Lake City LR brass sizing

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buckeyesguy5XSergeant
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Lake City LR brass sizing
12/27/2016

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I just acquired some LC lr brass and am attempting to fl size it. My question, is this stuff always so damn hard to size? I've used regular LC, wcc, and fgmm in the past and nothing has even been comparable to this shit. Is this normal?

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bigedp51XGunny Sergeant
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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
12/27/2016 Last edited 12/27/2016 by bigedp51

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Lake City brass is harder than commercial brass and thicker in the base.



If it was fired in a M14 the chamber is .002 larger in diameter, meaning the case expanded more.



So yes it is harder to size the first time and you "might" need a small base die for the first sizing.



The first time you size the brass with a standard die pause at the top of the ram stroke for 4 to 5 seconds.



Pausing greatly reduces brass spring back, now see if the sized case fit in the chamber.



If not size again pausing a second time at the top of the ram stroke and check to see if the case chambers freely.



If not you need a small base die to bring the case back to minimum SAAMI dimensions.



NOTE, chambers and resizing dies vary in diameter and I have a standard Lee .223 FL die that reduces the case diameter more than my RCBS 223 small base die. But most times the standard FL die should do the job without the need of a small base die. But you never know until you size a few cases "AND" you may have mixed brass fired in different type rifles.

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buckeyesguy5XSergeant
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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
12/28/2016

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I realize LC brass is harder and it depends on the chamber it was fired in, but it's like this shit was linked up for a 240! I got through some last night but I just couldn't believe how difficult they were goin. Lube em up like it was prom night was about the only thing that helped.

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samnevXFirst Sergeant
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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
12/28/2016

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Yes they are harder to resize. I bought 500 unprocessed pieces of LC brass. The first time I resized them was on an with RCBS Rock Chucker press using RCBS regular 308 dies with the Dillon trimmer attached. After finishing I had a blister on the palm of my hand. First time in 40 years of reloading that happened to me.

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spawnof918vXFirst Sergeant
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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
12/28/2016

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If you want to reduce sizing effort you have to use a die that sizes less than a standard FL die. The die you want is the Redding body die. Size in the body die first, then in your FL die and things will go much easier.

I understand that Dillon 308 dies are carbide. Maybe that's another option cuz a lubed case through carbide is like a hot knife through butter. That may save you time if you don't want to size in multiple steps.

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samnevXFirst Sergeant
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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
12/28/2016

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I've never had that problem before with any other GI brass i've resized including LC brass i've used before. This new lot of LC brass was the first LC brass I bought in over 15 years. Perhaps all were fired in an M240 but I miked them before I resized them and the heads seemed no larger than brass I had fired in my other 308 weapons. But thanks for the tip.

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spawnof918vXFirst Sergeant
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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
12/28/2016

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Another cause of the hard sizing could be the pressure the cases were subjected to.

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bigedp51XGunny Sergeant
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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
12/28/2016

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buckeyesguy5 wrote:
I just acquired some LC lr brass and am attempting to fl size it. My question, is this stuff always so damn hard to size? I've used regular LC, wcc, and fgmm in the past and nothing has even been comparable to this shit. Is this normal?​

Standard Lake City 7.62 would be machine gun brass "but" you have lr or "Long Range" brass that should have been fired from a M14 type sniper rifle or the M24.



But It may have been shot from a machine gun to use up existing stocks of older ammo.



I sized some MG brass not long ago but it was wet tumbled first and sized with Hornady Unique case lube applied by hand and it was not that difficult to size. Maybe the clean cases make a difference and I wet tumble all my once fired military cases first before sizing to keep from embedding dirt and grit inside the die.



Bottom line, in my opinion wet tumbling or even tumbling with walnut media would make sizing less difficult because the outside of the case is scrubbed clean.

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bigedp51XGunny Sergeant
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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
12/28/2016 Last edited 12/28/2016 by bigedp51

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spawnof918v wrote:
If you want to reduce sizing effort you have to use a die that sizes less than a standard FL die. The die you want is the Redding body die. Size in the body die first, then in your FL die and things will go much easier.

