Dirty Rod

Since I don't have an AK handy ... Spare springs, gas rings, pin kit, extractor and a spare bolt or BCG if you are really concerned. I've been carrying most of that around for years and the only thing I've ever broken are extractors.

I load Berrys 115 gr Plated for my wife. 4.3 - 4.7 gr of 231 with an OAL of 1.40 works in all three of her guns but 4.5 is the most accurate. I haven't had a chance to chrono yet. None are production guns but thought I would toss it out for reference. Definitely long. SAAMI specs have a max of 1.169 for 9mm so your chamber would be way out of spec @ 1.223.

I started out loading .308 on a 550 using it as a single stage and eventually went to a SS. The ammo off the Dillon was good enough for 1" groups. I've gotten smaller groups off the SS but was/am able to shoot both pretty consistently out to 500 yards. I've noticed that the SS ammo has less runout and is a little more consistent (less flyers). That said, a few of the really good shooters in our matches use 550s to load their ammo shooting out past 1200 yards. Most of them use really good dies with the upgraded toolheads but one of the best shooters in the group can hold 1 MOA out to about 800 using a 550, Dillon dies, minimal case prep, and standard primers. I'm still up in the air on whether the SS produces better ammo but the folks I shoot with are definitely able to win matches with ammo off a 550.

Liquid Gasket may get old if you load multiple calibers and occasionally change toolheads. As others have stated +/- .002 is not worth worrying about. I get twice that loading both .45 and 9mm and I've measured factory ammo lots that vary by as much as .01. I've even seen rifle bullets that vary as much as .006 not counting the case. As long as I'm not loading to max charge or to min SAAMI lengths and all my loads chamber I wouldn't sweat +/- .005.

Correction - "Send box of small primer brass to Rod"

Well good luck with it. I hate brass prep so I guess I'm satisfied knowing that shooter variability more than negates any accuracy benefit I will receive from neck turning or more precise powder scale. I've heard some of the folks whispering about case weight and internal volume changing as the case wall stretches. I also recently had the pleasure of learning about the importance of bullet trimming. Thank God that 4-6" steel at 500 is all I'm after. I did ask the folks that I know that shoot extreme distance about their scales and I got everything from a Prometheus and some brands I've never heard of down to a 20 year old beam scale. Again, good luck with the ES. If all else fails .. you could always Uniform Your Powder .... http://bulletin.accurateshooter.com/2012/04/powder-kernel-uniforming-for-ultimate-long-range-accuracy/

USMC, not sure about rifle, but will .05 grains of powder produce a 40fps difference in rifle? It seems to take 0.20 - .40 grains of powder, in 9mm major, to move the velocity 40fps. In my 700, going from 44.3 to 44.5 of Varget took my average from 2616 to 2631 so .05 looks like its worth about 4fps at my sweet spot but every rifle is different. Of course, my skill level and the fact that I rarely get out past 800 negates the need for that kind of accuracy. I do have some friends that shoot to 2200 regularly. I'll ping them and report back if they load to something other than +/- .1 and have recommendations.

The powder bar selection is dependent on how much powder you are using in your loads. Based on your coment about using a 550, it would be the small bar for 3-5 grains of powder. The ranges for each bar are listed on page 15 in the manual.

Congrats. I just rolled 500 this morning myself. Happy loading!

Unfortunately I don't have any 9mm dies yet - all 45, .223 and .308 - or I'd help you out. You can't take your own components but if you want to play with a Dillon I'd suggest a 20 min drive over to the showroom in Scottsdale. Before I bought my 550 I made a couple of trips. If you go over when they are not busy Matt will let you crank you a few rounds (without powder and primers of course) so you can try them all and see the differences yourself. I'd suggest 11 or 3 on a weekday.

Pretty much what my Dr has me doing. My pain started in Jan and these things help some but haven't cured it fully. The thing that has helped the most has been using the ace Tennis elbow wrap and stretching. I've been trying cold packs pretty much straight for three weeks and they have helped a little but not as much as suggested by the Doc. Perhaps I'll pick up the stress ball or a gripper today.

.0007 out of a .308 with a 24" barrel, @2820 FPS. I have no clue how that relates to physical possibility; I just thrive on stupid numbers. As stated in the article, it's more than the acceleration of the bullet out of the barrel. Sear releasing, hammer/bolt/striker moving, firing pin movement, and ignition don't add a lot but enough to be a focus especially in long range shooting. Just the change in pressure on the trigger is enough to impact POI which is why many instructors teach users to not jump off the trigger to ensure consistent pressure throughout the shot. In at least 4 of the shooting class I've taken (pistol and rifle) the instructor specifically included it as part of proper follow through. Perhaps holding the trigger to the rear is not as important to everyone. What bullet and load are you using to get 2820? I get pressure signs over 2760 using 175s and 168s out a 26" barrel. Fortunately my loads are more accurate around 2630.

Since the slide has barely moved if any by the time the bullet leaves the barrel I can't imagine how spring weight could in an way affect muzzle velocity.

