Hornady OAL Gauge question

[winmag4570]

This is my first time working with this gauge.I am loading .300WM 195gn.I guess I don't have the touch yet as I was getting readings from 3.533 to 3.536.Then I got a reading of 3.325. The Hornady manual says the load should be 3.340.Do either of these pictures look correct?? How can you tell you are at the right spot?Thank You Gents.

 

[hollywood1981]

Consistent pressure, just takes some practice. Is the brass fire formed or the one bought from Hornady? Asking this because I have a more consistant and accurate measurement with fire formed brass vs the Hornady one you can buy. I noticed that there was a .030 diffrent reading. Like as stated above, practice will help you. Oh yeah i had a gunsmith drill and tap my OAL brass for me using a lathe. One fir my Hornady brass and ADG brass.

 

[nn8734]

This is my first time working with this gauge.I am loading .300WM 195gn.I guess I don't have the touch yet as I was getting readings from 3.533 to 3.536.Then I got a reading of 3.325. The Hornady manual says the load should be 3.340.Do either of these pictures look correct?? How can you tell you are at the right spot?Thank You Gents.
View attachment 7412366View attachment 7412367

Are you measuring overall length or case head to Ogive length? COAL is meaningless unless you are trying to ensure the loaded round fits in the magazine. You should be using the oal gauge with the modified case and bullet comparator to measure the case head-Ogive Length where the bullets with that base-ogive length are at the lands (also referred to as Jam length).

I will Ogive sort my bullets then take one of them from one of the sorted bunches and run it though the chamber with the oal gauge/modified case a few times until I get within .001” reading three in a row. That tells me the reading is correct. Then I adjust my seating die until I’m at the jump distance I want (ie .020”)

 

[hollywood1981]

He is right, I measure o give to base not COAL as well. Sorry I forgot to mention that!

 

[NCHillbilly]

I had the same issue when I first started using the oal gauge. You just need to go slow and pay real close attention to the feel. You don't want to jam it in, or your measurements will be incorrect. Go easy, and when you just feel resistance, lock it down. Like posted above, measure until you have a consistent measurement, then go with that.

What weapon are you loading for? Are you limited by mag length? My RPR allows much longer loading than what the book says. If your mag allows longer seating, measure from the ogive to the base, and write down your figures for THAT particular bullet. If you switch bullets, you'll need to go through this process again. You may even need to do this when using different lot numbers of the same bullet. I have run into this with some hornady stuff. Document everything and save this info. May come in handy again down the road.

 

[winmag4570]

Thanks for the help.Yes it looks like I need to get the comparator as I was taking the full OAL.I'm shooting the Barrett MRAD in .300WM.I am also using the modified case.I am going to try to thread a fire formed case to thats a good idea.Much thanks!!