Reloading bullets

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MattE93

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Finally got out to the range. Bought some LVE .303 ammo and it keyholed terribly. Upon measuring the bullets they are actualky .308 instead of .311.... was planning on pulling the bullets, buying .311 ammo and reloading them.

Problem is I am very green in reloading. What will I need in terms of equipment to pull the bullets and reload the new correct sized bullets.
 
A bullet puller is 30 bucks and fits into your loading press, it makes no damage to the bullets. Having that said, steel cases can be a tight fit when going up in diameter.
 
Okay so for this job I would need a puller and a press? I have zero equipment but always wanted to get into reloading so now might be the time to go start
 
Basic needs for this job ;
Press
Dies
Scale
Calipers
Sizing lube
Funnel
Bullet puller (hammer style is ok for a few, collet puller on press is a lot better)

And then you fired them and need something to clean your brass and maybe trim your brass.

And then you want to speed up the process or get better reloads and "need": wet tumbler, powder dribbler/trickler, powder measure

And then you want to make it more convenient and you "need" an automatic scale powder dispenser and a tri way brass trimmer.

Then you want more accuracy and "need": brass annealer, chronograph, case measuring setup

And then.......haha be careful what you are getting yourself into lol.
 
Was this effort for your 303 with the fouled bore? If so, the issue may be the bore, rather than the bullets. An Enfield in good shape will usually shoot 308 dia bullets without keyholing. Do you have another 303 to try the subject bullets?
 
Yes it is. I am going to try surplus bullets that are .311 diameter. I have read many threads online of people having problems with the LVE ammo key holing and some people pointed to undersized bullets coupled with the small contact area of the boat tail

For unfired rounds would I not just need a puller and a press to reseat the new bullets or am I missing something here?
 
And a seating die, assuming the bullet weight is the same. If you want to use different bullet weights then things get complicated. You may as well get one of the kits (eg Lee anniversary kit), and the die set that includes a neck sizing die. its the only way to get decent performance out of a 303.
 
Yeah I was thinking of getting the Lee Aniversary kit.

I’m going to try to get out this week with federal, S+B, and Greek surplus. If they all don’t keyhole I’m going to pull all the bullets and reload with .311 bullets. Really hoping it’s not shot out.

If I reload them and sell the .308 bullets it will still be cheaper than standard .303 ammo.
 
MattE93 said:
Finally got out to the range. Bought some LVE .303 ammo and it keyholed terribly. Upon measuring the bullets they are actualky .308 instead of .311.... was planning on pulling the bullets, buying .311 ammo and reloading them.

Problem is I am very green in reloading. What will I need in terms of equipment to pull the bullets and reload the new correct sized bullets.
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A hammer style kinetic bullet puller is a good option, they tend to be inexpensive, and don't mar the bullets. If family members object to you banging away with it, a collet bullet puller might be a better choice, but you have to purchase a collet for each caliber of bullet you wish to pull, and it doesn't work particularly well on soft lead pistol bullets that are crimped. The down side of the ketetic bullet puller is that it takes more swings to pull a light bullet than a heavy one; 500 gr .458s no problem, 32 gr .224s, your arm will get tired.

At one time you used to be able to buy an inexpensive disk style puller that was simply placed on top of the press; you held it with one hand as you forced the bullet into the center hole of the disk, and the bullet was held fact when you lowered the ram. I haven't seen these for years, but they scraped the bullets badly when you pushed them out of the disk.

When I had a large number of FMJs to pull from surplus ammo, I didn't particularly care about the bullets, so I used the serrated portion between the handles of a scissor style wire stripper. This proved very fast, I ran the round up in the press, grabbed the bullet with the wire strippers, then lowered the ram. Usually the only damage to the bullet was pin pricks from the wire stripper, but some times, the teeth would badly scrape the bullet if I didn't squeeze the handles tight enough, or if the combination of crimp and sealant used to make the rounds waterproof had a good hold.
 
MattE93 said:
Finally got out to the range. Bought some LVE .303 ammo and it keyholed terribly. Upon measuring the bullets they are actualky .308 instead of .311.... was planning on pulling the bullets, buying .311 ammo and reloading them.

Problem is I am very green in reloading. What will I need in terms of equipment to pull the bullets and reload the new correct sized bullets.
Click to expand...

