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375 EnABELR Build

This is from AB's testing. They considered these "mild" loads.

View attachment 480431

That table is the only load info I could find last year. I had a buddy run it through QL and it wanted me to start at 136gr. I landed at 132.2gr of 24N41, .012" off the lands. My 5 shot SDs were around 5 fps at 3035. The problem I and many others have encountered is in the resizing process. Conventional wisdom is bump the shoulder .002". Well, that is not enough, and creates extraction issues. You must bump the shoulder .004 - .005. I actually take mine back to the same point as the stock Peterson brass, which is .004". It required an email to AB, and advice from Francis Colon to figure this out. Also, it turns out I had a Whiddon die that was out of spec. Whiddon promptly replaced the die after inspecting it. Make sure you anneal that brass too, it's a lot of metal to move when sizing. Lastly, AB recommends .003" of neck tension. I also found this to work well. There's a lot going on with reloading this round that was different from what I was accustomed to. Just FYI, hope it helps. Good luck with your build, this is a great cartridge!
 
Many Whidden resizing dies didn't sufficiently resize the diameter of the case web area. They made three for me for a 338 LAI. All too large in diameter, even after I took measurements and explained the problem with the first two resizing dies. Others had similar experiences.

Maybe they've got it together now.
 
That table is the only load info I could find last year. I had a buddy run it through QL and it wanted me to start at 136gr. I landed at 132.2gr of 24N41, .012" off the lands. My 5 shot SDs were around 5 fps at 3035. The problem I and many others have encountered is in the resizing process. Conventional wisdom is bump the shoulder .002". Well, that is not enough, and creates extraction issues. You must bump the shoulder .004 - .005. I actually take mine back to the same point as the stock Peterson brass, which is .004". It required an email to AB, and advice from Francis Colon to figure this out. Also, it turns out I had a Whiddon die that was out of spec. Whiddon promptly replaced the die after inspecting it. Make sure you anneal that brass too, it's a lot of metal to move when sizing. Lastly, AB recommends .003" of neck tension. I also found this to work well. There's a lot going on with reloading this round that was different from what I was accustomed to. Just FYI, hope it helps. Good luck with your build, this is a great cartridge!
I wonder if I got one of the bad dies. I've had these dies for over a year, and I do recall reading about these issues on the forum. At first everyone was trying to blame the Peterson brass.

I did see a note on PTG that there was an issue with the first reamers that came out based off the original cartridge specs. Something about being too big.

Anyways, I compared the prints from PTG, Manson, and JGS. I didn't see any difference in the numbers between them. Told JGS to go ahead and cut me a reamer based off their print.

Are you shooting your EnABELR suppressed?
 
I agree with Rich Sherman on the appropriate inner diameter (ID) of resizing dies. They should be ~0.0045" smaller ID at the 0.200" datum from the case head/bolt face, compared to the chamber reamer at that same datum. Especially for larger capacity high-pressured magnum cartridges.

If not, after several firings, the case web may bind in the chamber. The case web will spring back to larger OD than the ID of the resizing die, after resizing. So measuring the case web after resizing doesn't tell a guy the ID of the resizing die.

My 338 LAI cases started to bind while chambering them after 3-4 full-pressured firings. The case web is pretty stout on many cartridges and requires multiple firings to reach full-pressured, expanded diameter.
 
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I do not shoot the EnABELR suppressed. Also, while I have used the new die, and the brass looks much better, I have not yet tried to shoot it. Hopefully I will get the time in the next week or so. Btw, Peterson Cartridge was great, and helped me out by inspecting my brass using an optical comparator. That's how we realized it was a problem with the die.
I wonder if I got one of the bad dies. I've had these dies for over a year, and I do recall reading about these issues on the forum. At first everyone was trying to blame the Peterson brass.

I did see a note on PTG that there was an issue with the first reamers that came out based off the original cartridge specs. Something about being too big.

Anyways, I compared the prints from PTG, Manson, and JGS. I didn't see any difference in the numbers between them. Told JGS to go ahead and cut me a reamer based off their print.

Are you shooting your EnABELR suppressed?
 
I do not shoot the EnABELR suppressed. Also, while I have used the new die, and the brass looks much better, I have not yet tried to shoot it. Hopefully I will get the time in the next week or so. Btw, Peterson Cartridge was great, and helped me out by inspecting my brass using an optical comparator. That's how we realized it was a problem with the die.
Yeah, they're awesome. I sent a batch of 300 PRC back to them to check out. Turns out the primers I was using were on the thin end for LRM and would make the pocket feel loose. He even mentioned that in the email before I told him what primer I was using, and it was spot on.
 
Yeah, they're awesome. I sent a batch of 300 PRC back to them to check out. Turns out the primers I was using were on the thin end for LRM and would make the pocket feel loose. He even mentioned that in the email before I told him what primer I was using, and it was spot on.
Which primer? So I don't use them in my enlarged primer pockets :)
 
Which primer? So I don't use them in my enlarged primer pockets :)

This is from his email.

"The primers I used to test were Fed 215m primers and a Ginex large rifle primer. We here in the past have had issues with Fed. 215 primers being SAAMI min. dia. and when I say min. I mean like going to the 4th decimal and rounding up to get the primer cup to meet SAAMI spec. in a primer pocket 0.0005 can make a difference between a light fitting primer and a normal primer pocket feel."
 
This is from his email.

"The primers I used to test were Fed 215m primers and a Ginex large rifle primer. We here in the past have had issues with Fed. 215 primers being SAAMI min. dia. and when I say min. I mean like going to the 4th decimal and rounding up to get the primer cup to meet SAAMI spec. in a primer pocket 0.0005 can make a difference between a light fitting primer and a normal primer pocket feel."
If I had to guess, I would say you talked to Zack. He's a great guy with a lot of knowledge. I actually consider him a good friend and we shoot together often. Unfortunately, he doesn't work there any longer. He was the go to for customer support.
 
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