Age of handloads or handloads of age?

[Shanej45]

Was wondering if anyone has noticed their handloads shoot worse as they age? I heard that you should always load your ammo in a single sitting. if you break it up over a few days the neck tension will might vary. One test is to load some ammo long (like .100) wait a few weeks come back and press the last .100 and you might notice a "pop" on some when it seats and a lot of different neck tensions in the lot. Also of note, a lot of competition shooters tend to procrastinate when it comes to reloads for a particular match, and do it right before and shoot surprising well. I believe some of the bigger names out there try not to load too far in advance. I have no idea if any of this works or is true.
My personnel observation: I finally figured out how to squeeze under 1/2 minute out of my rifle. I loaded up 100 rounds for a match that I had to cancel on. Six months latter at the range, and it was 1 minute of angle. Naturally I have too many variables to account for. So I am asking the interwebs if anyone has played around with such things?
I have never noticed this with factory match ammo, it always shoots .75 MOA.
With the the things that I hear, and my own observations make me wonder.

Thanks

 

[KZP]

How do you clean your brass, wet or dry tumble? There is another thread going on right now discussing an idea that wet tumbling to shiny necks causes bullets to stick over time, causing issues.

https://snipershide.com/shooting/threads/wet-tumbling-what-a-difference-wow.7070039/

 

[Shanej45]

I wet tumble. Might have to do an experiment wet trumble some and dry the others see if there is a difference.

 

[supercorndogs]

Solution for "Cold weld" bullet and case neck bonding?

To avoid the so called "cold weld" between bullet and case, anybody tried applying a bullet lubricant like liquid alox from Lee, commonly used on cast lead bullets? Roll the bullets over a small amount of alox. Allow to dry and seat them. Remove the excess from the bullet and neck. Will try it soon

www.snipershide.com

Does neck tension increase over time?

I chronoed some of my reloads I’ve had sitting for about 3 months and they were 10fps today faster today than they were when I chronoed them in the summer (it was 40° cooler today). This is also 40fps faster than the last time I chronoed them in the temp it was today. The SD went from a...

www.snipershide.com

Cold Weld- Theory or Fact?

Have a buddy who shot some 10 yr old factory ammo through a bolt gun and they all had flattened primers. Is "cold welding" or the boolits gettin sticky/stuck over time a possibility? Told him to bump with a seating die to see if it makes a diff. Any thoughts?

www.snipershide.com

Cold Welded Bullets in Neck

I am curious of some thoughts on bullets "cold welding" in the necks of handloaded ammo and why it doesn't seem to have the same effect on factory ammo. Is it caused by the fouling of previous firing? Could it be avoided by wet tumbling? Could it be avoided by using "coated" bullets? I...

www.snipershide.com

 

[Shanej45]

Great threads. I missed those ones, but read/listened to others. Sounds like I should get some graphite neck lube

 

[Tokay444]

There is no replacement for making ammo right at the firing line. It’s not always feasible, and certainly in PRS, but the bench rest guys doing at shoot the smallest groups at the longest distances. There’s something to be said for fresh ammo.

 

[hafejd30]

I always load just before a match

I have loaded then done the final seating closer to match with great results as well

I actually load my hunting ammo a while before testing it and prefer it sits around a bit before testing. As it may sit a while before being shot

Does it make a difference....who knows

 

[MK20]

Hatcher mentions that some of the most accurate NM ammo they ever produced was cold welding in the necks. It was very consistent though, so it shot small groups.

As long as it is consistent.

 

[MK20]

The force required to pull a bullet from that batch of ammo was around 600 lbs

 

[Shanej45]

I'm going to start using the imperial neck graphite. Sometimes my loads sit on the shelf much longer than intended. Out of curiosity, has anyone noticed any improvements in accuracy?

 

[Joel Danielson]

If I have a match that requires me to load 3-400 rounds for a 3-5 day match (f-class), I seat all my bullets long and go back the night before the match to seat the bullets I need for the next day. There are rounds that I loaded last fall (seated long), that will shoot to the same poi as freshly made rounds once seated to the proper OAL. That means you need an arbor press or portable single stage to take on the road with you.
Cheers

 

[Shanej45]

I like the idea of having ammo ready to go. It looks like either way it will add one more step to the process. Loading long has the advantage of not having to deal with the graphite.

 

[Tokay444]

I load long with graphite.

 

[Snuby642]

I wet tumble. Might have to do an experiment wet trumble some and dry the others see if there is a difference.

If you dry tumble, add some car wax cut with mineral spirits.

Thin layer of wax seems to help prevent cold welding.

I have also used the grafite and it works but is difficult with short bullets. (55g 223)

 

[Tokay444]

Do you then tumble again after loading, without the wax to get the wax off the outside so your brass grabs the chamber properly to prevent excess bolt thrust?

 

[Snuby642]

No.

It's a hard slick coating that has not shown any adverse results.

Many people use this method and if there were a problem like that the guys here would be all over it I think.

The thin layer outside helps with corrosion protection.