Wison Seater Stem Rings

[PMA3]

For a .20 TAC and Hornady 40 gr V-Max bullets, I've tried the Wilson regular and VLD seating stems but cannot avoid getting the circular rings on the ogive. Anyone else have this problem and possibly found a solution?

Thanks....Paul.

 

[aloreman]

cant see it on the target

 

[gilmillan1]

Agreed. Just shoot it! And if u hit the way u want to hit, forget about it.

 

[hogpatrol]

The Reddings sometimes do the same thing. I chucked up the stem in a drill motor and used a stone to break the sharp edge.

 

[dedogs]

Often excess neck tension will cause this. What re-sizing die are you using? dedogs

 

[PMA3]

Often excess neck tension will cause this. What re-sizing die are you using? dedogs

These are NEW Lapua (Dakota stamp) cases...I know Lapua cases usually run tight when new but never saw the ring on Lapua 6x47 or 6 Dasher cases in the past.

 

[dedogs]

These are NEW Lapua (Dakota stamp) cases...I know Lapua cases usually run tight when new but never saw the ring on Lapua 6x47 or 6 Dasher cases in the past.

6X47 and 6 Dasher are not the same critters. Are you necking down .223 to .20 Tactical? WHAT DIE ARE YOU USING TO SIZE YOUR BRASS? dedogs

 

[Sniper338]

Neck tension issues. I went through it with my 22-250AI too.

Expand the new brass with an expander die, then size it correctly in the sizing die.

Basically there is too much force on the wilson die pushing the bullet in. The necks arent right... if you look at the bullet here before fire formed and this is what your seeing

 

[PMA3]

6X47 and 6 Dasher are not the same critters. Are you necking down .223 to .20 Tactical? WHAT DIE ARE YOU USING TO SIZE YOUR BRASS? dedogs

dedogs,

I'm loading new Lapua factory brass that is already .20 Tactical.....no sizing involved....they were made some years back with a Dakota (Arms) head stamp. After I fire them once, I'll FL size them with a Redding bushing die. I'm talking about seating bullets in a new factory case that has been expanded by the FL die expander ball but not sized.

Sniper338,

I've already expanded the cases per above....I'll run them through the FL Redding bushing die and see if that helps with the tension issues. My ring marks aren't nearly as pronounced as the one in you pic.....a visible ring, but on the light side.

 

[rardoin]

I have a dedicated seater stem for the two 6.5mm bullets I load. I took some medium valve lapping compound, coated the ogive area of the desired bullet, chucked it in a Jacob's chuck and lapped the seater stem to match the bullet. No more rings.

 

[dedogs]

I'm loading new Lapua factory brass that is already .20 Tactical.....no sizing involved..

Paul, As far as I know Lapua does not make any .20 brass so somewhere along the line somebody (Dakota?) necked some .223 brass down to the .20 Tactical brass you are loading. Do you have a ball-mic or tubing mic to measure the neck wall thickness? If so will you please provide that number so we can sort this out? If those necks have not been inside reamed or neck turned, they are probably very thick compared to most factory brass. Are these loaded rounds going to be fired in a Dakota chamber specifically chambered for this brass? If not you could experience early pressure problems with load work-up. dedogs

 

[Shynloco]

I use Wilson Seater dies in several calibers and sometimes I get a light/visible ring and sometimes not. It is the seating stems that are doing it and there's really no harm no foul on accuracy. And that occurs even with .02 - .03 neck tension. Either lightly hone out/smooth the stem or live with it.

Alex

 

[PMA3]

Paul, As far as I know Lapua does not make any .20 brass so somewhere along the line somebody (Dakota?) necked some .223 brass down to the .20 Tactical brass you are loading. Do you have a ball-mic or tubing mic to measure the neck wall thickness? If so will you please provide that number so we can sort this out? If those necks have not been inside reamed or neck turned, they are probably very thick compared to most factory brass. Are these loaded rounds going to be fired in a Dakota chamber specifically chambered for this brass? If not you could experience early pressure problems with load work-up. dedogs

 

[PMA3]

Lapua made .20 TAC brass for Dakota Arms sometime in early 2000. Woodchuck Den in Ohio sells these cases. Todd Kindler owns the Den and designed the .20 TAC case. Kiff made my reamer based on Todd's print. The neck walls measure .0132" and the V-max measures .2036" for a loaded round of .2300" for a .2330" neck...that's .003" clearance. This is a great fit for a no-turn neck....the case was designed to be a semi-custom fit with no neck turning required.

 

[dedogs]

I'm loading new Lapua factory brass that is already .20 Tactical.....no sizing involved....they were made some years back with a Dakota (Arms) head stamp

Paul, If your brass is 16 years old I think it's possible that it has "age hardened" and may be resisting the bullet seating process more than newly manufactured brass. I don't know what causes brass to get harder with age but I do know from personal experience that it does occur. Do you have the ability to anneal say 5 or 10 pieces of your "virgin" brass to see if this helps. I personally would try this after expanding the necks.
The information you provided in your last post was very informative and would have steered me in this direction immediately.
Please let us know if annealing helps. dedogs

 

[Iowa Fox]

Had the same problem this spring trying to seat 105 Hornady match bullets. Tried both seating stems in the chamber seater and got the same ugly crush marks you have. Had to switch to my RCBS seater which did not leave a mark or shinny spot of any kind. I threw the Wilson back in the drawer. I think if I get a chance I'll give Wilson a call and see what they say.