First load and a couple of questions

RoscoeT

RoscoeT

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Hello All,

I've started to reload for my .243 win. I bought the Lee kit and some other stuff to get started. I've read the Hornady manual and the ABC of reloading watched about a million videos on youtube and posted on various forums.

So I got a couple of questions about working up my load.

First, how many test rounds of each charge do you guys recomend? I'm loading Hondary 100 gr BTSP and IMR 4831. Starting load is 38gr. So as advised I have been going to increment 0.5 gr and test each one until I find a sweet spot or notice pressure issues.
The ABC of reloading says to load 10 of each charge and test them. Now, this seems to me to be a lot and my testing would use at least 60 bullets. Again seems like a lot.


Second, is about COL.
The manual says 2.6030 was their test. Of course I can adjust this later to get a boost in accuracy.
For some reason, it seem that my Lee press and dies vary the COL by little bit depending on how hard I press the handle down. Anywhere from 2.6028 to 2.6032
Do I need to seat the die firmer, I mean really cinch it down with a wrench? Or is this something I just need to watch? Or does that small an amount mean anything at all? Ignoring possible bullet tip variance.

Also as a side note I have been weighing each charge since the Lee powder thrower is not 100% as far as I can tell. This is a PIA but will be necessary until I start pumping out the sweet spot load.

Advice is very welcome.

Thanks.
 
Good questions.

When starting off, I load 5 of each and shoot them for group. Usually there is a strong hint that the group is getting better/worse as I work my way up. This gives me an area to explore with 10 shot groups. I usually load 3 different loads of 10, say 35.0, 35.5 and 36.0

That variation of seating depth does not look right. Check to make sure the die is going over centre ( a full down stroke) and make sure the press arm is not hitting the bench. This will cause a fuzzy result.
 
Ganderite said:
Good questions.

When starting off, I load 5 of each and shoot them for group. Usually there is a strong hint that the group is getting better/worse as I work my way up. This gives me an area to explore with 10 shot groups. I usually load 3 different loads of 10, say 35.0, 35.5 and 36.0

That variation of seating depth does not look right. Check to make sure the die is going over centre ( a full down stroke) and make sure the press arm is not hitting the bench. This will cause a fuzzy result.
Click to expand...

Good advice, I'll cut down on the number of test shots for each load and then I'll have a better idea. Do you mean to say that you only try 3 differnt loads? I would have thought it was necessary to test all of them throughout the range from min to near max.

What kind of accuracy in seating depth should I expect with the Lee system? I mean one ten-thousandth of an inch .0001 seems pretty close.
 
Sorry. I was not clear. My first test is 5 shot groups of the full spectrum of start up to and maybe beyond the max. I plan an coming home with all the ammo that was hotter than the load that started to look like it was hot.

then i laod 10 rounds of the load that looked best, and a 10 shot test of a half grain more and less. So the 3 load test is after I have an idea of what looks good.

Then, after I pick one of those three loads, I run a test of 4 different seating depths, starting at touching and then 10, 20 & 30 thou off. usually 20 thou is best, but it varies by bullet and rifle.
 
"...an almost acceptable amount..." It's 4/10,000". Close counts. Most reloaders don't have measureing tools that are that precise either.
"...or notice pressure issues..." Go up by half a grain until you get to the max load in your manual. Five of each is good, but a mag load is easier to keep track of. Not in a single shot, of course. Shoot for group only, off a bench, at 100 yards.
"...dies vary the COL..." Cases all the same length?
 
sunray said:
"...an almost acceptable amount..." It's 4/10,000". Close counts. Most reloaders don't have measureing tools that are that precise either.
"...or notice pressure issues..." Go up by half a grain until you get to the max load in your manual. Five of each is good, but a mag load is easier to keep track of. Not in a single shot, of course. Shoot for group only, off a bench, at 100 yards.
"...dies vary the COL..." Cases all the same length?
Click to expand...

Cases are all trimmed to the same length more or less but I fail to see how case length has any bearing on COL.
 
Bullets do not have a consistent distance from the ogive to the tip. If you are measuring from the tip to the primer, you are measuring the variation in bullet dimensions. Variations of 10 thou in a box of 100 would be normal, or even more.

if there was a way to make your COL perfect, you would be making a large variation in ogive to rifling - the distance that matters. Your seating die does not push on the tip. It pushes further down the bullet shoulder, closer to the ogive. The only way to measure how good and consistent your seating depth is would be to install a device that sits on the bullet ogive. then you can measure from ogive to case base.

here are two such devices. One is made from a slice of a rifle barrel.

OALHAT.jpg


OALMULTIHAT.jpg
 
the best advise i can give you ,is get a lyman,speer,or siera ,hornady manual and read it,if you can afford it get a min. of 3 buy yourself a powley computer and psi calulator and learn to use it ,it will give you the best bullet ,powder combination ,FOR THAT RIFLE, it will give you muzzle velocity +pressure of any load and how to increase that load to max.within safe pressure limits and show you how to compute muzzle energy for any load
 
"...fail to see how case length has any bearing on COL..." Makes the seating depth odd. Worse if you're crimping. Not that the .243 needs a crimp.
Forget about 10,000ths variations.
 
when testing lots of loads to keep track of what you have done you can mark on the case reloading info
or put each separate (lot) load in to a sandwich bag with info so when you shoot it you can put case back in the bag after doing a quick look and so when you go home you can check dimensions / compare primers
keep good paper records/ binder

a chronograph is your friend or a friend with a chronograph is your best friend

a lot of the time you do not need to max load as it is also hard on brass & ON YOU
 
sunray said:
"...fail to see how case length has any bearing on COL..." Makes the seating depth odd. Worse if you're crimping. Not that the .243 needs a crimp.
Forget about 10,000ths variations.
Click to expand...

The length of your brass has nothing to do with COL. How long the neck portion of the case is has no bearing on the relationship from the base of the round to the ogive of the bullet when seating.
 
Roscoe,
with the Lee press, if you are not consistant with your ram pressure you can get a lot more variation in seating depth than 4 thou. 4 thou would be normal variation in components from my limited experience.
 
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