I reload 308 and constantly get sooty necks all the way from low charge to high charge regardless of powder. Accuracy is good but the soot bugs me. I always trim my cases to minimum every load just for consistency. My question is should I trim to minimum every time, or just keep them consistent maybe in the middle somewhere? And could minimum case length cause sooty necks?
- Thread starter Brian G
- Start date
Brian,
No, the trim length has nothing to do with soot on the necks. As long as it's not extending down onto the shoulder or below, this is perfectly normal and not something to worry about. You don't mention what length you're trimming to right now, but I'm betting that you can trim even further without any problem whatsoever. I routinely trim my 308 cases to 2" even, just to avoid having to trim every firing. There's been an awful lot of concern lately about making trim lengths perfectly uniform, and worries over they were too short or not. It's a safety issue to make sure you don't let them get too long, but it really doesn't make much difference in the other direction. Don't sweat it, you're good.
No, the trim length has nothing to do with soot on the necks. As long as it's not extending down onto the shoulder or below, this is perfectly normal and not something to worry about. You don't mention what length you're trimming to right now, but I'm betting that you can trim even further without any problem whatsoever. I routinely trim my 308 cases to 2" even, just to avoid having to trim every firing. There's been an awful lot of concern lately about making trim lengths perfectly uniform, and worries over they were too short or not. It's a safety issue to make sure you don't let them get too long, but it really doesn't make much difference in the other direction. Don't sweat it, you're good.
Are you loading for a bolt gun? Are you crimping? Are you full length sizing or just Neck sizing/Shoulder Bump? If you are Neck sizing how much neck tension are you using? You could minimize the soot on the neck by using a 0.002" bushing smaller than your loaded neck diameter. Annealing also keeps the neck more malleable.
Thanks for the info! What's the average length you can go in a factory remy chamber?
Black Max,
The only way to know for sure is to measure, but it's usually pretty well in excess of the nominal SAAMI Maximum length of 2.015" for the 308 Win. Sinclair produces a series of leaded steel inserts that will help you get this measurement with the aid of a modified case (you do that part on your own). The case, with the insert seated in the case mouth, is chambered in the rifle. The front edge of the chamber will contact the gage, and push it back into the case. The length of the case when you withdraw it from the chamber will tell you precisely how much room you've got. Absent this, just go with the 2.015" Maximum listed, and that'll keep you out of trouble!
The only way to know for sure is to measure, but it's usually pretty well in excess of the nominal SAAMI Maximum length of 2.015" for the 308 Win. Sinclair produces a series of leaded steel inserts that will help you get this measurement with the aid of a modified case (you do that part on your own). The case, with the insert seated in the case mouth, is chambered in the rifle. The front edge of the chamber will contact the gage, and push it back into the case. The length of the case when you withdraw it from the chamber will tell you precisely how much room you've got. Absent this, just go with the 2.015" Maximum listed, and that'll keep you out of trouble!
Thanks, it just bugs me because factory ammo leaves no soot.
Thanks for the valuable info kevin!
