Neck Tension

[mpstan]

Trying to get a handle on how folks set neck tension.........

 

[pbroski]

I use a FL bushing die with expander button/ball.

 

[Castle Rock]

How much do you want

 

[Castle Rock]

Oh and BTW you are a very handsome man

 

[wind gypsy]

A, B, D, and E.

 

[Lawnboi]

SAC die with an expanding decapper in place.

Size .003-.004 under bullet diameter, mandrel up with a .002 under bullet diameter mandrel, on the down stroke.

Do do the same if I’m mandreling in a separate step. Prefer .0025-.003 neck tension.


Regardless of the equipment my goal is to always move the brass as little as I have to, while also taking into account inconsistencies in rifle brass.

 

[ljalberta]

High volume, I just use the FL die and expander button. Lower volume, I’ll FL size without the button and use a .002” mandrel.

 

[Wrench]

I prefer collets to my other choices.

 

[TaperPin]

A and then D (if A doesn’t work).

Normal, cheap, boring, name brand full length dies with horrible coarsely machined expander buttons have been working well on some very accurate rifles since at least WW2.

I can’t remember a case in IRL or online where the type of sizing die made even 1/4 moa difference in a 1-1/2 moa gun. Neck tension can make a difference and mandrels/bushing dies makes messing with that easy, but any die set can have any size expander.

Normally, someone spends a bunch of money on a new barrel and upgraded dies, and we don’t get to see what the difference the new dies would have made in the old barrel, and once you have fancy dies rarely does anyone use the old ones.

 

[BBob]

I started with std fixed dies with expander.
I next went to bushing dies no expander.
F-ed with mandrel’s and bushing dies but a waste of time and $$$.
I then went to collets if a collet is available or I can modify parts to make one.

That old Win Mag still gets the std full die with expander. It also uses the old basic std seating die. Shoots very well and no worse than many other of the rifles that use fancier methods.

Many are still loaded with the bushing die.

Most of the newer ones use the collet.

Why a collet? Cheap and effective

For each cartridge I stayed with the original die that was used in loading that cartridge.

Most BR type case prep methods are a waste of time for field rifles.

 

[Wrench]

The collet self centers every time. If your neck thickness is off, the mandrel will still be in the center of the center. A bushing will push the thickness to the inside. A expander will expand the thinnest or easiest to move material first.....and collets don't move the brass as much as the above 2 operations.