Neck Turning question

[madd0c]

Ok, I have been reloading for a while, mostly .223 and .308 and some handgun calibers.

I recently have gotten into longer range shooting and of course am trying to get my group sizes down.

I got a forester neck turner recently and turned the necks on a batch of .308 lapua brass, and like I had hoped, it noticeably shrank my groups. Very happy.

Now my question, I haven't seen this spelled out specifically, so please don't bite my head off for asking.
Is neck turning like flash hole deburing in that you only need to turn the neck once, or do you do it with each reload? I am neck sizing only for the bolt gun I will be turning necks for.

Thanks,
madd0c

 

[Niles Coyote]

Re: Neck Turning question

I have read from some Benchresters that they will turn before first firing and then again after that first firing.

I have been dabbling in neck turning myself and for now just do it once to clean off the high spots.

We have a few Benchrest folk around here maybe they will chime in...

 

[Dreamweaver]

Re: Neck Turning question

Just once.

 

[ljmontano]

Re: Neck Turning question

Just once! clean up 70-80% of the neck any more then that the case neck may become to thin

 

[Hummer]

Re: Neck Turning question

depending on the caliber and brass and how tight the chamber is determines how much I take off. For instance in 30.06 brass I set the trimmer to leave .014" neck wall which just takes off the high spots.

First determine the size of your neck. Fired cases spring back a tad but it will give you a rough idea. Say it is .339"fired neck. You are loading a .308 dia bullet, then add .014X2=.028 so .028+.308" gives you a loaded round of .336" at the neck.

Now I have one reamer that has a .337 neck, thusly .336" will just go in which is what the BR boys do. Their chamber necks are generally .001" larger than loaded case.

 

[TresMon]

Re: Neck Turning question


Pretty much what Hummer said!

But as far as just knocking off the high spots I look for at least 90, if not 95% clean up.

 

[USMCj]

Re: Neck Turning question

Once only for me.

 

[Victor N TN]

Re: Neck Turning question

My benchrest rifles all have "turn only" chambers. So I have to fireform then turn the case necks before actually loading for a match. Every 6 to 8 loadings I run an appropriate sized reamer down the case necks to remove the "dreaded donut" that always forms at the base of the case neck / shoulder area from the brass flow. You can get bullet sized reamers from MSC a lot cheaper than Sinclair's want for the Wilson reamers.

I have turned cases on more than one occassion that had been fired and loaded as many as 15 times. Then I send them to a friend who anneals the necks for me.

If you are turning to center the cartridge in the chamber, (factory chamber) 80% + cleanup is fine. You don't HAVE to get fresh metal 100%.

Good luck.

 

[TresMon]

Re: Neck Turning question


Victor- how to feel your "only" 80% clean up is in regards to very consistent neck tension, case to case to case?

Educate me!

 

[madd0c]

Re: Neck Turning question

Thanks for the information guys! It helps tremendously. On the ones I have turned, I turned to ~95-98%. We'll see how many reloads I get before neck splitting. I have some non-turned lapuas going on 10 reloads. Would it help to turn them now after that many firings? I am going to guess yes.

Oh, and I absolutely hated the forester case holder. It kept slipping off the cases when turning. I now just chuck the cases in a 1/2" chuck on a drill and power turn them. I do it slowly so they don't heat up, but it sure saves my wrist!

Thanks again,
madd0c

 

[Fuzzball]

Re: Neck Turning question

"...just chuck the cases in a 1/2" chuck on a drill and power turn them."

That do work well in my DeWalt 18V drill/driver. I put a short section of dowel in the chuck first to act as a depth stop so the chuck jaw pressure is exerted on the solid case head instead of the wall.

 

[427Cobra]

Re: Neck Turning question

Speed increases heat, and heat will change the amount of material removed, or make your cuts inconsistent.

 

[madd0c]

Re: Neck Turning question

Thats why I dial it down to low rpm and use imperial sizing wax on the mandrel. I can put my finger directly on the madrel and the case neck immediately after turning, so it is under 150degrees F.
I did ramp up the speed on a few, and the madrel got hot. It was binding the case so I dialed down to 100 or so RPM. No problems since then.

 

[Victor N TN]

Re: Neck Turning question

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Fuzzball</div><div class="ubbcode-body">"...just chuck the cases in a 1/2" chuck on a drill and power turn them."

That do work well in my DeWalt 18V drill/driver. I put a short section of dowel in the chuck first to act as a depth stop so the chuck jaw pressure is exerted on the solid case head instead of the wall. </div></div>

I'm using an 18 volt DeWalt 1/2" drill. Mainly because I already had it. But the keyless chuck works wonderful for turning case necks. Put it in back gear (slow speed) and keep the mandrel lubricated well. I finally broke down and when I bought the "Pumpkin" turner I bought a carbide mandrel for it. It keeps the brass a lot cooler.

 

[repiv]

Re: Neck Turning question

What brand neck turner do you guys use? I got a RCBS and it seems to not work very well.

 

[Victor N TN]

Re: Neck Turning question

I have one I made myself in the 1980s, 2 different ones from Sinclair's and a "Pumpkin" from Don Nielson. I REALLY love the pumpkin. It's the easiest thing I have ever used for this kind of work.

 

[MALLARD]

Re: Neck Turning question

depends on how your brass is streching, i notcied with bushing neck sizers brass tends to shrink , F/L sizers make brass strech , so if your doing allot of F/L or shoulder bumping you might end up neck turning more then if you neck size. I use sinclair turners , they are very nice , adjustin or swapping calibers can be a headache sometimes. the handles kind of suck , i just mounted the handles to a vise , works well.