howdy all,
I been gone a,while but I,m back at the bench- I,m loading some
224 hornady 55-v-max- these bullets vary in length from base to ogive as much as .020-- what the hells going on?
I have a good caliper an good hornady gauges-m my oal kept coming out all over the board as I set my seater (rcbs) good shape tool- how can I expect to load consistant ammo with these?
I have loaded hornady for years but just noticed this with the 223--- Thanks ahead,

Is there a possibility that there could be some 53 grain bullets mixed with the 55's?

Curious to what the scale offers for answers.

I somewhat recently found a bullet 105 grains heavier considerably longer and larger in diameter than the other 90 + bullets in the box. Yes the box count came up short on the count, I dare say due to the heavier bullet.

Murphy and human mistakes do occur.

good question on the 53vs 55- I never had any 53s but I,ll find out,

Thanks ya,ll

Let us know what you find out. If proven true, I'm pretty sure Hornady will want to know and will likely take good care of you and send you a box with proper weights.

will do,, thanks',

53's are BT's.....55's are FB......

I'd check and then clean the seater die. Muddy

I'd load 100 and hit the range.




Travis

You'd take them elk hunting too, I suspect...

Not intentionally.




Travis

o.k, this just in-

Didn't measure the whole dang box, there tiny an my big old fingers etc,,

off the 27,,, all weighed the same 55 grins with my rcbs 10-10,,

but-- measuring them, 13- were 1.414
7- were 1.434
7- were 1.425, all base to ogive-

They shoot "ok" but hell wouldn't they shoot more consistent if they were the exact same size?
They shot like .600?? with this varying "jump"
???
I just want to load the best rounds I Can<<<<<

Keep shootin'.




Travis

.6 for 5 shots. Why you Bitchin. You got a cooper or bench gun, then you have a bitch, factory no bitch at all.
But then again, I think hornady bullets are inferior for group shooting.

well ,,, now were get n somewhere,, what would your favorite bullet be accuracy wise??

and- .6 was a best out of lots of groups-- generally 1" range,,,

Accuracy wise, Sierra 52 - 53. Nosler CC is great too nats azz small groups. LT32 in combo with a BR 4 primer produces dandy small groups. Benchmark in the 25 - 26 grain range with said bullets also has proved to be a dandy small group shooter.
In 55 grain range of bullets the varmegeddon sucked, but BT's and Sierras did well. Produced .3 - .4 5 shot groups out of 2 different coopers. 52 - 53 were in the consistent . 25 or less range.
The only hornady bullet that ever perforfomed for groups in my experience was the 6 mm 75 grain HP Match.

Thank ya swifty-
This is the only "pop gun" I ever loaded for, I,m really an overbore shooter- 7 mag, 257 Roy,, got tired of all the powder an kick,, This thing is easy ta shoot,,, I,ll get
some other stuff going,

Good shoot n ,,
rc

Hornady.




Travis

Yep.

I'm a Hornady 'Ho', too....

When I spent a couple of years doing a lot of experimenting with a Juenke Internal Concentricity Comparator (which used ultrasopund to determine how well jacketed bullets were balanced around their mechanical center), slight variations in length, weight and ogive were far less important than exactly what the machine measured--bullet balance. If the balance wasn't too off-center, then they shot well. If the balance was off-center, they didn't.

This doesn't mean that variations in exterior bullet dimensions don't make a difference in accuracy. They sure, and make a bigger difference in more accurate rifles, and at longer ranges.

But for most of the varmint shooting most of us do, agonizing about minor differences in ogive is like agonizing over whether the local store has our preferred beer. The end result is so close to the same that it doesn't make any practical difference.

I don't understand.

Are you saying Grain belt, Coors, Fat tire & generic beer are essentially the same if you are a varmint shooter?

I know this much, I've never opened a case of beer or a box of bullets and started measuring schit!




Travis

I concur with most all that- It seems to me if the bullets are .020 different then my efforts to determine ":jamb" and jump were mostly wasted and I in fact don't really know where my ogive is in relation to the rifling ,
so....... where would a guy seat these bullets at?

I thought I had them right up there close- till I found short an long bullets,,,

I,m always learning, even after 20 years of loading

RC

Have you shot any yet, or just measured them?

I,v shot bunches of them- an narrowed it to 1 specific load combo- that shoots pretty fair-

others are marginal at best- likely from a seating difference?????? I,m just guessing- good bags, good bench habits,, I want a "bug hole"

So what constitutes 'too much out of balance'?

Non-concentric jackets.

Wait... when you seat bullets, the seater stem pushes on the ogive, right? Not the base of the bullet. So your ogive overall length should be pretty consistent, it's the location of the bullet base that should vary. Are you measuring ogive overal length of loaded rounds, or just bullets themselves?

If your ogive overall length varies much, then your bullets must have some variation in nose shape between where you measure the ogive and where the seater stem contacts.

I measured loaded rounds as I set the stem to double check,
that is what made me measure individual bullets from base to ogive- I got too many different lengths from the same die adjustment- I sent hornady a mail, they returned a ph. # an "please call" asap,,Got home late, I,ll call em an see???
I agree- these bullets aint kosher someplace- its not the end of the world but interesting- why the hell do I have so many measuring thingy's???

You're a rifle loony, a not uncommon affliction.

I like Hornady's too. I live with the mediocre accuracy I get from them. In the .223 rem, I prefer the 53gr. v-max as well...

I called hornady, naturally they want what I have left of the box,,,123,,

Guess I,ll send em just for the heck of it- ordered some ttsx,s for the meantime- head shoot n meat deer,,,

WHOA, I think all have lost sight of the question. Don't make crap what the groups, vel ect. The point is you buy a box of bullets they ALL should be of the same size. The rest of the comments are immaterial. If you are happy to load out of a box with different size bullets you should find a different hobby.

That's what I think- still aint sent em- but the got the
o.k,,,

good shoot n to ya,,

If the ogive isn't damaged visually the bullets are good IMO.You have a die or set up issue or wear in your press, again IMO.Load another brand without changing a thing.Then check your results.If it is the bullets you will know.