Rolex Posted July 16, 2017 Share Posted July 16, 2017 I started to have ammo issues yesterday at a match- FTF- when I got home I found the ammo I had loaded the day before to be as long as 1.178 oal my setup is for 1.160 oal. I readjusted today and checked 100 rounds- anywhere from 1.155- to 1.167 oal- Is this to much of a difference Open DVC- 9mm 124 JHP and CMJ. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
camaross400 Posted July 16, 2017 Share Posted July 16, 2017 I started to have ammo issues yesterday at a match- FTF- when I got home I found the ammo I had loaded the day before to be as long as 1.178 oal my setup is for 1.160 oal. I readjusted today and checked 100 rounds- anywhere from 1.155- to 1.167 oal- Is this to much of a difference Open DVC- 9mm 124 JHP and CMJ.It depends on your gun. Have you tried loading a few without powder to test the cycling in your gun? I load my 124 JHP to 1.10. I load Montana Gold. I run these in a CZ 75 SP-01 and a Glock 34.Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rolex Posted July 16, 2017 Author Share Posted July 16, 2017 (edited) All the oal's feed. But the problem came when I had to eject a live round after the cof ended. The long line did not want to celebrate our easy. And STI recommend 1 160 OAL. Edited July 16, 2017 by Rolex Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
camaross400 Posted July 16, 2017 Share Posted July 16, 2017 All the oal's feed. But the problem came when I had to eject a live round after the cof ended. The long line did not want to celebrate our easy. And STI recommend 1 160 OAL.Oh ok. I don't think it will be a problem. I have variation when I load as well. I just look for +\- 0.001 or 0.002 on oal's I don't load hot loads either.Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rolex Posted July 16, 2017 Author Share Posted July 16, 2017 Dam spell check. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarge Posted July 17, 2017 Share Posted July 17, 2017 4 hours ago, Rolex said: Dam spell check. 4 hours ago, Rolex said: Dam spell check. Now, that, is hilarious! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarge Posted July 17, 2017 Share Posted July 17, 2017 Rolex, did you try new powder or anything like that? Could the load be compressed? Compressed loads can grow significantly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BritinUSA Posted July 17, 2017 Share Posted July 17, 2017 Other things to check: stepped brass build up of 'gunk' inside the seating die Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rolex Posted July 17, 2017 Author Share Posted July 17, 2017 8 hours ago, Sarge said: Rolex, did you try new powder or anything like that? Could the load be compressed? Compressed loads can grow significantly. Sarge, Silhouette 8.0grs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarge Posted July 17, 2017 Share Posted July 17, 2017 2 minutes ago, Rolex said: Sarge, Silhouette 8.0grs. Not sure ,but I doubt that's compressed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rolex Posted July 17, 2017 Author Share Posted July 17, 2017 23 minutes ago, Sarge said: Not sure ,but I doubt that's compressed. No. Lots of shooters using it with the same 124 JHP- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeinctown Posted July 17, 2017 Share Posted July 17, 2017 Do you lube the brass? I have found that I get a larger spread of variation when I do not lube the brass as the press works harder to force it into the dies. When I do not lube brass I also find that the top of the stroke where the ram is all the way up get difficult at times and it is easy to not complete the full stroke of the handle. (when I do go all the way on the handle, the press almost feels bound up and the ram wants to "bounce" back down a quarter inch. -- I do not have this issue at all when I use a bit on one shot on the brass) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dillon Posted July 17, 2017 Share Posted July 17, 2017 Make sure you are using the appropriate bullet seat stem style for the bullet you are loading. The Dillon seat die stem is double-ended, one profiled for RN projectiles, the other for FN/JHP projectiles. Our experience is that RN projectiles can vary over .020" in where the seat stem contacts the ogive of the projectile. This results in a similar OAL variation. FN bullets should vary less. It helps if you adjust the seating and crimping dies with a fired case in station 1. This insures consistant upward toolhead pressure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CPD7119 Posted July 17, 2017 Share Posted July 17, 2017 Dam Dillon beat me to it. I was gonna say check the stem inside your seating die if using a dillon die. I used the wrong stem for awhile and has the same issue you are having. