Reloading 308 for bolt gun, Die Question

[Divernhunter]

And to think I have been doing the neck sizing with my FL dies in a number of different cartridges? I guess I will need to take apart the rounds I have loaded when doing this. I just not sure what to do about all the ones I fired over my chrono and have targets showing their accuracy. Any ideas??

[pacrat]

And to think I have been doing the neck sizing with my FL dies in a number of different cartridges? I guess I will need to take apart the rounds I have loaded when doing this. I just not sure what to do about all the ones I fired over my chrono and have targets showing their accuracy. Any ideas??

Amen Bro. Damn if only there had been the internet back in the early 1970s when I "mistakenly" started doing it that way.

[TMB 1]

It's not possible to just neck size with full length size die. You can size with out moving shoulder back, but it's still sizing at least part of the rest of the case.

[rsrocket1]

You can "partially neck size" with a FL die, but if the top part of the case body is larger than "factory" diameter, the die will size that back down even if you don't run it all the way to the base. On top of that, most FL dies size the neck well under the minimum, then expand it back to spec with the expander ball.

The Lee collet neck sizer uses 4 fingers to squeeze the neck against a mandrel and the neck is shrunk no further. A bushing type neck sizer is exactly that, a solid long ring that squeezes the neck down to the desired diameter.

I use the Lee collet neck sizer and have loaded full house rounds 10 times or more. I do have to bump the shoulder back about once every 3-4 reloads. I also neck size low recoil cast loads and the brass seems to last virtually forever.

[J-cat]

A FL die will size the body even if it is the same size as a "factory chamber". Factory has nothing to do with anything.

[Khromo]

I used RCBS, Lee, and Hornady dies for years with good results, judging from the group sizes.

When I tried Redding Competition dies, I was amazed at the improvement in accuracy.

They will all work, but the Redding Comp dies are measurably better than anything else I've used, in my rifles, judging by the group sizes. They are well worth the cost, for me. Using factory barrels.

Not having to lube is a big relief for me.

[JagerDog]

You need both. Get a regular die set of whtaever you like (I mostly use std Redding dies) and a LEE collet die for neck sizing.

But metal God is correct. ...need to define your goals. There's differet choices if you're in the specilaized categories.

[Cowboy T]

LC brass? It's not Lapua, no, but it's still pretty decent. During initial case prep, I used Lee's full-length sizer to bump the shoulder back enough. Now I use their Collet Die to neck-size. Both the Ruger American and the Rem 700 seem happy with this, with their respective lots of brass.

My goal? Right now, it's to hit the 15" steel gong at 1,000 yards with a standard hunting rifle. I can do that with this ammo. Wind reading seems to be the major limiting factor at this point.

[J-cat]

So I attempted to neck size .308 with a Lee FL die. I adjusted the die so only half the neck would be sized. Still, the die reduced the shoulder diameter by .002", the base diameter by .0015", and pushed the shoulder forward by .003". The bolt won't close on this case. What a dumb idea.

[Metal God]

OK , I got ta try that my self . I know a guy on another forum that swears by "PARTIAL" FL sizing just the way you described J-cat . I'll give it a try .

Please stand by --------

Were you all waiting at the edge of your seat , haha

So I "PARTIALLY" FL sized a single case . When The neck was sized half way . My other measurements did not change . Datum to head , shoulder and base all stayed the same . When the neck was sized 3/4 of the way , the shoulder and base stayed the same but the datum to head measurement got longer by .001 . Still not sure where that came from though .

Anyways . At least for what I did and used . I can neck size only with a FL sizing die and have enough bullet hold as long as I only size about 1/2 the neck

[MarkG35]

OK , I got ta try that my self . I know a guy on another forum that swears by "PARTIAL" FL sizing just the way you described J-cat . I'll give it a try .

Please stand by --------

Were you all waiting at the edge of your seat , haha

So I "PARTIALLY" FL sized a single case . When The neck sized was sized half way . My other measurements did not change . Datum to head , shoulder and base all stayed the same . When the neck was sized 3/4 of the way the shoulder and base stayed the same but the datum to head measurement got larger by .001 . Still not sure where that came from though .

Anyways . At least for what I did and used . I can neck size only with a FL sizing die and have enough bullet hold as long as I only size about 1/2 the neck

Dumb question alert!
Do you just unscrew the die from the press a certain amount?
If so,how much?

[J-cat]

The amount you want the neck not to be sized by.

[J-cat]

OK , I got ta try that my self . I know a guy on another forum that swears by "PARTIAL" FL sizing just the way you described J-cat . I'll give it a try .

Please stand by --------

Were you all waiting at the edge of your seat , haha

So I "PARTIALLY" FL sized a single case . When The neck sized was sized half way . My other measurements did not change . Datum to head , shoulder and base all stayed the same . When the neck was sized 3/4 of the way the shoulder and base stayed the same but the datum to head measurement got larger by .001 . Still not sure where that came from though .

It came from compressing the case walls.

[pacrat]

It came from compressing the case walls.

But MG said

the shoulder and base stayed the same

Which I take to mean that NO compression took place.

J-cat.....

It is mechanically impossible to neck size with a FL die.

Which totally ignores a whole truck load of variables, which govern the mechanical process of re-sizing.

[TMB 1]

What I wonder is how the guys neck sizing with a full length die gets the body of the case past the part of the die that sizes it, without sizing it, so that only the neck gets sized?