I understand that Dillon 308 dies are carbide. Maybe that's another option cuz a lubed case through carbide is like a hot knife through butter. That may save you time if you don't want to size in multiple steps.​

spawnof918v

I have 2 Redding body dies and I was not aware they were any different than a standard die minus sizing the neck. They are simply the equivalent of a full length die with a bored out neck





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spawnof918vXFirst Sergeant
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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
12/28/2016

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bigedp51 wrote:

spawnof918v wrote:

If you want to reduce sizing effort you have to use a die that sizes less than a standard FL die. The die you want is the Redding body die. Size in the body die first, then in your FL die and things will go much easier.

I understand that Dillon 308 dies are carbide. Maybe that's another option cuz a lubed case through carbide is like a hot knife through butter. That may save you time if you don't want to size in multiple steps.​

spawnof918v

I have 2 Redding body dies and I was not aware they were any different than a standard die minus sizing the neck.​

Well, they are different. They size the body a lot less in the shoulder area. I don't have a RCBS 308 die anymore but my Lee is .003" tighter.

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bigedp51XGunny Sergeant
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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
12/28/2016 Last edited 12/28/2016 by bigedp51

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spawnof918v wrote:​

Well, they are different. They size the body a lot less in the shoulder area. I don't have a RCBS 308 die anymore but my Lee is .003" tighter.​

And I have a standard Lee .223 full length die that will size the case diameter smaller than my RCBS .223/5.56 small base die.

(so what we live in a plus and minus manufacturing world)



And a Redding body die is designed to size the body and bump the shoulder back for people who neck size only when the cases become tight in their chambers.



Now what good would a body die be to someone with a snug or smaller diameter custom chamber if the die did not reduce the case diameter enough???????



If anything Redding dies have tighter plus and minus manufacturing tolerances than the average die.



Bottom line, a redding body die is "NOT" going to make sizing machine gun brass easier.



If the OP wants to check his resized cases then I would recommend the JP Enterprize case gauge cut with a chamber finish reamer.



Meaning this gauge also checks case body diameter.

[h=1][/h] [h=1][/h]
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spawnof918vXFirst Sergeant
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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
12/28/2016

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Yes they will.

You are unaware Redding also makes a small base body die that sizes the shoulder area the same as a regular fl die and the bottom area .002" tighter.

In any event, the regular 308 body die will make sizing easier. For one, you are not sizing the neck. Second, it sizes less.

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FLIGHT762

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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
12/28/2016

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I have a Redding small base body die in 308 Winchester. It in fact, does size the case head area smaller than a regular body die.

I had a SSG 69 that had such a tight chamber, cases fired in other rifles would not chamber in the SSG 69. The issue was the sizing of the case body in the web area. Other dies, including a RCBS small base die wouldn't do it. The only die that successfully sized the case web down far enough was the Redding Small Base Body Die so I could reload fired cases from other rifles in that SSG 69. It worked perfectly.

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bigedp51XGunny Sergeant
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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
12/28/2016 Last edited 12/28/2016 by bigedp51

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spawnof918v wrote:
Yes they will.

You are unaware Redding also makes a small base body die that sizes the shoulder area the same as a regular fl die and the bottom area .002" tighter.

In any event, the regular 308 body die will make sizing easier. For one, you are not sizing the neck. Second, it sizes less.



​

Dear Spawn of the Dead



No shit, I wonder why they call them small base dies?????????



And don't argue with me, you will just "die" tired and loose the argument anyway.



Who do you think your trying to bullshit, a body die is "NOT" larger in diameter and is the same size as a standard sizing die.



Now go ahead and ask me how I know this................................

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padom

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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
12/28/2016

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Ive never needed anything outside of a Forster FL sizing die to size LC brass or any other brass. I own them all, name the brand but the Forster works the best.

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bigedp51XGunny Sergeant
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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
12/28/2016 Last edited 12/28/2016 by bigedp51

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[h=1]The Way of the Sizing Die[/h]
One of the questions we are asked a lot is “what is the best sizing die that I can use for my brass and rifle?” Today, we’ll address some of the ways the various sizers are used, so you can make the best decision for your rifle. In this article we’ll cover the conventional Full Length Sizing Die, Small Base Full Length Sizing Die, Body Die, Bushing Style Full Length Sizing Die, “Bump” Die, and Neck Sizing Dies.



We’ll start with what is referred to as a "conventional" full length sizing die. It sizes the body of the case, resizes the neck, and if we set it up following the die manufacturer’s instructions, push the shoulder to an industry standard setting that will work in factory chambered guns.



