Determining Headspace/resizing for a .300 Win Mag

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TheXCaddis

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Hey Nuts,

I am a reloading noob and additional reading has resulted in more confusion...

How do I determine where to set my resizing die to set the headspace on the shoulder of hte cartridge for my rifle? Is there a way to measure it within my rifle and taking that measurement and translating that into setting the resizing die?

I am starting out with Remington factory brass and want to completely understand how to set this up before I start ruining the brass :)

Any help would be appreciated.

Cheers,

XCaddis
 
This is how I set up my sizing die for bottleneck cartridges.

1. Take a once fired factory round and blacken the neck and shoulders with a Magic Marker or Sharpee pen. Some people like to smoke the neck and shoulder, but I find the Magic Marker/Sharpee pen a bit better.

2. Carefully lubricate the case.

3. Loosen the lock ring on the sizing die and back off about two turns from when the die is set to touch the shell holder.

4. Size the case. Note where the marks are on the case and turn the die down about a half a turn and size again. Turn down some more, and resize again. What you are looking for is the marks on the blackening just touching the shoulder.

5. Clean the lube from the case and try it in the rifle. It may chamber just a bit on the snug side. If so, turn the die down ever so slightly, lube and size again. Wipe off the lube and try in the rifle. If it slides in as easily as a factory round, you should be good to go. If not, usually one more very slight adjustment should fix the problem.

6. Tighten the locking ring for the die and you're done. You have just set your sizing die up for a custom fit to your specific rifle, rather than a generic one size fits all guns.

Works for setting up a neck sizing die as well.
 
Just an addition caution to the above procedure. Do NOT put any lube on the shoulder! It is not needed there and will cause lube dents which are unsightly at best. I like to size so I can just "feel" the bolt close on the resized case. That will give the longest case life possible. The dimension from the base of the case to the shoulder tends to vary somewhat on Belted cases, so the careful setup as described is a very good idea. Regards, Eagleye.
 
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