Reloading - Start to Finish

I have looked through several threads here new and old, and there doesn't seem to be one thread where people go over their process of finding/developing the perfect hunting or target load for their rifle. (or maybe I just stink at using the search function)

What are your go to steps at customizing a round to your rifle? Ladder test first? Are you testing jump/jam on different powder charges, picking one safe powder measurement and then adjusting length? Tons of ways to try different things. Let's hear yours.

Let's assume you have already picked out your brass, primer, powder, bullet combo.

This what I do and is by no means the best or only method.


Start midway below max for the intended projectile and powder.

Load one round in I grain intervals for the mid load recipe then one round at 1/2 grain at the top end. This is to find pressure where you should find the beginning of resistance to bolt lift.

Once you have found max load then back down to a grain or so with three loaded round at 1/2 grain and shoot to find the best group.

After finding the best group, fine tune by adjusting seating depth. I use the recommended Berger method.

Gut pile, start off with a rifle that is bedded, barrel freefloated, and trigger adjusted. There are many opinions on which way to go that are all successful. It is important to state which is NOT a good method and that would be to go to the range with 5 different bullets, five different loads that you have read off the internet, and fire for effect.

I hope you have an ogive gauge to measure the Cartridge OAL with, NOT measuring off the tips.

gut pile, my method fairly closely replicates Rick's method.

As I have neither the rifle that is capable of the group potential as that of many of those here and I will never attempt a shot on game beyond 600 yards….. I keep my loading rather simplistic.

Following your assumption that I've already chosen my components, I pretty much follow Rick's method.

Though, as my bench is right out of my back door, I load 3 rounds per incremental powder increase. With these 3 rounds, I will chrono them, observe the apparent group potential @ 100 yards, while watching for the obvious over pressure indicators.

I also load in 1 grain increments, though as I'm running 90+ grains powder in my particular firearm……I don't generally go to the 1/2 grain increment steps. That said, this is assuming that the groups are nearly identical in size and acceptable, the velocity increases are quite small, and no obvious "over pressure" indicators appear.

I continue this, until the pressure indicators appear. If the groups, in the safe pressure range are acceptable I'll back up to the last load of acceptable group size within my safe pressure range. If those groups don't quite meet my admittedly low standard of sub moa, I'll then experiment with seating depth.

As I don't have an ogive measuring device, nor am that critical with my group sizes…..I simply adjust the overall length until things get better or worse. But, I don't burn a lot of components in search of "the Holy Grail" of groups.

With my rifle/cartridge combo and my limited skillset …..I consider the sub moa groups acceptable! memtb

0) Acquire decent measuring tools. Chronograph, Calipers, case/bullet comparator, scale, OAL gauge, tube micrometer (for neck thickness). Don't have to be spendy, just reliable.

0.5) Start with quality brass (ADG, Lapua, Peterson, Alpha). If not available in your caliber, sort and measure what you have. Confirm neck thickness doesn't vary by more than ~0.001 (ball micrometer). Confirm base to shoulder length doesn't vary by more than ~0.002 (case comparator). Confirm OAL doesn't varry by more than 0.005" (caliper). Inspect flash holes for centering and "cleanliness" (uniform if necessary).

1) Find the distance to the lands for your chosen projectiles.

2) Find load data that you trust, using a good temperature insensitive powder that provides good velocities. This can be easy for common cartridges, or involve some skill and knowledge for unique or uncommon cartridges.

3A) New brass

3B) Fired brass

5) Check OAL. If too long, or extremely variable (>0.005") trim to uniform length.

6) Chamfer inside of case mouth (VLD style tool) and debur outside if needed.

7A) New load, new rifle, etc. Charge 4-6 cases in 1-2% increments up to max (and perhaps 1% over, but be prepared not to shoot the last one or two). This will allow you to establish a rough "Charge weight vs velocity curve", that will allow you to predict velocity for a given charge weight. Shoot over chronograph.

7B) Familiar load, rifle, etc. Pick a charge weight based on 7A or other similar loads you've tried already, that will give you the highest velocity you consider safe (account for ambient temperature ranges you'll be encountering). Charge 8-12 cases.

8) Seat bullets to 0.020" off the lands as measured in step 1 (or maximum mag length if limited there). Make a note of any inconsistent "feel" on seating, and mark those rounds with a sharpie, and note if they behave erratically on target.

The following assumes you are a good shooter, in good conditions, and have done a good job with the above steps, with minimal load to load variation.

9A) Shoot a 3 shot group over a chronograph that's really small, and has a meaningless ES/SD of 6/3, then post about it on the internet, and call it good.