The "small base" full length sizing die comes down farther onto the case body and sizes it to a slightly smaller diameter. This die is generally used in rifles with actions that have less camming power during the opening and closing operation. This would be for semi-auto, pump, and lever action rifles since they simply do not have the camming power of a manually operated bolt action rifle.



The body die is, in essence, a conventional full length sizing die that works as if it were cut off at the shoulder/neck junction. It will full length size the body of the case and push, or “bump”, the shoulder to the location that we adjust it for. This is used is you want to keep the full length sizing operation separate from the neck sizing operation.



Several die manufacturers make full length and neck sizers that are machined to accept die bushings that let us vary the amount of tension we can apply to the neck for bullet seating purposes. It can also be used to compensate for varying neck wall thicknesses, such as if you outside turn your case necks to a thinner wall thickness.



What is referred to as a “bump” die is an interesting blend of the best of the full length and neck sizing dies in one operation. This type of die was previously only available through the services of a custom gunsmith or specialty houses like Neil Jones Custom Products and JLC Precision. Thanks to the folks at Forster Products, we finally have the first commercially available bump die. This die is called the Forster Precision Plus Bushing Bump Die. It’s available for 20 different cartridges, so the choices are limited to the more popular cartridges. This die will bump the shoulder to the location that you adjust it for, but it will not size the body of the case. It uses bushings for neck sizing, allowing you to vary the neck tension as well, and it will then decap the spent primers. Since this type of die does not size the body of the case, it is recommended that the brass be used in the same rifle that it was originally fired in, since it may not fit another rifle chambered for the same cartridge.



The last die we’ll discuss is the neck sizing die. Sometimes, a rifle will indicate during the load testing phases that it prefers to have the neck sized, but not the body of the case. The only drawback to this type of sizing is that at some point, you will eventually need to do a full length size operation on the case when you start running into bolt lift issues.



One of the questions that folks often ask is if they can adjust the full length die back to act as a neck die. The short, honest answer to this one is "no". What will happen, in most instances, is that when we adjust the full length sizing die to size maybe only half of the neck, we are still squeezing the body of the case. This does displace some of the brass, and the only direction that it can go is forward. This will also carry the shoulder forward and may prevent the case from chambering, since it will force the case to stretch and brass will flow toward the path of least resistance - the case mouth. However, you can adjust the die so it will only put a minimal bump on the shoulder to support it and prevent the shoulder from flowing forward. This is something that some of the best bench rest shooters have been doing, and it’s been proven to actually improve case life, while making sure the case fits your chamber precisely!



To do this, you will need several once fired cases from your rifle, a Sinclair Comparator/Bump Gage Body (09-1000), and the proper case shoulder Sinclair Bump Gage Insert (09-10230) for the cartridge that you are working with. Let’s use .223 Remington as an example. If we measure the cases with the Sinclair Comparator/Bump Gage and arrive at a reference measurement of 3.500” on a bolt action rifle, we would want to set up the full length, or bump die, to push or “bump”, the shoulder back .001” to .002” of an inch. This would give us a sized case dimension of 3.499” to 3.498”. If this is for your AR-15, we would then want to see a measurement anywhere from 3.497” to 3.496” (.003” to .004” of “bump”).



Bench rest shooters have found that sizing cases this way lets them chamber rounds cleanly, minimizing how much the rifle is disturbed in the sand bags, while it also controls how much the case flows forward. This minimal sizing extends brass life and works the case as if we were neck sizing only! It reduces the amount of work hardening the case will go through. It’s the preferred method that most of us on the Sinclair Tech Staff use for our personal rifles.



As you can see, there are many ways that you can use the available sizing dies for the best use in sizing brass for use in your rifle. Please don’t hesitate to contact any of us on the Sinclair Tech Staff if you have any additional questions.



