I know how, and what to do, but now I need to know how, and what to do

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Nan_wpg

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Ok, so I have all the required equipment. I know what to,do and how to do it. Clean brass, deprime, lube, resize (minimal shoulder bump), clean again, charge, and seat bullet.

Got it. But.... the manuals list tested charges but don't really go into detail other than start with the lowest charge.

Then what? Do I go,higher and higher until I get the best groups, and stop?

What about seating? All the manuals say to seat to sammi except nosler who says to seat just off the lands.

If I follow nosler advise do I seat first and then test powder charges? Or vice versa?

Or once again am I overthinking things?

Maybe just load the minimum and be done with it?

All I can find is how to,do the different steps, but nothing really about the "big picture"

I should also say I'm not looking for precise benchrest accuracy.
 
For bullet seating there are a few basics to remember.
If you are loading for a magazine make sure the ammo fits the magazine.
If the ammo has a cannelure seat the bullet to the cannelure.
Make sure you have at least 1 bullet diameter of depth in the cartridge case.
For example if you are loading a .308 bullet then it should be in the case at least 0.308".
If you can reach the lands then I would start 0.020" off the lands to start, then once you find the most accurate load you can play with load length 0.005" at a time.

As for loading to test for accuracy read this.
http://optimalchargeweight.embarqspace.com/
 
This site has a wealth of information and some real experts as well. Use the search feature and read and learn. Questions will come up and you have to figure it out. Use youtube as well and if you really want to learn reloading you will figure it out.
 
@Thump
Thanks for the bullet seating depth - with what you said my 45g Sierra #1310 would have a max coal of 2.159. With a coal of 2.26 my bullet would be seated 0.123 into the neck not .224 as you suggest.
 
If you are not needing bench rest accuracy then just load to the Sami spec. Load a dummy round to be sure it fits the mag and the bolt or chamber closes easily. If it doesn't Stop and start over until it does!!!!!!!!

Always, always, always, use a "published" (not one someone else's uses) start load, work up and watch for pressure signs as you increase charge weights. Make sure you know what they are......Stop when you see them!!!!

Go fire off some rounds to build some confidence that you can make ammo that goes bang.

Then go home and play around from there....to find the lands of your rifle etc.....Read up on techniques for developing loads, weighing charges, trimming cases, using different components etc.... after that you will come up with your own processes and how much of your OCD impulses control how precise you want to be about each reloading step..

Have fun and be safe !!!!!!
 
thump_rrr said:
For bullet seating there are a few basics to remember.
If you are loading for a magazine make sure the ammo fits the magazine.
If the ammo has a cannelure seat the bullet to the cannelure.
Make sure you have at least 1 bullet diameter of depth in the cartridge case.
For example if you are loading a .308 bullet then it should be in the case at least 0.308".
If you can reach the lands then I would start 0.020" off the lands to start, then once you find the most accurate load you can play with load length 0.005" at a time.

As for loading to test for accuracy read this.
http://optimalchargeweight.embarqspace.com/
Click to expand...

cdn1canhunt said:
If you are not needing bench rest accuracy then just load to the Sami spec. Load a dummy round to be sure it fits the mag and the bolt or chamber closes easily. If it doesn't Stop and start over until it does!!!!!!!!

Always, always, always, use a "published" (not one someone else's uses) start load, work up and watch for pressure signs as you increase charge weights. Make sure you know what they are......Stop when you see them!!!!

Go fire off some rounds to build some confidence that you can make ammo that goes bang.

Then go home and play around from there....to find the lands of your rifle etc.....Read up on techniques for developing loads, weighing charges, trimming cases, using different components etc.... after that you will come up with your own processes and how much of your OCD impulses control how precise you want to be about each reloading step..

Have fun and be safe !!!!!!
Click to expand...

Mostly agree with Thump_rrr except for the part about cannelure, you do not have to seat to that point. Find the lands on your gun and back off from there. Again, as long as it fits/feeds in your gun. When working up a load always start at the bottom end and work up. In larger calibers go in .5 grain steps, if loading for a 222 or similar only go in .2 or .3 grain steps. As cdn1canhunt said your OCD will determine how much you work at becoming precise - prepare for your OCD to kick into high even if you didn't know you had it! lol
 
IvoB said:
@Thump
Thanks for the bullet seating depth - with what you said my 45g Sierra #1310 would have a max coal of 2.159. With a coal of 2.26 my bullet would be seated 0.123 into the neck not .224 as you suggest.
Click to expand...
Since you have a bullet model by a known manufacturer it is best to use their recommendations.
I will make an assumption that you are loading for .223 Remington but correct me if I am wrong.
Sierra recommends 2.240" for the #1310.
They also mention that it is a little hard for .222 and .223 Rem velocities.
It is better suited for 22-250 and 220 Swift velocities.
https://www.sierrabullets.com/store/product.cfm/sn/1310/22-Caliber-224-45-gr-SPT-100-bullets
http://accurateshooter.net/Downloads/sierra223ar.pdf
http://accurateshooter.net/Downloads/sierra223rembolt.pdf
 
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Yes, you are overthinking it at this stage.

Make sure the cartridge fits in the chamber and the magazine, and that it will cycle from the magazine to the chamber. Likely you can just use the COAL number that is given with all load data. It'sa good place to start when you're just getting started yourself.

Concentrate on uniformity - all cartridges same OAL, all powder charges uniform. Learning the basics - actually load some cases and think about what you're doing as you are doing it. Keep it as simple as you can for the first few reloading sessions. If you have the resources, load 20 or so (check fit first of course) then go shoot. Keep a record of components and group size. Repeat.
 
