I'm wondering if I can gain any additional accuracy/consistency by switching to different dies, and/or a different press. I figure that there must be some reason that so many of you are quite fond of the expensive Redding dies, and others.
I started reloading when I was a poor college student (and I've always been a bit cheap). As such, I'm still running all of my precision rifle ammo on a Lee Classic Turret press (single stage style), using a $20 set of Lee dies. For my AIAX 260 my current process usually involves full-length sizing the brass with the Lee die, then seating the bullet with a Lee die. After the first firing I'll neck size with the Lee Collet Die for a couple of firings, then eventually full-length size again when the cases start to become difficult to chamber.
I wouldn't say that I've had bad results with this setup, and I've shot well enough with my rifle. But, I wonder if I could shoot better, and achieve noticeably increased accuracy by going to a different setup. I've been thinking of trying something like a Forster Co-Ax press with Redding dies, but even browsing the Redding lineup is enough to make your head spin all on its own (bushings, body dies, micrometer dies, etc). I know a lot of people hate Lee to begin with, but I've always taken the approach of figuring that it doesn't need fixed if it isn't broken. However, since I've increased my personal skill set with a precision rifle over the years, and am now using equipment that's worth as much as my car, I'm also starting to wonder if it's time to make other upgrades. Would it make a difference, or would I be better off just spending the money on more bullets?
The things I don't like about my current setup are as follows:
1) I don't feel like there is consistent neck tension when I seat each bullet after neck sizing. I'm going solely on feel here, and not any real measurement of neck tension. But, some bullets seat easily, while others feel more "correct".
2) I feel like I could conceivably have different on-target results by shooting some rounds from brass that was neck sized, and other rounds from brass that was full-length sized (I neck size because it's fast, and saves wear-and-tear on the brass). I'm often shooting brass from the exact same loading session, but occasionally I need to mix them. For example, when I shot the NRAWC Sporting Rifle Match over the weekend I had 50 pieces of brass on their first firing. These pieces were all full-length sized before loading. The match requires 60 rounds, and the only other ammo I had available at the time was brass on its second firing, which had been neck sized. Did this make any difference in the match? I couldn't possibly say… I shot well with it, but could I have shot better with a different loading process?
What do you guys think? What do you use, and why do you like it? Have you tried other systems?
So much of this activity is about eliminating variables. I'm scratching my head over where I could or should eliminate some more. This also isn't bench rest shooting, and a lot of our "game" comes down to wind calls, and dealing with field conditions. But, there's also no denying that accuracy begins at the reloading bench, at least to some extent.
I started reloading when I was a poor college student (and I've always been a bit cheap). As such, I'm still running all of my precision rifle ammo on a Lee Classic Turret press (single stage style), using a $20 set of Lee dies. For my AIAX 260 my current process usually involves full-length sizing the brass with the Lee die, then seating the bullet with a Lee die. After the first firing I'll neck size with the Lee Collet Die for a couple of firings, then eventually full-length size again when the cases start to become difficult to chamber.
I wouldn't say that I've had bad results with this setup, and I've shot well enough with my rifle. But, I wonder if I could shoot better, and achieve noticeably increased accuracy by going to a different setup. I've been thinking of trying something like a Forster Co-Ax press with Redding dies, but even browsing the Redding lineup is enough to make your head spin all on its own (bushings, body dies, micrometer dies, etc). I know a lot of people hate Lee to begin with, but I've always taken the approach of figuring that it doesn't need fixed if it isn't broken. However, since I've increased my personal skill set with a precision rifle over the years, and am now using equipment that's worth as much as my car, I'm also starting to wonder if it's time to make other upgrades. Would it make a difference, or would I be better off just spending the money on more bullets?
The things I don't like about my current setup are as follows:
1) I don't feel like there is consistent neck tension when I seat each bullet after neck sizing. I'm going solely on feel here, and not any real measurement of neck tension. But, some bullets seat easily, while others feel more "correct".
2) I feel like I could conceivably have different on-target results by shooting some rounds from brass that was neck sized, and other rounds from brass that was full-length sized (I neck size because it's fast, and saves wear-and-tear on the brass). I'm often shooting brass from the exact same loading session, but occasionally I need to mix them. For example, when I shot the NRAWC Sporting Rifle Match over the weekend I had 50 pieces of brass on their first firing. These pieces were all full-length sized before loading. The match requires 60 rounds, and the only other ammo I had available at the time was brass on its second firing, which had been neck sized. Did this make any difference in the match? I couldn't possibly say… I shot well with it, but could I have shot better with a different loading process?
What do you guys think? What do you use, and why do you like it? Have you tried other systems?
So much of this activity is about eliminating variables. I'm scratching my head over where I could or should eliminate some more. This also isn't bench rest shooting, and a lot of our "game" comes down to wind calls, and dealing with field conditions. But, there's also no denying that accuracy begins at the reloading bench, at least to some extent.