Cordially,



Bob Blaine
Sinclair Reloading Tech.
NRA Certified Reloading Instructor & RSO
Sinclair International, Inc.



sinclairintl.com/GunTech/The-Way-of-the-Sizing-Die/detail.htm?lid=16039

 

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buckeyesguy5XSergeant
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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
12/28/2016

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Well I think I was worried for nothing. I ran through 100 last night and while a bitch to size they seem to be gtg. When I got home I grabbed 10 random casings and quickly ran them through the rifle I intend to shoot them through (a sac built rifle) and the bolt operated as smooth as butter. I've processed plenty of LC brass in the past but never before was I knocking things off my bench trying to size them. This being my first run in with the LR variety I didn't know what to think. Thanks for everybody's thoughts, guess I just needed to man up and force it through lol

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bigedp51XGunny Sergeant
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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
12/28/2016

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padom wrote:
Ive never needed anything outside of a Forster FL sizing die to size LC brass or any other brass. I own them all, name the brand but the Forster works the best.​

padom, you must be almost as smart, good looking and modest as I am.



And then there are Redding dies fitted with a Forster expander that makes them supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.

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spawnof918vXFirst Sergeant
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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
12/28/2016

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bigedp51 wrote:

spawnof918v wrote:

Yes they will.

You are unaware Redding also makes a small base body die that sizes the shoulder area the same as a regular fl die and the bottom area .002" tighter.

In any event, the regular 308 body die will make sizing easier. For one, you are not sizing the neck. Second, it sizes less.​

Dear Spawn of the Dead

No shit, I wonder why they call them small base dies?????????

And don't argue with me, you will just "die" tired and loose the argument anyway.

Who do you think your trying to bullshit, a body die is "NOT" larger in diameter and is the same size as a standard sizing die.

Now go ahead and ask me how I know this................................

Nobody gives a shit about your pics of 223 dies and the assumptions you draw from reloading the 223. This is a 308 thread. I made a suggestion based on my actual hands on experience with body dies and LC brass. You don't have any experience with this so please shut your mouth.

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bigedp51XGunny Sergeant
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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
12/28/2016 Last edited 12/28/2016 by bigedp51

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spawnof918v wrote:​

Nobody gives a shit about your pics of 223 dies and the assumptions you draw from reloading the 223. This is a 308 thread. I made a suggestion based on my actual hands on experience with body dies and LC brass.​

You don't have any experience with this so please shut your mouth.​

bigedp51 wrote:​

Dear spawnof918v, your full of shit, your insane, you can't prove a word you said, and you don't know what you are talking about "AND" your dead wrong. (how many ways are there to say you have very brown eyes)​

Actually I have more dies and more experience than you have spawnof918v, in fact you are the very first person I have ever heard to make the incorrect assumption a body die has a larger diameter.



Now what good would a body die be to someone with a snug or smaller diameter custom chamber if the die did not reduce the case diameter enough???????

Meaning there is no such thing as a fat oversized, larger diameter body die. End of story.



So congratulations your a first in resizing history to make such a gigantic screw up, its bad enough your wrong but your also so hard headed you will never admit your wrong.​

Have a nice day..............and stick your head in a body die and let us know how much fecal debris comes out the top of the die.​

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padom

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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
12/28/2016 Last edited 12/28/2016 by padom

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Honestly, enough is enough. Im so sick of going into every thread and reading post after post of you too shitting on each other. Get a room, its turning into ARFCOM

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bigedp51XGunny Sergeant
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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
12/28/2016

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padom wrote:
Honestly, enough is enough. Im so sick of going into every thread and reading post after post of you too shitting on each other. Get a room, its turning into ARFCOM​

Actually I don't care what anyone thinks of my postings, what I do care about are new reloaders believing spawnof918v BS and actually believing his crap.



Dies are made to plus and minus manufacturing tolerances "BUT" they do not make oversized body dies.



spawnof918v might have a body die on the plus side of tolerances, he might have a well polished die, "BUT" not one body die is made oversized, period end of story.



What I do not like are so called experts saying things that are so far in right field they are unbelievable. What I do not like is spawnof918v thinking he is the resident expert and knows more than anyone else.



Maybe you have grown accustom to spawnof918v and his BS postings and it just slides off and you don't pay attention to his crap.



Its very simple, if you don't like my answers then get together with your forum buddies here and have me banned. And keep the BS answers spawnof918v gives out and your peace and harmony.



But I for one am very tired of spawnof918v comments and BS answers and you can bet your ass I sure as hell have not learned anything from him. So tell me who here is also tired of his endless crap and BS postings.