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarge Posted July 18, 2017 Share Posted July 18, 2017 2 hours ago, CPD7119 said: Dam Dillon beat me to it. I was gonna say check the stem inside your seating die if using a dillon die. I used the wrong stem for awhile and has the same issue you are having. It doesn't sound like this is the problem since he tried again the next day and was more or less back to normal? Unless he swapped ends by mistake and then swapped back for round two I doubt it's a wrong end of the stem issue Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CPD7119 Posted July 25, 2017 Share Posted July 25, 2017 On 7/17/2017 at 8:25 PM, Sarge said: It doesn't sound like this is the problem since he tried again the next day and was more or less back to normal? Unless he swapped ends by mistake and then swapped back for round two I doubt it's a wrong end of the stem issue I must have missed it. I didn't read anywhere that he changed his stem around. As i said though when i had the wrong end of the stem my seating depth constantly changed. Some days it was perfect other days too long or short. My problem ended when i changed the stem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smitty79 Posted July 25, 2017 Share Posted July 25, 2017 I'm also seeing a wide variation in OAL on my 650. I bought it use. I have it dialed in for a target OAL of 1.038" using a 122gn Acme flat point bullet. I see actual OALs from 1.032 to 1.044. I'm loading with 4.5 gns of WSF. I have the shell plate as tight as I can get it and still get it to run well. I have the flat point seating stem selected. What else can I tweak to tighten the OAL? When I loaded on my 550, I typically saw a range of about .005. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dillon Posted July 25, 2017 Share Posted July 25, 2017 Smitty79, Be sure to adjust the seating die with a fired case in station one. This ensures you get the same upward toolhead pressure during setup as you have while progressively loading. To measure the projectile variation, pull the seat stem from the die, hold a projectile up in the stem, and measure from the base of the bullet to the top of the stem. Do this for 20-30 projectiles at least. Whatever variation you measure will be reflected in your loaded ammunition as well. Don't expect it to be zero, BTW. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B_RAD Posted July 26, 2017 Share Posted July 26, 2017 On 7/25/2017 at 9:42 AM, dillon said: Smitty79, Be sure to adjust the seating die with a fired case in station one. This ensures you get the same upward toolhead pressure during setup as you have while progressively loading. To measure the projectile variation, pull the seat stem from the die, hold a projectile up in the stem, and measure from the base of the bullet to the top of the stem. Do this for 20-30 projectiles at least. Whatever variation you measure will be reflected in your loaded ammunition as well. Don't expect it to be zero, BTW. Glad I came across this. Very helpful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smitty79 Posted July 30, 2017 Share Posted July 30, 2017 Fired case was in both stations when setting up. When checking bullets with stem, the extreme spread was .005. I still get a spread of finished OAL of .01. When I was using my 550, with the same bullet, die and seating stem, the spread was .006. Any more ideas on why the 650 is worse than the 550? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bkreutz Posted July 30, 2017 Share Posted July 30, 2017 58 minutes ago, Smitty79 said: Fired case was in both stations when setting up. When checking bullets with stem, the extreme spread was .005. I still get a spread of finished OAL of .01. When I was using my 550, with the same bullet, die and seating stem, the spread was .006. Any more ideas on why the 650 is worse than the 550? When I do setup, I make my final adjustments with the appropriate case/round in every station (not just two). Worth a try. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lgh Posted July 30, 2017 Share Posted July 30, 2017 (edited) Same batch of bullets and brass? I check each new bullet batch when I get them. They can vary in avg length and extreme spread. Not everyone notices it but in my experience OAL can also change with headstamp. You probably did this already but it is always worthwhile to clean the machine when an issue seems to just pop up. A bit of media or other junk in the wrong place can screw things up. And make sure the die lock rings are tight. Edited July 30, 2017 by lgh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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