Seekins SP10 Review. Craddock/Proof Research

[bigjake83]

Starting with the basic SP10 rifle as it came from the Factory with the standard rifle length gas system.

First with the bad.

Unfortunately the version I received had the Rifle Length Gas and no matter of fine tuning with the Gas or buffer weight could fix the abuse it played on the brass and crude cycling and bolt bounce that started premature wear on the rear of the bolt lugs.

The OEM Timney trigger had substantial and very noticeable creep when doing a slow controlled trigger pull so I replaced it with a TriggerTech AR10 Diamond. When I first received the rifle it had a bent gas tube that was binding inside the gas key of the BCG. I didn't care much for the barrel contour after the .750 gas block journal it would step down to .730 to the muzzle and seemed to suffer from poor Barrel harmonics and substantial barrel whip.

After encountering these issue one phone call to Seekins they completely revamped the rifle no questions asked with the exception of the barrel as it was thier current barrel offering and it was still shooting satisfactory, but bar none Seekins Customer Service is one of the best in the industry.

Now for the positives.

The Receiver Set and handguard have been phenomenal to date and after several thousand rounds the receivers still lock up tight with absolutely no slop. The 15" Handguard is perfect for shooting from barricades and fits a Arca rail perfectly.
The ATC Muzzle brake was surprisingly effective with maintaining sight recovery.

Out of the box as it originally came it maintained .75 MOA with all Harnady ammo but had unexplained flyers.

At this point I decided to pull the barrel and BCG and replace it with 22" Craddock Bartlein with the +2 gas system headspaced to a JP Bolt, APA Gen3 Little Bastard adjustable muzzle brake and a Lantac Carrier with the oversized rear boss and forward facing gas vents and a SA AGB. The end result is the softest shooting 6.5CM I've even owned.

The results were nothing short of spectacular.

But unfortunately the gas port in the the Craddock barrel took a catastrophic turn for the worst and developed a burr at the gas port that was unrepairable.

After contacting Craddock the current wait time for a barrel replacement would of put me 12 months out, but again with exceptional customer service Paul issued a full refund.

At this point instead of waiting 12 months I opted to go with a 24" Proof Research Carbon Fiber barrel that has shown to be a solid performer right out of the gate the PRCF barrel shot .5 MOA with Factory ammo.

After a healthy 200rd break-in the PRCF has become one of my top performers. I initially had some hesitation with how the barrel was performing with the groups opening up especially under high heat. It turns out is was just mirage causing sight disruption the illusion of the groups opening up.

First round of load development.

The below groups were shot today solidifying several load options that are all Sub .5 MOA

The Seekins SP10 has shown to be a true performer no matter what tube I install.

To date Seekins has rectified the earlier discrepancies with the addition of a + 1.5 Gas system and a updated bolt. I have absolutely no reservations recommending the SP10 to any shooter.

Thanks for reading.

Jake

 

[loclass]

Good info on the Seekins rifle and the various barrels you've had installed.

With the burr in the gas port of the Craddock, was the barrel still shooting well? I ask because I have a Compass Lake barrel in 6 ARC that has a gas port that looks nearly identical to that, yet it hasn't lost any of its accuracy. And according to the response I received from Compass Lake, the erosion is normal and acceptable.

 

[bigjake83]

Good info on the Seekins rifle and the various barrels you've had installed.

With the burr in the gas port of the Craddock, was the barrel still shooting well? I ask because I have a Compass Lake barrel in 6 ARC that has a gas port that looks nearly identical to that, yet it hasn't lost any of its accuracy. And according to the response I received from Compass Lake, the erosion is normal and acceptable.

Yes the groups opened up to around 2 MOA, gas port erosion is normal it's when the port develops a burr that strips the copper jacket when shit will go sideways.

 

[Precision Underground]

Good info on the Seekins rifle and the various barrels you've had installed.

