Loading .30-06's My way.

[W.R.Buchanan]

I now have 3 .30-06 rifles. A Garand, an 03A3 which is not fully done, and a New Ruger Guide Gun in .30-06.

I got the Guide Gun so I would have a real live hunting rifle, it is very similar to the Ruger Scout but in .30-06 and it has a 20" barrel which means I can take it to Canada, as they won't allow the Scout with it's 16" bbl.

I will do a complete thread on that gun in Factory Rifles soon.

This thread is about loading .30-06's and the way that I do this process.

First: I have 1400+ Once fired Federal .30-06 cases that were given to me by the late John Van Dunwyk. He was the guy who rebuilt 25,000 Garands for Arlington Ordinance in he mid 90's and I bought one from him. He obviously had to test fire these guns and as a result amassed about 14 5 gallon buckets of brass. He gave me one and it had 1400 rounds in it.

All of these cases have to be processed eventually but I will do that about 100 at a time.

I started processing .30-06 cases last night, they have to be sized and then trimmed so I can set up the X Die so I don't have to trim them again. Got thru 50 and will do another 50 tonight. These were technically for my Garand so I will keep them for the Garand.

I need another 100 for testing and shooting Long Range Silhouette with the Guide Gun, and there will be three hunting loads for that gun.

The first thing to do is full length size/deprime the cases in a normal sizing die.

Then the cases get Trimmed on the mill.

Then they go into the tumbler to clean them so I'm loading clean cases.

I set up the RCBS X die on these sized and trimmed cases so that I will no longer have to trim these. once they are fired they will be reloaded using the X Die as the sizing die. These dies work great and if you hate trimming cases then you should look into one.

I will continue on the next post.[smilie=2:

Randy

[W.R.Buchanan]

Ok now we have the machine pretty much set up to assemble these cartridges.. Still have to finalize the seating depth and the crimp depth.

I will be priming the cases on this machine using the stock PW priming system which works pretty well. I also could use my RCBS Hand Priming tool which also works pretty well. But the PW system is going to be used this time. I would also like one of those RCBS Lever Operated Primers as they seem to work really well also. One will have to fall into my lap since I have several other ways already.

I know this thread might be tedious for some, but maybe some of the newer guys might find it useful. Also no matter how long you've been doing this reloading thing you still might learn something.

Pic #1 shows the Rockchucker Press with sizing die. This is how I Size and Deprime the fired cases. It could be done on the PW as well and Station #1 which is where the sizing die would normally be, is not used this time.

Pic #2 shows the three dies I am using on the PW for assembling these rounds. Right to left they are Lee Rifle Charging Die with powder funnel inserted into top of die. Middle is RCBS Precision Bullet Seating die, and left is older Pacific Seating Die with seating stem removed and used as a Roll Crimping Die.

This is the basic Setup for this machine.

The process will go like this,,, insert case at station #2 and with a up stroke seat the new primer, then a down stroke to put the case into the charging die. Powder is dropped at that point.

The move the Shuttle Arm under the bullet seating die and seat bullet.

Then Shuttle Arm to the far left Station #4 for crimping of the bullet. As the crimp is taking place the machine also drops a new primer into the Shuttle Arm, and when the Arm is moved all the way to the right side the new primer drops onto the Priming Punch, ready for the next round.

[nagantguy]

I think we have the same sweetheart; cartridge that is. Very nice write up, I have 2 of the 3 you mention and drool over that guide gun, its a bit pricy fer me now being the first full year of the farm up and running. I do a similar batch method, 100-150 cases at a time.

[seagiant]

Hi Randy,
Nice pics! I find it hard to explain to people how the PW Met II actually works in regard to the priming! It has a system like no other I've seen but with some polishing of the "carrier bushing" works pretty smooth!

I just started back reloading the 30-06 as I bought a Model 1917 WWI rifle by Winchester that I could not pass up. I also found a special run on the LEE 312-155 R2 boolit in 6-cav. mold! I hope to use that in a couple of weapons including a future build AR-15 in 300 Blk Out!

[Rory McCanuck]

I know this thread might be tedious for some, but maybe some of the newer guys might find it useful. Also no matter how long you've been doing this reloading thing you still might learn something.

If nothing else, you've helped me realise that the PW works from right to left.
The priming system seemed so silly, needing to swing things back and forth, but if you work R to L it all makes sense!
I catch on, not quickly, but eventually I catch on. :idea:

[W.R.Buchanan]

Rory: Good to see the light bulb go on. That's kind of what I was going for.

