Arbour press and Wilson dies vs Redding and Forster dies

[manitou210]

I'm thinking of getting an arbour press and Wilson dies for bullet seating in my 6br and 308

what are your impressions of that set-up vs the Forster and Redding dies I'm using now?

basically looking to get as low run out as possible and better seating feel

 

[joehunt]

Great setup but it’s painfully slow if you shoot volume. Saying that I’ve had the least amount of runout using this setup, if you don’t need to shoulder bump. If it’s your first try with bushing dies, you can introduce a lot of problems with the wrong sized bushing.
Joe

 

[Mystic Precision]

Seating feel starts with proper neck sizing (and as little tension as possible)... then your press.... I don't like oversized presses with camover linkage. I get very good feel with a 'smaller' press with direct linkage.

If you want to give the arbor press/wilson process a go, happy to help but until you can see changes on target with runout higher then 4 thou, you might not be gaining anything.

YMMV

Jerry

PS... I would have this type of set up if I was going to travel again and need to premake ammo weeks in advance. Then I would use the arbor/wilson to do the final seat onsite. THIS is a very powerful option.

 

[TrxR]

Im looking at the same thing but for a 30br. I got a forester for 308 but they dont make one for 30br. The only standard press options are redding and Whidden.

 

[bigedp51]

At the link below a test of seating dies was done on the amount of runout they produced. And the Redding and Forster seating dies with the die chamber came in first place. This type die holds the case and bullet in perfect alignment and prevents any bullet tilt during seating.

Reloading: Seating Die Runout
Seating Die Induced Runout - A Comparison
by Germán A. Salazar

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ved=2ahUKEwjKuLz789XkAhWO2FkKHVBTD8YQFjAAegQIARAC&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.uniquetek.com%2Fstore%2F696296%2Fuploaded%2FReloading-Seating-Die-Runout.pdf&usg=AOvVaw0PTrUzbIFGXpTquMkz6CtT

The Rankings
And now, the moment you've been waiting for...

#1 - Redding Competition Seating Die (sliding sleeve type, threaded die)
The Redding, which I expected to finish high, did what I thought couldn't be done - it
produced rounds with an average runout that was less than the average case neck
runout of the brass used. In none of the ten rounds loaded did the Redding increase
the runout; it either held exactly the same or it decreased. The Redding, with an
Average Runout Change of -0.0003" is the winner. The negative sign, of course,
indicates a reduction in runout.

#2 - Wilson (chamber type, for arbor press)
I expected the Wilson to come out on top, given it's long-standing reputation as the
best seating die and its near universal use in Benchrest shooting. It didn't quite work
out that way, but the Wilson was very good, with only three rounds increasing runout
and an equal number decreasing, the remainder were zero-change. Wilson Average
Runout Change: +0.00015".

#3 - RCBS Standard Die (standard threaded die)
I expected the RCBS to be dead last, maybe by a big margin; was I ever wrong! I
was really surprised, quite pleasantly, by the RCBS die's performance. Three runout
increases, an equal number of decreases and four zero-change made for a very
creditable score. RCBS Average Runout Change: +0.00025".

#4 - Vickerman and Hornady (tie) (both partial sliding sleeve, neck only, threaded
dies)
These dies share a lot in common, being of universal use for a given caliber, in this
case, .30 caliber. You can seat bullets in anything from a .300 Savage to a .300
Winchester Magnum with these dies as they just capture the neck of the case in orderto align
it with the bullet. However, as your Economics professor taught you, there is no free lunch.
That universality of application reduces precision, though certainly not
to a level that would render them useless. With more increases in runout than
decreases, the Hornady lost ground. The Vickerman had a lot of zero-change rounds,
but increased 0.002" on a couple and that really hurt it's average performance. So,
the Hornady and Vickerman with an Average Runout Change of +0.0006",
bring up the rear - very much to my surprise. These are very useful dies, however
and let's keep some perspective, with an ARC of about half a thousandth, I wouldn't
be concerned about using them for Highpower match loading.

 

[manitou210]

At the link below a test of seating dies was done on the amount of runout they produced. And the Redding and Forster seating dies with the die chamber came in first place. This type die holds the case and bullet in perfect alignment and prevents any bullet tilt during seating.

Reloading: Seating Die Runout
Seating Die Induced Runout - A Comparison
by Germán A. Salazar

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ved=2ahUKEwjKuLz789XkAhWO2FkKHVBTD8YQFjAAegQIARAC&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.uniquetek.com%2Fstore%2F696296%2Fuploaded%2FReloading-Seating-Die-Runout.pdf&usg=AOvVaw0PTrUzbIFGXpTquMkz6CtT

The Rankings
And now, the moment you've been waiting for...

#1 - Redding Competition Seating Die (sliding sleeve type, threaded die)
The Redding, which I expected to finish high, did what I thought couldn't be done - it
produced rounds with an average runout that was less than the average case neck
runout of the brass used. In none of the ten rounds loaded did the Redding increase
the runout; it either held exactly the same or it decreased. The Redding, with an
Average Runout Change of -0.0003" is the winner. The negative sign, of course,
indicates a reduction in runout.

#2 - Wilson (chamber type, for arbor press)
I expected the Wilson to come out on top, given it's long-standing reputation as the
best seating die and its near universal use in Benchrest shooting. It didn't quite work
out that way, but the Wilson was very good, with only three rounds increasing runout
and an equal number decreasing, the remainder were zero-change. Wilson Average
Runout Change: +0.00015".

#3 - RCBS Standard Die (standard threaded die)
I expected the RCBS to be dead last, maybe by a big margin; was I ever wrong! I
was really surprised, quite pleasantly, by the RCBS die's performance. Three runout
increases, an equal number of decreases and four zero-change made for a very
creditable score. RCBS Average Runout Change: +0.00025".

#4 - Vickerman and Hornady (tie) (both partial sliding sleeve, neck only, threaded
dies)
These dies share a lot in common, being of universal use for a given caliber, in this
case, .30 caliber. You can seat bullets in anything from a .300 Savage to a .300
Winchester Magnum with these dies as they just capture the neck of the case in orderto align
it with the bullet. However, as your Economics professor taught you, there is no free lunch.
That universality of application reduces precision, though certainly not
to a level that would render them useless. With more increases in runout than
decreases, the Hornady lost ground. The Vickerman had a lot of zero-change rounds,
but increased 0.002" on a couple and that really hurt it's average performance. So,
the Hornady and Vickerman with an Average Runout Change of +0.0006",
bring up the rear - very much to my surprise. These are very useful dies, however
and let's keep some perspective, with an ARC of about half a thousandth, I wouldn't
be concerned about using them for Highpower match loading.

Thanks bigedp51 for detailed post