Anybody neck turn brass to be used in a standard chamber?

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stubbicatt

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Been measuring brass fired in my 308, which grows right at .004" in the standard factory chamber. Depending on where you measure the necks, they seem to have a little variance in the thickness of the brass in the neck area, and I'm contemplating neck turning these things, thinking that more uniform neck brass, more uniform neck tension. Greater uniformity, greater accuracy, right?

Then I get to thinking, but won't that then increase the gap between the loaded and resized brass and the chamber, and won't that in turn perhaps reduce accuracy, or reduce case life?

Anybody have a firm answer to this dilemma?

Oh... and BTW, I would rather not neck turn as it is a royal pain in the sit-upon.

Regards,
Stubb.
 
If you have a normal commercial rifle, you won't see any improvement.
All these fiddly little details are only aimed at reducing the group size by maybe 0.1"--thus, if you are already shooting 0.5" groups, there might be some use in fiddling around and seeing if you can get to 0.4". However, if you are running 1.5" groups, ask yourself if that activity is really worth it for a possible 1.4" group.
Personally, I find that I am more the cause of the group size than any case preparation...
 
BTW, I would rather not neck turn as it is a royal pain in the sit-upon.
Click to expand...
One way around it is to buy better brass.

I tried it in a standard chamber. I cannot really say if it helped or not. If it did, it wasn't much, but the gun would already shoot little bug holes.
 
Definitely buy better brass (Lapua). I neck turned LC M72 Match brass for my tactical rifle, and it still didn't shoot as good as out-of-the-box Lapua.

Don
 
*Ahem* It is Lapua. Both LR and SR primer pocket 308... :)

So the consensus is: leave it alone, go shoot it, have fun? LOL!

Thanks.
 
I surely do appreciate you guys keeping me from spending time and money on something that is a waste of both. I can hardly wait to get to the range and shoot some.
 
be easier to cull the cases with .002" or greater variance in neck thickness. use them for dummy rounds, or something. less than .002 isn't going to make much difference in group size. fwiw

murf
 
Stop chasing after all these "extra last bit of accuracy" benchrest reloading steps. Unless you're shooting an honest-to-goodness benchrest rifle and have the skill to shoot 1/4 minute groups, you really are wasting your time.


Or to put it the way Dave McCracken would -

Load ammo; Use up; Repeat.
 
It's never a waste of time if you enjoy what you're doing. Does it help to neck turn brass used in a commercial rifle...absolutely. I shoot a bone stock Stevens model 200 (paid around $250 new) and get fantastic groups (after I found the load) utilizing neck turning, and flash hole deburring. If you've ever pee'd in the ocean, ya know that every little bit helps.

Have you considered fire-forming the brass, then neck turning? After that step, you could resize and load from there. That way, the brass is already sized to the chamber and you aren't cutting brass based upon the resizing stem. It does make a difference for my rifles and I would say at least .25" smaller groups. Not bad for something that is done once and only takes a bit of time while I am watching the outdoor network.

Is it necessary? Of course not. Enjoyment is why we do what we do. If it isn't enjoyable, forgetaboutit.

You can shoot 1/4 MOA groups with a factory rifle. All you need is some trigger time, a little patience, and confidence in your handloads.
 
I wouldn't want to burst anyone's bubble or cause someone to find themselves frustrated chasing consistent 1/4" accuracy in a factory rifle, but it just isn't happening except in rare exceptions. A true 1/4" rifle, capable of regular, consistent 1/4" groups, is a rarity indeed. In anything but a custom benchrest or heavy tactical rifle it's just not something that can be found in any consistency. Heck, a true 1/4" custom tactical rifle is not something you'd find many builders willing to certify. Many can do it, after spending thousands to get there, but a lot won't. Getting your average deer rifle to shoot that is a fluke or just magic and voodoo. Not a repeatable phenomenon for an average joe and his off the rack rifle.
 
Neck Turning for Factory Chambers

Anybody neck turn brass to be used in a standard chamber?
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Yes, i do for 2 Remingtons & 1 Savage rifle. Full benchrest prep of Win/Rem brass is needed to show improvement for me. This includes use of bushing dies. Then add a 36X or variable scope. On the Savage using RCBS standard 223 rem dies, i dont expect much of an improvement, if any. Doing your own testing is the only way to know. :uhoh:
 
243winxb said:
Yes, i do for 2 Remingtons & 1 Savage rifle. Full benchrest prep of Win/Rem brass is needed to show improvement for me. This includes use of bushing dies. Then add a 36X or variable scope. On the Savage using RCBS standard 223 rem dies, i dont expect much of an improvement, if any. Doing your own testing is the only way to know. :uhoh:
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Man, I thank you for your advice. :) Reason suggests to me that the neck clearance is largely a safety feature in the standard chamber. However, if the necks are non uniform one to another, this *could* affect accuracy to a measurable degree. However, this rifle, while accurate, is not a benchrest rifle. Once these cases reach a point where their useful life is coming to an end, I may try the neck turning and see if it makes a difference.

I can see if one is using bushings to size the necks to get uniform tension one would want really uniform necks, and turning would be necessary.

Thanks again guys.
 
Turning necks is beneficial when necessary. I like to clean em up so they are concentric. But "turning" them can lead to other problems. Adjust your cutter to only hit the high side, if you are removing material from all around the neck, you are usually cutting too deep. I truly cannot confirm that this is necessary for every rifle, but if you are after pure accuracy, I feel that everything you can do to make your loads more consistent is worth the effort. But, that said, it won't make a 2" gun a 1" gun. It COULD help a .300 gun into the high .200's though.
 
I like to clean em up so they are concentric. But "turning" them can lead to other problems. Adjust your cutter to only hit the high side, if you are removing material from all around the neck, you are usually cutting too deep.
Click to expand...

+1. Adjust your cutter so you are usually only removing brass on 1/2 to 2/3 of your necks.

Don
 
Dang! That's some good shooting!

I have about 2000 50 grain Sierra and Hornady 50 grain bullets I will never use. If you want some, let me know.

Thanks a whole lot for your "above and beyond" response to my question 243WINXB. I'm not sure I LIKE the answer (LOL) but I guess in this case neck turning didn't really make a difference. I had hoped it WOULD make a difference, but the proof is in the pudding as they say.

There is so much to learn, and as you have demonstrated, no substitute for experimentation.
 
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