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Reloading beginner

#52
Yes, I use a lee for single stage, and hornady for progressive. I don't use my hand priming tool anymore, because even after I de crimp my military brass, it's still a little fidgety, and the lee press has some torque to get the primers in better.

I brought my FGMM 175gr 1.5" groups down to 0.6" groups by hand loading. You won't regret it. You save money, gain accuracy, and enjoy shooting things you make!


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#55
HAZORD said:
Personally, if I had a surgeon rifle I would be doing everything I could to feed it the best ammo I could, just to appreciate the accuracy that it is capable of. As mentioned above, a good idea to review the stickys in the reloading section about brass prep, and al the other things you can do to tune your ammo to the rifle.
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and that always starts the conversation of what reallllllyyyy matters when it comes to prep. Personally, besides FL sizing i only do the other stuff once every 3-4 loads. other stuff being annealing, trimming, chamfer, and debur only. I am not doing meplats or turning necks or any of that other crazy BR stuff. Sometimes i dont even clean (..gasp) lol. And the AO im shooting still shoots .3's -.4's. Could i shoot .2's if i did the rest? maybe, but who cares?
 
#56
hankpac said:
So far no one has mentioned the manuals. I use several Each bullet manufacturer puts one out each year, and each powder manufacturer puts one out. Depending on what components you use, You will look at that data for both the powder and the bullet, and compare the loads listed. for instance, I use H-335 and a Nosler Ballistic tip in a particular round. I checked BOTH sources for their recommendations and used the data as a starting point and a never to exceed point.
The powered company uses several bullet companies to test their loads, (and lists them) and the bullet companies use several powders to test their different weighted bullets.
I have Nosler, Sierra, Hornady, Speer, Hogden, Alliance, and other powder books.
All the powder companies and most bullet companies have published their data on-line.
Important: Before taking any pat loads from a forum, read what the bullet or powder companies recommend.
and most important, do a thorough reading of the educational info in the front or back of the loading manual.
Read the paper insert CAREFULLY that comes with each set of dies.
Work with someone who has been loading a long time, and known to you to be very exacting in following instructions.
Good luck.
Click to expand...

i keep one recent book around for sanity. outside of that its like you said, they almost all have it posted online. I damn near cant think of a round that i couldnt look up online and get every spec i need in less than 5 minutes.
 
#61
KillShot said:
Okay, what would YOU recommend?
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the hornady handloader or rcbs works fine. it was more a point about if you use the primer seater in the press you tend to not remove the case after depriming/sizing. At least me. im lazy. So i would deprime/size on the upstroke and seat new primer on the down stroke. I find its much easier and faster to use a hand primer, any hand primer, over priming at the bench for me. Not to metion i work in batches. I clean everything in a batches. Then i deprime and FL size everything in one batch. Then i watch tv with my hand primer and prime away until all those are primed. I always found that using the primer on teh press was slow and frustrating. Youre experience may vary.
 
#63
usmc02xx said:
the hornady handloader or rcbs works fine. it was more a point about if you use the primer seater in the press you tend to not remove the case after depriming/sizing. At least me. im lazy. So i would deprime/size on the upstroke and seat new primer on the down stroke. I find its much easier and faster to use a hand primer, any hand primer, over priming at the bench for me. Not to metion i work in batches. I clean everything in a batches. Then i deprime and FL size everything in one batch. Then i watch tv with my hand primer and prime away until all those are primed. I always found that using the primer on teh press was slow and frustrating. Youre experience may vary.
Click to expand...

I'm the same way. I actually use the Hornady LnL progressive press as i also load a lot of handgun and 223 and for those it makes it much faster. But, when loading for precision I run them through in stages. I use the progressive press to resise and deprime. I will then use a hand primer as I feel it is a little better and you can rip a lot out in a short time. checking case size and any trimming I need to do, I measure each load precisely with a scale and then use the last stage of the progressive press to seat the bullets. Works very well.
 
#65
#67
KillShot said:
I've decided to take the advice of the assholes who enjoy spending other peoples money (you guys), and purchase a Forster Co-Ax. The problem I have now though, is finding one in stock somewhere.

Any ideas?
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I got the Lee Classic cast, works very well, if you want a kickass seater, get the Forster Ultra micrometer seater. Hornady primer tool is outstanding! Nothing wrong with Lee dies, they tend to give you a tight headspace, had that happen with 270 & 06 Lee dies I had to send back to shave a couple thou off the bottom, otherwise, Redding or Hornady are good. Hornady powder measure works great for me. When it comes to getting trimmer get something you can attach the RCBS 3 way cutter head to, it is awesome!
 
