Seating depth variability

[z7]

I was loading up some 308 win on my hornady single stage this evening using my Lee seating die and couldn't get a consistent length.

The brass was lc 11 that I have fired 4 times, plus another through a 240 machine gun.

The brass was annealed, small base resized, trimmed to 2.005" on an l.e. wilson trimmer then chamfered and deburred.

I was seating 178g bthp hornady match bullets, without adjusting my die the oal ranged from 2.770" to 2.806".

I measured 10 bullets and their length varied 1.352" to 1.345".

I know bullet length varies, but I think the location the Lee die takes is "bite" is inconsistent on this bullet. I loaded up 168 amax without this issue.

I know others have had this problem, would a different seating die like a forster/redding help?

Please let me know if you had a similar issue and what you solution was. I am reloading for an ar10 max oal for reliable operation is 2.815".

 

[quartermaster]

Could it be the stem that makes contact with the bullet when you seat it. Sometimes with some bullets the plastic tip of the head may hit the top before contact was made with the main part of the bullet itself. With that much of a difference in length, you should be able to notice some deformity in the tip itself.

If it was a smaller deviancy in length, I would advise you to buy a bullet comparator to get a more accurate measurement but .036 is a lot.

Did you try taking the die apart and cleaning it? Is you die locked down tight to your press?

Certainly something is not right and a new seating die would cure the problem, but your die should be able to be made to work

 

[tightgroup tiger]

.036"of an inch in OAL variance?
Are you using the correct profile in you seating die?
I know that different neck tensions will affect the OAL of any round but I would have to wonder if you don't have a round nose profile in your seating die, but that's to obvious and you would see damage to the end of the HP.

Are you crimping these, I would start there. Raise your seating die up to take away the crimp and see if they seat consistently. If your over crimping, it can cause all kinds of problems.

What crimp die are you using?

 

[z7]

I am not crimping while seating, using the fcd for that. it is the Lee pacesetter die set. I did take the Die apart and clean it.

The die is properly locked into place. With the 178 bthp rounds I get a lot of oal variation. With 168 amax not a whole lot. I new seating die is on the list but is not important right now anyway. Even with the variation right now they shoot 1" with 44.4g of varget pushing them

 

[243winxb]

The nose of the bullet should not contact the seating plug. Lee makes custom seating plug to fit bullets.

Lee>Many times, you can make this fix yourself through the use of a drill press. Secure the seating plug under a 3/32" bit and drill further into it. The distance should never be increased more than 1/4".

 

[gamestalker]

I get variations, but nothing of that magnitude, maybe .010" on a bad day.

Often times when I hear someone complaining about large variations like this, the first question I ask is, are you crimping them? Crimping bottle necks is almost certain to cause fairly large variations in oal if the crimp is too aggressive.

What I would do to help diagnose the cause, or at least rule out, is to seat some without a crimp. I'll bet most of the issue goes away, to the extent you may only see .010" or less, which will be credited to olgive inconsistencies.

And bullets seat off the olgive, so measuring oal from case head to bullet tip isn't going to provide a completely accurate assessment. Further more, what really matters is how far off the rifle lands the olgive is positioned, not the oal.

GS

 

[z7]

I am already seating without a crimp, but to rule that out I am going to load up 10 more today or tomorrow I will clean the die again, adjust the die in accordance with the instructions and I will run a case with out a bullet into the die to ensure it meets no resistance/does not crimp.

The seater stem does not reach the ogive, i may post a picture today as long as work cooperates,

Thanks for the help.

 

[gibekim]

process of elimination

I'd you haven't already changed the settings on your dies, I would do this.

Seat 10 rounds and measure each one . Mark the OAL on the case with a fine sharpie.
If you have the large variance, your problem lies here.

If all are OK take the marked rounds and run them through the FCD. Now check the OAL on each round and compare that measurement to the one marked on the case.

This should isolate your problem. My best guess is the FCD.

Good luck.

 

[z7]

The oal variation came before I crimped, I measured after seating

 

[243winxb]

The seater stem does not reach the ogive,

The seating stem should be making contact on the bullets ogive. Not on the nose (méplat).

 

[z7]

I seem to have identified the problem, and it will occur using both my lee die and my RCBS seater dies. the seating stem engages somewhere near the nose of the bullet, not along the ogive as we reloaders use the term (to refer to the point where the curved nose reaches the final diameter of the bullet)

this will also occur with my RCBS dies, i tested on an empty case and the die left a nice little ring about 1/16th of an inch down from the meplat indicating the die was engaging the bullet near the nose and not on the ogive.

i apologize for the one picture, the hand is my daughter's, she is 3 and was curious and put her hand in front of my camera. it would show a bullet being measured by itself.
(i do not let her near my reloading stuff or let her participate in anything that could expose her to lead. . .i am paranoid of lead poisoning and was her hands myself if i suspect she got near my stuff)

thanks for the responses so far, i am am planning on upgrading to a forster seating die eventually if it would help