this way for 3 years and have shot a handful of the top 20 smallest groups in that time at Williamsport,lightgun class).

Point being, if it works for 1000yd BR, it will work for your tube-gun. Not saying I couldn't improve my groups with BR prep, but it sure hasn't handicapped me by not doing so.

After you have a baseline with non-prepped brass, do the prep and see if there is any gain,if you feel you need to).

I still haven't bothered to do any prep on mine...

7-8 firings later the original 250 cases are still running strong. O yea, haven't even trimmed them to length. They don;t grow much

Dies: Send a case or two fired 3x each,without body sizing if possible) to Harrells,tell them specifically that you have a no-turn neck) and get their FL bushing die.,I bought a std. Redding FL die to size cases till I got the Harrell die)

.268 TiNit bushing should do.

Seater: Wilson Stainless Micrometer seater

CCI 450 primers
Varget/R15

GTG.

JB

 

[Forum Boss]

Jason did a great job of summing it up. I would add a couple points.

1. Seating depth--good starting point with Bergers or Scenars is probably .010" in the lands. Some cross-the-course guys, or those shooting Sierra 107s prefer to seat off the lands. Try .015" out for starters.

2. Since your ammo is once-fired you can go straight to a match load, but I'd still start at 29.0 grains for a few rounds just to double check on pressure. You'll probably end up somewhere between 30.0 and 30.8 with either Varget or RL15.

3. Jason uses a .268 bushing. You may need a .267 or even a .266. I use a Redding non-bushing die with the neck honed to 0.267 and it gives me a little over .001" tension with Scenars. These bullets are skinnier than Bergers. The non-bushing option is nice IF you know what neck tension you like. You can purchase a std full-length die from Forster and they will hone the neck to your spec for about $12.00. Redding will do the same but they charge a lot more $$.

4. Get a comparator to mount on your calipers. It will be worthwhile, initially to measure all your loaded rounds, base to ogive, to see how consistent your ammo is. With pre-sorted bullets, I can pretty much hold this dimension to .0015" or less variance. If you're seeing four or five thousandths variance, something is wrong with your bullets or your reloading methods/tools.

 

[3jaysdad]

Thanks for the great responses guys.... what I am gathering then is that I should probably send 3-4 fired rounds from the factory ammo along with my newly acquired Forster FL sizing die to the good folks at Forster and have them customize the neck area to accomodate the chamber of my tube gun.

 

[jb1000br]

The neck diameter in the die has nothing to do with the neck diameter in your chamber. The die needs to be based off your loaded round diameter.

I'd tell them .2665,they claim -+0.0005 IIRC)and run it with their expander ball.

JB

 

[Forum Boss]

Thanks for the great responses guys.... what I am gathering then is that I should probably send 3-4 fired rounds from the factory ammo along with my newly acquired Forster FL sizing die to the good folks at Forster and have them customize the neck area to accomodate the chamber of my tube gun.

If you already have the Forster die, Forster can hone it to your preference. But note--the die isn't changed to adjust to the chamber. Rather, Forster will be opening up the neck a bit to reduce neck tension. The question is: "What's the best size?" You won't know that without a little experimentation--that's the advantage of the bushing dies. What you can do is size one case, then seat a bullet. Measure the outside neck diameter in the middle of the neck with the bullet seated. Now subtract .002 or .003. That should give you a honed die inside neck diameter. Remember the brass will expand back about .001 to .0015 after sizing.

 

[3jaysdad]

I've read and heard alot of bad things about expander balls. One quote advocated never putting "anything" inside the case neck. Another recommended using an expander mandrel on die instead of the ball, and still another recommended using the expander ball only after is has been honed and polished. What is the potential advantage/disadvantage of sizing without the expander ball??

 

[jb1000br]

I've read and heard alot of bad things about expander balls. One quote advocated never putting "anything" inside the case neck. Another recommended using an expander mandrel on die instead of the ball, and still another recommended using the expander ball only after is has been honed and polished. What is the potential advantage/disadvantage of sizing without the expander ball??

If you omit the exp. ball while NOT using neck-turned cases, you just force the unevenness to the inside and let it there, varying neck tension.

With neck-turned cases, forget the expander.

NECO dry moly neck lube negates the internal finish on the necks and makes smooth consistent seating.

As far as expander balls, I use carbide if possible, and did polish the Forster ones that I use.

JB