RELOADERS CORNER: MORE MISTAKES OVER MORE TIME, NOW WHAT?
- Thread starter Talyn
- Start date
SMSgtRod
Professional
It would be impossible for me to have an issue with a 500 round session.
Inspecting the quality in to the product is way more costly than monitoring the
process thru setting parameters for select operations within the process.
Example: The COAL on our fictional cartridge is 3". It will function as long as it's not
longer than 4" and shorter than 2". You make up 500 rounds and then test one to
see how it is. It's 4.5" long. Now you have to have somebody go back and weed out all
those over 4". Having inspected the whole lot of 500 and pulled 35 over sized
from the production run. Those can't just be seated further as they already have a
nice healthy crimp on them!! LOL Bad parts removed you go back to the operation
to find out what the heck went wrong.
Example 2: During the process you measure the COAL every 20 rounds.
First 20 is 3.15", 40 is 3.25, 60 is 3.44 80 is3.65......
Using those first 4 measurements you can see a trend developing. The end product
all crimped and ready to box is still fine, but soon you are going to exceed your
"upper control limit" and to prevent making a bad product, you readjust the seater.
Things continue along perfectly. You get 500 parts well within specs.
To prevent bad batches of loads determine processes that will cause your operation
to fail and monitor them. In reloading, powder amount and bullet seating, are well worth
this type of attention.
One thing that will mess your day up is a double powder charge. Putting 3gr of powder
in a 20gr case is setting yourself up for failure. Putting 12gr of a different powder
and a double charge will be quite evident. So I try to pick loads that are at least over
half the case filling.
Not able to do that I will take a case and double charge it so I can get a good eyeball
of what a double looks like. Then immediately return ALL the powder in that case back
to the drop charger. Proceed with the powder dropping and give them a good look
see as I go along. But I do prefer the loads that fill the case better.
Sorry for the lecture..... if you made it this far...... class is dismissed!!
Thanks Talyn for posting this..... sorry I got so ratchet jawed!!
If you see any errors let me know and I'll edit.
Inspecting the quality in to the product is way more costly than monitoring the
process thru setting parameters for select operations within the process.
Example: The COAL on our fictional cartridge is 3". It will function as long as it's not
longer than 4" and shorter than 2". You make up 500 rounds and then test one to
see how it is. It's 4.5" long. Now you have to have somebody go back and weed out all
those over 4". Having inspected the whole lot of 500 and pulled 35 over sized
from the production run. Those can't just be seated further as they already have a
nice healthy crimp on them!! LOL Bad parts removed you go back to the operation
to find out what the heck went wrong.
Example 2: During the process you measure the COAL every 20 rounds.
First 20 is 3.15", 40 is 3.25, 60 is 3.44 80 is3.65......
Using those first 4 measurements you can see a trend developing. The end product
all crimped and ready to box is still fine, but soon you are going to exceed your
"upper control limit" and to prevent making a bad product, you readjust the seater.
Things continue along perfectly. You get 500 parts well within specs.
To prevent bad batches of loads determine processes that will cause your operation
to fail and monitor them. In reloading, powder amount and bullet seating, are well worth
this type of attention.
One thing that will mess your day up is a double powder charge. Putting 3gr of powder
in a 20gr case is setting yourself up for failure. Putting 12gr of a different powder
and a double charge will be quite evident. So I try to pick loads that are at least over
half the case filling.
Not able to do that I will take a case and double charge it so I can get a good eyeball
of what a double looks like. Then immediately return ALL the powder in that case back
to the drop charger. Proceed with the powder dropping and give them a good look
see as I go along. But I do prefer the loads that fill the case better.
Sorry for the lecture..... if you made it this far...... class is dismissed!!
Thanks Talyn for posting this..... sorry I got so ratchet jawed!!
If you see any errors let me know and I'll edit.
SMSgtRod
Professional
Like a good reloader I have taken in rounds that get orphaned like that. I give them the love they deserve.
Pop the bullet, Recycle the powder in my yard. Primer and case are most times good to go as is.
Powder it up and restuff the bullet..... Cheap shootin' for a little of my time and a couple cents of powder.
Yeah, take them in all the time, any time.
Pop the bullet, Recycle the powder in my yard. Primer and case are most times good to go as is.
Powder it up and restuff the bullet..... Cheap shootin' for a little of my time and a couple cents of powder.
Yeah, take them in all the time, any time.
I was just telling my wife that this is exactly what should have happened. There is always someone (like you and me) willing to put in the effort to re-love these components. However, there’s no way I’m throwing that powder away. If it was 1000 rounds of stray rounds marked defective I may do that. But if I was gifted the ammo from the producer, I’d expect him to provide me the specs, and then I’d make things right. If the rounds were undercharged I’d make up as many good rounds as I could with the proper amount of powder. And if overcharged...hey, extra powder. I have brass, primers, projectiles, I’m sure I could make use of that extra powder.
Everything I reload has all the pertinent data detailed on the container , I have been given other peoples reloads that no longer reload. I will pull the bullets, dump the powder and reassemble based on case condition. One time I accepted 100 reloads of .41 Rem Mag 170 Gr. SWC from a friend and experienced reloader, that on the third shot left the bullet in the forcing cone of my S&W Model 57. No powder ! I could of weighed the components with no powder charge against all the other 97 remaining , but now with absolutely no confidence in the reloads I pulled bullets and dumped the powder which was not identified. After case inspection, rebelling the case mouth and adding my measured powder charge and reseating the bullets I was good to go. After that experience I will only shoot reloaded ammo that I have made or from a commercial source.