Long COL with 140 gr ELD-M bullets and Stealth BA10 Creedmoor

[BalisticDave]

I just got a Savage Stealth BA 10 in 6.5 Creedmoor. I am trying to get the proper COL for the load and am having trouble. Everyone seems to say start at .020" off the lands, but dont give actual COL.

I seated a 140 gr eldm and placed it in the chamber. I then measured the distance from the back of the action to the case head with a caliper. I continued to seat the bullet using my press until the length I measured stopped decreasing. This gave me a COL of 2.995 to the lands. I tried to seat a bullet to 2.975 for a .020" jump and chambered it with the bolt. It definitely did not reach the lands as it was easy to close and reopen the bolt, and i saw no marks on the bullet. I do not have a bullet comparator at the moment but plan to get one soon.

The rounds are extremely long and do not even get close to fitting in the mag. Most people that do state that they are in the low to mid 2.8XX's.

Any Thoughts?

 

[sparkyv]

seems to say start at .020" off the lands, but dont give actual COL.

This is because each firearm has unique dimensions.

The magazine limits COAL of many of my firearms. Not unusual at all.

 

[BalisticDave]

I am aware that different firearms, even the same make and model will have different dimensions. I just think that having a bullet jump .150" to reach the lands and fit into the mag seems extreme.

 

[Blue68f100]

I just got a Savage Stealth BA 10 in 6.5 Creedmoor. I am trying to get the proper COL for the load and am having trouble. Everyone seems to say start at .020" off the lands, but dont give actual COL.

I seated a 140 gr eldm and placed it in the chamber. I then measured the distance from the back of the action to the case head with a caliper. I continued to seat the bullet using my press until the length I measured stopped decreasing. This gave me a COL of 2.995 to the lands. I tried to seat a bullet to 2.975 for a .020" jump and chambered it with the bolt. It definitely did not reach the lands as it was easy to close and reopen the bolt, and i saw no marks on the bullet. I do not have a bullet comparator at the moment but plan to get one soon.

The rounds are extremely long and do not even get close to fitting in the mag. Most people that do state that they are in the low to mid 2.8XX's.

Any Thoughts?

Did you have the bolt stripped down so you could feel the resistance when closing the bolt? If not your reading is probably off. I prefer to take a piece of brass and split it so the bullet will slide as it contacts the rifling. Set it long and push it in by hand. If you have to push/knock it out with a cleaning rod its stuck in the lands. So it will take some trial and error to get a good feel, all depends on how tight the bullet to brass fit is. Just have to be careful when removing it. You don't want to change the length before you have a chance to measure it. Now if the brass has not been fired in your gun the numbers will be off due to head spacing. Or if your pushed the shoulder back too far during sizing.

My experience is that the ELD's are not jump sensitive like some bullets. I would suggest you set your OAL at what the mfg suggest (max magazine length) in the loading book and see how they shoot. You may be surprised. If the chamber is in spec with the proper leads, the book value works very well, with very little tweaking required.

 

[LoonWulf]

I am aware that different firearms, even the same make and model will have different dimensions. I just think that having a bullet jump .150" to reach the lands and fit into the mag seems extreme.

I'm jumping about that much with my RAR.
Some guns/bullets it dosent matter, some it does. If you don't mind single loading you can load out, but if you want to run the mag you don't have much choice on shortening the oal.

 

[BalisticDave]

Ok, its reassuring to hear that others have that much jump. I don't mind single loading as I shoot slow and for accuracy. I was doing this with new brass, so ill try again this weekend when I reload the once fired brass and see if it changes.

I loaded 50 rounds at .020 off the lands and they shot good. A few of the loads were under .5 MOA so I cant really complain(only 4 shot groups though). In fact i am very pleased with the rifle and all 9 powder charges that I tested had group centers within about 1 moa of eachother so next weekend ill play with seating depth and see how it goes. Thanks again for the info.