Seating depth

[bowhunter-tw]

Ive heard a general go by is seat a bullet at least one diameter deep (.243” for a .243 projectile etc) is this for neck tension? Stabilization? Or is this nonsense? Couldnt I seat longer (less than one dia) and crimp for neck tension? 

[PRDATR]

I've never heard that.

[bowhunter-tw]

7 minutes ago, PRDATR said:

I've never heard that.

Lol well I guess maybe its non sense then. Im not sure where I read or was told that. What kind of minimum depth would you look for?

[Dan]

Depends on how much you want your bullet to jump  Maxim would be touching the lands  Work your way back until you find your node( Best accuracy )

 

 

 

[bowhunter-tw]

2 minutes ago, Dan said:

Depends on how much you want your bullet to jump  Maxim would be touching the lands  Work your way back until you find your node( Best accuracy )

 

 

 

Shooting lighter bullets I could seat .005” deep and it still wouldnt touch the lands. Im guessing thats not nearly deep enough for the bullet to stay in place, so id assume there is some minimum depth youd want to hit. Sounds like it could be whatever depth feel secure

[PRDATR]

I usually loaded to the recommended COL. If it wasn't showing the desired grouping then I would mess with it. You are more likely to have a compressed load then loading a bullet far enough out for there to be a minimal amout of bullet in the case unless you are loading very light/short bullets.

Even when I loaded 100gr .284 bullets in a 7-08 it wasn't an issue.

[L Cazador]

On 9/12/2022 at 1:45 PM, bowhunter-tw said:

Ive heard a general go by is seat a bullet at least one diameter deep (.243” for a .243 projectile etc) is this for neck tension? Stabilization? Or is this nonsense? Couldnt I seat longer (less than one dia) and crimp for neck tension? 

The one bullet diameter minimum is so the bullet can stay concentric or straight. When you're working ammo through a magazine this becomes very important. If you're loading single shot by hand it matters little. And no crimping is not going to improve that dimension, the bullet can still be tipped off center if there isn't a sufficient amount of bullet shank in the case.  

[MMACFIVE]

The rule of thumb is on caliber diameter of case neck contact.  Personally I think this is BS I've had under 0.15" in a 6.5x55 (.264" dia) and sub, sub moa. asl long at the concentricity is OK they will shoot OK. They did seem a little fragile though so I switched to  Barnes monos which like a jump.. Just my opinion and experiences,

PS if the one caliber of neck contact was valid the 300 Win Mag would suck....

[PRDATR]

6 minutes ago, MMACFIVE said:

The rule of thumb is on caliber diameter of case neck contact.  Personally I think this is BS I've had under 0.15" in a 6.5x55 (.264" dia) and sub, sub moa. asl long at the concentricity is OK they will shoot OK. They did seem a little fragile though so I switched to  Barnes monos which like a jump.. Just my opinion and experiences,

PS if the one caliber of neck contact was valid the 300 Win Mag would suck....

As you found out this rule of thumb is just that.  Nothing wrong with using it as a starting point. Many reloaders only stick with it for less than 5 years. It is a very dynamic hobby.

[MMACFIVE]

12 hours ago, PRDATR said:

As you found out this rule of thumb is just that.  Nothing wrong with using it as a starting point. Many reloaders only stick with it for less than 5 years. It is a very dynamic hobby.

My only staring point is either 0.030” off the lands or max Mag length.  I’ve never adhered to the 1 caliber rule.