What is the total cost of equipment to start neck turning?

[QuietTexan]

I am hoarding what I have. If components start flowing freely, I'll step it up. Limited hunting opportunity as well. For me, it's a great hobby.

Ahh makes sense. That's part of why I started shooting small bore again, it's been really easy to find .224 components, and those rifles cost a lot less to feed in general. I'm not putting 12 firings on 338 LM cases here

 

[Sending156s]

For the last seven years or so I averaged 1000-2000 turned necks a year for Fclass. I know what works for my program, having tried about everything out there. This includes an IDOD and a powered lathe by 21st Century.

I think you will be happy with your neck turning purchase. Turning necks isn't that difficult, holding good tolerances is fairly easy. Like everything else a little common sense goes a long way. Keep us posted on your results and good luck!

Thanks……will do. I decided to put those 2 rifles up until my kit arrives & I get the necks turned.

 

[Mike Matteson]

It was a little over $400 with shipping. I got all the accessories they recommend to make it easier.

If I hadn't just built 2 rifles & 2 more barrels (22 GT) in the oven I would have considered the 21st powered lathe also. These projects were planned to stretch out over more time & component availability surprised me.

I'm glad I did order a kit to turn this Peterson 25 CM brass. Amazon delivered a micrometer with an anvil type head today and it appears my neck walls are .0143 to .0149 in thickness. If there's zero wear on the reamer, not mine, that's only 3 thou neck clearance. When I had the heavy bolt lift I'm pretty sure I was guilty of not having a completely dry chamber/neck/throat. For my type of shooting I could use a little more clearance. See pic

I see a very nice powder scale behind there. I have one coming. Hopefully next month. There a lot of things I would like to do over again, but that the way is goes. Some of the reloading equipment has taken time go get. Sometime months between ordering and getting them.

 

[Sending156s]

My K+M neck turning equipment came in. I sure wish I had known I would need this while building my rifles. It's slow & tedious work. The K+M is real good quality, but if I was someone who was going to turn necks all the time I would invest in an IDOD or 21th century lathe. The Peterson brass is running 14.8-15.1 thou. I'm turning to .0138. That should give plenty of clearance & make the brass more concentric.
I can see how it helps the bench rest shooters building with tight necks & shooting all thier bullets jammed. I'm not sure I'll see the benefit in PRS and hunting type shooting.

 

[Mike Matteson]

Well you don't have to turn your necks. I found out a long time ago that it improved the grouping some. Every little bit helps in getting a tighter group. Under 500yds and maybe a little farther you don't need that much, but wanting to achieve tighter group to me is what it's about. A 3" group @ 500yds works for me on deer size animals. Ground squirrels a different story. I have been up dating my reloading equipment in the last year or so. There is a lot out there and expense from very little to a great amount. It all depends on what you want and can afford. At the same time you need to see how those bullets is grouping at those somewhat extended ranges. A 1000yds I feel is a different story completely. I never tried to shot a 1000yds other than just for the hell of it. Distance wasn't measured, but would wonder if I could hit that rock at a long distance. Most of the shots were low and some high. No range finder at the time either. If nothing else you owe the animal a lot of respect and make one shot kills. I wish I could say all my animals I have taken over the years were one shot kills, but I can't. Most were! So it's up to you to do the correct thing. Either limit your range or get better at making those long shots. ES & ED to me are the two things that tell me the most about my reloads. I have a good load that the range can be extended out. I am not a match shooter, but it gives me insight as to what I need to do. Now the people have come up with ways to do thing a lot easier and faster, and more accurate. At the same time it's a rabbit hole for sure. The biggest thing is to plan on what you want to do with your reloading and achieve what you want or need. I am never happy with just so. so, but I want the best I can product, and always working toward that end. I have been reading here on ladder tests. So make a lot of sense, and it has changed my thinking in doing it. I use and still do, look for pressure signs as I increase my powder loads looking for high pressure signs. I hadn't really looked at the grouping areas. I generally increase my powder loads by .5gr increases looking for the pressure sign, but not looking at how they grouped. Thinking that with that much spread in powder there wasn't any reason to think about it. Changed my mind now. So I am adding some thinking on either decreasing some steps or adding some.

 

[Sending156s]

Mike, you lost me. I'm turning the necks for just 2 25 CM rifles because of heavy bolt lift combined with some resistance getting a bullet back into a fired case.
All's well. Wife is helping & going faster now. Wishing you a wonderful day!

 

[Mike Matteson]

Heavy bolt lift, because of tight neck area? That could be why the heavy bolt lift. A very long time ago I develop a system on ranging my rifle before range finder were any good using a duplex scope. Set up deer sized targets at 300, 400, & 500 yards. I placed the scope on it's highest powder and studied how it looked in the scope. With that being done, I could instantly determine my range. I bench that 25/06 and shoot 300 to 500yds distances. Nothing special being done on the reloads. That maybe where I lost you at. They group at or just under 3" @ 500 yards (5 shots). Also at that time I didn't clean flash holes, weight brass. turn necks, Trim in case back .010". Nothing the same on lengths, no annealing, any anything except powder measurement being on. COAL was to manual spec. All the case work now is getting grouping under that. The only I times ran into heavy lift was either my cases were to long, or to much powder in the case. If the cases were hard close, then that a difference story. You are correct it the bullet doesn't drop into the case after it has been fired. The chamber is to tight. So trimming the neck thickness down is needed. From what I have read over the years, you shouldn't cut the thickness to under .012". The reason behind that is the necks are to thin and split quicker I guess. I have had that problem yet, so I don't really know. Now I have been able to set neck tension with bushing dies, and not used a mandrel to expand the necks. Being the necks have been cut for thickness and before ever being fired. Now I have just started to set neck tensions, and I am watching for spring back now. I am going to size some cases and not load to watch what happens to the neck over a few months to see if there any changes. I am having to step down 4 times to achieve my neck size. Now I didn't anneal any of them at that time. People are saying I should anneal in between the second and again after the finely step. That would be sizing a 5th time before fireforming the cases. I have about 500 cases so I can do some different things and see how the cases come out or last. So my cart is full for now, and my reloading gear is in Montana and I am in Mexico-North. (aka Calif) I don't know if that cleared up anything or not. So neck thinning doesn't have to happen in most rifles if shot are held under 500yds and your groups are good. So shooting @ 100yds and thinking you good for 500yds doesn't cut it. Everybody should shot the longer distances to be sure what that rifle is doing.