With the burr in the gas port of the Craddock, was the barrel still shooting well? I ask because I have a Compass Lake barrel in 6 ARC that has a gas port that looks nearly identical to that, yet it hasn't lost any of its accuracy. And according to the response I received from Compass Lake, the erosion is normal and acceptable.

We had the same thing happen to the gas port on a BA barrel that I bought bc it was so ridic cheap I had to try it out of curiosity. It was a laser but accuracy went to hell with the copper blob at the port. After scrubbing for an hour with no progress I just left a wet patch on it overnight and that melted it away. Accuracy came back and after another cleaning or two to make sure it wasn’t it grabbing too much copper it shoots really well and doesn’t really build up there anymore. I think as long as it smooths out and isn’t sharp on the edges it will be fine.

@bigjake83 I’d have a hard time sending that craddock back after those first groups! Although the proof group may be the smallest I’ve ever seen from a gas gun. Did you try getting the copper off of there?

 

[kriller134]

I don’t have much time behind my sp10, but so far I love it. I do have a couple of annoyances though. First the ejection cover isn’t installed correctly. The pin isn’t seated all the way, so it flops around a bit when I close it. Not a huge deal, but I don’t have a punch long enough to tap it in. Second is the mag latch is not fished like the rest of the parts on the lower. None of these “issues” bother me enough to warrant a call or to send the rifle back. I do have slop in between the upper and lower. Nothing major, but not a solid lock up like @bigjake83 talks about. Either way I still love it and I do need to do an actual load dev on it.

 

[bigjake83]

We had the same thing happen to the gas port on a BA barrel that I bought bc it was so ridic cheap I had to try it out of curiosity. It was a laser but accuracy went to hell with the copper blob at the port. After scrubbing for an hour with no progress I just left a wet patch on it overnight and that melted it away. Accuracy came back and after another cleaning or two to make sure it wasn’t it grabbing too much copper it shoots really well and doesn’t really build up there anymore. I think as long as it smooths out and isn’t sharp on the edges it will be fine.

@bigjake83 I’d have a hard time sending that craddock back after those first groups! Although the proof group may be the smallest I’ve ever seen from a gas gun. Did you try getting the copper off of there?

Yes I tried everything, it wasn't about the copper. If you look at the first bore picture you can there is actually a sharp ridge and that is what was stripping the jackets off the bullets. After sending those photos in Paul said there was no fixing it. Obviously it wasn't anybody's fault shit happens! but I still give huge amount of respect and credit to Paul for his outstanding customer service.

What solvent did you use when you soaked a patch and let it sit at the gas port??

I thought about doing the same thing but a lot of the copper removing solvents have high amounts of ammonia and can damage SS barrels if left too long.

 

[bigjake83]

Next up I will be doing a review of my LaRue OBR project with a 18" 6.5CM CLE Bartlein, DD5 V5 .260 and a second SP10 with a 22" 6.5CM CLE Bartlein.

 

[346ci]

Great review and shooting. Seekins went above and beyond to handle a issue I had, will be considering them for future rifles or builds.

What does the rifle weigh with the Proof CF barrel?

 

[bigjake83]

Great review and shooting. Seekins went above and beyond to handle a issue I had, will be considering them for future rifles or builds.

What does the rifle weigh with the Proof CF barrel?

Thank you Sir, told ya fuckers I'd get the review out eventually..lol

The SP10 with the PRCF comes in at 13.6 LBS as pictured above.

That 18" OBR is what shocked me she comes in at 15.6 LBS

 

[Jsp556]

Good shooting. Nice work.

 

[bigjake83]

Good shooting. Nice work.

Thanks brother.

 

[bigjake83]

Any other requests with the above rifles?? I'm trying to get all of my range reports and reviews done before I head back overseas for winter. I told the guys at Daniel Defense I'd get the DD5 V5 write up done soon but I'm finding out DD chrome lined barrels don't break in all that quickly...lol

If anyone has any recommendations for cheap .260 ammo that I could use to get the barrel broken in so I can get started on load development, I'd really appreciate it.

