Hornady lock-n-load concentricity tool

[slim1836]

Anyone use one?

I picked one up yesterday for $15 and just had to buy it for the price. After watching a couple videos, I started checking my recent cast boolit reloads and played around with it. Amazing what a little tweaking does. Also shows me that several boolits were seated way off. Kinda hurt my feelings.

Anyone have any positive or negative comments about this tool? Thinking on getting their neck turning tool which looks like it's built along the same platform when extra funds become available. Comments on the neck turning tool also appreciated.

I'm just a paper punched but every little bit helps reduce errors.

Slim

[Half Dog]

I got one at a good price too but not as good as you did. You did great! Someone told me that he had expensive reloading dies and he checks every rifle round. I use Forster dies and I have checked a few rounds but I didn’t find the concentricity off. So I’ve used mine for 1 reloading session and I’m looking for a need to use it again.

[TurnipEaterDown]

I did get one of these Hornady concentricity tools several years ago, and used it some. My experience was that it was easy to use & understand.
I got it with the intention of having a tool that would help me shoot "better". While it may help, I have not yet worked with it enough with "good" guns to see if it does or not.

I do have a friend that bought one before me, and he went through the effort to understand if it did make an improvement with his factory guns (mostly what he talked to me about was working w/ his Ruger rifles, M77 & American). He assembled rounds w/ high and low run out to test the effect. My memory of a discussion several years ago, but I think something like >0.010" as "high" and ~ 0.001" as "low". He found no difference in these hunting rifles of his that shot 5 into ~ 1.5" at 100 yds. This being very adequate hunting accuracy for most medium / big game hunting purposes, he didn't see much benefit for hunting rounds.

He and I did have a discussion about how to reduce runout when it is found in loaded rounds, and he confirmed with his tool that what I had done for years works well to reduce runout to minimum: Rotate the cartridge several times (partial revolution each, goal: cumulatively ~ a full revolution) while seating the bullet. (Partially seat bullet, rotate case, partially seat bullet further, rotate, etc. until fully seated.) It works well, and is probably a worthwhile habit.

I do need to see what the effect is of using low runout rounds on a "good" rifle this year, as I have a 22-250 w/ tight neck that does shoot much better than 1.5" groups. I just have been working with other things for a few years.

[slim1836]

Just generally checking my cast boolits had more deviation than jacketed bullets which may be due to my expanding the cartridge mouths. My jacketed bullets were much more uniform in positioning, usually within 0.001".

I'm going to check my new reloads prior to crimping and adjust as needed then. Baby steps, makes me appreciate them at the firing line even more.

Slim

[Glwenzl]

Someday I’d like to check loaded ammo with and then without using the NOE expander to see if there would be any difference in concentricity

[jetinteriorguy]

I have both the Hornady concentricity tool and the neck turning tool. I use them a lot and other than a couple quirks they’ve been fine. First the two issues with the concentricity tool one, they aren’t very good with soft nose bullets since they rely on a nice uniform pointy tip and soft point bullets can sometimes be deformed in handling. Two, the device for straightening bullets is useless because it causes the round to lose its neck tension. Now the issue I have at least with my neck turning tool, the way the shell holder works isn’t concentric. Until you actually have the case on the mandrel it wobbles all over the place. To mitigate this as much as I can, I don’t tighten down the case holder until I have started the neck onto the end of the mandrel before it is engaged by the cutter. Then I tighten down the case holder which seems to work okay. It must work ok since better than 90% of the time I get .001” or less runout on my ammo. It’s so consistent I hardly ever bother checking it anymore. These have just been my experiences, merely a sample of one.

[dverna]

I did some research on such a tool and decided it was not worth the retail price, but you got a bargain.

Let us know how it works out for you.

[slim1836]

I did some research on such a tool and decided it was not worth the retail price, but you got a bargain.

Let us know how it works out for you.

Well, they didn't help on my Swedish Mauser today. Dismal results at 100 yds with 4 different loads using two different powders. It's too long a barrel for these old eyes, especially at 100 yds. I'm sure if I change to 50 yds I may be more able to focus.



I did well with my M1 Garand with the peep sight at 200 yds, much better than the Swede at 100. I'm not through with it yet, just giving it a rest while I try another Mauser (1891 Arg.), hope I get better results, it's barrel is shorter and the sight are positioned differently.



The Conc. gauge does do as dverna says, and the knob for straightening bullets does numbers on the fingers.

Slim