Looking for a recommendation for Precision Delta

[Pistolet]

Pistolete -
Now take that 4.3gr load and compare that target to targets of 1.140" and 1.130" OALs just to see if more case engagement improves anything.

BTW.... I gotta know. Does the pronunciation of your screen name rhyme with "Chevrolet" ?? 

All the best.

I was wondering if I should try shorter OALs. I was concerned that my OALs were too inconsistent to try shorter but I am improving and staying usually within less than.005, plus or minus of 1.145 Should I start at 4.1gr and up from there just to be safe?
Yes Pistolet rhymes with Chevrolet, pistol in French, my first language.

[Wobbly]

High variations in OAL are a ever-present nubie trait. They will soon go away when your arm gets the hang of pulling the op lever with the exact same speed/ force/ throw every time. Case lube will really do a lot to help make consistent pulls easier.

As per reply #44, I think you might see some slight accuracy improvement with a shorter OAL. Case engagement is a fairly important measurement. While you might not measure your OALs on the 300 rounds you take to a weekend competition (trusting them to be within an appropriate range), you'll want to double check the OALs on the 15 or so cartridges you take for the velocity tests. They all need to be  "on the money".

 

[toteone]

I have been following this thread as a new reloader, lots of great additional info to chew on.   I was curious if correcting an OAL after crimping is advisable?  I would think not, but not sure.  My OALs have a tendency to creep up sometimes up to .005 - .006 longer.

[painter]

I have been following this thread as a new reloader, lots of great additional info to chew on.   I was curious if correcting an OAL after crimping is advisable?  I would think not, but not sure.  My OALs have a tendency to creep up sometimes up to .005 - .006 longer.

A taper crimp shouldn't mark the bullet, so putting them back through the seating die should do no harm/damage.

I'm not sure how that would work on a progressive press.

That said, you're well within the .010-.015 allowance for OAL drift, so why bother?

[Pistolet]

I have been following this thread as a new reloader, lots of great additional info to chew on.   I was curious if correcting an OAL after crimping is advisable?  I would think not, but not sure.  My OALs have a tendency to creep up sometimes up to .005 - .006 longer.

That's funny, I've also been following your thread. And I also have a question , in the following sentence from Wobbly: If your SDs stay that low you'll see some definitive results as to accuracy, what does SD mean?

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[JRR]

I have read through this thread with interest.  One thing I have not seen addressed is cleaning.   "I do clean my cases in plenty of dishwater and rinse a lot. should I still use lube?"
My suspicious mind is thinking about a trapped drop of water in a couple of cases causing a squib.  Primer going off but powder not.  Just putting the cases out in the sun for a while may not be adequate.

[IDescribe]

Standard Deviation (SD) and Extreme Spread (ES) are two statistics commonly listed with chronograph results.  Extreme spread is the difference between the fastest and slowest bullet.  Standard deviation is a more complicated formula and represents how spread out all the shots are from the average.

So let's say you've shot 10 rounds over a chrono:

1050,1050,1050,1050,1050,1070,1070,1070,1070,1070
That's an ES of 20 and an SD of about 10.5

1050,1050,1050,1050,1050,1050,1050,1050,1050,1070
That's an ES of 20 and an SD of 6.3

So two different strings with the same ES can have different SD.  The second string of 10 is a beautifully consistent string with one bad round, thus the lower SD. 

Standard deviation largely reveals how consistently you are operating the press and how good you are at setting up your chrono.  Basically, it shows how well/consistently you're using your gear, and consistency in operating your gear is one of the keys to producing accurate ammo.

[Pistolet]

I have read through this thread with interest.  One thing I have not seen addressed is cleaning.   "I do clean my cases in plenty of dishwater and rinse a lot. should I still use lube?"
My suspicious mind is thinking about a trapped drop of water in a couple of cases causing a squib.  Primer going off but powder not.  Just putting the cases out in the sun for a while may not be adequate.

You might be right. I have seen moisture trapped in a case with a smaller case inside it, like a .45 with a 9mm or a 9mm with a .22. That being said they get pretty hot in the sun on a dark cookie sheet to where I can barely touch them. But it's a lot of work and I'm planning to spend the big bucks in a tumbler one of these days.

[newageroman]

If you go tumbler, I'd suggest a wet tumbler. Unless its match grade rifle ammo, I just hot wash mine with no SS media for about 30/45 mins. Then dry off and let air dry for a couple days in the hot garage. I also have been known to bake them in the garage oven @ 200 for an hour if I want to load them right then, or leave them on the dash of my car during a hot day. Still use lube even on pistol cases with carbide dies, just makes the press run smoother.

[toteone]

I use the "rock tumbler" from Harbor Freight, got it on sale for $45, sometimes it goes cheaper.  I got the one that has 2 tumbler containers and can effectively clean around 150 per container.  I only run for 25 mins and they get clean enough to inspect.  So can crank out 300 in 25 min plus setup time.  When done I simply put them on a cookie sheet and bake at 170 deg for 20 min.  Can load them as soon as they cool.
I have processed around 2,000 cases this way with great results.  Yes, I use SS media but may try running it without SS to save some time.

[Wobbly]

I have been following this thread as a new reloader, lots of great additional info to chew on.   I was curious if correcting an OAL after crimping is advisable?  I would think not, but not sure.  My OALs have a tendency to creep up sometimes up to .005 - .006 longer.

Unlike single-stage presses or the Lee "turret" series, progressive presses will typically make the first 1 to 4 cartridges off the platen a bit longer than the rest. This is usually attributed to unequal loading of the ram. Once the platen has a case in every position, the forces inside the dies are more equal and the OALs become very consistent.

So at the start of every run, I grab the first 3 finished cartridges off my progressive and run them back through the Seating and Crimp Dies as the last cartridges. You can do this because the bullet is merely being seated slightly deeper. The second trip through the TC die does very little, if anything.

You are allowed to make this move because auto pistol bullets are held in place by the neck tension of the case.... Which existed in the smaller case mouth diameter well before the bullet was ever installed. So pushing the bullet deeper is a non-event.

So again, the type press you use can effect the nature of the question. That's why it's best to ask these questions within your own thread.

 

[Boris_LA]

...
So at the start of every run, I grab the first 3 finished cartridges off my progressive and run them back through the Seating and Crimp Dies as the last cartridges.
...

For my progressive press (HDY LnL) I keep a dummy round (case and bullet, no primer and powder) near by and before seating the first bullet, I put this dummy round in the crimp station position. Since I resize and deprime separately before tumbling, this allow for more consistent OAL from the round one. The same dummy reused many times. When I stop the batch with intention to continue the next day or later the same day, I leave last few rounds on the press for the same smooth batch to batch transition. My shell plate shimmed and doesn't flex much, but still I am happy to read satisfying numbers on the calipers while spot checking.

[Wobbly]

That's another way. Any method that fills every slot of the shellplate will equalize the loads and deliver more consistent OALs.

 

[Pistolet]

? The fact that you don't own a CZ yet, simply means you're still in training. 

Someone offered to let me try his CZ75B, Cajunized, last weekend. I loved it! I'm going to have to sell a couple of guns before I can get one, to keep my wife happy.



[Mods fixed quote]