Reply With Quoteyep...i have 2 other packages that got side tracked as well...i guess its not my month for shipping....it left Memphis so ive got my fingers crossed that it shows up this week.
Wow, That sucks about your barrel! At least they found it. I've been thinking about having my Striker 260 improved. I have dies all ready so all i need to do is pull the barrel and have the chamber reamed!
yep...i have 2 other packages that got side tracked as well...i guess its not my month for shipping....it left Memphis so ive got my fingers crossed that it shows up this week.
That's the same exact fireform load I use, I think you'll find it works well.
I run 140 ABs in mine with 48.5 H4831SC, runs around 2960 or so. 26" barrel. Before someone asks, thats where the OCW fell.Using the ABs because I also hunt it.
Sorry about your shipping woes. I think you and I have the same shipping gremlin following us.
i posted in Winnies thread about this before i seen your post here LOL...that good to hear because im looking for as close to 3000fps as i can accurately get other wise all of this wont be worth it to me...if it all pans out ive got a new bartlein blank and will order a reamer and have it chambered in 260AI.
MAN i hear ya about the shipping...i had 3 paks MIA...2 showed up yesterday and i just called the post office about my barrel again..ive never had shipping issues like this before.
Last edited by LongRange; 12-11-2015 at 03:03 PM.
USPS and the holidays can get pretty shaky. They have lost certified mail, medium flat rate boxes, and even an overnight priority package headed to the Stockton court house in the past 3 weeks. Let alone returning mail, with the correct address, on several occasions. Glad to hear things are back on track for now. Let me know when you get that thing put together.
Well its not really back on track yet...i called my local postal guy this morning at 830 and he called me about an hour ago and said its still in Memphis...he said at 15 days(tomorrow)i can file a claim online and if USPS thinks they are going to have to pay a claim it will get things moving right quick..ill file a claim sunday morning and order a reamer monday...if the AI dont workout i can always sell the reamer.
a little update...my barrel showed up at my local post office this morning according to the tracking and shows monday as deliver date...so its looking like next weekend for fire forming and load development.
Finally lol....cant wait to see how it works out.
Scooter
I'm the Boss. I make sure what she wants gets done.
well look what final showed up...and on a sunday to boot....
jim did a fantastic job and even stamped the chamber end with the cal....got it all back together....
Jim was right on the money with the free bore...i asked for .190 to .195 and as far as i can figure its right at .188 to .190...i took a case and used my K&M expander to open up the neck enough so a bullet would fit snug then removed the extractor and ejector and slowly closed the bolt on the case and took my measurements...after i fire form i will make a modified case out of one as i have the drill bit and tap.
142g SMK BTO 2.339
140g berger hybrid BTO 2.326
139g lapua BTO 2.354
i will jam the bullets .015 or so so i get good fire forming and hopefully no FTFs....ill start with the 142g SMKs for fire forming and then run OCWs with all 3 and go with the one that shoots the best...if i can get off work early a couple of days this week ill get some of the fire forming done..should go pretty quick shooting 20 shot groups.
Looks like fun! You really like that break huh? I have to go talk to the smith now to see what it will take to get mine built. Hoping to have everything done before the February practice. I have about 100 rounds of .220 swift I need to burn up before I say good bye to my rifle for a little while. I also have to open the barrel channel so I will need to work on that after Christmas.
love these breaks...i shot a few different breaks on my 300wm and they all had some kind of jump....the recoil eliminator comes straight back and maybe a 1/4moa of muzzle rise if that....the other thing i like is ppls reactions when they see it.
im going out saturday and sunday so if you can get away come out and you can burn up those 100 rounds and we will see how much pressure these winchester cases can take...at $26 bucks per 50 ill be happy with 5 loads.
i had the smith trim this break(needs another .200 trimmed off)last week and was telling him your about ready so he will take care of you when you are.
Very nice looking rifle. I'm interested in this thread quite a bit. I've been looking at the different 6.5's out there, not entirely sure what route to go. I'll be building my second Savage shortly that will be a 300 Winny, then on to the 6.5 project.
Off topic note, with your annealing set up, did you fab the brackets yourself? And how do you water dunk the brass to cool it off quickly? Thanks.
