Lee King Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 I'm new to rifle reloading and found a lot of general information about powders to use if you want to run 55gr and 69gr. My search fu seems weak today. Quick background. In pistol for 40 I have 2 basic loads (both on a 550b). My USPSA Major competition load and a minor practice/3 gun/Steel challenge load. Sometimes I run 2 types of bullets depending on the application. I.e. Bayou 180s for USPSA and Zero 165s for 3 gun. The way I change loads is I swap a powder measure but leave the rest of the toolhead alone. My OAL is set for my major load and I just leave it alone for minor. Occasionally if I run lead bullets minor I'll turn around the seating stem. But that's the only adjustment I make. Maximum laziness. In rifle, what I would like to do is to run 55 (Hornady spire pt) for practice/hoser/close stuff and 69gr SMK for long range. I found loads for TAC with 24gr basically for both 69 and 55. The difference is the OAL. For people who switch loads back and forth, do you have a completely separate set up for 55 vs. 69? Different toolhead,powder measure etc.? Or do you just change bullets? Do you actually change the seating to get the different OAL? Thanks for the information. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillD Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 Hope you don't mind Lee, I'm tagging in to see what the answers will be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blairmckenzie1 Posted May 17, 2012 Share Posted May 17, 2012 (edited) a buddy of mine does the same thing you are looking for. I think it really depends on your gun though. tac is a great powder and both bullets work great. you might just have to load up some and see how close they shoot. OAL should be the only thing you change, 2.25 or mag length. changing just the seating length shouldnt be that hard on ya. Edited May 17, 2012 by blairmckenzie1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aaron M Posted May 17, 2012 Share Posted May 17, 2012 If all factors except seating depth are the same then I would just keep one setup and turn your seating die down when loading the 55's and back up to mag length when loading the 69's. Definitely do not need two setups unless you just want to spend the extra money, and if you in the spending mood just get a redding competition seating die with a mic on top so you can make it that much easier to know how much you need to turn it down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mbauer67 Posted May 17, 2012 Share Posted May 17, 2012 I have 2 toolheads for rifle loading, one for Prepping brass and one for loading. I also load both 55gr and 77gr loads, and I just adjust the tool head when switching between loads, if you want to make the switch over process super easy get the redding comp seating die, but the Dillion is also easy to adjust, just make a note of how many revolutions it takes between both loads Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lee King Posted May 17, 2012 Author Share Posted May 17, 2012 I guess one question is, with rifle does OAL make that much of a difference? I.e. if I load 2.260 for 69s (per the ramshot chart), would 2.260 vs. 2.226 (what it calls for in 55) for 55s matter? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mbauer67 Posted May 17, 2012 Share Posted May 17, 2012 yes, it matters Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lee King Posted May 17, 2012 Author Share Posted May 17, 2012 Good to know. Thanks for the info! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aaron M Posted May 18, 2012 Share Posted May 18, 2012 I guess one question is, with rifle does OAL make that much of a difference? I.e. if I load 2.260 for 69s (per the ramshot chart), would 2.260 vs. 2.226 (what it calls for in 55) for 55s matter? It matters and with you die setup for the 69's it will not seat the 55's to 2.260 also because the difference in length of the bullets and the profile of the ogive which is where the seating die will contact. It is a possibility that it will not seat the bullet in the case mouth at all with it is turned up for the 69's or barely seat them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
outerlimits Posted May 18, 2012 Share Posted May 18, 2012 Redding competition seating die-without it life is miserable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slowsure Posted May 18, 2012 Share Posted May 18, 2012 Be carefull with the Redding Comp Die. I went this route and was working fine with the custom stem made from Redding so it would not leave a ring around the thin walled 69smk's when seating. Swapped over to 55 Hornady bulk load. Whent to adjust the micometer on the Redding die and nothing...WTF...would not budge. I could back it out but not down. So I took it out of the tool head and tryed to oil and get the stem to move. Nothing. A punch and a BFH would not move the thing. Gave up called Redding and the guy said to me "are you loading a compressed load" and I said yes, yes I do. He said die was not designed to load a compressed load ( I didnt read that in any of the add's I've seen) Over half the cost of a new die in replacment parts. No thanks. In the garbage it went. Reinstalled the Dillon and now adjust the stem for 55 to 69. Also Lee. 2.260 OAL might drag in some mags. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
outerlimits Posted May 18, 2012 Share Posted May 18, 2012 Be carefull with the Redding Comp Die. I went this route and was working fine with the custom stem made from Redding so it would not leave a ring around the thin walled 69smk's when seating. Swapped over to 55 Hornady bulk load. Whent to adjust the micometer on the Redding die and nothing...WTF...would not budge. I could back it out but not down. So I took it out of the tool head and tryed to oil and get the stem to move. Nothing. A punch and a BFH would not move the thing. Gave up called Redding and the guy said to me "are you loading a compressed load" and I said yes, yes I do. He said die was not designed to load a compressed load ( I didnt read that in any of the add's I've seen) Over half the cost of a new die in replacment parts. No thanks. In the garbage it went. Reinstalled the Dillon and now adjust the stem for 55 to 69. Also Lee. 2.260 OAL might drag in some mags. Be careful with compressed loads. Trying to use one powder like varget will get you in trouble. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lee King Posted May 20, 2012 Author Share Posted May 20, 2012 Also Lee. 2.260 OAL might drag in some mags. Good to know. I haven't actually loaded any yet. Waiting for bullets, dies etc. to get here. I'll def. keep an eye on how they fit the mags. