Author Topic: Sierra Spitzer Bullets (Read 861 times)

ccanevit · « **on:** July 02, 2003, 09:19:39 PM »

Sorry, new to reloading, went to a friend's house and started to work on some reloading. However during the process, we noticed a large variation, or ok, what I think may be a large variation in the bullet lengths. We're talking about .008 or more differences in length. It appeared to be differences in length due to the soft lead tip.

Just curious if anyone else has encountered this. Is this something that is common to come across? What is your normal fix for this?

I was using Sierra Game King 175 Grain 7mm Spitzer Boattails, #1940

Thanks

Duffy · « **Reply #1 on:** July 02, 2003, 10:09:50 PM »

Yep! actually that's not bad I've see them farther off than that. A more precise way is to measure off of the bullet's ojive (oh-jive) or the curved portion. To do this you'll need to invest in a bullet comparitor tool. Stoney point make's one that everyone seems to like and Sinclair makes one that looks like a big nut with holes for the proper calibers drilled on the flats. If you are loading different brands or even weights of bullets they will mostly all seat differently in the throat of your rifle. That's where the Stoney point OAL gauge and bullet comparitor are kinda nice. If your on a tight budget a old fired case that's resized and has the neck split with a saw or cut off wheel works too! Insert the bullet in the case, chamber it in the rifle, extract it carefully and measure it. This is your Max OAL but you still need a way of measuring off of the ojive and not the nose. Even Ballistic tips vary to some degree. Hope I didn't confuse ya.
Ryan

ccanevit · « **Reply #2 on:** July 03, 2003, 01:05:47 AM »

A little confusing to me, but I'll pass this by my friend that's training and supervising me on my reloading.

I know he did some dummy rounds as well, and I still felt a little confused on looking at the marks on the bullet from the landings. Seemed like even if the bullet was way long it chambered in that Savage 110, with very light markings.

Duffy · « **Reply #3 on:** July 03, 2003, 08:59:27 AM »

If you blacken the bullet with a el-marko it makes it easier to see. The split case allows the bullet to slide into the neck easier than on a regular case but it still needs to hold it firmly so it doesnt just fall in or pull out when you extract it. The problem with using a regular sized case is that the camming action of the rifle is sometimes enough to force the bullet into the lands and you don't really get a true reading. Plus once it's marked it difficult to tell where the new marks are unless you blacken it. If your friend has several different bullets(brands/weights) for the same caliber line them up and take a close look at them. You can generally see the difference in the "curve" of the nose. Even ones of the same brand are sometimes different. A 140 Ballistic tip has a different nose shape than a Partition. A 150 Partition is different than a 160 partition and so on. That's why you have to check each of the bullets in your rifle, measure them the same way and make a note of the max OAL for that bullet. Then using the same measuring tecnique or tool you can adjust your OAL to what your rifle likes for best accuracy. Hang in there, get your hands on a good reloading manual and do a little reading. Lot's of us have been loading for quite a while and are still learning new stuff.
Ryan