Determining OAL for rifle cartridges

[jgh4445]

In the past I have worked up the OAL for a rifle cartridge by barely seating the bullet in the case and repeatedly trying to chamber it until the bolt will close easily. I have also polished the bullet with steel wool and chambered it till I could see the rifling marks on the bullet and then backed off whatever distance I wanted. What methods do you guys use to determine or measure at what point your bullet contacts the rifling or how far off the rifling you seat your bullets?

 

[jgh4445]

In the past I have worked up the OAL for a rifle cartridge by barely seating the bullet in the case and repeatedly trying to chamber it until the bolt will close easily. I have also polished the bullet with steel wool and chambered it till I could see the rifling marks on the bullet and then backed off whatever distance I wanted. What methods do you guys use to determine or measure at what point your bullet contacts the rifling or how far off the rifling you seat your bullets?

 

[primersp]

the rifle empty
close the bolt ,enter a cleaning rod untill its' touching the face of the bolt ,mark the road
then put the bullet touching the lands
enter the road ,mark when it touch the bullet
the difference in the 2 marks on the road is the MAX length of the cartridge whith this bullet
stay the gun in a rest ,an a little piece of wood to push the bullet in the lands.
hope i can help
regards
ANDRE

 

[OKFC05]

Yes, I did some of that when I only had one rifle.

Now that there are several rifles of the same caliber in the family, I load to SAAMI standards with quality components, and all the hunting rifles seem to like it fine.

 

[roger rabbit]

The steel wool method with a loupe or magnifying glass is the most reliable and foolproof. I've used all the tools and I go back to the steel wool method.

 

[Ron H.]

Sir, FWIW, I like to keep the bullet at least 10 thousandths off the lands in my match rifles. I use the Stoney Point tool and a Sinclair comparator.

Hope this helps, and Semper Fi.

Ron H.

 

[Davwingman]

To see the rifling marks easily on the bullet use a magic marker in black to paint the contact area. Repeat as necessary.

 

[DCT]

I resize a empty case and lightly seat a bullet and cycle the action, measure the lenth, set my dies accordling. Has always worked for me.

 

[dcb]

you could get a stony point bullet comparitor and take out all the guess work
Dave.

 

[lafayne]

I use the bullet comparator and OAL gauge purchased from Sinclair. It removes all guess work. IMHO it is the way to go.

 

[H Richard]

+1 on the OAL gauge, but it is now owned and marketed by Hornady. It is a simple and sure way to find the max OAL. BUT, may not result in the most accurate load. Once you have determined the max OAL, load 5 rounds at that, then 5 rounds at .005less, .010 less, .015 less, .020 less etc. then shoot each group from a solid benchrest at 100 yards and you will find the most accurate seating depth for your gun. Keep in mind that if your gun loads from a magazine the OAL must properly clear the magazine. I have found that my rifles "sweet spot" is usually .005" to .010" shy of the rifling.

 

[pownal55]

i believe brownells or midway sells chamber casting material if you wish to go that route.

 

[jgh4445]

Thanks for all the replies. Good information there and most helpful.

 

[gregintenn]

For hunting applications, I usually load them to the maximum overall length found in my loading manual. A lot of my reloads might end up in more than one rifle.
For maximum accuracy, I experiment with different OALs. Somtimes they make a big difference. Some rifles like them longer, some shorter.