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Old April 9, 2013, 10:00 AM   #7
Brian Pfleuger
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Join Date: June 25, 2008
Location: Austin, CO
Posts: 19,578
In all likelihood, you're pushing the shoulder back much too far when you full-length size.

The generic "instructions" that come with most die sets are worse than worthless. They tell you how to make a case that's one size into a case that's an absolute minimum size but they don't do a thing for the 99.95% of factory guns that are not that minimum size.

That fired case came out of your gun as a very close match for the guns chamber. If it was 1 time fired, it might be a couple thousandths short of a match to your guns headspace. If it's been neck sized 2 or 3 times, it should be a darn near carbon copy of your chamber.

You need to measure the headspace, which is the head to the datum (reference point) on the shoulder. The Hornady headspace gauge is a great tool but you can do it with anything that touches close to mid-point on the shoulder and is longer than the neck. For 30-06, a 3/8 or 7/16 socket might work, you'd have to try them and see. Any hardware store will sell copper bushings that will work.

Use one method or the other to measure the headspace on your fired cases. The longest cases are the closest match to your chamber. Zero your calipers on one of the longest and adjust your die so it sets the shoulder back by 1 or 2 thousandths. See if the case chamber properly. If not, bump the shoulder a tiny, tiny amount more. No more than another 0.001 and try chambering again.

Feeler gauges between the shellholder and die help with the final adjustments and make for convenient reset if you need to move the die.

Otherwise, realize that the vast majority of dies from all makers are 14 thread pitch, meaning that it takes 14 turns to move them 1 inch. That means that one turn is 1/14th inch (0.0714) and 1/4 turn is 1/56th (0.0178). You can see that a 0.001 adjustment is a tiny turn, about 1/64th, or quarter of a quarter of a quarter of a turn.
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