Hornady / Stoney Point Seating Depth Tool

[simonp]

I am going to ask a question which I presume is probably impossible to answer online but heck here it goes anyway.

How did you become adept at using the Hornady / Stoney Point seating depth tool? I have been told by a few folks it's a matter of developing a feel for it - ok fair enough I accept that but how did you go about doing that?

I periodically break out the tool and try to figure out where the lands are in a barrel and if I do it 5 times I get 5 different measurements, if I do it 10 I get 10, 20 I get 20 so on and so on. At some point I stop due to frustration and irritation, and I go back to just loading book length or mag length until time passes and I think well I should try to do this again and see what the results are if I change the seating depth.

TIA

 

[Sheldon N]

I settled on using the Hornady tool only to find the "hard jam" number. If I want to know where "touching" the lands is I'll use the Alex Wheeler method.

Hornady tool is pretty repeatable if you just press the bullet firmly into the lands using just your fingertip, then knock the bullet out of the lands with a cleaning rod and measure. Assume that there's about 0.010 of grey area between touch and hard jam, so seating at 0.030 off the hard jam number is about the same as jumping 0.020 from touch.

 

[simonp]

I settled on using the Hornady tool only to find the "hard jam" number. If I want to know where "touching" the lands is I'll use the Alex Wheeler method.

Hornady tool is pretty repeatable if you just press the bullet firmly into the lands using just your fingertip, then knock the bullet out of the lands with a cleaning rod and measure. Assume that there's about 0.010 of grey area between touch and hard jam, so seating at 0.030 off the hard jam number is about the same as jumping 0.020 from touch.

Thanks for the information, I will have to look up the Alex Wheeler method.

 

[ChrisGarrett]

I have the older SP versions, before Hornady bought them out.

There is a 'finesse' that is needed.

For finding the lands, I take 5 bullets that I squirreled away before the rifle was fired for the first time, and mark them 1-5 (or 1-3 if I only use 3) and go to town.

I take 3 measurements per bullet and rotate the gage 120* after each time, notating each measurement.

I proceed from 1-5/1-3 and then average the 15 numbers out.

Chris

 

[Sheldon N]

I will have to look up the Alex Wheeler method.

There used to be a video from him years ago but it's not online anymore. Short description....

1. Strip the bolt - remove firing pin/spring/shroud, remove ejector plunger w/ a pin punch+hammer. Bolt handle will drop freely in the action with zero resistance.
2. Size a piece of brass until it fits completely loose in the chamber (work your way up to it so as not to oversize). Bolt handle should drop freely with the brass clipped under the extractor. This is also a great way to figure out shoulder bump for sizing.
3. Seat a bullet long and test fit in the chamber, clipping it under the extractor before you chamber the round.
4. Slowly seat the bullet into the case, testing fit as you go. First the bolt wont want to close, then it will close with some light resistance, then it will close with just the weight of the bolt handle pressing the bullet into the lands. Once you reach this point you are super close, fine tune the final seating in 0.001 increments in the next step.
5. Pay close attention to how the bolt feels when lifting the handle to remove the round. You should feel the bullet "pop" out of the lands on primary extraction, making a little click sound of the bolt snapping open all the way. When you lose any sensation of the bullet popping free from the lands and there's no click sound at extraction (ie the bolt is totally loose on both close and open) that is your "touch" measurement.

 

[ShtrRdy]

I have a near new hornady tool but have ended up using the Wheeler " stripped bolt" method.

 

[spife7980]

Thanks for the information, I will have to look up the Alex Wheeler method.

There used to be a video from him years ago but it's not online anymore.

It’s hard linked on his site and blocked everywhere else, I assume due to YouTube harassing him
Scroll down to the finding your lands video

Videos | wheeleraccuracy

www.wheeleraccuracy.com

Edit: the sizing, lands, clickers and die fitment are all excellent Simon