-SHM
yes i made the brackets and i just pull them outta the socket by hand and dunk them...i keep my right hand fingers wet and move quickly.
i like the standard 260 a lot but have wanted to do an AI for a long time so here it is...barrel,brass and dies im in this about $250 bucks so it was a cheep way for me to see if it was worth all the extra work for the AI....if you hand load build a 260 if you dont the creed is the way to go.
so i cut outta work a little early today so i could get out and fire form a few pieces of brass and also to see how my 4831sc and CCI250 idea was going to work.
first round BANG...second round BANG...third round CLICK...CLICK...CLICK...and you know what happened next...powder dump....and you know where my cleaning rod was right?? YEP left it laying on the bed because i was in a hurry...im pretty sure i made up a few new words on the way back to the house to get it.
so i get back out knock the bullet out load another round and 3 CLICKS...no bang but another powder dump so i pulled the extractor this time...load another and 3 CLICKS...a few more choice words as i was adjusting the firing pin protrusion...i had 6 FTFs outta 30 rounds...i guess .003 neck tension isnt enough to fire form AI'cases LOL!!! i will run .006 neck tension on the rest and that should solve that.
it was dark by the last 10 rounds so i just sat off to the port side of the rifle to feed since i had to run the rod in to knock the cases out and fired them into the hill side...i didnt even try to chrony any because it was getting dark...ill chrony on saturday when ive got more time...i did shoot 1 10 shot group and am expecting this to be a very accurate combo...8 of the 10 shots took a double tap to fire....
well the pics are not loading to photo bucket so ill post the rest tomorrow.
the cases blew out nicely and the case capacity gain was 3gs...54.4g H2O before and 57.4gs H20 after fire forming...the primers still had nice round edges and the primer pockets are still nice and tight...i will shoot all 100 rounds twice before i run them through the body die so they are formed well and tight to the chamber...
the COAL went from 2.028 to 2.015-2.017 on the 24 cases that fired but i expected this as ive heard from others and read the case necks shorten
at this point i will say im pretty happy...im curious about the speed when FFing and also to see how fast the 142g SMKs will go accurately...id really be happy with 2975 but will settle for 2950...im going to stick with the 142g SMKs for now as they show a lot of potential right outta the gate.
That is a sexy looking case all formed up. Excited to hear what kind of velocities you end up getting. You think something got screwed up when you disassembled your bolt to find throat length? Or is it just trying to find a good place to set your shoulder? I should know by tomorrow evening if I need to be at work this weekend. I will let you know when I find out. Got a bunch of swift/.45/.357 loaded up and it's burning a hole in my pocket.
LR.....
Are you sure you didnt just copy one of my range trips.....sounds exactly like stuff that happens to me lol.
Those blown out shoulders do look pretty good.....looking forward to see your results. So....about 6-7% increase in capacity.....
Scooter
I'm the Boss. I make sure what she wants gets done.
no...everything is good with the bolt...i set my firing pin protrusion short-er than most...once i find a load that shoots i adjust the FPP in the field by shooting groups and adjusting lighter each group until i start getting FTFs then i give it a quarter turn back(longer)and most times im set...if i get another FTF i will adjust it a quarter turn longer again and its set...i dont have an exact way to measure the protrusion but using calipers its right at .028 .030.Originally Posted by schnyd112
i have found a lighter strike seems to keep things more consistent but as you know my brass fits snug in my chambers and i run a little higher pressures.
let me know if you can make it out....ive got 76 more cases to form and your welcome to get in on the fun LOL!!
the gain was/is right in between 5.5% and 5.6% after the first firing and the shoulders are much sharper than i had expected so im not sure if theres going to be and increase after the second firing or not...i will re-weigh with H2O but im not really expecting much more...im pretty happy with 5.5% and i think with the right combo i can easily get where i want to be.
and yes it was a special first time out with the AI LOL...i have enough crap in my range bag to completely strip and put a rifle back together but forgot the cleaning rod...i KNEW i was going to need it thats the bad part and like i said .003 neck tension is no where near enough to fire form cases...lesson learned...im going to run the other 76 cases through my lee collet die with the .258 mandrel which puts the NT right at .007(the james bond mandrel)an ill try to run the extractor as its kind of a PITA running the rod down the barrel every time LOL!
