243 AI fire forming questions

Frank7mm

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Joined
Mar 26, 2008
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401
Location
PA
Started fire forming my brass with a junk barrel to day. Everything is going fine except I noticed some cream of wheat stuck in the case near the shoulder and it is a little difficult to clean out. I'm using 6gr of 2400 and cream of wheat. They are forming nice just wondering if someone has a secret to prevent this?
Maybe corn meal would be better? Thanks
 
I skip all of the cereal loads and save them for breakfast. Keep your same load and roll a small amount of cotton from a bag of cheap cotton balls into a small neck size piece, insert into the neck and shoot.
 
Get ahold of Trevor at Cloud Peak gunworks and he will build a hydro form die out of your resize die and you don't have to mess with any of that. Load with water smack with a hammer and wallahh!! Trevor will set it up so your cases will be about +.010 longer than your fired brass so when you resize them you can bump them back to .001" less than a fired case. It takes less than 30 seconds to convert back to your resize die. I have a couple of his prototypes for my .243AI and 6.5-06AI and they work like a dream, just got done forming 100 6.5-06 AI cases today.
 
Load a mid to high range 243 load seat bullets into the lands and shoot the other methods IMO don't get you a sharp enough angle in the shoulder so by the time you build yur load the internal volume is different and you waste more time. Often your fire forming load is accurate go shot some varmints or targets or get a kid out to learn. Still build up to this load for safety but you will have a hard time getting too hot if you stay within regular 243 limits before fire forming.
 
I did not ask how to form my brass! I asked for tips so the cow doesn't stick in the case. Next time I'll be more clear! Thanks to those that addressed my topic.
 
I'm asking "how to fire form brass". I have a custom 243 AI in the works and from all my research, it seems to me that most people who shoot this chambering for competition, fire form by shooting fully loaded 243 rounds. That's how I plan on doing it.

My question is; do I trim cases, and turn the necks on the original 243 load, or wait and do it on the fire formed 243 AI load? Or will it matter.

I'm using Lapua brass. My normal routine for a precision load (and it's worked well) is:

1. FL re-size
2. Expand necks
3. Trim to length and chamfer
4. Turn necks removing only .0005" (SAMMI chamber)
5. Uniform primer pockets
6. De-bur flash holes
 
Agree with gre8whyt and ReachnOut: forget the cream of wheat. I use 1/2 piece toilet paper stuffed down on top of 17-18 grains of Bullseye.

Works great! I have lotsa Bullseye leftover from my 2700 pistol shooting days. :)
 
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