What are your Quality control steps..

[1stmar]

Curious to know what you guys do for qc. Here are my steps for rifle:

Case prep
After depriming/neck sizing
* Trim to length (only done after 2-3 firings) +-.001 else mark as failure
**Chamfer mouth inside and out
* Polish cases with fine steel wool
Inspect case
* *Brush inside of neck
* *Clean primer pockets
* *
After 2-3 firings*
* *Check bolt lift on empty cases, if heavy..
* * Measure headspace using rcbs precision mic
* * Push shoulder back*
* * Measure to within +- .001 else mark as failure
* * Trim to length**+-.001 else mark as failure
* *Chamfer mouth inside and out
* *Polish cases with fine steel wool
Inspect case
* *Brush inside of neck
* *Clean primer pockets

Cartridge loading
Prime case:
Feel primer for correct depth no measurement, though I have a go no go gauge*That I do not use

Charge case:
*Weigh each case (after head stamp sorting) and group to nearest 1-1.5gr
*Measure each charge to exact weight and charge

Seat bullet:
Weigh each bullet, group to nearest .1 gr
Seat bullet to .002 of target oval using hornady comparator, mark failure
Check concentricity to .003, mark failure*
Visual inspect cartridge

Anything marked as a failure that cannot be "fixed" (Ie if the shoulder is pushed back to far) is marked in red then fired in normal groups to see effect.

I think that's everything... Curious what you guys do..
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**

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[TheTinMan]

For rifle cases, I check length and trim if needed every time. I only deburr and chamfer if case is trimmed. I also check headspace dimension of re-sized cases either with Hornady gauge or Wilson drop-in gauge. Typically check COAL for each completed cartridge, either with calipers or Hornady bullet comparator. I also check primer depth by feel for every single case and measure some too. AR-15s and M1As both have floating firing pins, so slam fires are a danger.

For any new cases, pistol or rifle, I deburr the primer flash hole. Out of any 100 cases, there seem to be at least 3 or 4 that are really tight or mis-shaped.

Now that I have a digital scale, I like to weigh every cartridge before boxing just to triple check for over/under weight by a powder charge. Especially if I used the progressive press.

 

[Ideal Tool]

Hello, 1stmar. Just wondering how you came to know your brass needed triming? From book, or actual measurment of YOUR rifle chamber? You seem to be very detail orientated..Sinclair Int. sells a chamber length gage for finding exact length of your chamber..these are often quite longer than published length in loading books..I have a custom .22 Hornet..with a minimum chamber & it is .025" longer than longest published trim length. The
.30-30 is probably the worst.

 

[1stmar]

I use published trim to lengths, specifically the lee trimmer chucked in a drill. I don't have any semi autos that I load for so I don't normally crimp other then 35 rem for my lever which i reload for infrequently, since head spacing is on the shoulder, I'm not that particular about it as long as my oval is good. Truthfully never knew there was a gauge for individual chambers, I may check it out.

 

[1stmar]

I Thought this would have gotten more traction..

 

[sundog]

Quality control has to do with the replication of things that work well (and safely) and are apt to the task based on empirical data. Record keeping is a necessary part of this procedure. Good tools, components, and consistent inspection techniques will assist in assuring production of quality ammo up to the needs of its intended task. All measurements are against established standards. That standard could be any old piece of decent range brass for bulk plinking ammo or it could be hand select pieces of custom new production brass for fire forming in a bench gun. So, it depends, but once you establish a working procedure it can be be applied across the board.

 

[RaySendero]

My "quality control" begins with the fired case. I take a 5 to 6 case sample and measure the length, ID & OD of neck, OD of shoulder, OD at pressure ring, diam of belt if it has one and diam of head. I also, using a magnifying glass, note the primer flattening on a scale of 1) little, 2)some, 3) obvious or 4) very flat compared to new primer. I load all cases in batches so its easy to keep track of number of firings.

Since I deprime and then clean, I check every cleaned case for media in the flash hole. I then deburr the flash hole, chafer the case mouths, resize the whole batch and check length again - Trimming if needed and chafering case mouth again if trimmed. Put this batch up with note in bag showing reload status. If all cases in this batch haven't been fired yet, I'll process them to this point when they are fired before starting to reload this batch.

