Neck turning - actual benefits.

[Kelly Timoffee]

I am advancing my reloading techniques and trying to improve results on the target.

How much improvement or change does one see from neck turning cases?

How critical is it and how frequently does it seem to be needed?

I looked into previous threads but didn't really find any results based information.

 

[dead meat]

My understanding is that it`s not going to gain you anything unless you have a chamber cut with a tight neck. Usually the bench rest boys use custom ground reamers, not going to do to much for factory rifles unless you have some brass with thick necks.

 

[ben hunchak]

I agree, even if the chamber doesn't have a tight neck, when you size cases down from another size this usually thickens the neck and may require turning.

 

[Ron AKA]

Measure the OD of the necks of some fired cases, and average them. Then add 0.001". That will be close to the neck ID diameter of your chamber. Next measure the OD of a few loaded cases of the same brand, and average them. the difference between the loaded round OD and the estimated chamber ID is your neck clearance. Custom guns are chambered to have 0.002-0.003" clearance. While neck turning used to be popular, now many are using Lapua brass and no turn necks. They measure up the loaded rounds, and then get the chamber cut to give them that clearance.

If you have a factory gun, you will likely find the clearance is much more than 0.003" already. If you neck turn, you will only make that worse. So I guess a long story to say I agree with dead meat. Neck turning really only makes sense to bring brass down to fit a custom tight neck. And it is becoming less popular. Neck turning is not a lot of fun.

 

[cath8r]

It was explained and shown to me that it greatly improves run-out. I'm a fairly new reloader and this older fella's brain I was picking showed me his accuracy procedure to get perfect ammo. This guy has some freakishly accurate guns and he only reloads.
I just assumed he was right, but just passing this along.

 

[tiriaq]

Case necks may not be of uniform thickness. Light neck turning can increase uniformity. Can increase concentricity. Might or might not make a difference in a factory chamber.
Neck turning to reduce thickness in a formed case is a different issue - if the neck is too thick, there can be a safety issue. Of course, when turned, neck wall thickness will be uniform.

 

[Kelly Timoffee]

It is a an after market barrel which the smith reamed to my round.

I only re-load,no factory ammo, so , I may not have any benefit to this unless I am re-sizing brass to my caliber, correct?

 

[tiriaq]

Measure the case neck thickness of your brass. If there is variation, if one side is thicker than the other, light turning can make your brass more uniform, and could make a difference in accuracy.

 

[acrashb]

Another benefit is uniform and predictable neck tension when using bushing dies. So you can eliminate the sizing button, increasing case life. The downside: it's a slow, messy process.

On a non-custom chamber, just skim enough off to touch about 80% of the neck of most of your cases. This uniforms without reducing the total thickness much.

 

[HKMark23]

On a non-custom chamber, just skim enough off to touch about 80% of the neck of most of your cases. This uniforms without reducing the total thickness much.

This is pretty much what the instructions that came with my "yet unused" Forster neck turning gizzy says.

 

[Ron AKA]

It is a an after market barrel which the smith reamed to my round. I only re-load,no factory ammo, so , I may not have any benefit to this unless I am re-sizing brass to my caliber, correct?

If you are using Lapua brass then you are not likely to see any benefit. As a starting point you need to know what your chamber neck ID is. Ask the gunsmith who did the chambering, or measure it using the fired case method. If it is reasonably tight then there may be some benefit in truing up poor brass. For the price of a neck turner and the pain involved in using it, I would be tempted to throw the brass away and get Lapua -- if it is available in you cartridge.

 

[Kelly Timoffee]

It's for my 7-08 and currently using Remington brass. So I guess I'll just have to be checking and turning as needed.

If you are using Lapua brass then you are not likely to see any benefit. As a starting point you need to know what your chamber neck ID is. Ask the gunsmith who did the chambering, or measure it using the fired case method. If it is reasonably tight then there may be some benefit in truing up poor brass. For the price of a neck turner and the pain involved in using it, I would be tempted to throw the brass away and get Lapua -- if it is available in you cartridge.

 

[dead meat]

Kelly i think you should try turning the necks on some brass just to see if it is for you. I tried it on a tight chambered 222 some time back and couldn`t see any benefit, it will depend on a lot of variables. Give it a try if it gives you an edge real or imagined go for it. A lot of things guys do when reloading or shooting maybe aren`t necessary but they work for you anyway. Black magic or bull#### it don`t matter if it works.

 

[Kelly Timoffee]

Kelly i think you should try turning the necks on some brass just to see if it is for you. I tried it on a tight chambered 222 some time back and couldn`t see any benefit, it will depend on a lot of variables. Give it a try if it gives you an edge real or imagined go for it. A lot of things guys do when reloading or shooting maybe aren`t necessary but they work for you anyway. Black magic or bulls**t it don`t matter if it works.

I'm gonna give it a go, I don't mind tinkering in the basement when it is a Saskatchewan winter outside in Jan, Feb. If it helps that is a bonus, if it doesn't I know I exhausted all the methods in the search for improved accuracy.

 

[elkhuntr]

Agree with Acrashb. Also, have a look at varmint als reloading page. He has some great insight into the subject. I neck turn all my brass to achieve consistent neck tension and eliminate runout error. You need not grind away to achieve a 100% turn. 13-14 thou brass thickness seems to work fine in my factory barrels. You can get a lot of life out "factory grade" brass if you are willing to spend the time up front, and where you steer clear of max loads. In my game plan accuracy trumps velocity. Cheers.

 

[Dean2]

Simple waty to know if it will help in this guun. Take 40 rounds that have been, flash hole deburred, trimmed to length, and primer pocket reamed, then weight sorted into a max spread of .5 of a grain. Do a light 70-80% turn on 20. Load with your best current accuracy load. Measure and record the run outs on both sets. Take to range and shoot groups. Redults will tell you whether it is worth the work or not.

All this prep work is designed to make cheap dometic brass equal Lapua for consistnecy, at 1/3 the cost. On top of that, some of the last batchs of Lapua brass have not been all that consistent, so definitely not worth the price in that particular set of cases.