For Overall Length (OAL), if you're only feeding one gun, I prefer to experiment with the length to determine the best feeding properties. Make up an empty case with a bullet seated and crimped (to .469") long. Load it in the mag and drop the slide. Does the round feed smoothly, or does it hit the feed ramp with a "clunk" before chambering? If it feels like the slide feeds in two stages (sort of a "ka-thunk) instead of one ( a smooth quick "snick"), you're more likely to wind up with malfunctions. Remove the dummy round and measure the OAL. Did the bullet set back in the case? Incrementally reseat and recrimp the bullet deeper into the case until you have smooth feeding with no setback for 3-5 cycles of chambering the dummy round from slide lock. Once you've determined what seating depth your gun prefers, then work up your load while watching for signs of pressure.
Bullet setback is a fast way to spike chamber pressures. By setting up the OAL for optimal feeding, you reduce the likelihood of setback and improve overall function. Mine prefers 1.270" OAL for Winchester 230gr FMJ and 1.235" for a Zero 230gr JHP. I like the Lee dies, but absolutely favor the Hornady seating die with the floating seating stem. It seats on the ogive, rather than the nose of the bullet. I use the same setting to seat both bullet types and they come out at 1.270 and 1.235 respectively. Since the bullet nose hits the feed ramp at the same curvature point on both bullets, feeding is butter smooth. With 4.0 grains of Hodgdon Clays and a Winchester primer, these loads average 755 and 756fps respectively (173 power factor) with standard deviations of 9 and 11fps. The Zero JHP's are a very accurate and economical alternative to the Hornady XTP and they're available from Powder Valley (they have 4,000 left, as I ordered 2,000 today to be delivered at the Wanenmacher gun show on the 31st.).
FWIW, the round you have pictured appears to be overcrimped. Like Buzzdraw stated, you should be trying for .469" at the case mouth. Hope this helps!
Bullet setback is a fast way to spike chamber pressures. By setting up the OAL for optimal feeding, you reduce the likelihood of setback and improve overall function. Mine prefers 1.270" OAL for Winchester 230gr FMJ and 1.235" for a Zero 230gr JHP. I like the Lee dies, but absolutely favor the Hornady seating die with the floating seating stem. It seats on the ogive, rather than the nose of the bullet. I use the same setting to seat both bullet types and they come out at 1.270 and 1.235 respectively. Since the bullet nose hits the feed ramp at the same curvature point on both bullets, feeding is butter smooth. With 4.0 grains of Hodgdon Clays and a Winchester primer, these loads average 755 and 756fps respectively (173 power factor) with standard deviations of 9 and 11fps. The Zero JHP's are a very accurate and economical alternative to the Hornady XTP and they're available from Powder Valley (they have 4,000 left, as I ordered 2,000 today to be delivered at the Wanenmacher gun show on the 31st.).
FWIW, the round you have pictured appears to be overcrimped. Like Buzzdraw stated, you should be trying for .469" at the case mouth. Hope this helps!
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