UPS already picked up my two boxes of bullets or I would’ve tried to go through and flair the necks. I’ll see what Speer says when they receive them in a couple days. RCBS is sending a out a replacement ball/primer pusher insert as well. I headed to the range today to try out the five ladder loads of H322 with the 180 grain speers I loaded up. All the groups were not impressive accept for one. 59.5 grains of H322. I seated my bullet .002” farther out than Hodgdon’s website. The book load max loading was 58 grains and said it was 48,000 CUP. SAMMI says 52,000 CUP is max for the Whelen so I did the math and loaded in .5 increments to 60 grains with zero signs of showing pressure. I figured Sixty grains should still be at or right under 51,000 CUP. I remember a couple of the bullets in my ladder test reloads seated harder than others. I also saw a shaving or two of copper from the bullet around my crimp on a couple. A shaving must have stayed in the chamber as it made an impression on the side of a fired cases.
59.5 grains of H322 is the winner. This is a three shot group at 100 yards. The barrel gets pretty hot after three rounds and if I ever had to shoot more then three times at a deer I’d pack it up and go home. I remember the 59.5 grain load was one of two loads that all three bullets felt like they were seated smoothly with even pressure. I also crimped them with my lee custom 35 whelen collet factory crimp die.
Not bad for a 7600 pump gun...
https://i.imgur.com/kohQxxe.jpgWhen the bullets come back and I get my replacement expander ball from RCBS I’ll go through the motions and try and load one up without flaring the neck case first. If I feel any resistance I’ll be flaring them all from now on.