reloading for rifle

[realmswalker]

I have been reloading for my rifles, 270 win, bolt action and 30-06, m1 garand and savage 111, for about a year or so now.

My process basically goes as follows.

tumble
deprime and full length resize
trim to length suggested in my speer reloading manual
chamfer case inside and outside on the mouth
then reload with whatever bullets or powder I have on hand, of course according to manual or web site listing

I do this every time the round has been fired.

Now as I have made loads and pretty much know what my OAL needs to be I have never had any problems.

I knew about head spacing, But I have never done that to my rifles. would doing this increase my accuracy? by not doing this am I in any way setting myself up for some kind of problem with cases that have been reloaded going on upwards of 5-7 times?

 

[Grumulkin]

I do things a little differently than you:

1. I size and deprime before tumbling. That way, tumbling gets rid of all the case lube.

2. I don't trim every time. There is nothing wrong with trimming every time but it's more work. I have a Lyman case length guage. Cases that are less than the maximum length don't get trimmed.

3. I would full length size for the Garand but would only neck size for the bolt action rifles. This would probably improve accuracy and case life. Of course, for ammo to be used in both the Garand and in a bolt action rifle, you'll need to full length size.

4. You say you reload with "whatever" bullets and powder you have on hand. That is safe if you go by the reloading manual but I've always found a specific powder/bullet combination to be most accurate. The best powder for a 270 won't be the best one for a 30/06. I would suggest you use a match bullet (Sierra, Nosler or Berger) and test some powders. When you've found the most accurate load, then test some other bullets of the same weight with that powder. Various manuals list best powders for particular cartridges. My favorite powder for the 30/06 is Varget.

5. If you're getting 5 to 7 reloads out of your cases, it's highly unlikely you're having a headspace problem. Even without excess head space, eventually you'll get head separations with bottle necked cases. You have to trim because cases stretch during the sizing/firing cycle. Eventually the brass becomes too thin and a head separation results. Run a wire (I use a bent paperclip) with the end bent to 90 degrees down the inside of the case. If you feel a groove near the case head, discard that case.

 

[scrat]

i dont full size all the time. i try to neck size. better on the brass

 

[mallc]

Loading for Gas vs Bolt Rifles

Loading for gas rifles is NOT the same as bolt action rifles. Be good to your Garand and read these articles from the Alabama Service Rifle Team Website:

http://www.alabamaservicerifleteam.com/id17.html

Must reading for GAS RIFLE (M1/M14/AR15) type rifles.
http://www.exteriorballistics.com/reloadbasics/gasgunreload.cfm

I kinda feel like this is required reading. It's the best article on M14 / M1 reloading ever put down on paper. I would pay special attention to the SLAM FIRE stuff as well as powder choices. Mr. Zediker has written several book with Mr. David Tubb on high power rifle reloading and comp. Bottom line is these guys knows their rifles and how not to BLOW them up.

"You'll like this material, and, no fooling, if you have an M14 or M1 you best be paying attention to what's in it befo you hurt yoseff."

http://www.zediker.com/downloads/14_loading.pdf

Scott

 

[realmswalker]

Thank you for all your help guys.