oop's stuff

[Don Fischer]

I was recently reading on another site where a guy recommended carrying along a cleaning rod when hunting to push stuck cartridges out of the rifle! Later in another thred, he recommended seating bullets into the lands. Huh, now we know why he needs a cleaning rod! I've seen a few guy's do that and a couple pulled the bullet's with the bolt, powder all over inside the action. Another guy loaded a round into his rifle that his buddy loaded for his own rifle, same cartridge. The bullet was crimped and jambed into the lands. His day was over! He couldn't open the bolt and was going to fire it out. I advised against that, hard telling what kind of pressure it would have generated. Maybe not that much,,,maybe to much.

Just struck me that there are more people that do that with hunting ammo. Personnally I believe that ammo should be used only in the rifle it was developed in and for hunting, always full length resize, the field is no place to find that your neck sized cases not longer fit. I run all my hunting loads thru the chamber and make sure everything works when I finish loading them. The finest handloaded ammo in the world is of little value hunting if it won't chamber!

Any of you guy's load hunting loads with the bullets seated into the lands?

[beemanbeme]

Good point, Don.  I think folks get enthralled with all of the accuracy aspects of cartridge building(both real and imagined) and lose sight of the functional needs of a hunting cartridge.  There is ABSOLUTELY no reason to be seating a hunting bullet into the lands.  This is also why you get the post asking if you can use a target bullet to deer hunt with as the target round gives them .4 groups while the hunting bullet only does .9.   

[jack19512]

Any of you guy's load hunting loads with the bullets seated into the lands?

I did until I forgot my cleaning rod a couple times.  Last time I did this I forgot my cleaning rod so I screwed the radio antenna off my Chevy pick-up and used it.  Bad news is I forgot to screw it back on when I was done shooting and ended up losing the antenna.  This is true, I am new to reloading and there are just some things you have to learn the hard way.  I don't do this anymore and haven't needed the cleaning rod since.   

[VTDW]

I have been experimenting with freebore for a while now.  I have found that for safety I find that sweet spot where the bullet just kisses the lands and back off .007-.010...for safety purposes.  Great post Don!!!!!

Dave

[victorcharlie]

I have been experimenting with freebore for a while now.  I have found that for safety I find that sweet spot where the bullet just kisses the lands and back off .007-.010...for safety purposes.  Great post Don!!!!!

Dave

Yep......I back off until a smoked bullet doesnt show marks from the lands.

[dakotashooter2]

Just like eveything else it is not gospel that a bullet "to" the lands will always produce the best accuracy.  Guns are all different. I have heard of some  guns that won't tollerate the bullet even near the lands.

[dubber123]

Dakotashooter2, you are absolutely right, my mod. 700 in .270 shoots MUCH better off the lands than up close, I have no reason why, but I don't argue with success.

[jgalar]

One exception is cast/lead bullets. In the rifles I own, if I can seat the lead bullet out to touch or slightly engrave the rifling it will give better accuracy than seated anywhere else. I would never seat a jacketed bullet to where it would touch the rifling.

[VTDW]

jgalar,

I agree wholeheartedly.  The problem I have is that the ogive on bullets should be the same from bullet to bullet but sometimes are not.  What say ye?  I know it is just a few .ooo at times but sometimes the bullets just are a bit out of kilter just to keep us anal folks wondering.

Dave

[JD11]

Any of you guy's load hunting loads with the bullets seated into the lands?

Nope, most all the good reloading manuals advise against it for the reason already stated.  I load real close to factory specs for my 7MM Mag (hunting only).   My 22-250's have such a long freebore, I'd have less than the bullet diameter seated in the case when I'm out to the lands, so I'm pretty safe there too.