 

[wade2big]

Did you bed or shim the proof carbon and Bartlein barrel into the upper? I asked Seekins customer service if they bed the barrel extensions into the factory sp10 uppers and was told they do not. Was this true when you pulled the factory barrel?

 

[bigjake83]

Did you bed or shim the proof carbon and Bartlein barrel into the upper? I asked Seekins customer service if they bed the barrel extensions into the factory sp10 uppers and was told they do not. Was this true when you pulled the factory barrel?

I don't recall any bedding compound being used on the original Seekins Barrel, the barrel nut however was very tight at over 90 lbf-ft.
Im pretty sure Seekins does something different for the M-series uppers.

I did use Loctite 620 on both barrels. Be very cautious and clean up any excess after seating the barrel and pay close attention to not get any inside of the internal barrel nut threads.

 

[Precision Underground]

Yes I tried everything, it wasn't about the copper. If you look at the first bore picture you can there is actually a sharp ridge and that is what was stripping the jackets off the bullets. After sending those photos in Paul said there was no fixing it. Obviously it wasn't anybody's fault shit happens! but I still give huge amount of respect and credit to Paul for his outstanding customer service.

What solvent did you use when you soaked a patch and let it sit at the gas port??

I thought about doing the same thing but a lot of the copper removing solvents have high amounts of ammonia and can damage SS barrels if left too long.

I used boretech eliminator. It supposedly won’t harm metal at all and they say you can actually just leave it in there indefinitely. Yep yours is pretty chunky. Mine was more of a peel than a chunk so it was tapered vs jagged. After some rounds and some cleaning it’s pretty smooth and doesn’t grab anymore.

 

[Jsp556]

Would like to see if the poi wanders on the DD rifle like some people report. The couple I’ve seen haven’t but maybe they’re outliers. Both of the owners of these two loosened and retorqued the handguard/barrel bolts to equal torque values.

 

[bigjake83]

Would like to see if the poi wanders on the DD rifle like some people report. The couple I’ve seen haven’t but maybe they’re outliers. Both of the owners of these two loosened and retorqued the handguard/barrel bolts to equal torque values.

I've done the same as well as bed the barrel with 620, I torqued the bolts in a cross pattern to 110 IN-LB.

One of the first things I noticed when removing the handguard the OEM gas block showed signs of wear from making contact with the inside of the handguard I'm assuming from barrel whip during recoil or loading the bipod, it didn't take much pressure at all to make the GB and handguard make contact.

The rifle was very over gassed with FGMM with the ejection pattern being between 12-1.

The OEM AGB is only adjustable for surpressed and unsuppressed so I installed a low profile AGB to fine tune the system.

 

[PorkChop]

Ahh 260, MEOW

 

[Precision Underground]

I've done the same as well as bed the barrel with 620, I torqued the bolts in a cross pattern to 110 IN-LB.

One of the first things I noticed when removing the handguard the OEM gas block showed signs of wear from making contact with the inside of the handguard I'm assuming from barrel whip during recoil or loading the bipod, it didn't take much pressure at all to make the GB and handguard make contact.

The rifle was very over gassed with FGMM with the ejection pattern being between 12-1.

The OEM AGB is only adjustable for surpressed and unsuppressed so I installed a low profile AGB to fine tune the system.

View attachment 7976021View attachment 7976023
View attachment 7976024

My brother has a DD “ambush” which is I guess is/was their hunting line. It’s ridic accurate and shoots almost any ammo really well. I think it has the higher end barrel but I’m not sure. I’ve scoped it and it doesn’t look chrome lined but I could be wrong. I’m not sure I’ve ever scoped a chrome lined barrel or if it even looks any different. To me it looks like grainy like all of my stainless barrels. Does chrome look different with a borescope?

