Hi I'm fairly new to reloading. I just got my dies for my savage 223. I've measure the distance to the lands over and over and keep coming up with 1.870 to ogive. BUT I have some factory ammo that measure out to 1.881. HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE????

When you chamber one of these Factory rounds, does the rifling engrave?

JW

????? What are you using to make the initial measurement? The same bullet as in the factory load??

Different bullets = different ogives = different measurements.

Ray

I've wondered about this too, Alot of the loaders seat into the lands .020 or more and the books all say to leave at least .020 or more from lands? I know the F-class loads are hot and they go with the crush fit of .020 to .030 into lands with the VLD bullets.

Which is correct, I have found just touching or max mag. length work best for mine.

RC

Uuuuhhhh, if you're new to reloading, go strictly by the book. Most of the "hot" tips you get in cyberspace about the straight road to Jerusalem of reloading can get you a quick trip to the emergency room.
You want your bullet off the lands. As posted, different bullets have different profiles. Blacken a seated bullet of your choice (w/o powder) and chamber it. You should not get any engraving from the lands. If you do, your cartridge is too long.

Thanks Cheechako. I think that exactly whats going on. I've reloaded for my 300wsm, 300win, and my 7mm wsm. But this is the first time for my 223. I didn't know if there could have been something else going on. Thanks guys.