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Thread: Nonsensical Headspace Measurements on 223rem cases...??

  1. #61
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    Use your finger nail if nothing else. Feel for the flick of the ridge on the high/low. It's not much, but believe me... if you don't get it below the max, your gun will not go into battery very well.. if at all.

    And short necks are not a problem. Some FC brass comes REALLY short. Just grow it out by sizing and firing it.
    "What would a $2,000 Geissele Super Duty do that a $500 PSA door buster on Black Friday couldn't do?" - Stopsign32v

  2. #62
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    Speaking of varying neck lengths, how does that effect neck tension? Does it matter or is neck length inconsequential as compared to neck diameter?

    Also I have a Dillon .223 case gauge and rarely use it. I just went through a pile of fired .223 brass waiting to be resized and they all fit the case gauge. I don't find it gives me much information for setting up my fl sizing die when the unsized cases fit it anyway. I'm a relatively new reloader though so I might be missing something.

  3. #63
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    Quote Originally Posted by twadsw01 View Post
    I just got a case gauge (Dillon) and am mucking around with some once fired and some prepped cases in it.

    How on earth are y'all telling whether or not the cases are above or below the min/max headspace? It is SO close.

    I can kind of tell, but it is by no means obvious, whether or not the case is in spec or not.

    Also, the case mouth is shorter than the min; is this bad?
    You use a case comparator to measure it. Like Hornady’s lock and load Headspace Comparator. The headspace guage only tells you if the round will fit in the chamber. Wrong tool for the job. The comparator clamps onto your calipers and measures from the datum line (center) of the shoulder.

  4. #64
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    Quote Originally Posted by twadsw01 View Post
    I just got a case gauge (Dillon) and am mucking around with some once fired and some prepped cases in it.

    How on earth are y'all telling whether or not the cases are above or below the min/max headspace? It is SO close.

    I can kind of tell, but it is by no means obvious, whether or not the case is in spec or not.

    Also, the case mouth is shorter than the min; is this bad?
    I'm 67 and have chronologically gifted eyesight and I went to the Hornady cartridge case headspace gauge. Because of the larger digital numbers on my vernier calipers are very easy to see.

    Below a fired Lake City 5.56 case in my Hornady gauge and much easier to see, since they do not make braille drop in case gauges.



    The case mouth measurement in drop in case gauges is based off the shoulder location. If you measure OAL case length with vernier calipers you will get a more accurate reading. Meaning forget the small end of the gauge if you do not want to drive yourself nuts.

    The big advantage to the Hornady gauge is you can measure a fired case. And many fired cases will not fit in a drop in case gauge. Meaning with the Hornady gauge you can "SEE" how much you are bumping the case shoulder back during sizing.

  5. #65
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    Got one of those... That's what all the measurements that started this thread came from.

    I'm just wondering what a case gauge, such as the one I have, is used for, and how to read it.

  6. #66
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    [/QUOTE]

    "Prepped": full-length sized, primed, and trimmed to proper case length.
    Mean = 1.465595"
    Median = 1.468"
    Std. Dev. = 0.004535"
    N = 21
    [/QUOTE]

    Don’t trim your brass until you are sure you have bumped the shoulder back adequately. I find when I set up the die to bump the shoulder back properly, I rarely if ever need to trim the cases. I’ll do it once maybe for uniformity. Then I’m gtg for the life of the brass.

  7. #67
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    Ok. Sounds good. I'm trimming length based off the shoulder to mouth dimension, versus head to mouth dimension. So it seems like I could potentially get better control over neck tension or how much of the bullet is in the case, doing it the way I do.

  8. #68
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    Quote Originally Posted by twadsw01 View Post
    Got one of those... That's what all the measurements that started this thread came from.

    I'm just wondering what a case gauge, such as the one I have, is used for, and how to read it.

    twadsw01,

    I use the Dillon case gauge to set up my sizing die and to quickly verify overall case length. Here is Dillon's video describing proper use of their case gauge to set up a sizing die:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIO37hANQlY


    Dillon's video does not describe how to use their case gauge to check overall case length. If you do use it to check for OAL, do not push the case up into the gauge. Just insert the case into the gauge and place on a flat surface (primer pocket side facing down). The case's neck's edge should be between the milled section on the other side of the gauge if it is within SAMMI spec. Of course, if you trim shorter or longer (for whatever reason) then it may or may not land within the milled section.

  9. #69
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    [QUOTE=dmd08;2590131]Speaking of varying neck lengths, how does that effect neck tension? Does it matter or is neck length inconsequential as compared to neck diameter?[QUOTE]

    longer necks give a greater contact surface with the bullet.... making neck tension more consistent (ideally). There are other issues that can wreck neck tension too however... harder brass, etc.

    Also I have a Dillon .223 case gauge and rarely use it. I just went through a pile of fired .223 brass waiting to be resized and they all fit the case gauge. I don't find it gives me much information for setting up my fl sizing die when the unsized cases fit it anyway. I'm a relatively new reloader though so I might be missing something.
    The gauge is only useful on sized brass... for me anyway.
    "What would a $2,000 Geissele Super Duty do that a $500 PSA door buster on Black Friday couldn't do?" - Stopsign32v

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    .....
    Last edited by darr3239; 01-26-18 at 10:17.
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