Custom sizing enough is enough

[thumbs]

How do you know when you opened up your sizing die enough without going to far? I know there are a number of things to deal with with accuracy but when do you know the size is right? I slugged the barrel and she runs about .431 for my Marlin 1894. I know I have to go bigger than the .430 I am shooting now but when do I know when to quit? I would rather not go that .005 to large and have to get another sizer. I am testing at 50 yards with a Marble tang sight. Even being undersize my groups aren't horrible but need to be a bit better. I am casting my own from wheel weights and PC ing the bullets. There is no evidence of tumbling. The holes are nice and crisp using SWC. The group is 2.5" with three flyers out of 10. Two may have been me the third went somewhere.

[Win94ae]

My 44mag load using the Lee 240gr SWC, traveling at 1700fps; will drift almost 6 inches at 100 yards, with a 10mph crosswind. So group size depends on the conditions, and the shape of the group. Most shooters don't notice a 3mph wind, but that translates to almost 2 inches downrange.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v39/justgoto/Gun4/Marlin44mag100Yards_zpsfra8ojgw.jpg

That load usually shoots close to an inch, the large group sizes are due to wind.

[thumbs]

Are you shooting these bullets as dropped from the Lee mold @ .430? Are they sized and what lube are you using?
This is the target from today. If you look at the top where it says do not count at the shooting lettering you can see two shots. I adjusted my aim point because they were shooting so high. These should be considered since they are 4" to high but the other shots are taken shooting 4" low. In other words these are pretty much in the grouping. They are the first two shots and they are touching. These are PC ed and sized to .430. No wind bench rest.

[country gent]

Only way to know for sure is cast a batch of bullets, a large run of several hundred all the same alloy and as close as possible. Open sizing die up .0005 - .001 and size 20 or so of these bullets then load and shoot them for groups seeing what they do. Do this untill the level of accuracy is what you want or the load starts doing odd things. You need to have a known load to use and known bullets then the only variable is the sizing. Deciding before hand what is acceptable accuracy makes this much easier also.

[thumbs]

Thank that was my thinking but wanted to know if that was the way to go.

Tried to post a pict but can't figure it out. Maybe I'm not allowed to.

Anyway I still don't know what load is correct. When I started I wasn't even on the paper at 50 yards so progress is being made. What would be acceptable accuracy for this rifle at 50 yards using iron sight?
I do have quite a bit of cast boolits so that isn't a problem.

[country gent]

Accuracy is subjective to the person along with firearm and load. I have seen ups and levers that would shoot basically 1 hole or clover leafs at 50 yds along with even more that were 1 1/2 or so groups. I dont play shoot alot of lever action repeaters to have a baseline to draw from. I do shoot Sharps 1874s, CPA Stevens 44 1/2, and CShraps hepburn regularly. I was a service rifle competitor for many years ( M14 M1-A in 308 and AR 15 or AR10 243 and 22-250). Its not always the rifle but also the shooter steering it. SIghts and tuning make a diffrence also, may not make the rifle more accurate but make it more shootable for the person steering it.

[Geezer in NH]

Bore measures .431? .432 to .433 better never mind the .0005

[FredBuddy]

Powder coat after sizing may add enough diameter.

[Wayne Smith]

Accuracy can be a function of the load or the gun or the sights or the shooter. The real variable to look at for boolit fit is leading. Are you shooting and having a clean barrel? Your boolit fits. Now look for accuracy. Still leading in the first part of the barrel? Poor boolit fit, you need a bigger one.

[mdi]

Re; opening up the sizing die. You must go slow, using a very fine emery cloth wrapped around a dowel in a drill, oil it, run it through the die a few times, stop. Clean up the die and push a slug/bullet through it and measure with micrometers, repeat as necessary. Stop when the slug measures .432" or .433". (SAAMI for .44 Magnum rifle barrels is .431", so .433" or even .433" will work. My Puma has a slightly oversize bore, .432"-.433"so I run .433"-.434" bullets through it).

I've used this method to customize Lee sizers for about 3 or 4 of my guns

[EDG]

I doubt that you can get the answer to your question for free.

You might find 2 to 4 extra dies and make them in .001 to .002 increments and try them
Even so a different mold might shoot differently with the same sizing.



How do you know when you opened up your sizing die enough without going to far? I know there are a number of things to deal with with accuracy but when do you know the size is right? I slugged the barrel and she runs about .431 for my Marlin 1894. I know I have to go bigger than the .430 I am shooting now but when do I know when to quit? I would rather not go that .005 to large and have to get another sizer. I am testing at 50 yards with a Marble tang sight. Even being undersize my groups aren't horrible but need to be a bit better. I am casting my own from wheel weights and PC ing the bullets. There is no evidence of tumbling. The holes are nice and crisp using SWC. The group is 2.5" with three flyers out of 10. Two may have been me the third went somewhere.