[Creeper]

Part 3

Assembling the cartridge.
What happens next depends on the equipment used. There are essentially two types of rifle dies, the full length sizing die which, dependant on adjustment depth, will size only the neck at the least, to the entire case body, including pushing the shoulder back, closer to the case head, when adjusted to it’s maximum. Read the manufacturers instructions for proper use of this type of die and use cull cases to set it up in the press.
The second type, a neck sizing only die, does just as the name implies, it resizes just the neck of the cartridge. The neck die is the most popular among benchrest shooters and varmint hunters using bolt action or single shot rifles.
The reason for this is, when the cases are used in only one rifle, having conformed to that rifles chamber, there is no need to constantly resize the entire case. The only time a full length sizing die may be needed would be to “bump” the case shoulder back a small amount, usually .0005" to .0015", should it become difficult to close the bolt or breach block. As an added benefit, neck sizing only dies require no lubrication.

A full length sizing die should be used exclusively only if the cases are to be used in more than one bolt action or single shot rifle, any dangerous game rifle where function is critical, or a semi-automatic or lever action rifle.
Actually, it is not absolutely mandatory to use full length sized cartridges in some match grade semi-autos. When loaded singly, and not from a full magazine, there is no reason to full length size the case unless they become to tight to allow the rifle to function properly.

Another category of die is the neck bushing die. They are identical to the dies previously mentioned except that, as the name implies, they use an interchangeable bushing, available in .001" increments, which allows the user complete control over the amount of neck tension applied to the bullet. The standard type dies may, dependant on their internal dimension and the wall thickness of the cases used, may apply too much or not enough neck tension to the bullet.

A brief word about I.D. sizing buttons. All sizing dies, with the exception of hand dies, come with an I.D. sizing button, in line with the decapping pin. The button is designed to, regardless of how much the die body compresses the neck, return the neck I.D to a dimension large enough to accept a bullet and small enough to apply adequate tension. Due to their small bearing surface, they are highly unreliable in regard to returning the case neck back to a consistent diameter.
Redding, who’s dies I am familiar with, make a type ”S” die, in both full length and neck only, which allows the user to remove the sizing button but retain the decapping pin. Other die brands may or may not have this feature.

The final and preferred die type is the hand held die; it’s used in conjunction with a small, arbor type press rather than a conventional reloading press. These are the dies, in particular the bushing type, neck sizing only die that most benchrest competitors use. They are small, light weight, (read, easy to pack and carry to the range) extremely precise and simple to use. They do not lend themselves well however, to volume reloading. Sinclair International carries the Wilson brand of hand dies, which are the most common.

Determining Bullet Seating Depth.
I use two tools, A Stony Point Chamber-All gauge and Sinclair Bullet Comparator. The Stony Point tool easily permits establishing the location of the bullet in the case when it just touches the rifling lands. The Sinclair comparator, contacting the bullets “ogive” (the location at which the bullet’s point starts and the bearing surface ends) as a constant point of reference, allows a repeatable measurement of bullet positioning for accurately measuring the OAL of the cartridge. Both tools are used with a dial caliper.
Most rifles will shoot best when the bullet ogive is somewhere between just touching the lands to .025" off the lands. Begin by adjusting the bullet seating die to seat the bullet .005" to .010" off the lands. If needed, alter this adjustment in increments of plus or minus .005" until best accuracy is obtained.
Never seat the bullets hard into the lands as it may cause difficulty extracting a loaded round.

The only limiting factor to this is when inserting loading your rounds into a box magazine; this can limit the cartridge’s overall length.
When searching for absolute accuracy, I recommend loading each round individually into the chamber, this permits long bullet seating if needed and eliminates the need for the additional neck tension required to keep a bullet from moving in it’s case under recoil, as it rests in the magazine. Also, a taper or roll crimp may be necessary in any rifle, when feed from a box or tube type magazine.

When using a bushing type die, as a starting point, select a bushing that is approximately .003" to .004" smaller than the O.D. neck measurement of a loaded cartridge. This will ensure adequate tension of the bullet. At some point, trying a larger I.D. bushing to reduce the tension on the bullet might improve accuracy.

Clean the cases if necessary, and prime them. I use a Lee Auto-Prime hand held priming tool, they are inexpensive and provide and adequate “feel” for seating the primers. Seat primers until they just touch bottom, then apply a very small amount of additional pressure to “preload” them. This will ensure reliable and consistent primer ignition.