#68
For under $300 total, you can start off fine... Lee challenger kit ($100), .308 dies ($35), lee case trimmer and case length gauge ($20). That's all you really need to start. Add the lee zip trim ($18) and a tumbler ($40+) and you've got just about everything. I actually just used to polish my brass with steel wool on the lee zip trim, but now I usually only do that to clean up case necks that get scuffed up


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#69
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#77
So, will this die set work or do I need something more?

Redding.jpg
 
#78
I prefer Micrometer seating dies. Doesn't really matter what brand, it makes adjusting seating depth much easier. I run Forster Dies through my Co-Ax.

I would definitely stay away from any dies that seat and crimp in one die. If you are reloading for a bolt-action, I recommend not crimping.

For non-FL Sizing I prefer to use a Neck/Shoulder bump die and not just a Neck Sizer.
 
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#80
I use a redding FL die without the expander/de caping pin, then a 21st century mandrel for the necks and seat with a competition die.
Its another step with the mandrel, however I have very little run out and get a constant neck tension.
 
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#84
It was very frustrating trying to decide what to buy and who has it in stock when I got started, on top of that waiting almost 4 months for my Dillon 650.
 
#85
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#90
KillShot said:
Okay, I've narrowed it down to these. Your input is appreciated.

Redding National Match 3-Die Set 308 Winchester

RCBS Gold Medal Match Series Bushing 2-Die Set 308 Winchester

Whidden Gunworks Bushing 2-Die Set 308 Winchester

Forster Ultra 2-Die Set 308 Winchester (National Match)

EDIT to add...I was just told that Hornady will make custom dies. Any thoughts on this?
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You don't need to crimp, so toss the 3 die sets. The Forster and Redding (looks like Whidden as well) use a sliding sleeve to keep the case in alignment with the bullet during seating and are hands down the best seater designs. You can't neck size forever, at some point you will need to full-length size the cases. If you are set on using bushings to control neck tension then I would go with:

Redding Type S Bushing Full Length Sizer Die 308 Winchester
And a Forster micrometer seater

If you aren't set on the bushings just go with the Forster 2 die set.
 
#91
#95
KillShot said:
What's your opinion on Whidden dies? Are they work the extra money?
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There's no question that the Whidden Dies are darn near works of art. Not all that different on the inside from a Forster or Redding though.

The Forster is a better value for my money. I can live without the fancy machine work on the outside. The Whidden die is essentially the same design, as far as operation, as the Forster. Nicer aesthetics on the outside but does it really produce better ammo than a Forster seating die? I use the Forster and the finished rounds show total indicated runout at the ogive of less than .001". How much better does one need and is it worth close to $100 more?
 
#99
BLDTYLRY said:
Whidden can make custom dies from 3-5 pieces of fired brass.
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Yes, I have some on order made to the brass I sent in to Whidden right now. I'm buying the reamer that the rifle was chambered in so I will have a perfect fit to that chamber and (that chamber only>, "which is my point". If the OP doesn't have access to the reamer that was used for his current chamber, come rebarrel time he'll have custom dies that won't be a perfect fit to the next chamber.

For my SAAMI chambers I use regular dies like everyone else.
 
#100
steve123 said:
Yes, I have some on order made to the brass I sent in to Whidden right now. I'm buying the reamer that the rifle was chambered in so I will have a perfect fit to that chamber and (that chamber only>, "which is my point". If the OP doesn't have access to the reamer that was used for his current chamber, come rebarrel time he'll have custom dies that won't be a perfect fit to the next chamber.

For my SAAMI chambers I use regular dies like everyone else.
Click to expand...


It's a great idea to buy the reamer that's used to chamber your custom rifle. Send a few cases sized by a good competition grade die of your choice to a Co. like PTG and have them grind a reamer to match the die. Call and ask if they can do a better job if you send the die too. $150 will get you a custom ground reamer at PTG. There's a good chance you'll end up with a better "match" and it won't take a year to get the die made. A custom die from some traditional die makers can start out at $160 or more with long wait times.

As well as having the same reamer for a future re-barrel, you'll also have a brand new reamer for cutting the new chamber in the first barrel, not one that may have been dropped (and chipped) or worn. The trick is to just remember where you stored it when you need it in a few years. Might even make some $$ by renting it out to freinds who're getting customs built.
 
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