If you follow the manual verbatim then go by their exact guidelines and what I mean by exactly is just that, every piece of the cartridge. Their primer brand, brass, bullet and powder and once one of them is changed then their load data becomes irrelevant. When a bullet brand has been substituted regardless of weight, the reaction can change. Just saying.

Now........do not have any trepidation and just start 10% lower then any powders lowest load line and work your way up. The primers will give you the earliest indication when you are reaching the max pressures followed by the brass. Understand that max speed does not always achieve the most accurate rounds so it is important on what you are loading for, Plinking paper for performance or killing energy for Hunting.

Just be cognizant that the manuals are guidelines numbers that can be altered ever so slightly even with a bullet seating depth change or other developments.

The MOST important thing is "attention to Detail" in everything that pertains to reloading. Read and Read by researching everything that can be found from the powder load developing manuals as a priority over the other components manufacturers.
 
Should I buy a chronograph? What about,the bullseye target camera? Seems like a time saver.

I've read yes, and no.

I'll take er wherever she needs to go.
 
A chrony is a good idea, but you don't have to have one to reload.

But as you get deeper into it, you will want to know just how fast your loads are going and and what powders perform most consistently. It will help you identify pressure spikes and let you know when you should be and should not be seeing pressure signs. You will also be able to identify the velocity ranges that projectiles perform best at in your rifles.
 
You should really find a mentor to show you some basics learned by years of experience who can answer your questions.
From the Will Rogers collection . . . Some learn by reading, others learn by being shown while others just have to P I S S on an electric fence.
Unfortunately since you did not list your location volunteers will be rare.
 
horseman2 said:
You should really find a mentor to show you some basics learned by years of experience who can answer your questions.
From the Will Rogers collection . . . Some learn by reading, others learn by being shown while others just have to P I S S on an electric fence.
Unfortunately since you did not list your location volunteers will be rare.
Click to expand...

Mentors are great but you can learn on your own. Just take your time, work through each step. And work on solving one problem at a time. One of the most fun parts of reloading is the learning part. Use your resources if you get stuck along the way...books, this forum, YouTube and of course a mentor if you have access to one.
 
I'm going to make a WAG here and guess that you're from Winnipeg.
I'm 30 miles +/- from the city.
If you want PM me and we might be able to get together and hammer things out.
I've got a single stage setup for shooting rifle, and am setting up to reload a bunch of 303 in the next little while.
 
What's your budget? Expect my reloading equipment cost at least $5k. Little things add up quickly.

Easiest is to find a buddy, bring a case of beer, enjoy beer AFTER the reloading lesson.
A quick learner will have NO problem learning on their own thanks to the internet; wealth of info, tons of garbage, get what you pay for.
 
You're way over thinking this. Read ,read, read and then read some more. A good reload manual has all the info you need from start to finish. Go with manual spec for now. Follow the how to set up dies info that came with the dies and do a few test rounds. Once you decide to do full ready to fire rounds, be methodical, do each step per manual one by one. Don't move on to the next step until finishing all the brass (rounds) you're going to load. Double check every step. Load minimum loads and go maybe quarter way to max and go shoot them, your reloads going bang and hitting some where on a target will boost your confidence. You'll learn a routine and your off and running.
 
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grumpyold said:
You're way over thinking this. Read ,read, read and then read some more. A good reload manual has all the info you need from start to finish. Go with manual spec for now. Follow the how to set up dies info that came with the dies and do a few test rounds. Once you decide to do full ready to fire rounds, be methodical, do each step per manual one by one. Don't move on to the next step until finishing all the brass (rounds) you're going to load. Double check every step. Load minimum loads and go maybe quarter way to max and go shoot them, your reloads going bang and hitting some where on a target will boost your confidence. You'll learn a routine and your off and running.
Click to expand...

I partially disagree. The Lyman, hornady, and nosler manuals only walk you through the how to do each step. How to resize, how to charge, etc. they offer nothing in terms of working up loads, other than to "start with the lowest charge ".

The lee manual gives more info on the big picture. I'm almost done reading it.
 
One thing that has served me well to this point is not loading over maximum published charge weights. Since your typical rifle cartridge pressure is 50,000 to 60,000 psi, all you have between you and the morgue or a trip to the ER is a metal tube.

Like some others have stated- Consistency is uber important.

What I do for all of my rifle loads is:

Tumble the used brass,
Anneal the brass (I do it every time since I have an Annealeaze machine).
Size the brass
Trim the brass and clean the primer pocket,
Prime the brass,
Weigh each charge and then charge the case,
Seat the bullet

Then go out and have some fun!

When working up a new load, (powder/primer/bullet combo) or changing any of the afformentioned, I drop down to the lowest published powder charge and load 5 cartridges of each powder weight in .3-5 gr. increments up to close to max charge weight. (I have only found that a load will usually group best at less that max load. It's usually about 60-80 % of the published percentage between min and max charge, so you don't need to be a "speed freak" to get the best grouping bullet.
Having said that, you will want to find the tightest group from your test loads and then load more just like it. It does not matter where the group "prints" on paper; You simply adjust your sights to bring it to the bullseye.

Cheerz!
 
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Nan_wpg said:
I partially disagree. The Lyman, hornady, and nosler manuals only walk you through the how to do each step. How to resize, how to charge, etc. they offer nothing in terms of working up loads, other than to "start with the lowest charge ".

The lee manual gives more info on the big picture. I'm almost done reading it.
Click to expand...
Agree the Lee manual is one of my favorite references.
 
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