Seating Bullets to the Lands for AR-15 - 5.56 Nato

[gipperdog]

I just bought some Berger bullets @ 73 grn's HPBT in 22 cal. These are not moly's nor VLD's.

How do you find the "land" depth for loads in an AR15 so I can load just off the lands with my loads?

Finding this for a bolt action is easy, but I don't have any experience for trying to find this for an AR-15. I intend in getting a bobsled for these loads so I don't have to worry about seating to "magazine" depth. (Seating to magazine depth is all the experience I've had for my AR).

Thanks!

 

[MattB000]

I used the stony point tool, however, seating mine to the lands didn't work on my AR. The gun just wouldn't take it.

 

[battlecry]

You can buy a Hornady (ex Stoney Brook) tool from Sinclair.

Or you can take a sized cartridge and cut a notch or two on the neck using a Dremel cutoff disk. The neck should hold the bullet but still allow it to seat. Polish and seat the bullet, then handfeed it and close the bolt. Remove carefully and measure with a comparator.

I'm sure there are other ways..

 

[Jim Watson]

I bought the Stoney Point (I did not get the curved "automatic" model, the straight standard gauge will reach through an AR upper.), but battlecry's technique will work. Best to do several reps until the readings kind of settle down.

I have tinkered with my AR so much that it is fired only single loaded; pretty much a self ejecting single shot rifle. May lack a little from a bolt action but not much and I had the rifle on hand to fool with.

 

[243winxb]

5.56mm nato

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=298323 A Nato chambers leade may be to long to seat into the rifling.

 

[wanderinwalker]

A Stoney Point tool is your friend here. I usually do a series of 5 or so checks and readings before I settle on a "load to lands" length with any batch of bullets.

Additionally, if they are the LTBs meant to be loaded from the magazine, you may or may not see a group-size difference worth the effort of single-loading. Me, being lazy, I have a tendency to load anything that will fit at mag-length, to mag-length.

Good luck!