to canalure or not to canalure that is the question..

[silver2525]

here is the situation:

new reloader.

reloading for 30.06 for m1 garand

to canalure or not to canalure ???????

some say yes others say no.

Hornady says the c.o.l. says 3.240.(max is 3.340) for there bullets.

i have 150 gr pro hunter bullets

im using the RCBS F.L. X DIE. rcbs called the initial trim of .020 under max case lenght. i started with 2.474case length. now if i go to the canalure the c.o.l. is 3.170. is this enough info. im confused. HELP PLEASE.

 

[Blue68f100]

If you have proper neck tension not needed. I never put a crimp on a rifle round.

 

[USSR]

to canalure or not to canalure ???????

No need to crimp into a bullet cannelure for a Garand - just ignore it.

Hornady says the c.o.l. says 3.240.(max is 3.340) for there bullets.

3.240" is simply the C.O.L. they used in load development. Simply seat the bullet so that 1 caliber of the bullet (.308) is in the case neck and be done with it.

Don

 

[bergmen]

If you have proper neck tension not needed. I never put a crimp on a rifle round.

I don't either for bolt action rounds (.308 Winchester, .300 WSM) but I certainly do for tube fed rifle rounds (30-30, .45 Colt).

Dan

 

[silver2525]

Is there an absolute min for case length. for safety. i ask because the manuals only address max.

 

[Steve in PA]

No crimping for reloads in any of my rifles, including the Garand.

 

[Striker Fired]

never crimped into a canelure,I've only bump crimp certain moly or coated bullets mostly for an autoloader.

 

[rcmodel]

Is there an absolute min for case length. for safety. i ask because the manuals only address max.

Yes, and every Hornady Manual I have lists it.

The case dimension drawing at the top of every chapter gives the MAX allowable length.
For 30-06, it is 2.494"

Then down below that at the beginning of the text, it gives in BOLB print:
MAX Case length = 2.494".
And Case Trim length = 2.484"

That would be considered the minimum length that will crimp at the cannulure at near the OAL shown in the data.

rc

 

[steve4102]

I crimp all my auto-loader ammo with Lee Factory Crimp dies. They works on bullets with or without a cannelure, case length is not critical, Improves Accuracy and only cost about $12, Whats not to love.

 

[P-32]

I have both 308 and '06 M-1 Garands I use for rifle competion. (AR's too.) I've sent a boat load of non canelured SMK's down range with no crimp with no problems, ever, over a twenty year period. I would not use a lee crimp die on a non canelured bullet either. It is possible to damage the bullet jacket.

The mag well of the M-1 limits how long you can make your '06. I make dummy rounds of proper lengh to help set up my seating dies.

Iuse a Hornaday bushing die so I can adjust neck tension on the 308 and for 223.. For '06 I use a plain old RCBS '06 set of dies. I did buy a Forester set of '06 match dies, but have not used these yet. Season is over.

 

[rcmodel]

I have done some accuracy testing with the Lee FCD in .223 in two different rifles.

I can say I could find no measurable difference in accuracy over uncrimped.

I can say though, that it shortens case life and leaves divots on the end of every case, even after resizing & expanding.

rc

 

[cfullgraf]

here is the situation:

new reloader.

reloading for 30.06 for m1 garand

to canalure or not to canalure ???????

some say yes others say no.

Hornady says the c.o.l. says 3.240.(max is 3.340) for there bullets.

i have 150 gr pro hunter bullets

As others have said, crimping is not necessary with the M1.

You do not necessarily have to seat the bullet to cannelure. It depends on where it is in relation to how long you want the cartridge to be.

For an example, Hornady's 30 cal 150 FMJ has a cannelure set for 7.62x51 NATO. If you load them for the M1 to M1 cartridge lengths, the cannelure is not near the case mouth, maybe about a 1/16" or 3/32" or so.

Looks a bit strange, but works just fine.

I do not know where Sierra puts the cannelure in 150 Pro Hunters.

I do not crimp my M1, M1A, or AR (three different calibers) loads whether the bullet have a cannelure or not.

 

[silver2525]

Thank you for all your input. i have a lot to learn, and it is good to know i can ask you all..

 

[MachIVshooter]

I crimp into the cannelure whenever there is one. It does help prevent bullet set-back in autoloaders and tube fed guns. IMO, it also looks cleaner.

 

[Hondo 60]

If the bullet has a cannelure, then just seat to it.
If not, I wouldn't worry about it.

I wouldn't specifically buy or not buy a bullet because of a cannelure.
Especially for a rifle load.

 

[Trent]

Only rifle I crimp on is an 8mm M76. That thing batters the **** out of my ammo. If I don't crimp I'll have pushbacks.

Great shooting gun though!

M1 I wouldn't worry about it as long as your neck tension is good. If you're using factory dies you've probably got .003 of neck tension (which is pretty standard). Redding dies have .0015 neck tension - significantly lighter.

Measure the inner diameter of a sized cartridge with a properly calibrated set of inside calipers.

If it's .305, no need to crimp.

If it's .306, you REALLY should crimp. (again, Redding dies ship with an expander plug that will give you .3065 ID, which is WAY too frigging light of neck tension for semi-auto in any variety)

If it's .307, you REALLY need new dies, because you should only load .001 neck tensioned bullets on single fed bolt action rifles. Those won't survive a nose-first drop test from 3 feet for sure.

Anyway, safe bet is to measure. When you size your brass, that inner diameter becomes your "neck tension" during seating process (how hard it is to insert, and subsequently remove, the bullet).

.003 of neck tension is STIFF AS **** and will be very difficult to set back a round - I know RCBS used to use that size expander plug, but I don't know what they're shipping nowadays.

.002 (.306) is pretty normal and results in a moderately hard set back resistance. You can drop those (empty, no primer or powder) from 3-4' on to concrete nose-down and not have a setback.

.0015 (.3065) or under, save that for bolt guns. That's WAY too damned light of neck tension to use in any semiauto.

 

[steve4102]

Here is a link to some accuracy testing of the Lee Factory Crimp Die. Thought you might find it interesting. You can click on the "Home Page" at the bottom to see you did the testing.

http://www.accuratereloading.com/crimping.html