Charging the case with powder is the next to last step. The appropriate powder, will fill the case to at the least, somewhere between the upper part of the shoulder, to at the most, the bottom third of the neck. (This is only a guideline; some “slow” powders, although correct for the cartridge and bullet used, may fill the case to the top of the case mouth and would be a “compressed charge”)

To practice dispensing powder charges without benefit of a scale, try this; cycle the measure a few times to settle the powder then throw a charge into a powder scale tray and weigh it.
Got it? Now remove that charge, and throw ten charges in a row into the tray and weigh that, divide the measurement by 10. Did it come out the same? Maybe 0.1 to 0.2 grain difference, more or less? If the variance was greater than that, try “tapping” the handle at the top and bottom of each stroke. Better? As I said earlier, 99.9% of benchrest shooters don’t use a scale other than to produce a powder graph for the powder of choice.

A word to those with progressive reloading presses. Every procedure described so far can be done on a progressive press. Although quality is not usually synonymous with quantity, a properly set-up progressive can be made to produce match grade ammunition.
As proof of this, several years ago, a Dillon Precision employee and practiced benchrest shooter competed in matches in Phoenix, AZ., using a Dillon 550 progressive press, he often finished in the top 10.

Seating the bullet.
As I have no control over the press used by the reader, trying to describe seating “feel” will be difficult at best. The more leverage available, the less feel as you seat the bullet. Most important is that every time a bullet is seated, it should feel the same. If one slides in with smooth even resistance, one falls in and the next requires extra effort then the necks do not have consistent wall thickness or concentricity. Variable neck tension will produce variable points of impact on target; it’s similar to having ammunition with each round having a different powder charge or seating depth.

Tailoring the Load.
Following these steps should produce loaded rounds that are as good, if not better than the best match ammunition sold. If the load does not produce the desired accuracy, try adjusting the bullet seating depth in .005" increments closer to or farther away from the lands, within that .025" range. Try using slightly less powder. If loading rounds one at a time and using a bushing type die, try reducing neck tension on the bullet by using a larger bushing.
Only if it is felt that the rifle and ammo are not yet meeting their potential, should you try different components.

What else?
All of “what else” in detail is another article for another time. A quick overview of some important things to consider is as follows:
1. Use stable rests that will repeatedly hold the rifle exactly on target from shot to shot.
2. Make sure you are using “enough” scope. High magnification allows more exact positioning of the reticule on the target.
3. The target should also be matched to the scope, if your reticule subtends (covers) your aiming point, it will be hard to hold repeatedly on the exact same spot. A good example of this would be trying to center a 1.50 MOA dot on a 1.0 MOA target spot. Instead, find or make a target with a 1.75 to 2.0 MOA I.D. circle to center the reticule dot inside.
4. Use some sort of wind direction and speed indicator; a 2 ft. long piece of nylon surveyor’s tape attached to a 3 to 4 ft. wooden stake, placed 10 to 15 yards from the firing line works well.
The effect of wind on a bullets flight is exponential. If a wind alters a bullet’s flight at or near the muzzle, then the angle of that deviation will increase for the time or distance that the bullet is in flight. A deviation occurring near the target will have less effect because the time or distance to impact is reduced.
5. Hold the rifle the same for every shot. Some rifles prefer a “soft hold”, some a “hard hold”.
6. A gun with a 3.5 lb. or heavier trigger, or a trigger with “creep” or one that “stacks” pressure will make it very difficult to hold the gun on target until the trigger “breaks”. You can check this by dry firing at the target and watching the reticule, does it move from point of aim as the trigger is pressed? Then the trigger is to heavy for accuracy work. Does it bounce away from point of aim when the firing pin falls? Then the rests used are not sufficiently firm and stable, see # 1.
7. Most rifles will send the first one or two bullets from a cool, clean barrel to a different point of impact, if this is so for your rifle, fire those “fouling” shots at a separate “fouler” target. Amazingly enough, it might end up being the best “group” of the day!
8. All rifle barrels, regardless of thickness, distort to some degree as they warm up. When using a thin-barreled rifle, allow a few minutes for the barrel to cool between each shot.
9. Ever wondered why 3 shots go into a tight little cluster and 2 go “some place else”?
Every aspect of the shot should be identical to the one before it.

May all your bullets go through the same hole.

C