 

[bigjake83]

My brother has a DD “ambush” which is I guess is/was their hunting line. It’s ridic accurate and shoots almost any ammo really well. I think it has the higher end barrel but I’m not sure. I’ve scoped it and it doesn’t look chrome lined but I could be wrong. I’m not sure I’ve ever scoped a chrome lined barrel or if it even looks any different. To me it looks like grainy like all of my stainless barrels. Does chrome look different with a borescope?

Yes there is a very distinctive difference between the two Chrome looks... well chromed!..lol

Chromed:

Stainless:

 

[HotRod68Camaro]

Any other requests with the above rifles?? I'm trying to get all of my range reports and reviews done before I head back overseas for winter. I told the guys at Daniel Defense I'd get the DD5 V5 write up done soon but I'm finding out DD chrome lined barrels don't break in all that quickly...lol

If anyone has any recommendations for cheap .260 ammo that I could use to get the barrel broken in so I can get started on load development, I'd really appreciate it.

Really interested in hearing about that Larue. Keeping my low serial number OBR as is, but i have a PredatAR upper I'm seriously considering putting a PRCF 6.5CM barrel in.

 

[lennyo3034]

About the ideal setup. I run Mega MML receivers but I like Seekins a bit more. The Mega relies on torque to keep the barrel nut in place, Seekins has a set screw to help it stay. I’ve had a Mega barrel nut back out before at 50ftlb and have to take to at least 80 (small frame) to prevent this. Seekins allows lower barrel nut torque values which sometimes is beneficial for accuracy.

Also I think the Seekins puts the barrel lower in handguard making CG lower.

 

[Precision Underground]

Yes there is a very distinctive difference between the two Chrome looks... well chromed!..lol

Chromed:
View attachment 7976198

Stainless:
View attachment 7976199

Yea I think his is stainless. Now that I think about it we’ve got a chrome DD and a Core that I’ve scoped before I just don’t remember what they looked like. I scoped them right when they came in and haven’t done much with them yet. I’m curious how those will shoot. They’re in higher end carbines/pistols but I haven’t had the time to see what they’ll do with good ammo. Initial testing with bulk ammo was promising though. Let us know how the chrome DD shoots!

 

[bigjake83]

Yea I think his is stainless. Now that I think about it we’ve got a chrome DD and a Core that I’ve scoped before I just don’t remember what they looked like. I scoped them right when they came in and haven’t done much with them yet. I’m curious how those will shoot. They’re in higher end carbines/pistols but I haven’t had the time to see what they’ll do with good ammo. Initial testing with bulk ammo was promising though. Let us know how the chrome DD shoots!

Will do, I've got a few loaded up now. I'll update after my next range trip.

 

[bigjake83]

The Compass Lake Santa Claus made a delivery today. 22" of Bartlein goodness.

 

[ToddM]

It happens to them all sooner or later. I have a JP Supermatch 224v barrel that has a similar burr at the gas port, and accuracy as one might imagine has been horrible. It's hard to see in this picture but once I cleaned more of the copper out more you could really see the steel burr. I'm currently trying to work with JP on getting a resolution but unfortunately they no longer make the .224 barrel. It's interesting that Craddock concluded it was non-repairable because JP offered to try and clean it up or replace the barrel with one of a different caliber but they've gone dark for a few weeks now. At the time of these pictures this barrel had probably 200 rounds though it, I'm guessing it either came this way, or happened very early on because accuracy was bad from the start.

 

[Precision Underground]

It happens to them all sooner or later. I have a JP Supermatch 224v barrel that has a similar burr at the gas port, and accuracy as one might imagine has been horrible. It's hard to see in this picture but once I cleaned more of the copper out more you could really see the steel burr. I'm currently trying to work with JP on getting a resolution but unfortunately they no longer make the .224 barrel. It's interesting that Craddock concluded it was non-repairable because JP offered to try and clean it up or replace the barrel with one of a different caliber but they've gone dark for a few weeks now. At the time of these pictures this barrel had probably 200 rounds though it, I'm guessing it either came this way, or happened very early on because accuracy was bad from the start.