When loading, I make point to run finger over each new primer checking for proper depth seated. I weigh each powder charge for all rifle cartridges (for pistol, I'll load by volume checking at beginning and end of batch by weight). When pressing in the bullet - I start bullet, turn case, press again, turn case and then apply the final seating pressure Checking cartridges OAL through out the batch. Finally, keep all the above info in an Excel spreadsheet and put a load recipe tag on/in cartrgde box.

 

[hooligan1]

There are different routes that I may take with certain circumstances but let's just use the easiest steps.
1. Inspect brass: I look for dents, flattened primers, cleanliness etc.
2. Lube and full-length resize,(I use my ammo for hunting purposes)
3. Tumble until brass is clean, inspect brass for media caught in flash hole, and measure, setting aside cases that are too long.
4. Set trimmer to .005 under book length, and trim brass.
5. Chamfer inside and out, clean out primer pocket.
6. Reprime and open my black book of loads to pick loads
7. drop powder
8. set bullet seating die for OAL
9. Seat bullets!
10. go to range and shoot them to repeat process.
also I want to add I always without fail weigh each powder load to exacting weights.(according to RCBS 5.0.5.)

 

[1stmar]

I'm not necessarily looking for steps as much as what you use for tolerances and acceptance. Steps are a component and some may skip certain steps in certain situations. What do you use for acceptable variance for :

Headspace
Oval
Powder charge
Bullet weight
Case weight

Etc..

Sierra mk are pretty tight tolerance, but the weight varies by +-. 1 I have found for 53 gr. for some it may not be worth weighing those, that tolerance may be close enough and therefore they do not weigh at all if using xx bullets. Case weight can vary greatly...

Just curious what others are using for acceptance.

 

[Bart B.]

I trim new brass to 10 thousandths less that SAAMI spec and uniform the case mouth. Then chamfer mouths with a No. 5 Easy Out which makes a much better angle that standard deburring tools. Then run a bore brush in a drill in and out to slighty radius the inside sharp edge so no bullet jacket metal gets scraped off when they're seated.

Turn necks if they've got more than 1 thousandths spread in thickness. No other brass prep I've tried makes any difference getting 3/4 moa accuracy at 1000 in my match rifles.

Full length sizing dies are all I use, but I keep sized case headspace (head to shoulder reference) inside a 2 thousandths spread. I use a 60-40 mix of STP (engine oil treatment) and Hoppe's No. 9 (bore cleaner) for case lube on a foam liner in a coffee can rolling in a Thumblers Tumbler. Roll on and sprayed lubes gave too much case headspace spread

Powder's weighed to about 1/10th grain spread for long range. For use at 300 yards or less; metering directly into cases with a 3/10ths grain spread is good enough.

'Tis a waste of time (in my tests) to sort bullets by anything except balance; nothing's out there to do that. Buy good ones and just shoot 'em.

As long as bullet runout on loaded 30 caliber rounds is 3 thousandths max, shoot them. 99% are; those that ain't are marked with the high point on the case head and indexed at high noon when chambered.

Trim cases back to starting point after they've grown 10 thousandths; usually 8 to 10 reloads.

 

[1stmar]

Lube variation is difficult to manage, part of the reason i went to lee collett, So you put the treated foam liner and cases in a coffee can and then put the can in the tumbler?

 

[Bart B.]

1stmar, yes.

I dribble about 10 drops from a squeeze bottle around the foam. Then in goes the cases; enough to fill the can about half full. Tumble 'em for how long it takes to full length size the previous batch, then do it over. . . . again and again and again.

Note fired cases were decapped, vibrated/tumbled then washed with laquer thinner to clean everything off of them and let them completely dry before they go into the tumbler. After sizing, they get washed with laquer thinner again and let dry before primer, powder and bullet goes in.

 

[1stmar]

Thanks Bart, always interested in finding better ways to do things...Lubing offers a lot of opportunity.