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Loading belted magnums

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samson7x

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Minuteman
Mar 1, 2014
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Long story short, I've been getting case head separation after 3 firings with my custom 300wm. After a bit of research, I purchased a Hornady headspace gauge and I have been FL sizing and bumping the shoulder way too much. I'm not new to reloading however this is my first experience with a belted magnum. I'm using Hornady dies and by looking on this page, it seems most use Forster or Redding. My temporary solution was to readjust the die for a .002 bump. Will this effectively eliminate my issue or should I consider altering my process altogether and going with a different die set?

What does your process for belted magnums look like?
 
I full length size, bumping the shoulder .002" and use the Innovative Technologies Collet Die to keep the area just ahead of the belt sized to SAAMI specs. I use Redding dies but there is nothing wrong with Hornady dies. I've loaded a lot of accurate 6.5 and 6 Creedmoor with them.
BTW, what brand brass are you using?
 
shoot4fun said:
I full length size, bumping the shoulder .002" and use the Innovative Technologies Collet Die to keep the area just ahead of the belt sized to SAAMI specs. I use Redding dies but there is nothing wrong with Hornady dies. I've loaded a lot of accurate 6.5 and 6 Creedmoor with them.
BTW, what brand brass are you using?
Click to expand...


Were you having issues with bulging requiring the use of innovative tech die? I thought FL sizing took care of that.

I'm using Hornady brass which, from what I've been reading, seems to be softer which likely contributed to my problem. Should I consider a different brand?
 
I run Forster full length dies and only have to use the Innovative collet die every 3-5 firings. I am running the military FC brass, which is a bit harder.
 
No FL die for a belted magnum that I know of will size all the case right down to the belt. That is why the Innovative Tech die does. I haven't lost a single 300WM case since I started using it. If the bulge won't allow the belt to seat where it should in the chamber then the case stretches farther. The space just gets longer overtime the case is fired too. Hope that makes sense. You can read about the die here:
www.larrywillis.com
 
shoot4fun said:
No FL die for a belted magnum that I know of will size all the case right down to the belt. That is why the Innovative Tech die does. I haven't lost a single 300WM case since I started using it. If the bulge won't allow the belt to seat where it should in the chamber then the case stretches farther. The space just gets longer overtime the case is fired too. Hope that makes sense. You can read about the die here:
www.larrywillis.com
Click to expand...

I see, thanks for the info and link.
 
samson7x said:
Will you expand on this? I'm not familiar.
Click to expand...

Forming a false shoulder helps to eliminate brass growth in the "Web" area. It does this by ensuring a tight fit on the case between the neck of the chamber and your bolt face. This tight lockup helps the brass grow at the shoulder neck area and should prevent premature case head separation issues. Another method that you could use is jamming the bullets, but I find this is not nearly as consistent as forming the false shoulder.

Forming a false shoulder you need to neck up the brass slightly, but make sure the brass has been freshly annealed. I usually shoot for around .015" in my case from .284 to .308 (7mm Rem Mag). With this brass necked up you will begin to size the neck down without bumping the shoulders back. You will have to test the fit in your chamber while turning the die further down each time until you have a snug fit. You don't want too much resistance when closing the bolt, but just enough to feel it.

The best visual example I could think of would be to look at how 6mm Dasher brass is formed.
 

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JBM_DC said:
Forming a false shoulder helps to eliminate brass growth in the "Web" area. It does this by ensuring a tight fit on the case between the neck of the chamber and your bolt face. This tight lockup helps the brass grow at the shoulder neck area and should prevent premature case head separation issues. Another method that you could use is jamming the bullets, but I find this is not nearly as consistent as forming the false shoulder.

Forming a false shoulder you need to neck up the brass slightly, but make sure the brass has been freshly annealed. I usually shoot for around .015" in my case from .284 to .308 (7mm Rem Mag). With this brass necked up you will begin to size the neck down without bumping the shoulders back. You will have to test the fit in your chamber while turning the die further down each time until you have a snug fit. You don't want too much resistance when closing the bolt, but just enough to feel it.

The best visual example I could think of would be to look at how 6mm Dasher brass is formed.
Click to expand...

Appreciate the info. That's probably a little more in depth than I want to go/feel comfortable with. How many loadings are you getting with this method?



Anyone use a Forster bushing bump neck sizer die? It seems like that would be a good option for minimal bump without touching the body.
 
samson7x said:
Appreciate the info. That's probably a little more in depth than I want to go/feel comfortable with. How many loadings are you getting with this method?