the pics that wouldnt load last night...
the ten shot target...remember 8 outta these 10 shots took two strikes to fire...it was cold and getting dark...i was hungry...you know the usual excuses when your shooting bad LOL...
a few more cases....no doughnuts...
and the primers...fire forming load was..
necked up 243 winchester brass ran through a FL die
142g SMK .015 jammed
47g H4831sc
CCI 250 primer...the primers are old and by old i mean they are in the older style red CCI boxes(5-10 years?)so im wondering if that was/is part of the FTF...i have a new box of 250s i will use for the rest of the FFing......i was going to run an OCW test...and i still might...but im going to go right to 48.5g of H4831sc and play with seating depth first and see where i end up...
all of the above leads me to believe that this will be a great combo with a little tuning.
Have you tried shooting groups while fire forming? The results might surprise you.
I have an old rusty steel cleaning rod that never comes out of my jeep. Also an old
plastic prescription container with several size bronze brushes. Having an empty hung up
while hunting is bad enough, but not being prepared for it is inexcusable. Worse yet is extracting
an empty with no neck on the case. A bronze brush makes short work of that. Things that shouldnt
happen have a way of happening sometimes.
Last thursday afternoon i was glassing in the front yard of our camp after the fog finally lifted.
I cant hear the phone ring when im outside but a friend with me did.
It was another old friend telling me to get a gun out to a spot he was on about a half hour away from me.
It is one of very few areas here where cell phones work.
He had a really nice buck laying down at about 650 with an empty stuck in his gun and no cleaning rod.
By the time i got there the buck had gotten tired of waiting and left. All they could do was watch him walk off.
yep i keep all of that in my range bag but like a kid with a new toy i forgot the cleaning rod...im going to buy a cheep one today that will stay in the truck from now on.
Nice LR. Cases look good. I really like that load for fireforming, seems to fill them out nicely.
That 48.5 is a sweet spot in my rifle. (26" done by Jim). Think you'll like around that area pretty well.
I use a hardwood dowel rod with 22 case punch formed and crimped on each end. Keep one in my case for emergencies.
A short 2x2 makes a cheap improvised mallet.
Won't say how many over priced cleaning rods lead to this preparation.
The dowel would certainly work, ive never had to beat on a case to dislodge it.
But ill keep my old rod just in case i need the brush to remove a case neck.
Back in the early 60s i had a Savage 110 lefty in 06. I was trying to strain all
the accuracy i could out of it so i foolishly decided neck sizing was a smart thing to do.
My brother and i were heading up a mountain road in a 55 chevy suburban we used in
our const business. It was bear season and all of a sudden there was a bear on the sidehill
across the valley at about 400 yds. I dont even remember stopping and getting out, only flopping down prone
on the dirt road and letting one go at that bear. My brother was stuck parking the truck. Realize if you can that
bipods hadnt been created yet nor had scope knobs either.
Anyway when i tried chambering another round it wouldnt go in. I was more intent on keeping my eye on the bear by then running thru the trees
than i was on looking at the gun. About that time another guy showed up in a red 59 chevy and also started lobbing lead at the bear.
By then i had figured out i had a case stuck in the chamber. The guys chevy had a radio antenna on an angle on the rear of the car.
I went over to it without asking and started ramming it into my barrel. But the thing kept folding down as it hit the empty and i never did
get the case out till after it was all over. I think the bear finally died of old age. But that incident taught me 2 things which ive not forgotten.
Now ive figuered out how this works i think the rest of the FFing will go smooth.
48.5g seems to be the load for most everyone running 4831 and im sure thats where ill end up but im going to run the charge up to silly levels just to see what happens...they are calling for snow here saturday so i guess ill be shooting from under my truck...sunday is suppoed to be decent so im hoping to have everything dialed and a load worked up by the end of the weekend.
Silly levels are sometimes educational, done correctly that is. I ran up a bit above that just to see but didn't find a lot more speed or accuracy. YMMV. Speed plateau slightly above that. Be interested to see what you find.
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