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Elfster4321

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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
12/28/2016

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If it's true lake city out of a military rifle it can have a HUGE headspace for once fired lake city. Depending on how much you're bumping the shoulder you might need to run thru the sizing die more than once if the target bump is extensive from the once fired you purchase online...

buckeyesguy5 wrote:

I just acquired some LC lr brass and am attempting to fl size it. My question, is this stuff always so damn hard to size? I've used regular LC, wcc, and fgmm in the past and nothing has even been comparable to this shit. Is this normal?​

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bigedp51XGunny Sergeant
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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
12/28/2016

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Elfster4321 wrote:
If it's true lake city out of a military rifle it can have a HUGE headspace for once fired lake city. Depending on how much you're bumping the shoulder you might need to run thru the sizing die more than once if the target bump is extensive from the once fired you purchase online...​

This is why I said to pause at the top of the ram stroke, this lets the brass know who is the boss and to stay put after sizing. Meaning far less brass spring back than not pausing by holding the case in the die longer under compression.

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OpxnvXCorporal
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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
01/04/2017

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I normally shoot LC LR '05 and '06 and Lapua.

Some time back, I bought a thousand pieces of LC LR '11. A few weeks ago, I started to full length size it. First, I tumbled it in small-grain corn - it came out real pretty. Then I annealed it. I use a good press with a Dillon carbide FL die and imperial sizing die wax. It was harder to size than the other LC LR but after one pass it shoots just fine. If you weigh it, I suspect that you will find that it is heavier than your other brass, significantly heaver than Lapua. For example, using LR LR '05, SMK 175, and 4064 powder, I load 40.8 grains - these loads shoot roughly 0.4" groups in one of my guns. With LC LR '11, the good load is 40.2 grains - for some strange reason these loads are shooting 0.290 groups in the same gun. There is a lot more brass in these cases.

Relax and work the handle - its good for you

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BearTexXGunny Sergeant
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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
01/05/2017

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bigedp51 wrote:

Elfster4321 wrote:
If it's true lake city out of a military rifle it can have a HUGE headspace for once fired lake city. Depending on how much you're bumping the shoulder you might need to run thru the sizing die more than once if the target bump is extensive from the once fired you purchase online...​

This is why I said to pause at the top of the ram stroke, this lets the brass know who is the boss and to stay put after sizing. Meaning far less brass spring back than not pausing by holding the case in the die longer under compression.​

i was having the same issue as the OP and both of these are what fixed mine. I wound up using a foster FL die and then a small base die to work it down to the right headspace. the brass untouched had a headspace of 1.6" and my chamber is roughly 1.578". the foster FL die would get it to 1.582" and the small base die knocked it again to 1.563 or something like that. either way, I did find out that I could get it back to about 1.568 by running it 3 times in the press and holding at the top on the stroke every time. Now its on to having fun at the range instead scratching the only hair I have left off of my head.

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OpxnvXCorporal
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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
01/05/2017

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Hi BearTex,

According to the SAAMI site, the datum line for 308 Win is 1.5598 -- call it 1.6. That is the distance from the base to the 0.400 line on the shoulder.

Please see this link: saami.org/PubResources/CC_Drawings/Rifle/308%20Winchester.pdf

I pulled 7 once-fired and completely unprocessed pieces of LR LR '11 out of my bucket. According to my handy dandy RCBS "precision micrometer", they are too long by 5, 5, 4, 6, 4, 5, and 7 thousands. So 1.5598 + 0.005 = 1.5648 and so forth. My chamber is -0.001 from the standard or 1.559. I lube and run that brass through my die once and push the shoulders back to -0.002 to -0.003 and make ammo.

You said that your chamber length is 1.578. That is about 0.022 short of the SAAMI standard. Did you do that on purpose or are now talking about a different cartridge or a different datum?

Keep Calm; Have Courage; Watch for Signs.

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BearTexXGunny Sergeant
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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
01/05/2017

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Opxnv wrote:
Hi BearTex,

According to the SAAMI site, the datum line for 308 Win is 1.5598 -- call it 1.6. That is the distance from the base to the 0.400 line on the shoulder.

Please see this link: saami.org/PubResources/CC_Drawings/Rifle/308%20Winchester.pdf

I pulled 7 once-fired and completely unprocessed pieces of LR LR '11 out of my bucket. According to my handy dandy RCBS "precision micrometer", they are too long by 5, 5, 4, 6, 4, 5, and 7 thousands. So 1.5598 + 0.005 = 1.5648 and so forth. My chamber is -0.001 from the standard or 1.559. I lube and run that brass through my die once and push the shoulders back to -0.002 to -0.003 and make ammo.