Look at this old thread, it answers your questions and more. https://www.canadiangunnutz.com/forum/showthread.php/1744815-What-needed-to-start-reloading?

jethunter said:
To get started with the most basic/starter reloading set up, you will need this:

1. Press (single stage) O frame
2. Scale (beam scale) for weighing powder charges and bullets.
3. Priming tool (some presses come with a priming tool, LEE for example)
4. reloading die set for your chosen cartridge AND shell holder (LEE dies come with shell holder)
5. trimmer (not needed for most handgun cartridges) use the LEE handheld trimmers for about $15
6. powder funnel
7. loading block (easy to make it yourself with a piece of 2x4 and a drill)
8. case preparation tools (inside/outside neck chamfer, large and small primer pocket cleaners)
9. caliper (digital or dial)
10. bullet puller, because you will need one eventually

This is a basic setup that will make excellent quality ammunition and is all that many shooters will ever require. At some point you may want to add a powder measure and some kind of brass cleaning machine but you don't need it right away. An experienced reloader can make 50-100 cartridges per hour with that setup.
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Thanks for the thread!! I’ll read through it. What do I need for dies? There are some on the EE listed Lee .303 FL dies. Is that what I need, or do I need the three piece Lee die set, or do I need both?
 
MattE93 said:
Thanks for the thread!! I’ll read through it. What do I need for dies? There are some on the EE listed Lee .303 FL dies. Is that what I need, or do I need the three piece Lee die set, or do I need both?
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Any modern FL (Full Length sizing) 2-piece die set will work. All die/press manufacturers are 7/8"-14tpi and should be perfectly interchangeable. The only exceptions are very large cartridges like .50 BMG and some older dies with oddball threads that only work in a proprietary press.

Wouldn't hurt to get some more information before you start buying too much, there are some good instructional videos in the old thread linked earlier.

Edit: here they are again:
jethunter said:
Reloading isn't remarkably complicated but seems like it when you're new. Read manuals and watch videos, but you won't really understand it completely until you do it yourself. Get a press, a die set, and pick up range brass, deprime it, seat a bullet.

Gun Digest made some online videos that are worth seeing.

episode-01-basics-reloading
episode-2-tools
episode-3-case-resizing
episode-4-primers
episode 5 Powders
episode-6-bullets
episode 7 specialty brass
episode-8-troubleshooting
episode 9 Primer Assembly
hepisode 10 cartridge assembly


hHickok45 Reloading Basics
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You can get by with a 2 piece die set - a full length sizing die and a seating die. However, you're best off the get a three piece die set that includes a neck sizing (collet) die. Lee sells these 3 die packages, which is convenient. The neck sizing die is simpler to use and will allow you to re-use your brass more times - 303's are murder on brass.
There's no point asking more questions until you get a manual and read the basics of reloading, or watch the above videos.
 
Thank you for all the very helpful information. I am planning on ordering a Lee Anniversary kit, Lee set of 3 .303 dies, .312 FBJSP bullets, and a collet puller from Budget Shooter Supplies. Am I missing anything in this list?

I also noticed they have a Hornady .30 cal puller, will this work on a Lee press?
 
You don't mention what brand of collet bullet puller you ordered. I have the RCBS one - you buy the collet puller body that goes into the press. Then you buy separate collets for each size of bullet that you want to pull. On the RCBS system, a .308 collet is different item than a .311 collet.
 
The only puller they seem to have on the Budget shooter supply website is a .30 cal Hornady one, the package says .308/.312 cal. I haven’t ordered anything yet but wanted to see if Hornady pullers work in a Lee press.
 
Google is your friend. Hornady sells 2 types of pullers. Hammer type, and collet type. The collet puller uses different collets for different bullet diameter. It screws into any standard 7/8x14 press, Lee etc.

Cam Lock™ Bullet Puller

Item #050095 The fastest, easiest way to pull bullets with your press. Just clamp on the bullet, pull down on the handle and the bullet is removed. Intended for rifle cartridges only. Uses standard collets (sold separately, see chart below).

1410991562-050095-Cam-Lock-Bullet-Puller.2097f452.jpg


1410992196-Cam-Lock-Bullet-Puller-Collet.648f7b69.png

Bullet Collets

Works with the Cam Lock™ Bullet Puller


Bullet Dia.
Collet No. / Part No.

0.172
#1 / 392154

0.204
#14 / 392167

0.223
#2 / 392155

0.243
#3 / 392156

0.257 / 0.264
#4 / 392157

0.277
#5 / 392158

0.284
#6 / 392159

0.308 / 0.312
#7 / 392160

0.321 / 0.323
#8 / 392161

0.338 / 0.358
#9 / 392162

0.375
#10 / 392163

0.410 / 0.416
#11 / 392164

0.430
#12 / 392165

0.451 / 0.458
#13 / 392166
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cosmic said:
You can get by with a 2 piece die set - a full length sizing die and a seating die. However, you're best off the get a three piece die set that includes a neck sizing (collet) die. Lee sells these 3 die packages, which is convenient. The neck sizing die is simpler to use and will allow you to re-use your brass more times - 303's are murder on brass.
There's no point asking more questions until you get a manual and read the basics of reloading, or watch the above videos.
Click to expand...

You can also neck size with a FL die to some extent. Just set it so it sizes the neck but doesn't bump the shoulder too hard.
 
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