Bullet depth sit without tools

[leo158]

How does one go about sitting the bullet depth if have not the correct tools? Can I make a dummy bullet with no primer and seat in shell then close bolt to have it seat against lands then maybe give the die set screw say a 1/4 turn after it touches? Or not a good idea? I should of bought the tools today to make this easier but I forgot about that at the time.

I will be useing Varget and 55gr nosler ballistic tips with starting of 35gr. Max load is 36.5. I just worrie about the bullet on the land and to much pressure building up. If I could take the spring out of my bolt so it falls freely,I could get closer to the idea position. As in this video below. Thanks all for all your help. I have learned alot from here. Thank you, Dan

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jv-D1mEI514

[John_M]

How does one go about sitting the bullet depth if have not the correct tools? Can I make a dummy bullet with no primer and seat in shell then close bolt to have it seat against lands then maybe give the die set screw say a 1/4 turn after it touches? Or not a good idea? I should of bought the tools today to make this easier but I forgot about that at the time.

I will be useing Varget and 55gr nosler ballistic tips with starting of 35gr. Max load is 36.5. I just worrie about the bullet on the land and to much pressure building up. If I could take the spring out of my bolt so it falls freely,I could get closer to the idea position. As in this video below. Thanks all for all your help. I have learned alot from here. Thank you, Dan

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jv-D1mEI514

Leo158,
Some of the participants here have developed pretty creative ways to measure bullet depth using cleaning rods, rod stops and other familiar aids. Perhaps they will chime in with a few recommendations.

I bit the bullet(pun intended) and purchased the following: a) Hornady Lock-N-Load (LnL) Overall Length Gauge (bolt action; b) Hornady Lock-N-Load Bullet Comparator with 6 inserts; c) Frankfort Arsenal 6" Dial Caliper; d) One each of 3/16" and 1/4" x 4' dowl rods. All of these are available from any of the regular suppliers of reloading equipment. I had to purchase the dowl rods at my local hardware store. Including shipping, these tools cost me less than $100.00. To me, using these tools has been very beneficial for achieving the most consistent bullet seating depth.

Instructions for using the various gauges and caliper are enclosed with each tool. If one reads slowly and thinks about what he is reading it will all make sense after a while. You will then be able to make a "dummy" round without primer or powder for each of the bullets you plan to shoot. Set the seater depth of your seater die to each of the "dummy" rounds you have manufactured.

Good luck.

[HRstretch]

I take a full length size case and cut a slit in the neck with my Dremel. I seat a bullet long and chamber it into my rifle. Carefully remove it (as it could get jammed into the lands and pull bullet back out of case a little or all the way) and if it looks like it is seated well, mark the bullet at the case, pull it out a little and do those steps several times to ensure I get a reliable seating depth to the lands. Next I set my dummy bullet into the press and set my seating die to that point or continue turning down to get desired distance off the lands.

[stangfish]

I am assuming you are shooting a 22-250, yes? That is a very light load for a 243 so I am cancelling that out.

I am going to...not knowing your experience level, off er another opinion. One that takes a different path. Nosler calls for a 2.350 COAL for that bullet. Try it there first. If I am going to start improving my accuracy I want to set up my dies correctly to make sure I am not over sizing i.e. bumping the shoulder back. I would start by sorting brass by manufacturer then weight, removing any that are way off the standard. Check neck wall thickness as well set out the ones that are more than .001 deviation. Save them for a light neck turning when you get to that point. Weigh all your loads for that name brass to within the same tenth of a grain. I wouldn't worry so much about the ogive length if it were me....unless you are shooting heavy(long) bullets. Otherwise your hanging that bullet way out of the case in part due to the boattail along with the short length. YMMV Good luck.

[leo158]

I am assuming you are shooting a 22-250, yes? That is a very light load for a 243 so I am cancelling that out.

I am going to...not knowing your experience level, off er another opinion. One that takes a different path. Nosler calls for a 2.350 COAL for that bullet. Try it there first. If I am going to start improving my accuracy I want to set up my dies correctly to make sure I am not over sizing i.e. bumping the shoulder back. I would start by sorting brass by manufacturer then weight, removing any that are way off the standard. Check neck wall thickness as well set out the ones that are more than .001 deviation. Save them for a light neck turning when you get to that point. Weigh all your loads for that name brass to within the same tenth of a grain. I wouldn't worry so much about the ogive length if it were me....unless you are shooting heavy(long) bullets. Otherwise your hanging that bullet way out of the case in part due to the boattail along with the short length. YMMV Good luck.

Yes for the 22-250 and yes with boat tails and yes low level of novice. Now I want to try flat base maybe. So I would think the bullet will not touch the lands and that is when I should go with the suggested COAL and work from there? Now this is where I do have to buy the correct tools because I will not be able to work off the lands. Correct? What are the seat dies that have the mic on them? Thank you all for input and help, Dan

[darkker]

LEO,
I do EXACTLY what you proposed. Resize a piece of brass, JUUUUUST seat the bullet, then toss it in the chamber and close the bolt. when you extract it, get your calipers out and measure.
Look at the bullet because sometimes with light varmint bullets you won't actually touch the rifling.

If you DON'T have calipers, go to NAPA. You can buy a digital caliper set for $15.

[daniel brothers]

your bullet should be seated in the case to at least the minumum dia of the bullet. Measure how fat the bullet is... and make sure it sticks in the case at least that much. I measue the same way with a dummy bullet/case combo... but I only slightly neck size the case so that the bullet is snug... yet it can move... haven't tried the dremmel slit idea...but it shoulds good. I also found that the rifling can grab the bullet... so I started putting case lube on the bullet's tip... it helps it release from the lands better.

[CharlieNC]

You didn't mention, but you MUST have calipers for safety and to take the most basic measurements. Using those I use two approaches noted by others to insure I get an answer that can be replicated. When using a dummy round and jamming the bullet into the lands, if the seated length is not close before inserting the round it is not unusual for the bullet to stick in the lands. When using cleaning rod, be sure to fill the tip of the rod to be sure the bullet does not protrude into the opening.

[BobT]

I loaded some .25/06 loads for a Savage factory barrel the other day and loaded them to 3.250" OAL (SAAMI max) one would think after 40 years of reloading I would know better. I was loading 115 grain Nosler Ballistic tips, the bolt wouldn't close so I did what I should have done in the first place and measured the chamber. The bullets touched the lands at 3.210" no problem, I just seated them a little deeper and recorded it in the rifles log book.

You can't always rely on published information, it's really best to use the correct tools and make sure.

Bob