O.A.L

[Farrow]

Evening all, very new to handloading, made my first loads based on the hornady manual specs and had a good result. I know that working out your O.A.L is a good next step.

I have a hornady gauge and case for 308, tried to use it and came in well over the length suggested in the the hornady manual.

Is it safe to go with the measurement from the gauge or stick with the manual as theres quite a difference?

 

[tom308w]

Farrow just the book coal mate.

 

[enfieldspares]

OAL in my opinion should be set according to not only what the manuals say but also to the bullet ogive and that you MUST have free space between that ogive and the barrel lands. Not a bus length nor even 1/10" of an inch. But there must be some. Even if just 1/16" or in new money 1.5 millimetres.

Some bullets need to have that taken into account. And their OAL set shorter than the standard usually quoted in manuals. Not one size fits all!

I have handloaded for fifty years. Never owned an OAL gauge in my life. Always used what the manual said and loaded a sized but unprimed and not charged case to that. Then checked said "sample" for feeding in the intended rifle and that it loaded with the ogive not touching or, worse, engaging, the lands. That sample I then keep so that I can easily next time set up my seating die if I have changed bullets and the seating die needs re-setting.

 

[Farrow]

Farrow just the book coal mate.

Thanks, wanted to be safe and ask opinions rather than risk it

 

[enfieldspares]

Then checked said "sample" for feeding in the intended rifle and that it loaded with the ogive not touching or, worse, engaging, the lands.

Done by blacking the bullet using a felt tip marker pen and seeing if it emerges with four, five or six (according to your rifling) bright areas where the lands have engaged the bullet jacket and so scraped the marker pen ink off. In olden days you'd have used "engineers' blue". LOL!

 

[Foxyboy43]

Saw the neck of a fired case lengthwise then seat your bullet of choice just in the sawn neck, gently chamber it then your bullet will be seated by the ogive coming into contact with the chamber throat ; carefully extract and measure COAL each time; for consistency do this 5 times then take 20 thou off the now agreed Max COAL - this is your rifle’s starting point for accurate and safe shooting.
You are welcome…

 

[Sinistral]

Evening all, very new to handloading, made my first loads based on the hornady manual specs and had a good result. I know that working out your O.A.L is a good next step.
I have a hornady gauge and case for 308, tried to use it and came in well over the length suggested in the the hornady manual.
Is it safe to go with the measurement from the gauge or stick with the manual as theres quite a difference?

This is a problem as old as the hills.
Seat out the bullets as far as you can.
A gaugeless solution now 70 years old.

PS - Don't use a live round.

 

[paul o']

Load it to max mag length and work back to let the rifle tell you what's the best OAL in group size for your rifle.

 

[Malxwal]

What's your end goal with the rifle ?
If you're new to reloading, there's a few pitfalls to be found by seating bullets out to the lands.
If book COAL is getting you sub inch five shots (try ten) at 100yd/m, you're good to go stalking.

 

[User00056]

I like to keep it simple. I load to book minimum COAL and see how it shoots. In twenty years I've never had to change it

 

[Muir]

Thanks, wanted to be safe and ask opinions rather than risk it

Risk what?-Muir

 

[Muir]

OAL in my opinion should be set according to not only what the manuals say but also to the bullet ogive and that you MUST have free space between that ogive and the barrel lands. Not a bus length nor even 1/10" of an inch. But there must be some. Even if just 1/16" or in new money 1.5 millimetres.

Some bullets need to have that taken into account. And their OAL set shorter than the standard usually quoted in manuals. Not one size fits all!

I have handloaded for fifty years. Never owned an OAL gauge in my life. Always used what the manual said and loaded a sized but unprimed and not charged case to that. Then checked said "sample" for feeding in the intended rifle and that it loaded with the ogive not touching or, worse, engaging, the lands. That sample I then keep so that I can easily next time set up my seating die if I have changed bullets and the seating die needs re-setting.

This.-Muir