Quote Originally Posted by gotcha View Post
Not necessarily so if you have a factory chamber where chamber neck diameters are typically larger than Min. Spec. custom reamed chambers. Are you measuring from bullet tip to base? Are you using a liquid brass cleaning process? Is the bearing surface of your bullet .030" or more above the neck/shoulder junction? How many times has the brass been fired W/O re-annealing? What diameter is your neck sized brass compared to bullet seated diameter? Does bullet seating handle pressure meet more resistance near the end of the handle stroke? All the above can have influence on bullet seating length consistency. Give us the info and we can help :)
im pretty sure he is not running a tight neck chamber as hes new to reloading so yes a bullet will slide right into a fired neck.
why would liquid clean have any influence on seat depth variations?
Not annealing brass will cause MORE spring back which results in LESS neck tension assuming hes not over sizing the neck to start with.
If the handle has MORE presure/resistance at the end of the stroke 99% of the time its caused by doughnuts.
Also is the OP chamfering the inside necks before reloading?

I try to start by eliminating simple things when answering questions like the OP posted