Anyone use a Forster bushing bump neck sizer die? It seems like that would be a good option for minimal bump without touching the body.
Click to expand...

I have used the Forster Bump Die. It was 308 and it honestly did nothing for me. You NEED TO resize the body every time you load the brass. You also need to understand that no amount of not touching the body of the case will not stop the case separations you're getting. I've been reloading belted mags for about twenty years (reloading in general for over 40 years). Again, and I stress this, for the best in case life and accuracy you really need the collet die. I do not have any association with Mr. Willis except that I have become a big believer in that die. I have Nosler 300WM brass that has 12+ firings of max loads and it still gets the job done. That is all the proof I need that it works.
 
shoot4fun said:
I have used the Forster Bump Die. It was 308 and it honestly did nothing for me. You NEED TO resize the body every time you load the brass. You also need to understand that no amount of not touching the body of the case will not stop the case separations you're getting. I've been reloading belted mags for about twenty years (reloading in general for over 40 years). Again, and I stress this, for the best in case life and accuracy you really need the collet die. I do not have any association with Mr. Willis except that I have become a big believer in that die. I have Nosler 300WM brass that has 12+ firings of max loads and it still gets the job done. That is all the proof I need that it works.
Click to expand...


Roger that, will order this week. Are you using the collet die after each firing?

Would you recommend switching to a higher quality brass?
 
One end of the collet die is basically a case checker. Use that to know if you need to run the case thru the collet die. Read the instructions carefully before doing anything.
My brass usually needs the collet every other firing.
I am not a Hornady brass hater but never used their 300WM brass. From all I hear it is the least durable of 300WM brass. You probably are using it because it was all you could find when you needed brass. I use Winchester (when it can be found) and Nosler (made by Norma I think). RWS is supposed to be very good but difficult to find. Surprisingly, Lapua quit supplying 300WM brass a few years ago.
 
Run any FL die set you like just adjust it to headspace off the shoulder like you have already done and you wont have any issues going forward with case head separation.You could run a neck sizer but you will still have to FL resize after a couple firings. The only issue you will have is brass build up in front of the belt which depending on the chamber will be noticeable after 3 or so firings. This is where the innovative tech. die comes into play. Im not one to recommend pointless equipment but this die is no joke if you are working with belted magnums, a must have really.
 
I'm assuming you have to call to order this die? I didn't see a way to checkout online on the site.

ETA: Disregard, I figured it out.
 
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shoot4fun said:
There is an "Add to Cart" button by the description of the product on his website. It takes you to a PayPal check out.
Click to expand...

Cheers, I ordered one.

This may be a dumb question, but would it be beneficial to anneal the portion of the case just above the belt after being resized with the innovative technologies die over several reloadings?

I hope I'm not hijacking the thread here.
 
Annealing the case at the area of highest pressure probably not a good idea.
 
CSAR FE said:
Cheers, I ordered one.

This may be a dumb question, but would it be beneficial to anneal the portion of the case just above the belt after being resized with the innovative technologies die over several reloadings?

I hope I'm not hijacking the thread here.
Click to expand...

No. Do not anneal at the case head. (DAMN auto correct!)
 
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Im neck sizing only and seem to be headspacing correctly off the shoulder. Least I think so given the carbon location on the brass.

Does that look ok?
 
Years ago when I first started loading an older guy told me that the belt is just a useless appendage and to treat it as such. That was good advice and I pass it on. Forget about the belt and size the case just like you would any other rimless bottle neck case. I have never needed a collet die to size the case near the belt. It seems like the primer pocket either gets loose or the necks split long before the body expands enough to cause problems.
 
Not me, all my brass got tight just above the belt and I needed a LW collet die. I also like to neck size my 300wm with the Lee collet die, until it starts to get tight at the shoulder, then I bump and size above the belt also. I also anneal so I haven't seen any split necks, I have some winchester brass that just went through loading number 12.
 
Quite interesting some of the replies. I've been reloading the .300Win for over 20 years and still have to see a case head separation. For the record I run Redding Body Die, Redding Neck Sizer and finally the Redding Micrometer Seater. I'm not implying the Willis die does not work, but to be honest I have never had any need for it. Maybe I'm a lone wolf? Don't think so. BTW, after 6 loadings I toss the brass.
 
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