View attachment 7976770

View attachment 7976782

Man that’s a clear borescope. I looked back at mine bc I couldnt remember what it looked like. First thing I notice is how bad the Lyman scope was lol. I also see why my accuracy came back and y’all’s may not. Mine was a chunk out of the lands vs out of the actual port. Now that it has smoothed out it’s almost like the throat of a nicely broken in chamber. It’s basically a ramp on the land vs a chunk out of a groove.

 

[bigjake83]

It happens to them all sooner or later. I have a JP Supermatch 224v barrel that has a similar burr at the gas port, and accuracy as one might imagine has been horrible. It's hard to see in this picture but once I cleaned more of the copper out more you could really see the steel burr. I'm currently trying to work with JP on getting a resolution but unfortunately they no longer make the .224 barrel. It's interesting that Craddock concluded it was non-repairable because JP offered to try and clean it up or replace the barrel with one of a different caliber but they've gone dark for a few weeks now. At the time of these pictures this barrel had probably 200 rounds though it, I'm guessing it either came this way, or happened very early on because accuracy was bad from the start.

View attachment 7976770

View attachment 7976782

Those dents in your gas port look like damage from improper cleaning, next time scope your barrel before starting barrel break-in.

This is how the gas port should look, this is around 500rds Bartlein (.308) the wear on the gas port should be smooth.

Proof Research CF 366rds (6.5CM)

18" Bartlein OBR 186rds (6.5CM)

 

[bfoosh006]

Excellent reviews, excellent info. Tiny groups are an inspiration to all.
Thanks

And outstanding CS from all the manufacturers.

Any other thoughts , concerning the OEM Seekins barrel, and the bolt lug "battering" cause ?
Do you think the barrel could have been slightly out of "clock" ? ( Lack of a better explanation / word )

I ask, because a friend had a 308 that was battering the holy crap out of his bolt lugs, and his was out of clock... guessing by only a few minutes / degrees.
Ultimately, when it was taken apart the barrels receiver extension alignment pin fell out.
So when the barrel nut was tightened, the barrel twisted slightly, and the alignment pin was acting like a wedge
That tiny amount of off alignment, threw off the timing badly.

I will have to look for the pics of his bolt lugs... they had ( while far worse then yours ) the same wear pattern.
For me, His battered bolt lugs showed me how important "timing" really is, even on such a taken for granted spot.

 

[bigjake83]

Excellent reviews, excellent info. Tiny groups are an inspiration to all.
Thanks

And outstanding CS from all the manufacturers.

Any other thoughts , concerning the OEM Seekins barrel, and the bolt lug "battering" cause ?
Do you think the barrel could have been slightly out of "clock" ? ( Lack of a better explanation / word )

I ask, because a friend had a 308 that was battering the holy crap out of his bolt lugs, and his was out of clock... guessing by only a few minutes / degrees.
Ultimately, when it was taken apart the barrels receiver extension alignment pin fell out.
So when the barrel nut was tightened, the barrel twisted slightly, and the alignment pin was acting like a wedge
That tiny amount of off alignment, threw off the timing badly.

I will have to look for the pics of his bolt lugs... they had ( while far worse then yours ) the same wear pattern.
For me, His battered bolt lugs showed me how important "timing" really is, even on such a taken for granted spot.

I spoke with Matty a few times about the issue with the bolt, My take on it was due to bolt bounce from the over gassed system.

Everyone at Seekins was more than accommodating, and basically said if it breaks we'll send you a new one so just keep shooting.

Even with these minor issues that have all been addressed the SP10 is a solid rifle with Customer Service that is second to none in the industry.

 

[kriller134]

@bigjake83 do you know what the circled threaded hole is for?

 

[bigjake83]

@bigjake83 do you know what the circled threaded hole is for?View attachment 7976894

Yes Sir, there's a set screw in there that holds the rod for the dust cover.

 

[kriller134]

Yes Sir, there's a set screw in there that holds the rod for the dust cover.

