Weight sorting brass

[Wm.Traynor]

I can't recall the member's name Stix but at least one bloke on here goes by volume.

Think marksman does...

What about you mate...?
Any & all advice appreciated...

I used to weight sort back in the day, to 0.2gn for a 222. But if I was doing it again, it would have to be the volume method which is incredibly tedious to my way of thinking. There seems to be such a thing as "more reloading than shooting" going on here. But I was younger and keener. One thing I did not do was experiment with seating depth as my bullets were not the VLD type.

[brett1868]

So Brett well all you blokes actually, out of curiosity...how do you batch proj's when there is both weight & distance of ogive to base to take into consideration...?

Also is it worth me atleast just quickly weight sorting the proj's...?

Personally for a 22-250 used on fur I wouldn't bother, if you're chasing the smallest group possible then there's a few levels of prep involved. I recall you have the OAL gauge but need the tapped case, knowing the max OAL per projectile type is critical before worrying too much about full on bullet prep.

Full OCD and more practical when purchasing bulk 500 packs of projectiles so you end up with larger final batches.
1. Point and trim Meplat for consistent Meplat size and Ogive to Meplat length aids a consistent seating depth / ogive-throat distance.
2. Measure Ogive to Base and batch by .001" for consistent case volume.
3. Sort each batch from step 2 by weight, then batch by .1gr
4. Seat shallow, measure with OAL gauge then adjust micrometre seating die accordingly.

How far you go is up to how much time / effort you want to commit vrs the diminishing returns in reducing group size. You can start at any of the steps, start at 4 if that suits. There's only 3 cartridges I bother to go the full potato on, 6.5CM, 375 Cheytac, 416 Barrett and I don't need to worry too much with the 50 cause the projectiles are precision CNC machined to extreme tolerances.

[sungazer]

Yes it depends on the type of bullet. interestingly VLDs everyone in target used to jam, some still do others have read the Berger site and Changed. So for the hybrids or VLDs I seat 30-40 thou off the lands. i have tested them out to 80 thou and still good. I see about 10 thou variance in the bullets so it needs to be well clear of that. they grouped ok from 15 thou off.
Even using the Redding VLD seating stem it really doesn't make contact with the ogive part of the the bullet but at a smaller diameter. I did modify a seating stem myself and I have read of someone who uses a seater for a larger projectile so that the stem makes contact with the ogive. The smaller diameter part where it does make contact is much more consistent than the tip though. If your seater makes contact with the tip have a close look at the consistency of the bullets.

[Stix]

I can't recall the member's name Stix but at least one bloke on here goes by volume.

Think marksman does...

What about you mate...?
Any & all advice appreciated...

I used to weight sort back in the day, to 0.2gn for a 222. But if I was doing it again, it would have to be the volume method which is incredibly tedious to my way of thinking. There seems to be such a thing as "more reloading than shooting" going on here. But I was younger and keener. One thing I did not do was experiment with seating depth as my bullets were not the VLD type.

I understand what you mean re more reloading, but its really more thinking, Im actually not going to do all these steps mate--not for a varmint hunting o/fit., but im asking some things for education purposes...

So where did/do you seat to WT...? Surely you had a datum to work by...? Like mag length...?

So if not using vld's are you suggesting seating depth makes little diff...?
Because i did try seating depth changes with a SIE 55 GK in other 22-250 & got no results.

And 2/3 of my 22-250's come out of the sako factory so i can reach lands from the mag.

[Stix]

Brett,
Yes mate i have the hdy tool & need the cases threaded--i have an approx measurement to lands though (within 2-3 thou).
I plan on sending you the cases when ive fired some others off & checked them with firing pin out...hopefully next week...!!

And yes ill only do the equivelant of your step 4--but its interesting to know how you do your proj prep...!!--it does give me a perspective overall so its helpful, thanks...!

Im looking to only use cheap proj's if i can as its a hunting rifle...so im starting with the likes of 50gr Zmax's & then 55gr SOE GK super roo's.

I seated the last lot about .010" off lands, maybe i should start further off...?

[Stix]

Sungazer...as said above im only using cheapie proj's--atleast to begin with--after all a dead fox is just a dead fox, irrelevant of berger hole or zmax zombie hole...

Maybe i should seat further off--.020"--.030"...? (I was about .010" off with first lot).

You say you seat 30-40 thou off lands to be well clear of the 10 thou variance in proj's...but i assume that any difference in ogive length of proj's wouldnt make a diff to distance from the lands (assuming seater die is hitting a consistant point other than tip of proj).

[sungazer]

Thats the problem the point at which the seater hits is not always a constant as compared to where the ogive would hit the lands hence you can end up with variations that you thought you went getting. I havent had a real good load development with the Super Roos yet but I would start with those probably 10-15 Jammed into the lands if possible. Just keep making them shorter by 10 thou at a time and see how they group. you only need to shoot three to see if they aren't working. 5-10 if they are.

There is no way I am sorting Super Roos in any way. It helps to be accurate but a hit is a hit nobody is saying or holding up score cards on how dead the fox is.

[Stix]

I tried the superroos jammed in the sako a while back...25 thou jam & got ragged holes at 34.5gr of 08...
Did a test at .010" off lands with the formed brass & results indicated 35gr charge was good...the best charge is right up there at 37gr/08 & starting to crater primers.

So i shot the 35gr charge at intervals of 10, 50, 90 & 130 thou off lands & got the shotgun effect...sprsyed .75" groups...i wasnt happy...!! Dont know what hapoened...
Havnt had that one out to play with since...

[Gwion]

Everytime I've tried a jump more than 20thou it has been a bad move.

[Stix]

Ok...but not even the 10 thou worked-although it was the best.
Why does it work for sungazer...should we be staring at the sun more...?

[Wm.Traynor]

Everytime I've tried a jump more than 20thou it has been a bad move.

It's funny isn't it I tried four 5 shotters at 100 with my 223 and not one was over 1/2 inch. Land clearance was about 0.030".

[Gwion]

I just think it's one of those things. Every chamber and rifle is different so experimenting with load development is the best way to find a goodd load for your rifle.

[Gwion]

Stix. Just load 'em however your rifles like them.

[sungazer]

With the VLDs it was working for a lot of people. In fact it was hunters that were loading them to mag length or what is in the book in long throated factory rifles and they were reporting back great results there were in the hundreds of thou, hence the investigation began. Super Roos are a very different shape.