O ring on bullet when seating? (7 SAUM VLD's)

[dperry2086]

I was reloading my rounds last night and had something happen to me I've never had happen to me before. When I seat the bullets into position it is leaving a O-groove on my rounds. See attached pictures. I know I ordered the VLD stem because thats what I am using. So I am unsure if maybe I got the wrong stem, or what is going on. There is still room in the cases for more powder, so its not like I am cramming them too deep. Any insight is good.

Thanks. Dave

 

[stewarmy01]

One possibility is too much neck tension. Another is a cracked seating stem. Take your stem out and give it a hard look with a flashlight looking for anything from a large crack to a hairline crack.

 

[stewarmy01]

What die are you using?

 

[dperry2086]

LE Wilson
I did the measure the diameter of the bullet, add wall thicknessx2, subtract 2 thou and got a .314 bushing.
Checked the stem and didnt see anything out of the ordinary.

 

[Powder_Burns]

Seating stem doesn’t match the ogive shape, pretty common issue. If you aren’t doing br or f-class, you can ignore it and just shoot..if it chafes your ocd then you can have a seating stem ordered to match your bullet or have a smith make one up for you.

 

[stewarmy01]

Measure the outside neck diameter with your calipers before and after seating a bullet for neck tension just to calibrate your bushing calculations. Spring back from work hardening will cause you to need to go to a larger bushing as you continue to reload a case over time if you do not anneal

 

[Huskydriver]

Pretty common. Just wrap a bullet in some 500 grit sand paper or use some lapping compound and lap the inside of your stem to better fit the bullet shape

 

[PinesAndProjectiles]

Do you inside chamfer the necks on your brass?

If not, the sharp edge on the mouth could be catching on the bullet, which would require more force to seat the bullet.

 

[stewarmy01]

I wouldn’t dive right into a custom stem. I feel that is like throwing parts at a vehicle when you don’t know the exact cause. Determine the cause, then remedy.

 

[stewarmy01]

Take a bullet and fit it with both your stems out of the die. The stem it likes will show little to no wiggle, but I would explore neck tension if you have loaded this brass and bullet combo without issue before

 

[stewarmy01]

Do you inside chamfer the necks on your brass?

If not, the sharp edge on the mouth could be catching on the bullet, which would require more force to seat the bullet.

This could be a viable issue as well. Can’t see really well, but it appears the case mouth shaved a little copper off the bullet in your first picture. If so, add more inside neck chamfer

 

[straightshooter1]

Pretty common. Just wrap a bullet in some 500 grit sand paper or use some lapping compound and lap the inside of your stem to better fit the bullet shape

^^^^^^^ do this

 

[stewarmy01]

^^^^^^^ do this

If you have loaded this bullet without the ring before, don’t do this....I have jumped the gun on things like this before and have been stuck buying new equipment.

 

[upsdownsideways]

Is it a indent or just a brush mark?

 

[GordonsGarage]

Lap that stem, if neck tension or burs aren't an issue.
I've power lapped mine before (follow at your own risk), put some lapping compound on a sacrificial bullet, chuck the base end in your drill, proceed to power lap.
I think I sacrificed a couple bullets to keep the original bullet shape as good as possible.
It's almost free, and you can always order a new stem for that particular bullet if you're unhappy with the results.

 

[stewarmy01]

Yes to GordonsGarage’s comment. If the tension or burrs are not this issue, do what he said with lapping compound. I do not recommend the sandpaper method for anything other than knocking a burr off the circumference of the stem.

 

[NH4X]

More inside neck chamfer

Lap seating stem to bullet

Lube inside case neck

1st before above mentioned remedies , make sure neck tension isnt too much/ tight

Good luck

 

[stewarmy01]

Only use dry lube in your case necks such as graphite (preferred) or motor mica

 

[seanh]

I get that same ring if I don't have the proper chamfer on the neck, if the neck tension is too tight or if the stem doesn't match the bullet.

While the two types of neck tension can cause point of impact changes the ring itself does not. It's simply a cosmetic flaw

 

[Steel head]

Pretty common. Just wrap a bullet in some 500 grit sand paper or use some lapping compound and lap the inside of your stem to better fit the bullet shape

 

[dperry2086]

Sorry for the delayed response. Thanks for all the pointers as well. I do chamfer both inside and out to remove all burrs. I sent an email to LE Wilson and they are going to match my bullets to the stem for the price of shipping. If this does not fix the problem then will try some above mentioned tips.
Thanks all

 

[MCHOG]

Make sure you aren't compressing your load.