Just starting to reload this weekend...

[thor447]

Great advice everyone, thank you. Yes, I'm still in the process of breaking in the new rifle with regular Hornady off-the-shelf ammo, which is also how I'm getting my brass for reloads. I have another 40-50 rounds to run through the rifle before I'll start shooting the hand loads, but I am getting it there (work schedule allowing).

What rabbit hole are you down? Lol. The BigOne buddy! Just stay calm and keep it simple til it starts clickin. There are many things that may or may not be necessary. You just gotta grasp what’s in front of you and then explore. Reloading reliable ammo for hunting at relatively close rifle distanceain’t hard. When you wanna try to squeeze groups down tiny that’s when all the little variables start adding up. In addition to things that you can’t control. My advice is to try to keep everything simple and understand what that step is doing before progressing.

What dies did you buy?
What powder measuring method/tool are you using?
How will you be measuring cartridge length?

What dies did you buy? - RCBS Full Length
What powder measuring method/tool are you using? - Hornady Digital Scale & Frankford Arsenal Powder Trickler
How will you be measuring cartridge length? - I have a digital caliper, also purchased an L.E. Wilson Case Length / Headspace Gauge

 

[Glock 40]

Looks like you are on the right track. You might want to pickup a set of Lee dippers. You want to consistently scoop as close to your load as possible before trickling to save time. Or you can use a cheap set of measuring spoons. One very helpful thing I was taught was make a dummy round first off. A sized case with no primer or powder. That way when you go to make that same round again you can quickly adjust your seating die to it.

 

[thor447]

Looks like you are on the right track. You might want to pickup a set of Lee dippers. You want to consistently scoop as close to your load as possible before trickling to save time. Or you can use a cheap set of measuring spoons. One very helpful thing I was taught was make a dummy round first off. A sized case with no primer or powder. That way when you go to make that same round again you can quickly adjust your seating die to it.

I'm glad I posted on here. You've validated a couple of decisions I've made for my reloading process. I have a 1/2 TSP measuring cup to start off with on the powder, and using the trickle to get the exact load.

Also, I made two dummy rounds (with the Sierra 150gr bullets), with no powder or primers, while calibrating the dies. I'll keep one of the dummy rounds so I can use it again in the future to re-adjust my seating die when needed. Great idea. Thank you.

 

[TeleStratMan]

thor447: At some point you may want to purchase a Neck Sizing Die in 6.5 C/M. This will allow you to use the fired-formed brass in your X-Bolt rifle without having to F/L resize the brass every time.
BTW- I use and like RCBS Rifle Dies but also use other brands such as Redding and Hornady.
A Redding Micrometer Seating Die is nice but not required.

I also weigh every bullet and group the bullets by weight before installing them into the cartridge. The bullets from a box will vary as much a 1 grain difference which affects the accuracy that most reloaders are looking for.

 

[Lonewatie]

Im kind of a newbie myself but it sounds like youre on the right track here. Main thing is to make sure every move you make is consistent. Consistent handle pull, dont short stroke a press then stand on the handle the next pull, be consistent in placement of cases especially with loading blocks (if you do this you will automatically know which cases you have done what to), do the EXACT SAME THING every single time. If you load on a progressive either run 1 round at a time or keep all stations full, dont switch stuff back and forth. Prep your brass the same way every time. Consistency in steps produces consistency on the target.

Also, dont just jump on a load because billy bob on the interwebs said it gives him .10" groups. You dont have billy bobs gun, work your load up every time. You can do things such as substitute primers and see the results when trying to tighten a group or get velocities more consistent.

This is the type of consistency you are hunting. Sometimes these dont produce the best groups and you end up with a 15es and 7sd to get 1/2 the size of the other group.

One more thing, ignore the ones who will quote this post and say "you need more than 3 rounds to know whats going on" they think you need to waste 7 more bullets, primers, and charges to know that a 3 rd prelim test that shows 30es and 16sd with a 2" group wont work. If it wont work with 3 then it wont work with 5 or 7 or 10 or 20 or however many some idiot says you need in excess of 3 for a prelim load testing. This especially applies to thin barreled hunting rifles.

Still developing this load but getting fairly close.

