How to get started reloading ammunition

[dodge man]

I guess all I can share is my experience. So far I've loaded 9mm, 45acp, 44mag, and 223 and I've never had to trim a case. Its fair to say I do check them, but I've never even had one close to needing trimmed. I can't say how many times I've fired some of the brass, but maybe as many as 4 or 5 times, maybe some as much as 10 times. I also don't load a very hot load, more to the middle of the loading charts. I'll just say check your cases to make sure they they aren't too long and trim them if needed. So far I've never needed to.

I wish I could remember where I read the article where they reloaded a ammo taking special care that all the cases were the same length, same brand, same weight, and then ran the same accuracy test on cases that were mixed and no care given other than proper powder charges, and they couldn't detect any difference in accuracy. As I recall, this was for 45 acp ammo, which is without a doubt different than rifle ammo. A lot of this depends on what the person wants out of his ammo.

 

[k0ua]

I can say I have never trimmed a pistol case, and had to trim every rifle case after a couple of firings for sure. Rifle rounds are a lot more work than straight wall pistol cases. A 30-06 at 58,000 lbs pressure is sure going to act differently than a .45ACP at maybe 19,000 max.

 

[Soundguy]

Well said.

I find my 30-06 and 270 brass almost always grows. If I shoot 50 rounds.. 40 at least ( usually more ) will flake brass when I chuck them into the trimmer... just from a single fireing. Magnum loads tend to grow more than milder loads.

and also agree.. if you are gonna do it.. do it right. if you want to half-arse something.. take up art.. and do it however it suits you...

Been my experience with bottle neck brass, especially the higher calibers, 270, 308, 30-06, that the brass will lengthen, and not all will lengthen the same, even from the same batch. I never got into hot loads, much prefer accuracy, but for no more trouble than it is, I measure brass, even straight wall pistol brass. A trim die doesn't cost that much and you can check length on several hundred rounds before it gets boring.
To me, the bottom line is that if you're going to do something, do it right, especially in a matter that might result in a loss of life, limb or eyesight, as we used to say.

On a side note, I'm not a big fan of Lee products, but I did get a good deal on one of their new Quick Trims, along with a .223 die. I tried it on a few fired brass I had here, but most had already been trimmed or checked. It seemed to do a good job, I hope it works out.

 

[Soundguy]

I can say I have never trimmed a pistol case, and had to trim every rifle case after a couple of firings for sure. Rifle rounds are a lot more work than straight wall pistol cases. A 30-06 at 58,000 lbs pressure is sure going to act differently than a .45ACP at maybe 19,000 max.

same here... bottleneck cases are the ones I trim...

 

[the old grind]

Reloading is like some other pursuits. A dozen guys will disagree without anyone being 'wrong'. The big picture here, and one the OP surely gets by now, is that no one source of info should be counted on at the expense of verifying by others. This applies to manuals, articles, and 'gurus' like us. 'YMMV' rules, here.

'Absolutes' I adhere to when advising new reloaders also include that all those 'safety factors' (tolerances, etc) can 'stack' for or against you, and that the best reloading tool will always be a mentor that will work hand in hand with you. (vs web advice or printed mat'l) 'Survivors' among us have taken much of this for granted from day one. Substituting a component or dimension makes any 'recipe' as good as worthless ...

btw: Worst reason I've ever heard to reload is to get 'another xxx fps' say vs factory fare. 'Reduced' loads can be among the trickiest to 'work up' safely, but IMO are often the most rewarding. (kids shoot too?) If you trim cases (I do) size 'em first. If you crimp (I do .. separately from seating) be consistent. With progressive presses, test-chamber loads before you kerchunk 'em by the hundreds. One size doesn't always 'fit all'.

 

[dodge man]

I am going to start reloading for 30-06 in a few days, I will have to watch the length of those cases a little more carefully from what I'm reading here. Its only been once fired so I will find out.

 

[k0ua]

I am going to start reloading for 30-06 in a few days, I will have to watch the length of those cases a little more carefully from what I'm reading here. Its only been once fired so I will find out.

Hi Dave, I would check them now. Honestly. And any high pressure shouldered case really needs to be checked each time. They may or may not require trimming each time, but you should check. Some loads cause more lengthening than others. But if you ever have one that pushes a bullet up a little too far into the leade of the rifleing and maybe is crimped pretty tight too, and is a nice full pressure load.. well you can imagine how the pressure spike is going to look.. The bullet is supposed to move a little before it takes the rifleing, and if it cannot the ole pressure spikes up bigtime. KABOOM is possible. You just shouldn't take chances with something like this.

 

[dodge man]

I'm pretty sure I have a go-no-go case gauge for 30-06 also. That's the way I check my brass before I load it and after. If the brass sticks out the end of the gauge, it needs trimmed. The gauge also duplicates a 30-06 chamber so it should slide in and out of the gauge easily. I also have some calibers to check it with also. Its for an M1 Garand, so I can't load real mild or it won't cycle. I'll probably load a few and fire a clip and see how it goes.

 

[Soundguy]

Adding to what K0ua said, you will find different brass effects between boltguns and autoloaders many times too.. with autoloaders tending to be harder on cases than boltguns.

Lastly. if loading for a garand. I'd pay REAL close attendion to the trim to spec, and also use the garand section of your relaod data.. not generic 30-06 modern specs.. otherwise you may be positng a want add for an operating rod. spring set..... and then one for an adjustable gas port.

A garand I'd be VERY particular with concerning my relaoding habits...

PS.. if you don't already have one.. get a set of calipers and a slide thru case gauge.. lyman makes a good one. naked eye seeing a slip in gauge like you have may or may not get you that .xxx consistency you will want / need for consistant trim and crimp on bottlenect brass. that caliper just simply won't lie.. and then you can trim to exact specs on all cases.. and then check with a slide thru lyman gauge that will catch one by dragging if it is .00X tall etc.

As K said. you don't want to experience a pressure issue..and certaintly do not want to experience one with a garand!.. one that was designed with m2 ball in mind.. or at least to shoot anyway..

I'm pretty sure I have a go-no-go case gauge for 30-06 also. That's the way I check my brass before I load it and after. If the brass sticks out the end of the gauge, it needs trimmed. The gauge also duplicates a 30-06 chamber so it should slide in and out of the gauge easily. I also have some calibers to check it with also. Its for an M1 Garand, so I can't load real mild or it won't cycle. I'll probably load a few and fire a clip and see how it goes.

 

[westcliffe01]

Typically, the more "overbore" the cartridge, the greater the tendency for the brass to lengthen. Overbore ? The ratio of the cartridge diameter to the bullet/bore diameter. Compare a 30-06 or 308 to a 243 or a 22-250 or a 7mm RUM or 300WM. A 223 cartridge has a small bore, but then it also has a small cartridge diameter, so it is not overbore. An additional fact that plays into this is the shoulder angle of the cartridge. The shallower the cartridge angle, the greater the tendency to growth of the length of the brass when fired.

Ackley was one of the first guys after war to formalize the benefit of a steeper shoulder angle on brass intended for hunting as opposed to military purposes. He also removed most of the cartridge taper, figuring that hunters could keep their weapons clean, unlike people in a war zone. The total effect of both modifications was to allow more powder to fit in the case to get higher velocities and also to reduce the case stretching at high pressure.