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What did you do in the reloading room today?

I loaded up some test rounds using the Hornady 88ELD up to about 3150fps in a 26" 1:8 twist barrel (I'm > 5000' elevation). Evidently, I'm suffering some neck tension issues via vertical POI, but am getting sub-MOA accuracy out to 965 yards so I can't complain. It's a barrel burner so I don't have a lot of time to figure it all out before the throat's toast.

Snow-Shoot2020s.jpg


I also picked up a Rem 700 Jewell trigger for cheap, but I want to use it in a Model Seven with the factory bolt release. I called Jewell and they want $12 for the little bolt release plate on the side. They don't accept electronic forms of payment I currently have, so I'd have to mail a check/MO and wait for the part to come. I didn't want to wait 1-2 weeks so I made my own while I wait for the "real" part:

Jewell-RSeven.jpg
 
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Had the birds and the bees talk with my oldest son while we sorted brass.
Glad thats over.

Wouldn't it have been more appropriate during a session of shooting?

Daddys firing pin punches Mommys primer. A bunch of shit happens in Mommy than "Boom" you came shooting out of the barrel.
 
Wouldn't it have been more appropriate during a session of shooting?

Daddys firing pin punches Mommys primer. A bunch of shit happens in Mommy than "Boom" you came shooting out of the barrel.
No this is more of "dad fills moms case with propellant while seating the bullet many times. Dad also runs a progressive press so this happens a lot" type of situation.
 
Tired forgot pictures.

Top to bottom cleaning of gun room.
Reorganization of ammo, reloading supplies , gun tools, and parts, etc.

Hung 4 new led light fixtures and 1 more in an office. You can see every detail and 1 speck of powder now.

Tumbled some more brass while in there.

Also had a major find with all the new light and rerouting of power.

The tags on the power cables for the lyman scale and the hornady powder measure got swapped somehow.
Being able to read the fine print on the transformer I could trace it back now.

Possibly that Hornady will stop spasing out with the proper power source. Lol
 
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Tired forgot pictures.

Top to bottom cleaning of gun room.
Reorganization of ammo, reloading supplies , gun tools, and parts, etc.

Hung 4 new led light fixtures and 1 more in an office. You can see every detail and 1 speck of powder now.

Tumbled some more brass while in there.

Also had a major find with all the new light and rerouting of power.

The tags on the power cables for the lyman scale and the hornady powder measure got swapped somehow.
Being able to read the fine print on the transformer I could trace it back now.

Possibly that Hornady will stop spasing out with the proper power source. Lol
Let's hope.

FWIW, thanks for the idea on cleaning the dies. I got my new ones and they are working great. So, the old RCBS's will still hang around as spares. They've loaded thousands upon thousands of rounds for me and any tool that will do that, I hate to throw away...even if it did piss me off.
 
@sandwarrior
Take the old dies and mount them in a shadow box. Retired with honorable mention.
And that damn hornady still choked up had to oldschool drop and trickle all afternoon for ladder tests.

That hornady is fixin to get mulched if I can't figure it out.
 
@sandwarrior
Take the old dies and mount them in a shadow box. Retired with honorable mention.
And that damn hornady still choked up had to oldschool drop and trickle all afternoon for ladder tests.

That hornady is fixin to get mulched if I can't figure it out.
There’s a lot of days I’m there. I do something ‘not quite right’ for years until it comes to bite me in the ass. It then taxes my brain heavily to even figure out what I did/am doing wrong. Cuz I’m never wrong, right?
 
Played tweek the dillon and filled some sand bags with polyester balls.

Will see how they act they weighed nothing. They don't feel bouncy or too soft, I expect some compression and top off will be needed.
Have about 15-20 gallons worth left.
 
Never really been a 9mm guy but I picked a few up over the last couple years.....

Smith and Wesson 952
Smith and Wesson Model 39
Nazi High Power

And my job may go 9mm

Got a tool head and dies recently, plan on using W231 for powder.

What's a good grain projectile for plain old range use?

Is 115 where I want to be?
I buy Berry’s or extreme copper 124’s and also run w231. I set my drop for 4.2 so ever if it fluctuates with the hockey puck shaped powder it never goes over 4.4. They shoot very well in every thing I have. It’s even very polite in my 9mm sbr.
 
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I buy Berry’s or extreme copper 124’s and also run w231. I set my drop for 4.2 so ever if it fluctuates with the hockey puck shaped powder it never goes over 4.4. They shoot very well in every thing I have. It’s even very polite in my 9mm sbr.


Thank you.

W231 is a weird powder. They call it ball but it looks like after they make it as a ball the steamroll it like Flat Stanley.
 
