I am new to reloading. I am going to be setting up the seating die for my new .22-250. I have heard of several ways to come up with the proper bullet seating. I was wondering what is the best way to determine proper seating depth and what is the best way to calculate your exact distance off the lands

Hey Cowboy,
There is a thread under the Stoney Point OAL heading that will give you some good ideas. The post is just a few below this one, but this forum noves quickly so I've included the link to it for you. Good Luck...

Cheers,
XWind

Stoney Point OAL Thread

Cowboy,
The Stoney Point is the most positive method to determine exact seating depth from ogive to lands I know of. Before this tool came along a pretty good method was the use of a close fitting cleaning rod, a cleaning jag, a dummy case, pencil and a dial caliber. File the jag flat. With the rifle empty and the bolt closed, insert the cleaning rod from the muzzle so the jag rest against the boltface. Mark the cleaning rod with the pencil at the muzzle. Pull the rod back about six inches. Seat a bullet in a case you won't use for reloading, just deep enough to hold the bullet. Remove the bolt and place the dummy in the chamber and lightly push it ito the chamber until it stops. No force should be used here, just a light touch and hold in place with a finger. Gently slide the rod back into the bore until the jag contacts the bullet tip. Mark the rod again with the pencil and remove the rod and dummy from the rifle. measure the distance between the two marks and this is the seating depth for that dummy to have the bullet just touch the lands. Seat the dummy bullet to the length you measured and lock your adjustments down. All lead tip bullets vary slightly in length but the measurement from the base of the bullet to the ogive where it touched the lands will not vary. By adjusting the dummy cartridge to the measurement on the rod you are actually adjusting your seating die so the point on the ogive that touches the lands just makes contact to the lands. Make the measurement about three times to insure you have an accurate measurement. I keep the dummy as a permanant "record". If I ever want to play with seating depth I make all adjustments with the dummy case. I hope that this will be of some help. Good luck.

THE DUMMY CASE IS A GOOD IDEA BIGBOB I USE THAT METHOD WHEN I RELOAD 9MM, 38 SPL, AND .357 MAG WORKS LIKE A CHARM FOR THSE CALIBERS. MY DIES ARE ALL LEE SPEED DIES. I FOUND THEY ARE THE EASEST TO USE AS I RELOAD ON 2 SINGLE STAGE PRESSES.

THE 2ND AMENDMENT PROTECTS US ALL............

BigBob,

So are you saying that you seat so the ogive is just in contact with the lands? The guy who started this topic is a relative newcomer to reloading, and I would have thought it may be prudent to advise him to back off 20 thou.

Patrick

I use the following method to "find" the lands:

Take a case that has been fired in that chamber and dent the center of the neck slightly (I usually use my teeth) just so that it will keep a bullet from sliding too easily. Seat the bullet "long" and chamber it. Carefully remove it and measure the overall length (OAL) with calipers, but use care so that you don't push the bullet farther in with the calipers. Repeat several times until you feel confident that you have a good reading (if I get three in a row within a thou, I feel pretty good about the number). Then adjust your seating die to that OAL (or more/less) using the same exact bullet to avoid bullet-to-bullet inconsistencies. You'll need to do this for each type of bullet that you want to shoot, they most likely will have different OALs to the lands.

Seating .020" or so off/behind the lands is not a bad idea, and magazine length may be your limiting factor on a hunting rifle. You may run into problems if you seat into the lands too deeply, sometimes the bullet stays in the bore when you try to remove a loaded round. The powder gets into the action and can make a big mess! I usually seat right at the lands on target rounds using the above procedure, start low and work loads up watching for pressure signs.

I have never tried the Stony Point, but this way is a lot cheaper (zero $)....

Regards, Bill

I use the stoney point OAL gauge also. I start by seating .050" off the lands.

I too use the Stoney Point and think it is excellent, even though other posts do not. I always start 020 off the lands but it is important to insure you have the tools to accurately measure this to minimize risks.

[ 01-12-2003, 21:51: Message edited by: Harley ]

For just starting out, I'd recogmen using the numbers found in the loading manual (from the people that made the bullet your using). After you have found the best powder / charge weight for that rifle/bullet combo than start playing with the OAL (and if you want to use the magazine that will affect your max OAL also).