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lee King Posted May 20, 2012 Author Share Posted May 20, 2012 Be carefull with the Redding Comp Die. I went this route and was working fine with the custom stem made from Redding so it would not leave a ring around the thin walled 69smk's when seating. Swapped over to 55 Hornady bulk load. Whent to adjust the micometer on the Redding die and nothing...WTF...would not budge. I could back it out but not down. So I took it out of the tool head and tryed to oil and get the stem to move. Nothing. A punch and a BFH would not move the thing. Gave up called Redding and the guy said to me "are you loading a compressed load" and I said yes, yes I do. He said die was not designed to load a compressed load ( I didnt read that in any of the add's I've seen) Over half the cost of a new die in replacment parts. No thanks. In the garbage it went. Reinstalled the Dillon and now adjust the stem for 55 to 69. Also Lee. 2.260 OAL might drag in some mags. Be careful with compressed loads. Trying to use one powder like varget will get you in trouble. Will TAC end up a compressed load? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mbauer67 Posted May 20, 2012 Share Posted May 20, 2012 Be carefull with the Redding Comp Die. I went this route and was working fine with the custom stem made from Redding so it would not leave a ring around the thin walled 69smk's when seating. Swapped over to 55 Hornady bulk load. Whent to adjust the micometer on the Redding die and nothing...WTF...would not budge. I could back it out but not down. So I took it out of the tool head and tryed to oil and get the stem to move. Nothing. A punch and a BFH would not move the thing. Gave up called Redding and the guy said to me "are you loading a compressed load" and I said yes, yes I do. He said die was not designed to load a compressed load ( I didnt read that in any of the add's I've seen) Over half the cost of a new die in replacment parts. No thanks. In the garbage it went. Reinstalled the Dillon and now adjust the stem for 55 to 69. Also Lee. 2.260 OAL might drag in some mags. Be careful with compressed loads. Trying to use one powder like varget will get you in trouble. Will TAC end up a compressed load? No, unless your loading well over the book max, this is much more common with extruded stick powders that leave a lot of small voids in the case, like varget. TAC is a ball powder and pretty fine, so for a given weight it does not take up a lot of volume. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trickpony Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 I use Benchmark. 23.3 gr for a 69 SMK and 25.4 gr for a 55 MGB loaded at the same OAL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
outerlimits Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 AA2230 with 24.9 for 55NBT and 23.8 for 69 SMK. No compression at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillD Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 I use Benchmark. 23.3 gr for a 69 SMK and 25.4 gr for a 55 MGB loaded at the same OAL. Good to know. I haven't loaded any 69's yet. I just figured they would have to be loaded to a longer OAL. One less adjustment to make Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Morcillo Posted May 22, 2012 Share Posted May 22, 2012 If you get a ring around the ogive of the bullet during the seating, there is a solution. I had RCBS make a new seating stem to match the 68gr bullet I use. You can make your own by getting another seating stem and putting a drop of epoxy glue in the recess. Let is skin up a bit, then press the bullet into the cavity. Makes a perfect seating stem. +1 on the Redding seating die. Makes it a lot easier to tune OAL. Additionally, you can just change powder dies for each load instead of readjusting for each cartridge. Make sure you brass is exactly to spec when resizing. There is not room for error with these pressures. I load on the Dillon, but one round at a time. This way you can feel the bullet seat, note neck tension, and catch split necks before you jam your rifle with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlamoShooter Posted May 22, 2012 Share Posted May 22, 2012 (edited) No one want rifle loading instruction from me. But I do get as good of accuracy out of the same powder that I load my 55 with as my 69 bullets. I like that the powder does not look the same. I can say its a good Idea to have All your pistol powder to look different than you rifle powder. allot different Oh a cool thing is to add-just the speed and sighting distance on your 55 bullets with your 69 gr bullets so that they hit close to the same place at 200 + 300 yards so that your hold over is close to the same. just in case you want to use your 69 bullets on a heavy target at 250 yards. I can use the same hold of 400 yards with my 55 as I do with my 69s Edited May 22, 2012 by AlamoShooter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carbon9 Posted May 22, 2012 Share Posted May 22, 2012 If you get a ring around the ogive of the bullet during the seating, there is a solution. I had RCBS make a new seating stem to match the 68gr bullet I use. You can make your own by getting another seating stem and putting a drop of epoxy glue in the recess. Let is skin up a bit, then press the bullet into the cavity. Makes a perfect seating stem. +1 on the Redding seating die. Makes it a lot easier to tune OAL. Additionally, you can just change powder dies for each load instead of readjusting for each cartridge. Make sure you brass is exactly to spec when resizing. There is not room for error with these pressures. I load on the Dillon, but one round at a time. This way you can feel the bullet seat, note neck tension, and catch split necks before you jam your rifle with it. If you are getting a ring around the ogive of the bullet during seating hit the seating stem with one of the pointed Cratex dremel bits for just a second or two, no more ring. I think it is a machining or casting flaw from Redding and should be addressed by QC at Redding in the future. We'll see if that ever happens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carbon9 Posted May 22, 2012 Share Posted May 22, 2012 No one want rifle loading instruction from me. But I do get as good of accuracy out of the same powder that I load my 55 with as my 69 bullets. I like that the powder does not look the same. I can say its a good Idea to have All your pistol powder to look different than you rifle powder. allot different Oh a cool thing is to add-just the speed and sighting distance on your 55 bullets with your 69 gr bullets so that they hit close to the same place at 200 + 300 yards so that your hold over is close to the same. just in case you want to use your 69 bullets on a heavy target at 250 yards. I can use the same hold of 400 yards with my 55 as I do with my 69s Your sense of humor, humility and vast experience are invaluable to this forum. Thank you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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