OAL case length for an m-1a?

[colt.45]

the title prettymuch says it all. what length should i trim my brass to, if im reloading for an m-1a? my reloading manual doesnt say.

 

[Mark Rosenbaum]

It's pretty common to trim a bottlenecked case to 0.010" shorter than the maximum length. For the .308/7.62mm, this is 2.015". so you'd trim to 2.005". It's more important to be consistent than to meet some exact dimension.

 

[Mark whiz]

I'm with Mark on the case length, I shoot for around 2.005 myself. Since the M1A is pretty rough on brass, cutting it that short usually gives me an extra reloading before I have to trim.
For this rifle, what you need to be more concerned with (as far as safety goes) is the headspace measurement. Sizing cases about .010" short on the headspacing is a good idea too - as having the headspace too long can lead to the dreaded "slam fire" problem.

 

[Sunray]

"...length should I trim my brass to..." The same length you trim to for any .308 rifle. 2.005". Full length resizing only.

 

[def4pos8]

Ditto the case length comments. After reading about the AGONY that Browning, Garand, Johnson and other pioneers went through engineering the function of self-loading rifles, I'm also a fan of using small base sizing dies when building cartridges. Most shooters don't burn enough rounds between chamber cleaning for it to matter but the first time you watch a rifle blow up due to an unsupported/"slam fire" ignition will make you a believer. With luck, you'll be a (safely positioned) observer, rather than the shooter!

 

[Bad Flynch]

IIRC, the spec. for new, loaded ammo is 2.015"-0.020" . Most reloaders, as already mentioned, trim to -0.010" and consider that good. Yes, you will end up trimming, but cases for this rifle probably should be tossed after 2 or 3 shots anyway, because of the tendency for head separations. Use new cases only, for match work, to avoid having a problem during a match.

Buy a broken shell extractor and carry a cleaning kit to the range.