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More 38 special tumbled and 100 loaded.

Barrys 125gr flat nose 1.45 coal and 4.2gr of bullseye. Hoping for a mild load for air weight snub nose range ammo.

3 books and 1 online compleatly in disagreement about velocity and charge. My first 38sp load.

Son was running 4.7gr unknown heavier bullets and kind of hammering for the alloy frames. He was mostly shooting those in a 357.
I would like to shoot 50-100 rounds before my hand wears out.

Normally shoot 20 +p, to rotate defense stock and 30 pmc then another gun.

20200114_161138.jpg
 
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De primed, resized and sonic cleaned about 100 .223 for the old lady's rifle.
Re resized about 100 .308 for my rifle because I am an idiot and didn't catch it when my die moved during the first resize.
Gun show today to see if I can score any good deals, it is nice having a few local friends with similar interests. We all go together and try to buy in bulk.
 
While watching va 2a coverage got @ 500 223 , some 308, 6.5cm 7.62x39, and some other random brass sorted.

All culled from obvious defects.

One mans trash keeps another out of
trouble.

20200120_174813.jpg
 
Culls don't get processed at all.
I get enough brass that any abnormality gets the trash toss.

While I deprime they get another look and after tumbling.

This brass has never hit the ground.
View attachment 7230493
Ahhh! I misunderstood. It sure didn't sound like the posts you've put up before to take a bunch of culls and rework them. You culled all the defect brass.
 
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Seating depth test for my new awesome 142 SMK's out of my Tikka TacA1. 10 at each depth.

View attachment 7226526

The 0.030" jump load did this today at 203 yards...

View attachment 7226527

I wish the 142’s were a bit cheaper.
I really do love that bullet.
They hammered in all three of my 260 barrels and now I don’t need the high BC of the 147’s for my 260.

I need to size and load 150 cases of 7 saum for a possible trip this weekend.
It’s nice having plenty of powder for it now.

Being in California last week put me behind.
 
I have enough of a chore hitting anything . I show up at the range with the best strait shiny brass I can.

That way I know thier laughing at my groups or bad haircut.

I like to eliminate variables.
I wish I could "like" that three different ways. ? :rolleyes: ?

I wish the 142’s were a bit cheaper.
I really do love that bullet.
They hammered in all three of my 260 barrels and now I don’t need the high BC of the 147’s for my 260.

I need to size and load 150 cases of 7 saum for a possible trip this weekend.
It’s nice having plenty of powder for it now.

Being in California last week put me behind.

Don't give up, it's only a couple hour trip to NV where you WILL need those 142's;)

I can't quite figure out how to get my "quote" to work tonight.
 
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Wife went to bed early so I had a few hours to kill. Decided to load some .45. Set up the Dillon and cranked the handle until I ran out of clean brass. I don’t even own a .45 anymore. ?
Gonna gift it all to a JMB devotee buddy.
Just finished the count; 906 rounds.
 

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Hey, if your just giving away .45 ammo...

I dumped a can of range brass in the tumbler to sort through later, loaded 50 or so rounds of .308 to burn through next weekend, and scrubbed the crap out of the nastiest rifle I have ever had to clean. My old ladies neglected .223 :sick:
 
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224 Valkyrie, 80gr. ELD-M. Generic precision rifle work.
What load are you using if you don't mind sharing? I'm not having so much luck with mine. The other thing, if I may ask is what size is your gas port? I may need to go back and get an adjustable gas block.

I'm using 25.2 gr. of Varget behind a 75 gr. ELD-M. Maybe I just need to go heavier bullets? Seems like every powder I've tried I get round primers and swipe marks on the head like it's over-gassing. Accuracy is decent, but I haven't really wrung that out yet as I'm still trying to get pressures right first.
 
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What load are you using if you don't mind sharing? I'm not having so much luck with mine. The other thing, if I may ask is what size is your gas port? I may need to go back and get an adjustable gas block.

I'm using 25.2 gr. of Varget behind a 75 gr. ELD-M. Maybe I just need to go heavier bullets? Seems like every powder I've tried I get round primers and swipe marks on the head like it's over-gassing. Accuracy is decent, but I haven't really wrung that out yet as I'm still trying to get pressures right first.

I have had best luck in mine (Craddock Rock Creek) using the 80 gr. ELD-Ms. I jump them .040 over 24.4grs. of H4895, I get some swipe marks and a bit of cratering on the primers as well but have gone as high as 25gr. with no issues.

With this setup this is a .5moa gun and I got first in the gas-sun division at my local PRS with it last week.