The concept applies to both pistol and rifle. Relaxing your grip, flying off the trigger, sight alignment, etc can all impact the POI so you want to continue with all the fundamentals until after the recoil pulse is over and the bullet has left the barrel so the shot is not impacted. http://conventionalpistol.blogspot.com/2010/07/follow-through.html http://www.pistol-shooting.com/follow-through.php http://www.shootingwiki.org/index.php?title=Pistol_Fundamentals#Follow_Through

It's also keeping the trigger pressed to the rear until the recoil pulse is over instead of jumping off the trigger and disturing the rifle while the bullet is still in the barrel.

I haven't used it long but my Beta Master will throw out an error or register one way high or low every so often. As stated above, putting it farther out helps but it still does it every few strings.

PM me your mailing info.

I've got a couple .45 baseplates as well that you can have. PM if you want them.

You realize you can go into Preferences and disable Ping, don't you? The Ping icons still appear in places but they are a lot less annoying. Trying to stay downrev'd is a loosing proposition in my opinion. Eventually there will be some functionality issue or bug that will prop up and if you upgrade to a newer device you will need the new version to manage it.

I've got two. Good solid pistol. One needed some warranty work that included a barrel replacement somewhere between 6-10k rounds but it's been golden since. Not the most accurate gun at a little over 4" at 25 yards but plenty accurate for a SD gun and neither of mine are picky about mags or ammo.

Start by looking at all the various types and options and figuring out what you want in a scope. How far and what range? Hunting out to 300 yards or so generally doesn't require more than a 3x9. Shooting matches where you will need to quickly adjust dope. If so - tactical turrets where you can see the numbers from behind the scope are a must. Will you need to range targets? If so, you may want a specific recticle. Depending on your budget there are lots of good options. The SWFA, Nikon Buckmaster, Bushnell Elites, etc make good stuff in the $200-$400 range. Bushnell, Sightron, Vortex, etc make good stuff up to $1k, and NIghtforce, US Optics, S&B, Zeiss, IOR, etc all sit at the top. Luppy makes stuff in every range. Like buying a gun, you kind of have to figure out what you want and how you will use it and then look at the ones that fit. Better yet, go to the store fondle as many as you can, and look through them. Some have better glass than others. Also don't get caught up in looking for lots of magnification. Cheap scopes get blurry when turned up all the way and lots of us regularly shoot at 500 yards or so at 8-12X. Back to your other question .... a $2k scope is not necessarily twice as good as a $1k scope but "better" is subjective. I think the glass on my $550 Bushnell Elite is almost as good as my $1700 Nightforce. However, In low light I can clearly see targets with my NF that are not clear enough to shoot with the Bushy and when turning up the magnification for an 800 yard target the target is definitely clearer with the NF. That said, I don't think it's $1200 clearer but after using the NF I couldn't see going to something less on my primary rifle. Be warned ... once you've looked through really good glass especially in low light at distance you won't want anything cheaper. Hope that helps.

I am not a sniper, and havent even played one on TV, but I cannot disagree more with the above statement. Shooting off a bipod or a bag should make no difference in accuracy or precision whatsoever. You can be both precise and accurate with either a bipod or a bag, or a rest. The only difference is how comfortable each one is for the individual shooter and the position they are shooting from. Bill Agree although I did stay at a Holiday Inn last night. For me, bipod hop is more attributable to me not being directly behind the gun, shoulders not square, or not having the recoil pad flat against me. With proper form the target is still in my FOV after recoil. Using some of the better Atlas bipods, a few of the folks I shoot with end up with the crosshairs pretty much right back on target for some seriously fast follow up shots. If I'm jumping off target, I stand up and readdress the rifle and focus on my form and can significantly reduce any hop I'm experiencing.

Understatement. Every time I think I'm doing well it slaps me down especially the 1/2" dots. http://www.snipershide.com/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=2626362 http://www.snipershide.com/2010/10/basic-lesson-23-snipers-hide-dot-drill/

I'd say you are doing better than most and definitely better than me. Only the best shooters in my shooting circle can consistently hit those 1/2MOA groups 4 out of 5 times. After 2 years behind a bolt gun, I'm probably 1 MOA about a third of the time at 500+. The rest of the time I'm just glad to hear it ring.

I shot for several years with a Bushnell Elite 3200 that I bought for $350. It's still going strong on my HK91. Pretty good glass for the money and a lifetime warranty with enough elevation to get out to about 500 yards with my .308. I like it a little better than the Buckmaster that it replaced which is also a good scope in that price range. I don't know if Bushnell still offers a 3200 in that price range but it's worth looking into. The SS scopes are also a pretty good value in that price range. Most of these will only get you about 40 MOA of elevation so if you are shooting to 600 you may be able stick a sloped base under it. The Bushnell Elites have a pretty good following so I suspect that if you want to sell it later you will be able to recover most of your money. Before I scraped up enough pennies for a NF, I did matches with a Elite 4200 Tactical. I bought it LNIB for $575 and sold it two years later for $525.