Want to Get Into Loading/Reloading

[Airgator0470]

Alright, I think I've finally come to the point in my life where I'm no longer satisfied shooting, but want to be the mad scientist and make cool shit to shoot. I know nothing about reloading tools or methods. I recently purchased a book "The ABC's of Reloading." I'm about to read it.

That being said, I think I wanna take Ceddie's advice and dump some of my 7.62x54R rounds and redistribute the powder as exact weights in every round, hoping to increase accuracy. First question, is this a good idea? Second question; what tools and/or equipment would I need to be able to do this. I know everyone's time is valuable and I don't want to seem eager to be spoon fed, so if it's too much to type you can just throw a website or book title at me and I'll go read how to. Thanks for the help.

1. Due to the quality and age of the powder I think you're going to find it a waste of time. Based on YEARS of reloading experience, slight variances in powder charge (.10 to .30 of a grain may not make a measurable difference). The surplus bullets are another lack luster component as well.
2. Tools... you will need a kinetic bullet puller, a press, dies, a scale, a chamfer tool for the case mouths, and a caliper set at minimum.
3. I've had some VERY slight delays in primer ignition with surplus... that's another precision killer... lack of consistency in the powder ignition and burn rate.
4. Forget using .308 bullets.

But hey... it's a project right?

[Rumbler]

. . and lets not forget that mixing powders, even different lots of the "same" powder can have some pretty unpredictable results.

Jlfar, you need to come to the Talon shop. In two hours I can show you far more than you ever wanted to know about the science (and art) of loading ammunition.

[Airgator0470]

Good thing to know before I tried set up for that.

Any brand you recommend and/or kits that are available with most or all of these tools?

Is this considered a "hang fire" (which I have seen numerous times while running belt-feds) or is this something that is so minute that you can't actually observe? Would it do any good to dump a casing and measure in your own modern powder and make a consistent batch?

Yeah, I did a ton of research on that today. Know of anyway to gauge a bore to see what tolerance it will allow?

And you know I love my projects more than a single black female with 8 illegitimate babies.

Yes... while not a well recognized "hang fire"... but a delay discernible enough that lets you know it happened.

As far as brand name for tools... Hornady, Dillon, and RCBS are front runners... 90% of my gear is RCBS. IMO their CS is second to one. You're welcome out ANYTIME I'm up that way... I can talk shop (reloading) for hours...

As far as the bore goes, any good gunsmith should be able to "slug" your barrel to find the tightest overall measurement... you can do it actually by using a wood dowel to drive a lead slug through the bore (chamber to muzzle) and then measure the slug with a caliper. As far as the deviation in bore diameter throughout the entire bore, having it air gauged would tell you but I have no idea who or where you could get it done... or if you could. As you drive a slug down the barrel you might even detect larger areas in the bore just based off resistance.

[ironhead7544]

so theoretically; remove the bolt, place lead round into chamber, and tap dowel with hammer until round exits muzzle, then measure from groove to groove. The average number being the average bore tolerance, excluding points of lesser resistance. I think that's pretty damn doable. You've got my email, hit me up next time you come this way and have some time, I'll definitely take you up on that!

Slugging the bore is fairly simple but you need the right equipment. Hammering a lead slug the wrong way can damage the bore.

I have been using the slugs from Lead Bullet Technologies. They are specially designed for that purpose. Works easily and can tell you more about bore size and condition. Cost a bit but is worth it.

Proper size bullets are available for the 7.62x54. They are the same as the 303 British, .312. Match bullets are available, too.

I have been loading since 1972 and am always glad to help someone get started. It is easy enough to do but has to be done properly.

Ask here and I will try to answer any questions.

[ropeman]

Know of anyway to gauge a bore to see what tolerance it will allow?

Here's some good info and a good site for reference.
http://www.handloadersbench.com/forum5/20203.html

If you want accurate results you need to get every little bit out of the ammo. You won't be able to make a drastic difference by only changing one factor of the ammo.