9B) Shoot two 4-6 shot groups, or a single 8-10 shot group and record velocities. If you did everything right above, and have a quality rifle, you will get an average right around 1MOA, with the velocity you like, and an ES/SD of 25/12. You are done and can load up a pile of good bullets.

10) If you get anything above ~1.5 MOA and 40/20 ES/SD, try a different bullet and/or powder. If that doesn't work, you have a bad rifle, and will need to start troubleshooting it (scope, stock, bedding, barrel, etc).

11A) Start tinkering with your load, making small changes to neck tension, seating depth, primer, powder charge, etc. Make sure to make multiple changes at once. Shoot a single 3 shot group over a chronograph with each variation, see one that's really small and has a meaningless ES/SD of 6/3, then post about it on the internet, and call it good.

11B) Start tinkering with your load, making small changes to neck tension, seating depth, primer, powder charge, etc. Isolate each tiny change, shoot a 5-10 shot group with each, and notice there is no statistically significant change from the groups from 9B.

12A) Take your "half MOA", "6/3 ES/SD" load from 11A, shoot stuff near and far, notice "fliers" and misses, then repeat 11A on the bench on perfect windless days for the life of the rifle barrel, and never get any practical field practice.

12B) Take your 1 MOA, 25/12 ES/SD load, shoot a 10 shot group at 100 yards to zero your rifle. Proceed to shoot stuff near and far in all kinds of weather and wind, taking good notes on conditions and outcomes, until you know your rifle like Quigley.

That's been my process anyway...

gut shot, Try as I may, I left out a few important steps mentioned by "entoptics".

All cases are trimmed to same length, all cases are lightly neck chamfered inside and outside, the case necks are inside lubed of which I use powdered graphite as I have a 1 lb. can of the stuff (it's a pretty messy step), then carefully lube (though minimally) the case. The sizing step: I only bump the shoulder back enough to chamber the case…..I actually stop the resize step when there is a slight resistance to chambering.

While I probably should anneal, I don't. I'm running my loads pretty darn warm, and throw the brass after the 10th loading! Possibly unnecessary, but I have a couple of lifetimes of brass (all same lot #)…..so I'm a bit wasteful! memtb

I subscribe to keeping things as simple as possible. Pressure ladder is my first step in the process. I've tried 3 and single shot methods, but I don't like pulling bullets so I favor single shot ladders now. I've found it difficult and costly to settle on a bullet and powder before some testing. Sometimes my rifles just don't like a combination, so I don't waste a lot of time and components trying to find a small sweet spot. 3 round groups to start once I find an acceptable range of powder charges. I usually can find a rough node and tweak charges and seating depth within this range. Once I believe I have found the optimal charge and seating depth, I load 10 rounds and hopefully confirm my testing.
I am not blessed with a range real close to my home. It takes time and energy to test. However, I need and enjoy the trigger time.

During the previous component shortage I started running one shot ladder to find max pressure. Start in the middle and go up 1/2 grain increments. Once the max velocity from various sources is achieved or I find pressure then back off and start shooting groups. I start at max mag length or 20 off. I dont like being in the lands with a hunting setup. Once I find a powder charge I will go shorter in 20 thou increments. If I find a spot where it tightens up I will experiment around that. Typically during the pressure ladder you can tell if the combo is going to work. If I shoot 6 rounds over 2.5 grains and the group size is moa or less it's going to work. If not I will try another powder. Once I find a load I shoot ten 3 shot groups to verify everything. Hornady does have a point with there sample size and statistical variance.

I load pretty much for standard cartridges so a lot of the homework has been done but obviously the load has to be tuned to the rifle. For most bolt guns, I can pretty much have it at .25-50 MOA in 45-50 rounds, starting from scratch. With a brand new rifle (new caliber to me) I typically buy one box of factory ammo (decent brass) and get it on paper and do a little break-in then use the brass, now form-fired, for a little ladder test on the next range trip. I'll use 4 pieces to load incremental check charges from the bottom of the charge range and maybe four 4-shot groups spanning 88/92% of max. This usually gives me an idea. I will zero in on the best groups and continue to refine. I pretty much start all the bolt guns at 20 thousands off the lands and to be honest, rarely have to adjust it. Sometimes I'll go to .015 but that's it. Gas guns are a different story, of course.

I don't do anything fancy in terms of annealing, sorting by lots, etc., but I do uniform primer pockets, deburr flash holes and check for concentricity. I'm also careful about shoulder bumps (.002 for bolt guns and .003 for gas guns) and check neck tension from time to time. All of these things are cheap and easy to do and I think they help.

