Anybody use 260 rezized for 7-08?

[greggrissom]

hello guys. I am fairly new to this rifle reloading game. I am trying to reload 7 mm-08for some long range shooting.I haven't been able to find A sizable amount of brass so I bought some 260 Lapua brass.I have already expanded the necks to 7 millimeters but not sure which direction to go from here. Can anyone give me some advice please.

 

[shoot4fun]

I have done this. Lapua necks are a bit thicker that WW or RP 7mm-08 necks. You will have to do a minimal neck turn now or face possible pressure issues that will be ugly.
It actually worked out well. I used Imperial dry lube inside the necks and went straight from 264 to 284 in one pass. I turned just down past the neck-shoulder junction so there were no donuts inside the neck after firing.
If you're a newbie and don't have the proper equipment or knowledge find someone to help you get going on the project or you will just be ruining good 260 brass.

 

[greggrissom]

That's what I did when I necked them up. They were actually a little bigger than 284 and now I'm assuming I need to FL resize and then neck turn? now that I think about it it actually re sized to 284. I have been dreaming my brass to 2.025 but the lapua brass is measuring 2.018. Does this matter?

 

[shoot4fun]

OK, did you use a 7MM-08 sizing die to neck up or an expander die with a 7mm mandrel installed. You should have used the later so the necks are correctly sized for the neck turning mandrel you will use on the neck turning tool. If you didn't then you may have the neck too large to accurately neck turn. I am afraid FL sizing will not help you because you never size the neck down to the exact neck-shoulder junction. Remember I said you will need to turn the neck to just below the juncture (down onto the shoulder just slightly( in order to minimize the possibility of donuts. Donuts are a bulge at the neck-shoulder that will cause too much neck tension on the bullet and can result in extreme pressure. You definitely don't want that. Do not worry about trimming if your length is consistent. That will just give you plenty of room to grow before you have to trim.

 

[greggrissom]

Thanks shooter. Yes I used a neck expander die, not a FL resizing die. I believe the expander mandrel is .001 under and my neck turning mandrel is .002" under.should I turn the necks before or after FL resizing?

 

[shoot4fun]

You should turn the necks before FL sizing. I forget how much I had to turn but it was minimal. If you have a piece of WW brass you could measure and get a better idea.

 

[bcrich]

You want to trade win 7mm08 brass for your lapua 260 & save yourself some work?

 

[St52v]

Shooters pro shop had 7mm. 08 brass the other day. 7 boxes of nosler with 50 pcs in each box . I think it was around $45 a box.