Seating Long Until Ready for Use

Dry graphite lube for neck sizing. I use a bushing die for bump neck sizing. Once done I push the case neck into the graphite tub six or eight times, then load. After that I use a LFC die. So far no cold weld. But I've had it in the past when loading Berger bullets into new brass. Someone else told me about the graphite.

memtb said:

Jeff, as someone that knows virtually zero about "cold welding"…..I'll make a comment anyway.

I don't think that it's so much about accuracy or anything other than "potential" over pressure!

For so of us that may "push the envelope" on pressures…..a "significant" cold weld could very easily push us into a dangerous pressure level! Just my take on cold weld problems!

So……if someone loads in bulk, expecting the ammo to be used years down the road…….."long seating" will prevent a problem that may very well have never happened! Simply……..cheap insurance! memtb

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Have not read the entire thread however, my builder and friend is a HOF BR shooter who has held world accuracy records. He is adamant about this and loads at the range during the match when he competed at 100yds. When working up a load for a new tube or a new rifle always seat the bullets the day before I shoot. This ensures a "fresh set" into the neck. When loading for a 1k BR match loading ammo is the last thing I do before going to bed the night before.

skipglo said:

The concept....is good, but why would a person be foolish enough to load 400 Rds at a time ....if worried about Cold Weld. Too many variables for me to risk 400 Rds at once. Just me!

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I have a couple hundred loaded for every chambering I load with a bunch of 5.56 and pistol rounds too. I've only gotten into cold weld a couple times over 20 years, even though I usually keep better than 5K rounds loaded total.

skipglo said:

The concept....is good, but why would a person be foolish enough to load 400 Rds at a time ....if worried about Cold Weld. Too many variables for me to risk 400 Rds at once. Just me!

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skipglo……some of us consider 500 rounds near nutt'n. Whe the "ship hits the sand"……cold weld will be the least of our problems! memtb

memtb said:

skipglo……some of us consider 500 rounds near nutt'n. Whe the "ship hits the sand"……cold weld will be the least of our problems! memtb

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Couldn't agree more...but will you have time to adjust seating...that was the point of O.P.s question....I'm shooting rounds out my 460 bee from 2000....the question of Cold Weld was NEVER a concern for me! And 5000 Rds...is Nutt'n of any caliber in this household! My plan is to never LET THE SHIP....REACH SAND!

memtb said:

I don't know if there is any validation to this……but, it does sound logical! memtb

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I'm with mem...this sounds........highly academic

A lot of you are confusing cold welding with corrosion. They are very different things.

Sealant and keeping water out prevents corrosion. Water would actually prevent cold welding. Anything between the two copper surfaces to include the zinc in the brass is going to help prevent cold welding. Sealants would do nothing at all to prevent cold welding. In theory theyd help it.

It's really hard to get two pieces of 99.9% pure metal to cold weld in a near perfect vacuum when you're trying to get them to do it. I'm rather suspicious that brass bullet jackets(about 5% Zn) would cold weld to case brass(about 30% Zn) in the extremely dirty environment of a case neck. Any amount of zinc or copper oxide on the surface, which there is always going to be would prevent it.

Around 2006, I was given 200 loaded rounds of 300 WIN MAG using WIN brass. I was all giddy. Each box was properly labeled with loading specs, and all the boxes were dated between 1965 and 1966. Giddyness soon turned to WTH! Using my hammer-type bullet remover was a no-go. I ended up using a Hornady cam-lock bullet remover. I don't remember the exact count, but on many of the cases the entire neck was ripped off the case and it remained "stuck" to the bullet! It was quite an eye-opener ripping the necks off the cases. I never used the "good" cases. I gave them away with full disclosure.

Cold weld? Never heard of her…