Thank you! There’s nothing in there. I guess that’s why my dust cover is loose on one end . I’ll hit them up for one.

 

[ToddM]

Those dents in your gas port look like damage from improper cleaning, next time scope your barrel before starting barrel break-in.

View attachment 7976818

It would have been a good idea to bore scope it first admittedly, but even if I had, you see dozens of forum posts about how burrs on gas ports are no big deal and will shoot out, even manufacturers saying the same thing, and not to believe various things you see in a bore scope until you shoot the gun. So I probably wouldn't have complained about it even if I had seen it new until a couple range trips.

It's hard to trust what you see in a bore scope and predict accuracy, I mostly use it to verify how cleaning is going, carbon rings etc. I have a Clark S&W41 barrel that looks so bad it would make you throw up in your mouth but when tested shot 1/2" groups at 50yds. Also have an old LTR that has ugly chatter marks most of the barrel but shoots as well as anything else I have. I have another JP 223 barrel that was part of a sale batch they had and came pitted, or it's the only gun that pitted on it's own in the safe in a climate controlled room with the same care process applied to it.....not likely, that one I wish I would have caught but it still shoots very well.

Also here's a view of the gas port on my JP 6.5, it's been cleaned quite a bit more with the same process and has 5x the rounds down it. Pretty sure if it was my cleaning this one would show it.

 

[ToddM]

Man that’s a clear borescope. I looked back at mine bc I couldnt remember what it looked like. First thing I notice is how bad the Lyman scope was lol. I also see why my accuracy came back and y’all’s may not. Mine was a chunk out of the lands vs out of the actual port. Now that it has smoothed out it’s almost like the throat of a nicely broken in chamber. It’s basically a ramp on the land vs a chunk out of a groove.

Yeah I had a Lyman for a bit and then I started seeing pictures from the Teslong that many are using and returned it. They've shot up in price though, I bought mine a couple years ago for $70 and now they are $130, still 100x better than the Lyman is though.

It seems like it's not uncommon to have a burr at the gas port, and many of them "shoot out" over time or even very quickly. Some clearly though cause issues and don't go away.

 

[Precision Underground]

Yeah I had a Lyman for a bit and then I started seeing pictures from the Teslong that many are using and returned it. They've shot up in price though, I bought mine a couple years ago for $70 and now they are $130, still 100x better than the Lyman is though.

It seems like it's not uncommon to have a burr at the gas port, and many of them "shoot out" over time or even very quickly. Some clearly though cause issues and don't go away.

I’ve got a teslong now but I don’t think it looks that clear. Maybe it is, I haven’t used it in a while. It’s def 100x better than the Lyman.

 

[whatsupdoc]

Excellent reviews, excellent info. Tiny groups are an inspiration to all.
Thanks

And outstanding CS from all the manufacturers.

Any other thoughts , concerning the OEM Seekins barrel, and the bolt lug "battering" cause ?
Do you think the barrel could have been slightly out of "clock" ? ( Lack of a better explanation / word )

I ask, because a friend had a 308 that was battering the holy crap out of his bolt lugs, and his was out of clock... guessing by only a few minutes / degrees.
Ultimately, when it was taken apart the barrels receiver extension alignment pin fell out.
So when the barrel nut was tightened, the barrel twisted slightly, and the alignment pin was acting like a wedge
That tiny amount of off alignment, threw off the timing badly.

I will have to look for the pics of his bolt lugs... they had ( while far worse then yours ) the same wear pattern.
For me, His battered bolt lugs showed me how important "timing" really is, even on such a taken for granted spot

I now shim all my barrel extension alignment pins to the upper to minimize any barrel rotation when you
tighten the barrel nut.

 

[Mk32784]

The OP bought a seekings and then had to get a new barrel for it for it to shoot right?
And recommends it? Ironically another guy I know had the same problem and replaced the OEM barrel with a proof and it shot a lot better.

