I am a new reloader. Currently developing a few different loads for two calibers, .223 and .308. Both are fired from AR-style auto-feed rifles.
I am having an issue only with the .308 rounds which is what has prompted this post. Specifically, I am having a hard time seating the bullets and the bullets are being left with marks up to deformities created by the bullet seater portion of the die. I am working through these issues with a lot of research and a bit of experimentation with dummy rounds while trying not to burn money. To add to the issue, I've already primed all of the brass. Lesson learned on that one.
Technical details, some of which I believe are leading to my issues:
-Brass is wet-tumbled in stainless media with a bit of soap and vinegar. Force dried using moving air.
-I'm using two different cases, one was sized by me (will get to specifics) and one came pre-sized. The cases I sized are PMC, the pre-sized, once fired cases are Lake City, purchased pre-processed by a reputable company. Half of the PMC brass was shot by me, half by others. Full length resize, reamed, unified primer pockets, annealed but necks not trimmed to length.
-PMC is difficult to load, LC is easier but not a cake walk.
-The monolithic bullets I'm loading are the most difficult.
The die I used to size the PMC brass is a Series 1 Horady 308 WIN custom grade, full length die set, Item number 546358, on loan from the individual helping me to learn hand loading. He is very much a precision reloader and shoots bolt guns. I, on the other hand, have the need for a larger amount of ammo and I shoot out of a precision build AR15 and an off-the-shelf small frame AR10. So I'm not expecting a half MOA at 600 yards if you catch my drift although it'd be nice. Both are quite capable, more so than myself as a shooter.
The PMC brass neck tension is too high. Even though I did a full resize on all of them, it's much more difficult to seat the bullets, especially in the initial seating. The Lake City is far easier but initially was a bit on the difficult side. I experienced none of this with the .223 test rounds I loaded.
After more research, I decided to try dry lubing the PMC necks with RCBS dry lube powder. It helped a bit but was not perfect. Still leaving marks on my bullets. I then tried the same on the Lake City brass which yielded a bigger improvement and overall the LC stuff has been much easier to seat a bullet in. My next mod was to de-burr the mouth, inside and out, on the PMC even though they weren't trimmed and I couldn't feel anything on the lip. I also decided to lube the bullets with Hornady OneShot lube. Placed my needed 25 bullets in a bag, sprayed and agitated the bag making sure the bullets were covered. Pulled them out of the bag by the tip and carefully set them in a reloading tray for the volatiles to evaporate (dry out).
I did notice an improvement with the PMC but still not easy or mark-free by any means. The Lake City stuff was far, far easier and although I did have a ring around the bullet, it's barely visible and there are no physical indentations whatsoever at this point.
I obviously need to resize the necks on the PMC brass. I have, somewhere in the neighborhood of 850 primed. Now you feel my pain. I don't fully understand why the Hornady die is not sizing the necks correctly. This is a borrowed die and I know it's seen some use but I can't imagine that's the factor.
So now I'm looking at the Redding Type S "match" two die set since I'm sure, at some point, he'll want his die set back. The Redding set is quite a bit more expensive than other offerings but from what I've read, it prevents the bullet marring and I can purchase bushings with different diameters to size the necks correctly. But is it overkill from a cost/accuracy standpoint given my goals? Is there a less expensive offering which'll do what I need it to do? Any other pointers would be greatly appreciated even if they're just links to threads I might not have come across yet. I've spent more time than I realistically have researching and it's a deep, deep rabbit hole.
Photo of a bullet marred by seating process....
I am having an issue only with the .308 rounds which is what has prompted this post. Specifically, I am having a hard time seating the bullets and the bullets are being left with marks up to deformities created by the bullet seater portion of the die. I am working through these issues with a lot of research and a bit of experimentation with dummy rounds while trying not to burn money. To add to the issue, I've already primed all of the brass. Lesson learned on that one.
Technical details, some of which I believe are leading to my issues:
-Brass is wet-tumbled in stainless media with a bit of soap and vinegar. Force dried using moving air.
-I'm using two different cases, one was sized by me (will get to specifics) and one came pre-sized. The cases I sized are PMC, the pre-sized, once fired cases are Lake City, purchased pre-processed by a reputable company. Half of the PMC brass was shot by me, half by others. Full length resize, reamed, unified primer pockets, annealed but necks not trimmed to length.
-PMC is difficult to load, LC is easier but not a cake walk.
-The monolithic bullets I'm loading are the most difficult.
The die I used to size the PMC brass is a Series 1 Horady 308 WIN custom grade, full length die set, Item number 546358, on loan from the individual helping me to learn hand loading. He is very much a precision reloader and shoots bolt guns. I, on the other hand, have the need for a larger amount of ammo and I shoot out of a precision build AR15 and an off-the-shelf small frame AR10. So I'm not expecting a half MOA at 600 yards if you catch my drift although it'd be nice. Both are quite capable, more so than myself as a shooter.
The PMC brass neck tension is too high. Even though I did a full resize on all of them, it's much more difficult to seat the bullets, especially in the initial seating. The Lake City is far easier but initially was a bit on the difficult side. I experienced none of this with the .223 test rounds I loaded.
After more research, I decided to try dry lubing the PMC necks with RCBS dry lube powder. It helped a bit but was not perfect. Still leaving marks on my bullets. I then tried the same on the Lake City brass which yielded a bigger improvement and overall the LC stuff has been much easier to seat a bullet in. My next mod was to de-burr the mouth, inside and out, on the PMC even though they weren't trimmed and I couldn't feel anything on the lip. I also decided to lube the bullets with Hornady OneShot lube. Placed my needed 25 bullets in a bag, sprayed and agitated the bag making sure the bullets were covered. Pulled them out of the bag by the tip and carefully set them in a reloading tray for the volatiles to evaporate (dry out).
I did notice an improvement with the PMC but still not easy or mark-free by any means. The Lake City stuff was far, far easier and although I did have a ring around the bullet, it's barely visible and there are no physical indentations whatsoever at this point.
I obviously need to resize the necks on the PMC brass. I have, somewhere in the neighborhood of 850 primed. Now you feel my pain. I don't fully understand why the Hornady die is not sizing the necks correctly. This is a borrowed die and I know it's seen some use but I can't imagine that's the factor.
So now I'm looking at the Redding Type S "match" two die set since I'm sure, at some point, he'll want his die set back. The Redding set is quite a bit more expensive than other offerings but from what I've read, it prevents the bullet marring and I can purchase bushings with different diameters to size the necks correctly. But is it overkill from a cost/accuracy standpoint given my goals? Is there a less expensive offering which'll do what I need it to do? Any other pointers would be greatly appreciated even if they're just links to threads I might not have come across yet. I've spent more time than I realistically have researching and it's a deep, deep rabbit hole.
Photo of a bullet marred by seating process....
