Questions about reloading
Quote from Reloader on November 9, 2008, 1:19 amHello,
I'm new to reloading and have a few questions.
The first is concerning the information from my reloading books. I have the Lyman reloading handbook and Modern Reloading. I like both books but the Lyman manual suggests only using the case or brass from its testing for its recipes and not to mix brands. The Modern Reloading book makes no mention of case brand used for its tests. Further reading of other manuals also suggests not to use recipes used in Winchester cases in Remington cases and to cut back grains on military cases. So for the million dollar question, is this true? I would love to hear your input on this.Second, the Dillon Sizing die I have for .308 - sizes the case and removes the primer. It has an adjustable "ball" on the primer removing pin. From what I under stand, rifle cases are not belled out but the mouth of the case is rounded up with this "ball". So why is it adjustable? Does it have the clip and lock nut for stuck cases only? The documentation that comes with it says nothing about adjustments on the expander ball and whats the clip for?
Also what should the correct pin length be if measured from the face of the die?And lastly, is there a manual for the 550b that walks thru the rifle die setup including correctly setting up the large and small primer feeder?
Hello,
I'm new to reloading and have a few questions.
The first is concerning the information from my reloading books. I have the Lyman reloading handbook and Modern Reloading. I like both books but the Lyman manual suggests only using the case or brass from its testing for its recipes and not to mix brands. The Modern Reloading book makes no mention of case brand used for its tests. Further reading of other manuals also suggests not to use recipes used in Winchester cases in Remington cases and to cut back grains on military cases. So for the million dollar question, is this true? I would love to hear your input on this.
Second, the Dillon Sizing die I have for .308 - sizes the case and removes the primer. It has an adjustable "ball" on the primer removing pin. From what I under stand, rifle cases are not belled out but the mouth of the case is rounded up with this "ball". So why is it adjustable? Does it have the clip and lock nut for stuck cases only? The documentation that comes with it says nothing about adjustments on the expander ball and whats the clip for?
Also what should the correct pin length be if measured from the face of the die?
And lastly, is there a manual for the 550b that walks thru the rifle die setup including correctly setting up the large and small primer feeder?
Quote from Reloader on November 10, 2008, 4:37 pmMilitary brass is typically thicker, and has less volume than commercial brass. If the load data was worked up using commercial brass, and you plan to load military brass, start by reducing the load 10%.
For best accuracy, and especially at the top end, sort brass. Again this is due to volume variations between brands.
the height of the expander ball is not adjustable. The clip and nut properly position the height of the decap pin and expander ball.
refer to the instructions included with the dies for setting up rifle dies. The manual provides instruction on swapping the primer feed from large to small primers. No adjustment is necessary between pistol and rifle primers, only for the diameter change.
Military brass is typically thicker, and has less volume than commercial brass. If the load data was worked up using commercial brass, and you plan to load military brass, start by reducing the load 10%.
For best accuracy, and especially at the top end, sort brass. Again this is due to volume variations between brands.
the height of the expander ball is not adjustable. The clip and nut properly position the height of the decap pin and expander ball.
refer to the instructions included with the dies for setting up rifle dies. The manual provides instruction on swapping the primer feed from large to small primers. No adjustment is necessary between pistol and rifle primers, only for the diameter change.