BULLET SEATIN HELP PLEASE!

[rtc111]

I'm heading up to the coast this weekend to do some shooting, but before I go I wanted to reload some new ammo for my semi auto rifle (browning BAR safari .338 win mag). the problem I'm running into is that I can not get a clear reading for the bullet seating depth. I have tried using the RCBS precision mic but, but my Hornady SST bullets taper much more sharply than the tool used in the RCBS MIC so I can not get a comparative value between the two. I have also used Nosler's way, which is using a "dummy bullet" but when I jerk the bolt back it spits it out to hard and doesn't give me a clear reading! I think a may need to full length size it first to make it easier to remove. but what i finally came to conclusion with was that I would load it so it would fit the magazine with no room to spare (3.325 ") (SAMMI is 3.40) for 338 win mag, so I should be in the clear for pressure build up right? And than I would take 12 bullets going from 3.325 to 3.315 ex... and so on until i can find out which works best, does that sound like a reasonable idea?

Or if you have other suggestion that'd be great to hear. The hornday SSt bullets also have a cannelure should i crimp them or not?

[30Cal]

Semiauto stuff should always be FL resized.

The RCBS dummy case is.. well, a PITA. Try this. Clean and dry your chamber, and make a dummy case as follows: Take a FL sized case and seat your bullet super long. Stuff it into the chamber with your thumb. If it falls out of the chamber due to gravity alone, it's not touching the lands. The idea is that you start with it in the lands and seat it a tiny bit shorter till it falls out. Measure at this point. It goes quick and the bonus is that your seating die is now set for zero jump.

For a 338WinMag, I'd be tempted to crimp at the cannelure. The Rem700 I shot had an appalling amount of recoil--orders of magnitude beyond 308, 30-06, etc. I'm normally opposed to crimp for semi-autos.

[Wrangler John]

Full length size only. Trim to the recommended case length, as this provides for a uniform crimp. Seat to factory depth, or OAL as indicated in the manuals. Crimp into the cannelure grove to prevent bullet movement from action cycling and recoil forces. A LEE Factory Crimp Die is a good alternative to the roll crimp produced in most seating dies.

In a hunting rifle never seat out to touch the lands. A bullet can stick in the rifling lead and either pull out of the case dumping all the powder into the action when unloaded, or jam the action so it can't be extracted manually. I have had this happen with bolt action varmint rifles, where unloading caused a bullet to stick in the barrel, filling the action with unburned powder when the case was extracted.