The system actually works pretty well. You adjust the primer tube down until the collet on the end of the tube is opened by the taper on the top of the little bushing in the Shuttle Arm. Then when you crimp the round, as soon as the platen is all the way up it automatically drops a new primer into the Arm. The Bushing on the Arm actually holds 3 primers at a time .

The primer is transferred to the Priming Post (one at a time) when the Shuttle Arm is moved all the way to the right which is normally where you'd have the sizing die and where you'd start a reloading sequence. It is a decent system and the machine is a high quality first rate piece of equipment.

This machine is the equivalent of a Turret type press or the C&H that we were talking about on the other thread. The main difference is the way the cartridge is transferred from station to station. It is easy to see how this is accomplished on the different machines. The C&H is the simplest of the three styles with the Turret style being second. The PW is more complicated but not as much as a Dillon 550B which is the next step up as far as productive output is concerned.

All of these machines increase your production by simply consolidating the various operations into one machine. You could accomplish the same task of loading Cartridges using preprocessed cases by using three simple Lee basic presses lined up on a board. That system would work exactly like a C&H Press does and cost less than $100 to set up. If you load only pistol rounds then a fourth press could be added to the set up and now you would essentially have a C&H 444 with four handles.

Efficient loading of ammo or doing any repetitive task for that matter revolves around "economy of motion." and the more sophisticated the machine the less motion is involved to produce the desired product.

Machines like the Dillon 550B are great examples of how this "economy of motion" has been engineered to a very high level. Despite being a completely manual press it still functions as a progressive as opposed to single stage and does all four or more operations to a cartridge everytime the handle is pulled. This is where it's production is multiplied. With any of the above single stage presses every operation requires a dedicated pull of the handle.

This is why any of these single stage presses will be limited to <200 rounds per hour where as I can do 100 rounds every 12 minutes with the 550 B.

Still the 550B doesn't lend itself to using precision bullet seating dies and individually thrown and weighed powder charges. If you operate it like a single stage press and only process one round at a time from start to finish, then you defeat the real purpose of the machine. Thus the need for more machinery.

I had at one time,designed a reloading press that was very similar to the PW. Mind you I had not seen the PW at that time, or I wouldn't have wasted time reinventing the wheel. The one major difference is that my machine was a mirror image of the PW and worked from Left to Right. The PW was obviously designed by a lefty.

In a few days I will have all the cases prepped and will show the final assemblage of the rounds.

Randy

[seagiant]

The PW was obviously designed by a lefty.

Hi,
Ha! Ha! Eat your liver! I love it! Randy I'm glad I wasn't drinking anything when I read that! My computer would be soaked! You right handed guys will never know what it's like to be left or wrong handed in this world!

That was the best explaination on how the PW primes that I have heard and when I bought my first machine tried to understand it from talking to people over the phone and never did really figure it out! I bought on faith and it worked out. It is a really neat machine!

[Beebee]

I've been looking at this press for awhile now. The better half even says order it. I just didn't understand the priming setup at all. I think ill be getting one shortly now.

[W.R.Buchanan]

Well,,, to continue on now it is time to actually load some rounds.

First step is to put the case on the machine. I do this at station #3 just because that is the easiest place to remove the finished round from.

Next you run the shuttle all the way to the right (Station #1) to drop a primer into Station #2.

Then the shuttle goes to Station #2 where an up stroke with the handle seats the primer. and then the down stroke puts the case mouth into the charging die, where it receives the charge that has just been thrown by the Lyman DPSIII.

The shuttle is now moved to Station #3 where the bullet is seated, and then to Station #4 for crimping.

Also while at Station #4 the primer tube must be pushed down to drop more primers into the bushing in the shuttle.

When the charge is dropped into the case, the little powder pan is returned to the Lyman DPSIII which has an "Auto Repeat" function and as I am completing the round the PM is dispensing the next charge. It takes about the same amount of time for the PM to dispense a charge as it takes to do all of the other operations for a completed round so you are not waiting for anything and there is no significant amount of lost time.

This is how I am currently loading my .30-06's. My .308's are done in pretty much the same manner but on the little C&H Press, only differences being that I must physically move the case from station to station and use my RCBS Hand Priming tool to prime those rounds

Randy