As for dies, it prettty much use RCBS. Yeah, they produce a little run out but it's easy to correct. I have owned Redding Type S bushing dies and see the value in them but they are not totally necessary in my opinion and for my needs.

At the end of the day, I just focus on being methodical and uniform, uniform, uniform! All of this has made my rifles much better shooters than me! It is a rewarding hobby!

Cheers,

-YZ

Personally I think finding the right bullet powder combo is the main thing. Take the creedmore. Hornadys original loading was H4350 and a fed210m with the 140 eld. It's common knowledge. So I ran a ladder of 7 rounds from 40-43 grains. All 7 shots went into 3/4". I loaded a 5 shot group at 42 and it went about 3/8". I was at Hornady factory coal which was I think 40 off in my rifle. So 12 rounds I was basically done. I shot many more groups just to see but the load never changed.

cajun said:

Personally I think finding the right bullet powder combo is the main thing. Take the creedmore. Hornadys original loading was H4350 and a fed210m with the 140 eld. It's common knowledge. So I ran a ladder of 7 rounds from 40-43 grains. All 7 shots went into 3/4". I loaded a 5 shot group at 42 and it went about 3/8". I was at Hornady factory coal which was I think 40 off in my rifle. So 12 rounds I was basically done. I shot many more groups just to see but the load never changed.

Click to expand...

Yup. Sometimes you just get lucky. The cartridges that have been around so long are here cause the guys that developed them knew what they were doing. The 6.5 creed is no old timer by any stretch but it's a piece of cake to load for.

This article agrees. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crim...S&cvid=9af54efac6ab4349d188fa53423798e0&ei=51. Find the right combination of powder and bullet, and your 90% of the way home. Seating depth and all the other variables don't make much difference.

I'm also glad that people are beginning to realize that it takes about 7-10 three shot groups to really know how accurate any load combo or rifle really is. Selecting a seating depth for instance based one three shot group is a waste of components.

Those half MOA hunting rifles are mostly an illusion based on small group size.

For a typical hunting rifle, especially those that are restricted in magazine length, first thing to check in those situations is seating depth within those restrictions, no point testing .010" off if you can't put that COAL into your magazine…
Always test seating depth with a middle to 3/4 of the powders that produce the top velocities, you don't want that.
Second to test is primer type and brand. Currently, I know there are shortages, but I always test with both Magnum and Standard primers.
I also choose the top 3 powders that produce the highest velocities, these are generally at, or near to, complete case fill.
Third is neck tension, this may be a non issue, or it could be a game changer with the brass you are using.

Powder charge is done as usual, BUT, you NEED to test primers at the same time, so 2-3 identical batches with different primers will tell you which one works the best with that powder. Have seen 1.5" groups go to .5" groups with no other change than a primer, either a Magnum, Standard or different brand of either of those 2 types.

Another important thing often overlooked by many is, how you actually pour the powder into the case. This is called 'Packing Scheme'. There are videos that show this. For precision loads, it is important that if any air space is left in the case (after bullet seating) is the same in every case.
I used to use a long (8") drop tube. There is a method that I find works the best, it is called 'Swirl Charging' and it packs the powder much tighter than just filling the funnel and allowing the powder to bridge and fall into the case.
Using a scale pan and a funnel, you hold the scale pan at an angle and allow the powder to swirl, like a tornado, around the axis of the funnel. A continuous swirling is desired. Any bridging will stop the effect and different powder heights will result.
My F-class loads improved so much when I discovered this that I was totally amazed. The chronograph was giving me identical velocities in a string like I have never seen before and, I was using the same equipment as the big boys but not getting close to them. This changed the tide and even my hunting rigs have improved if near full case fill charges are being used. If the powder shakes in the case after seating, then this method will change nothing.
Anyway, most of these tips were shown to me by my mentor many years ago now, things have improved, but these basic things are what you need to focus on. They really are the fundamentals for very good loads.

Cheers.

Preface: starting everything .020" off the lands, and documenting velocities for every shot. 1moa or less goal.

1. Pressure ladder. Find the first hint of pressure, write that charge weight down.
2. Back off 1 full grain from the charge weight and run an optimal charge weight test in .2 to .5gn increments. 4rds each to help determine group size in case of fliers. I usually don't go past +.5gn on the high side to stay away from pressure. The best group is the your optimal combustion charge weight, it should be no bigger than 1.5moa and have a low ES or change a component (usually powder) and start over.
3. If your optimal charge weight is above 1moa then do a seating depth test in .005" increments 4rds each, you should be able to find your barrel harmonics seating depth to get at or below 1moa, this is your recipe. If not, change a component and start over.
4. Load 20 of your recipe and zero your scope and confirm velocity and consistency.