 

[bigjake83]

The OP bought a seekings and then had to get a new barrel for it for it to shoot right?
And recommends it? Ironically another guy I know had the same problem and replaced the OEM barrel with a proof and it shot a lot better.

I didn't have to do shit! I chose to replace the barrel because I knew a +2 gas system works better and is easier on brass. Seekins wasn't offering the extended gas system at the time when my rifle was built, The rifle still performed quite well, I'm just picky.

Every firearms manufacturer has gone through some growing pains at one point or another it is pure ignorance to think any one company has been perfect out of the gate.

And yes I would absolutely recommend Seekins!

 

[wade2big]

Just in case someone is looking, Vaalr Precision has one in stock. I bought mine from there last year when they got a few in. Vaalr was a commercial supporter at one time.

SP10 22" 6.5 Creedmoor - Sniper Grey

Seekins Precision SP10 22" 6.5 Creedmoor - Sniper Grey for sale from VAALR.

shop.vaalrprecision.com

 

[kriller134]

How much neck tension are you running on a gasser?

 

[bigjake83]

How much neck tension are you running on a gasser?

Depends on the brass, usually start .002 smaller on the neck after I've ran it through a FL Sizing die. After that I'll make up some dummy rounds and chamber them a few times checking my seating depth from the Ogive.

 

[kriller134]

Depends on the brass, usually start .002 smaller on the neck after I've ran it through a FL Sizing die. After that I'll make up some dummy rounds and chamber them a few times checking my seating depth from the Ogive.

Thanks man!

 

[Smitty192]

Great information. Looking forward to the comparison between the proof and CLE barrel.

Which scope are you running - 18 or 27?

 

[bigjake83]

Great information. Looking forward to the comparison between the proof and CLE barrel.

Which scope are you running - 18 or 27?

27

 

[powdahound76]

Depends on the brass, usually start .002 smaller on the neck after I've ran it through a FL Sizing die. After that I'll make up some dummy rounds and chamber them a few times checking my seating depth from the Ogive.

You use a mandrel .002 under plus brass spring back?

Just making sure Im tracking, brain is fuzzy this AM.
And no, not too much whisky. Maybe its from none.

 

[bigjake83]

You use a mandrel .002 under plus brass spring back?

Just making sure Im tracking, brain is fuzzy this AM.
And no, not too much whisky. Maybe its from none.

I size the brass in a standard Redding FL Sizing Die, then I size the neck down even further with a Redding neck sizing Die.

As far as how much further I size the neck down for the appropriate neck tension, it all depends on the brass it takes a little bit of trial and error making a few dummy rounds in .001 increments.

 

[powdahound76]

Gotcha.
Thanks for explaining

 

[exoto1225]

I have a similar setup but with Proof regular SS barrel. When the barrel gets warm (not hot), the accuracy drops noticeably, and there is also a ~1MOA POI shift to the down right. The cold bore can give me 0.3-0.4 MOA with 140 ELDM Hornady factory ammo, then I had trouble to shoot sub MOA group when the barrel gets warm. Do you see this with your Proof CF barrel?

 

[bigjake83]

I have a similar setup but with Proof regular SS barrel. When the barrel gets warm (not hot), the accuracy drops noticeably, and there is also a ~1MOA POI shift to the down right. The cold bore can give me 0.3-0.4 MOA with 140 ELDM Hornady factory ammo, then I had trouble to shoot sub MOA group when the barrel gets warm. Do you see this with your Proof CF barrel?

I initially had some concerns with my groups opening up under high heat after conducting a 15 round mag dump and then tried to shoot for groups. But after my last several range trips in colder weather and using a heat shield the group expansion I was experiencing was due to mirage. All barrels are going to open up as the heat increases, I'm not seeing the PR barrels act any differently. I personally don't care for the contour Proof uses on their SS 6.5CM barrels, it's too light I'd much rather have the old M110 Profile they first used and still do on the .308 SS barrels.