Painless(ful?) Load Prep (Precursor to Painless Load Development)

[TimberHunter]

If setting up a die properly is painful for you, you might need a new hobby.

It was a joke dude, lighten up. This thread has become a dumpster fire


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[Nine Banger]

It was a joke dude, lighten up. This thread has become a dumpster fire


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These threads on Rokslide that get away from the OP actually read pretty clean if you use the ignore button a half a dozen times or so.

 

[MontyMontana]

It was a joke dude, lighten up. This thread has become a dumpster fire


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Exactly.. we need a "satire" button next to the "ignore" button.

 

[Wprinkle]

These threads on Rokslide that get away from the OP actually read pretty clean if you use the ignore button a half a dozen times or so.

That button is why my feed only has like 6 people on it lol

 

[JGRaider]

Rifle specific brass, LCD with occasional shoulder bump via Redding body die, and not redlining very accurate ammo lets my brass last a very long time, with tight primer pockets. Life is good.

 

[wind gypsy]

This is where I am having a hard time understanding. I get maybe two firings of my 6.5 Creedmoor brass before it is greater than 1.92. Maybe I’m doing something wrong, I’m using my resizing die as RCBS said, and what I’m doing there’s no way I would get five reloads out of my brass before it was over spec. Maybe I’m missing some major concept here. That is why I am trying to do a “not max” bump. Maybe I regret it, hope I find out over this season of practice.

Just measured some Lapua Brass that started life as berger 6.5 creed factory ammo. I think it has 3 firings/resizings on it. Longest of 10 i measured was 1.918", most are 1.915ish or less. I usually try to get around 3 thou of bump.

 

[ResearchinStuff]

Why are folks in this thread talking about case trim length and shoulder bump as though they're the same thing? When cases get too long you trim them shorter, you don't smash the shoulders back further.

 

[wind gypsy]

Why are folks in this thread talking about case trim length and shoulder bump as though they're the same thing? When cases get too long you trim them shorter, you don't smash the shoulders back further.

Who said they are the same thing? The point came up about never having to trim. If you want more firings without needing to trim, not bumping shoulders back 12 thou helps.

 

[HuntHarder]

It was a joke dude, lighten up. This thread has become a dumpster fire


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So was mine... next time I'll use a laugh emoji for ya.

 

[Ishootgunssometimes]

How I do it

Anneal with propane torch and drill w proper deep socket to fit brass
Resize, deprime at the same time
Trim with WFT
Debur
Prime
Charge powder, I use an old PACT dispenser I got off eBay, if not +/-0.1 gn I reject it.
Load bullet, I like the LE Wilson inline seating die with K+M arbor press

My scale/dispenser is inside, while my press is in the garage, so I like having the arbor press at my desk so I can charge powder and seat the bullet without running to the garage.

I used to track all my brass and keep lots together by how many times they’d been reloaded. I’ve stopped that, kind of as an experiment, but also bc I couldn’t keep track. No issues so far. Some brass has ejector swipe etc. Still load and go.

Send it

Loaded with an assortment of aged brass, all prepped the same, still hits an 8” plate at 500 yd just fine in rain snow and 18mph wind

 

[il_cop]

Was about to spin up a thread on this but I think the answer may be explicit but buried or implicit in this thread.

Are you NOT cleaning primer pockets and still having the same results as cleaned pockets?

Would you clean these? (Pls ignore the ejector marks...I'm aware)

 

[Chris in TN]

Was about to spin up a thread on this but I think the answer may be explicit but buried or implicit in this thread.

Are you NOT cleaning primer pockets and still having good results?

Would you clean these? (Pls ignore the ejector marks...I'm aware)

If I wanted to waste time prepping brass I’d say that cleaning primer pockets would be the bottom of my list.

If you wanted to debur flash holes and uniformly ream the pockets and thought it would get you another 0.05moa of accuracy, go for it, but I’d never dream of worrying about *cleaning* them.

 

[il_cop]

If I wanted to waste time prepping brass I’d say that cleaning primer pockets would be the bottom of my list.

If you wanted to debur flash holes and uniformly ream the pockets and thought it would get you another 0.05moa of accuracy, go for it, but I’d never dream of worrying about *cleaning* them.

Edited above to define "good"

Thanks
No way I'm chasing .05 moa improvements.

I'm chasing less time loading more time shooting.

 

[Chris in TN]

I'm chasing less time loading more time shooting.

Same.

In the dead of winter if I have nothing to do I’ll clean brass but otherwise, nah.

 

[207North]

No need to clean primer pockets.

I will inspect each one after tumbling to make sure the flash hole is free of media.

 

[il_cop]

No need to clean primer pockets.

I will inspect each one after tumbling to make sure the flash hole is free of media.

Does it make any difference that I don't tumble?

 

[207North]

Does it make any difference that I don't tumble?

It can. If you keep brass out of dirt, mud etc. and wipe the lube off you should be good.

I find it quicker to tumble to get lube off vs wiping lube off with a towel.

 

[HuntHarder]

I rarely clean and uniform primer pockets. Really only if I notice significant build up after 5 or moreish firings. I do clean my brass often tho. For me, it is very little extra time because I usually reload in steps, over days. At the start, I buy 2-300 brass for each rifle. When I reload, I deprime and then throw the brass in my tumbler over night. The next day my brass is bright and shiny and ensures no "grit" gets in my sizing die. Size, trim ( if needed) and prime another day, then back in tumbler for a couple - few hours to remove the lube. Lastly, mandrel, moly and load another day. Short reloading sessions, broke up over days, I greatly prefer over getting it all done in 1 long session.

 

[nm.otter]

If I'm only loading for one rifle, this could get stupid simple: Set FL sizing die so that a finished case will chamber easily, but one with a layer of Scotch tape on its heel gets tight. That should produce the maximum amount of case life with a minimum of slop.

describes this (using a headspace comparator).

 

[WestMOhunter]

So, I've read the painless load development several times and now I've read the painless reloading thread.

Correct me if I'm wrong in my summary.

Painless Load development: Pick a bullet. Pick a powder charge, close to max, that will give you the velocity that you want. Seat the bullet to your magazine and/or close to the lands (how close/far doesn't matter) If it doesn't shoot well, just randomly pick something else and repeat the process.

Painless Reloading: Don't worry about cleaning, just resize and load brass up until it won't chamber, then throw it away and get some new brass.

Are these summaries correct?

It’s been a while since I read @Formidilosus painless load dev, but I think you have the detail in bold off a bit. For the purposes he described… yeah, seating depth is certainly not critical. However, seating the bullet extremely close to the lands is the worst possible “window” of depth. Like .020”? Cool. Wanna jump .050 or .070”? Great. But there is variability in bullets and a, say….005” jump seating can turn into a “touch” (barely touching the lands) and you will get erratic pressure. This is more significant if you’re already near pressure max at .005”. So, I would add the caveat to load ~.020” or more from lands. There’s a great article in precision rifle blog on jump and the dude from short action customs looked at jump and found a longer jump (~.050” and beyond) doesn’t necessarily shoot smaller, but it’s consistent/forgiving as your throat erodes.

Edit: changed bold to clarify what I am commenting on. Thanks.