Confused, mad, and well grrrr

[wisconsinteacher]

Okay I am working on the next batch of 30-06 rounds. I took out the lot of 50 bullets and pulled out the ones that measured .648". These are Nosler AB bullets measured at the ogive. I then took my RP brass and measured them and they were all 2.486" long. I primed and charged the brass then went to seat the bullets and I get measurements from 2.702"-2.713 after setting up the die on a dummy round at 2.708 (my goal length) Why am I not getting the same numbers or at least close to it. I loaded 9 rounds and only a few were at teh 2.708. I tried to make sure I did everything the same everytime I ran the ram up on the press. I am so confused and mad that I put everything down and walked away. I can to the next 9 rounds tomorrow after I get this figured out I hope. So what am I doing wrong? I have a Lee seating die set up per directed for a non-crimped round, I will put a light crimp on them later in the process. Thanks

 

[YoteSmoker]

Make sure you trim your brass uniform and I would advise against crimping the bullet as there is no need and will probably give you less accuracy than by not doing it.

 

[HeathSexton]

If you are measuring the dummy round with no primer and then the loaded rounds with primers that may be throwing your OAL.

 

[flashhole]

You are handloader number 1,738,256 to learn that measuring OAL from the bullet tip does not provide an accurate measure of the cartridge overall length. Use something like this http://www.midwayusa.com/viewproduct/?p ... ber=746974 and measure OAL from the ogive of the bullet and not the tip. I'll bet a beer your numbers are much more consistent.

 

[HeathSexton]

Good catch flashhole, I use the Hornady version and yes you will be much more consistent.

 

[wisconsinteacher]

I use the Hornady Comparator on a caliper and the brass is all trimmed to the same size. I will decide to crimp later, I want to get the seating thing figured out first. The primers are not sticking out at all the are in the primer pocket and you can feel they are less than flush.

 

[flashhole]

Disassemble the Lee die and look at the seater cup (the part that contacts the bullet) and make sure a bullet will engage the edge of the cup and not bottom out on the cup.

 

[wisconsinteacher]

I will do that tomorrow night. What if it is bottoming out, will it need to be drilled out deeper?

 

[Songdog]

The problem was... you forgot to neck the .30-06 brass down to .25 caliber before you loaded it with 100 grainers. Don't worry about it... it happens to a lot of .30 cal guys... eventually they all see the light.

 

[flashhole]

I will do that tomorrow night. What if it is bottoming out, will it need to be drilled out deeper?

YOu can either drill it out or contact Lee and tell them what is happening, they may send a free replacement.

 

[Guy Miner]

Measure the loaded rounds from a box of factory ammo. Chances are good that your handloads will compare favorably.

My way of saying - don't sweat the small stuff. See how they shoot at 300 yards before condemning your work.

Regards, Guy

 

[velvetant]

are you loading compressed loads?
Another thing to try is seat the bullets half way, rotate the case 180 degrees and finish seating it.

 

[wisconsinteacher]

They are not compressed loads. Is there a way to test the seater to see if it not touching the bullet at the ogive while seating the bullet?

 

[wisconsinteacher]

I could not wait until tonight so I took the die apart. The seating stem in the die does not measure the bullet at the same place the comparator does. It is not even close. The comparator gets deeper on the bullet then the stem.

 

[rick smith]

Most seating stems hit the bullet closer to the tip. The concern is the tip of the bullet contacting before the stem contacts the bullet. Neck thickness can have a dramatic effect on seating as can neck tension. Measure the OD on the necks of your loaded rounds those that seated to the proper length and the ones that did not. If they are the same measurement probably not the problem. Are you seating with the same pressure on the press handle? Did you chamfer the case necks? Is the brass from the same lot?Rick.

 

[nodak7mm]

I am with Rick and Flashole on the stem/seating cup theory (they are all theories cause we dont have the equipment/bullets/brass in front of us). I have drilled out the stem with an appropriate bit to alleiveate that type of issue, tip was bottoming out. Easy to do & it works great, pretty soft metal. The thing to bear in mind is that this mod'd stem may or may not work on other bullets, dependant on ogive design (secant vs tangent). But stems are cheap...

Good luck and let us know..

Rod

 

[chet]

I happen to have a 30-06 die set sitting right here in front of me.
brand name is Lachmiller. These are at least 40 years old.
the seating die comes with two different stems, one for pointy slugs and one for bulldozers.
I will try to get a good pic with my phone and post it.

on a side note, I typically get around .003"-.005" deviation while seating accubonds. And having the locknut nice and snug on the die body and on the seating stem can make a really big difference!

 

[chet]

my cell phone camera sucks, sorry. But I think you'll see what I'm talking about.
It's obvious which stem the original owner prefered. (polished)
I have a mic here and can give you any dimension details if you need.

 

[nodak7mm]

Good visuals to back up what we're trying to explain!! Good job!

Rod

 

[wisconsinteacher]

One thing I did not mention is that when I put a bullet on the stem, the stem does not fit around the bullet like a comparator does. What I am saying is that there is side to side movement when I place a bullet in the stem and when you put one in a comparator, it does not wiggle to the side. If I put my comparator upside-down and the stem upside-down and placed a bullet in each one, the one in the stem leans to one side or the other and the one in the comparator sits straight up and down. That is why I am thinking the tip of the bullet is bottoming out in the stem. I will try a few different bullets when I get home to see if they can sit straight up and down in the stem.