30 Cal 225 HPBT too fat

[Bigwheels]

Hi all. I just received my box of Hornady's new 30 Cal 225 HPBT match, & moly'd them up for some load work up in my 300WM. I was stoked. However they seemed to seat hard, so I mic'd them, & ALL of them measured .309" exactly...Actually the second one actually was hard to remove from my comp seating die. They are TOO FAT! And of course they are closed for the weekend.
I'm verry disappointed!

 

[ChrisGarrett]

Re: 30 Cal 225 HPBT too fat

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Bigwheels</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Hi all. I just received my box of Hornady's new 30 Cal 225 HPBT match, & moly'd them up for some load work up in my 300WM. I was stoked. However they seemed to seat hard, so I mic'd them, & ALL of them measured .309" exactly...Actually the second one actually was hard to remove from my comp seating die. They are TOO FAT! And of course they are closed for the weekend.
I'm verry disappointed! </div></div>

You'll find a lot of European manufacturers going to .309", as they feel the wider caliber makes a better gas seal.

Lapua makes a .309" 185gr bullet and their 250 Scenar is .339".

Quit whining and knock them out of the park, champ.

Chris

 

[Bigwheels]

Re: 30 Cal 225 HPBT too fat

OK. I may have partially jumped the gun. Here is what I've got going on. virtually all of these new 225's measure @ .3085"-.309" but I have some 208 A Max's that will also measure out up to .309". However when seating the 225's I have to exert a lot more effort to get them started into the throat, & it is consistent all the way in. They also stick in the seating die, & I have to pull the lever up pretty hard to release them. But the 208's, & 210 VLD's slide right in there like they always do. I have been reloading with moly for over 10 yrs, & I have never seen anything like this before. I can use a different bushing in my die to adjust the seating pressure, but I have been using this one for years with 220SMK's, 210 VLD's, & 208 A Max's with .003" neck tension, & no problems. I don't know if I want to shoot these the way they are. It feels like I have about .005"+ neck tension with these, & if they are oversize, I could damage my rifle, &/or hurt myself.

 

[ChrisGarrett]

Re: 30 Cal 225 HPBT too fat

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Bigwheels</div><div class="ubbcode-body">OK. I may have partially jumped the gun. Here is what I've got going on. virtually all of these new 225's measure @ .3085"-.309" but I have some 208 A Max's that will also measure out up to .309". However when seating the 225's I have to exert a lot more effort to get them started into the throat, & it is consistent all the way in. They also stick in the seating die, & I have to pull the lever up pretty hard to release them. But the 208's, & 210 VLD's slide right in there like they always do. I have been reloading with moly for over 10 yrs, & I have never seen anything like this before. I can use a different bushing in my die to adjust the seating pressure, but I have been using this one for years with 220SMK's, 210 VLD's, & 208 A Max's with .003" neck tension, & no problems. I don't know if I want to shoot these the way they are. It feels like I have about .005"+ neck tension with these, & if they are oversize, I could damage my rifle, &/or hurt myself. </div></div>

They're man-made objects and not perfect.

Lead is soft and will compress.

.001" is one third, to one quarter the thickness of a typical piece of printer paper...which is to say, not a lot.

Maybe the copper jacket is a little less slick, creating more friction than the other bullets?

Do what makes you happy.

Chris

 

[Tactical30]

Re: 30 Cal 225 HPBT too fat

I loaded some of these up tonight with Winchester brass and it felt no different than any other bullet I loaded.

I dont know why your having this problem you say you have.

 

[Bigwheels]

Re: 30 Cal 225 HPBT too fat

I just did a comparison with the new 225's, and an older box of 208's, & some 210 Bergers. The bergers all mic'd @ .3085" while the older 208's were the same, but had an occasional one @ .309". The new box of 208's all mic @ .309", as do the 225's. I guess I'll shoot some, & see what happens. I have 5 loaded with H-1000 from 73.0-73.8, this is where I was really crunching powder, & having trouble getting them to seat where I wanted them.( I have a short throat match chamber). I also have 5 with Retumbo from 76.0-76.8, but these were verry compressed, even more than the H-1000. I'm almost done with the old box of 208's, so will soon see if the new ones are as hard to seat as the 225's are. If they are then I guess I'll back the bushing off to .334".
Sorry to rant on you guys. I was not expecting anything like this, it concerned me.

 

[jrob300]

Re: 30 Cal 225 HPBT too fat

BW,

Are you using a drop tube for your compressed loads?

John

 

[Bigwheels]

Re: 30 Cal 225 HPBT too fat

No drop tube. I just pour slowly, & tap several times to get the powder settled as good as I can get it. I know that compressing the powder will increase the seating pressure. But I immediatly noticed a big difference just starting the bullet into the neck. they were all much harder than I'm used to. Just don't know for sure why yet. I have already gone through a box of 208's that have the new jackets, but didn't notice any difference with those. Just the 225's.

 

[steve123]

Re: 30 Cal 225 HPBT too fat

Right after I started cleaning my cases with a ultrasonic I had to use a lot more seating force,even with BN coated bullets!The same problem you stated,putting big dents/rings in the ogive and some sticking in the die.So I bought some of this stuff and it solved the problem while also giving more uniform seating pressure.I charge the cases with powder then wipe the inside of the necks with a saturated Q-tip.Works fantastic!

I'm using the NECO neck lube.

http://www.neconos.com/details.htm

 

[Bigwheels]

Re: 30 Cal 225 HPBT too fat

Ok, I took your advise, & I shot them today. I had 5 ea of Retumbo @ 76.0-76.8, & another batch of 5 from 73.0-73.8 of H-1000. I did a ladder test @ 400 yds. Both showed promise. One accuracy node was 76.0-76.2 Of Retumbo. Then I had one from 73.2-73.4 of H-1000. Didn't crony today, but am prepping more brass as I type to check that with some further testing of the nodes. I'll quit whining, & post more when I shoot them again.