You said that your chamber length is 1.578. That is about 0.022 short of the SAAMI standard. Did you do that on purpose or are now talking about a different cartridge or a different datum?

Keep Calm; Have Courage; Watch for Signs.​

Thanks for the info. I do want to clarify that I was just giving my numbers for a reference of the differences I am seeing. I am using a harbor freight caliper with a Sinclair headspace gauge inside of a hornady body. I am sure I am measuring off something different than what SAAMI is so that is why mine are off by a little bit. I use my chamber as my final gauge to make sure it fits correctly.

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NukeMMC

X95 MONTHS
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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
01/06/2017 Last edited 01/06/2017 by NukeMMC

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Opxnv wrote:
According to the SAAMI site, the datum line for 308 Win is 1.5598 -- call it 1.6. That is the distance from the base to the 0.400 line on the shoulder.​

Incorrect. That measurement is the distance to the base of the shoulder which is at a diameter of .4540". The correct headspace dimension for a minimum headspace (GO gauge) is 1.630" (max or NO_GO is 1.640".

Any GO, NO-GO or FIELD gauge I have seen is marked with the headspace dimension it is ground to. My Mo's cartridge headspace gauge (similar to your RCBS) indexes "0" on my GO gauge.

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Elfster4321

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Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
01/08/2017 Last edited 01/08/2017 by Elfster4321

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buckeyesguy5 wrote:
I just acquired some LC lr brass and am attempting to fl size it. My question, is this stuff always so damn hard to size? I've used regular LC, wcc, and fgmm in the past and nothing has even been comparable to this shit. Is this normal?​

it's shown in full detail in my step by step video guide from buying HUGE headspace lake city brass online to your target bump headspace

step by step guide

say for example brass ejected out of YOUR rifle with YOUR bump/headspace guages is 1.457 and you need to bump this .223 / 5.56 brass down to say 1.454ish..... and the lake city brass you purchased online comes to your front door step with a HUGE headspace measurement of say 1.468ish (because it was shot out of a military rifle with a HUGE headspace),,, and you're trying to bump that brass down from 1.468 to 1.454" = A LOT BUMP!! what i would consider doing in this situation is bump that once fired lake city brass you purchased online from 1.468ish to say 1.457ish,,,, then run it back thru the same die but screw it down a little bit (2nd time around) more for your actual target bump of 1.454ish (each person's headspace / bump guage will produce a different measurement = all about how much you're bumping brass rather than the actual measurement)... hope this help.. bumping brass well over .01 is a LOT to bump in one shot and will produce inconsistent bumps... then once it's been sized, shot, and resized again... then you only need to bump it .003 to .005"!! that's it! that simple

 

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OpxnvXCorporal
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96 posts this site
Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
01/08/2017

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Hi Nuke,

Yup, I stated the wrong number. My bad, sorry guys. The print says 1.634-.007. On the upper cartridge part of the print, it is the third number under the cartridge. That corresponds to .400 datum line marked with a B above the cartridge.

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NukeMMC

X95 MONTHS
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Gunny Sergeant
Rating: 3.1/5 this site
663 posts this site
Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
01/08/2017

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I believe that means the max headspace for a cartridge is 1.634" and is essentially +0.000/-0.007", or 1.627-1.634". You will notice the chamber headspace dimension is 1.630-1.640". That means a cartridge has -0.004" (0.004" interference) to 0.013" (clearance).

Most factory ammo I have gauged measures 1.629-1.631", while most chambers are <1.635", with match chambers being 1.630-1.633" (match gas guns are usually 1.631-1.633" for reliability shooting issued ammo like the old M118Special Ball (UGGGHHHH!!!!!)

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OpxnvXCorporal
Rating: 3.2/5 this site
96 posts this site
Re: Lake City LR brass sizing
01/08/2017

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Concur. I gauge my fired brass. I have a rifle where the fired brass in +0.004 and another one where the fired brass in -0.001. When loading for the latter rifle, I make the brass -0.003. After sizing, if I remove the firing pin and chamber a piece of brass, the bolt handle drops freely. If I make the brass -0.002, just a thou longer, the bolt handle sticks just a bit at the bottom as it closes. I prefer the extra thou. I'm rebarreling that other gun, guess what length the new chamber will be