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[Cowcatcher]

Like mentioned above Micrometer seating dies are very handy for loading different bullets to different depths in that same caliber. Not necessary but very handy. I have Forsters ultra micrometer seat die for my 6.5cm and it’s very consistent and repeatable. I just keep notes on what bullet I seat to what depth for my rifle and can change the die to that depth in seconds. Again, I’m not saying run and buy one but I’ve learned for myself that if it’s a caliber I’m gonna mess around with using several bullets and seat based on my chamber that I will be using a mic seat die.

 

[thor447]

Quick question for you all regarding load data C.O.A.L vs. actual rifle C.O.A.L

Ok, my load data from Sierra says that my total cartridge length should be 2.810"

I found the measurement from my closed bolt face to my lands using Oklahomabassin's method he posted earlier, as well as a second method I found online - starting at 2:07
)
I made my own tool instead of buying the one shown in the video. Both methods got me exactly the same measurement, and I was able to calculate my rifles max C.O.A.L with the SMK 150gr bullet at the lands at 2.2975". When the time comes (after breaking in the new rifle) I can make some rounds at this length, as well as 0.010" and 0.020" short of the lands for testing, etc. My question is that my rifle's actual C.O.A.L is quite a bit longer than the load data's value. Should I stick with the load data, or is it safe, if not advisable, to load to my rifle's actual measurement? Obviously loading to the longer C.O.A.L will change the amount of empty space inside the round, and I'm not sure how that would affect it.

Knowing the distance of the bolt to the lands in my rifle (which is 2.225"), will help me when loading different projectiles in the future.

Any advise would be appreciated. Thanks.







And down the rabbit hole I go....

 

[Lonewatie]

Load to your rifles length as long as it will fit in the magazine. Rule of thumb is to always seat a bullet in the case the same depth as the diameter of that bullet.extra open space in the case will result in lower pressure

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[Cowcatcher]

Quick question for you all regarding load data C.O.A.L vs. actual rifle C.O.A.L

Ok, my load data from Sierra says that my total cartridge length should be 2.810" See pic below:
View attachment 150639

I found the measurement from my closed bolt face to my lands using Oklahomabassin's method he posted earlier, as well as a second method I found online -starting at 2:07
)
I made my own tool instead of buying the one shown in the video. Both methods got me exactly the same measurement, and I was able to calculate my rifles max C.O.A.L with the SMK 150gr bullet at the lands at 2.2975". When the time comes (after breaking in the new rifle) I can make some rounds at this length, as well as 0.010" and 0.020" short of the lands for testing, etc. My question is that my rifle's actual C.O.A.L is quite a bit longer than the load data's value. Should I stick with the load data, or is it safe, if not advisable, to load to my rifle's actual measurement? Obviously loading to the longer C.O.A.L will change the amount of empty space inside the round, and I'm not sure how that would affect it.

Knowing the distance of the bolt to the lands in my rifle (which is 2.225"), will help me when loading different projectiles in the future.

Any advise would be appreciated. Thanks.







And down the rabbit hole I go....

You should be okay in my opinion. Some bullets like to jump to the lands and some like to be crammed into the lands. Pay attention to how the bolt closes. Bullets crammed to lands are gonna make the bolt close stiff. Be sure the rounds chamber and feed from the magazine. Sometimes longer cartridges will hang up on the feed ramp. Sometimes mag length can limit your overall length. I’m assuming you’re measuring from casehead to bullet tip. My preferred method is from casehead to bullet ogive. Bullet tips can be inconsistent.

 

[thor447]

You should be okay in my opinion. Some bullets like to jump to the lands and some like to be crammed into the lands. Pay attention to how the bolt closes. Bullets crammed to lands are gonna make the bolt close stiff. Be sure the rounds chamber and feed from the magazine. Sometimes longer cartridges will hang up on the feed ramp. Sometimes mag length can limit your overall length. I’m assuming you’re measuring from casehead to bullet tip. My preferred method is from casehead to bullet ogive. Bullet tips can be inconsistent.

Thanks. I've measured both. Case head to bullet tip (with the specific SMK 150gr I'm using) is 2.2975". Case head to ogive is 2.225". When the time comes I suppose I'll load up several. Some with the load data C.O.A.L, and some to my rifle's magazine measurements (max length magazine allows is 2.2825" - which is 0.015" shorter than max C.O.A.L for my rifle), to see how they all react. I have to say, this is starting to get interesting. I need some range time.

Thank you every one for your help.