What I use for bolt action precision ammo is Redding body dies and Lee collet neck sizer dies.  I adjust the body die to bump the shoulder of the case .002" for ease of chambering, but minimal slop.  My theory on this is that a consistent case to chamber fit means consistent ammo, thus consistent results.   The Lee collet neck sizer sizes from the inside out.  My theory is that the inside that contacts the bullet consistently 180 degrees, therefore bullet release with be uniform. 

For ulta anal ammo, I sort the case be concentric neck thickness.  More than .002" deviation is thrown out.  And some cases swing wildly, maybe as much as .010"!  Other wise I've trimmed necks to be concentric, but that a lot of work!!

On a side note, lube of the cases when resizing can effect the measurements by some amount.  Too much lube can result in variations of .003" to .005", talking about shoulder to base dimension...  Too little lube can result in a stuck case.  How OCD are you ?  LOL

Micrometer seating dies are very helpful in resetting for different bullet types, and playing with seating depth.   However, I've found that Lee freefloat seating dies make very concentric ammo and cost a lot less.  Trying to reset for different bullet profiles is a PITA though. 

I also anneal cases every time I reload them to reduce the variable of work hardening brass. 

A plain old Lee cast iron single stage press can make very accurate ammo, but the more expensive presses makes it easier.  The mechanical advantage of these presses do the work for you.  I have a Forster Co-Ax for single stage accurate reloading, but have done just as good with the Lee cast iron before that.  In fact, I still use it for other tasks because it's easier to set up for some things.

When seating with the Lee dies, do you rotate the case and run it again for concetricity reasons?

My theory is that the inside that contacts the bullet consistently 180 degrees, therefore bullet release with be uniform. 

Micrometer seating dies are very helpful in resetting for different bullet types, and playing with seating depth.   However, I've found that Lee freefloat seating dies make very concentric ammo and cost a lot less.  Trying to reset for different bullet profiles is a PITA though. 

I also anneal cases every time I reload them to reduce the variable of work hardening brass. 

A plain old Lee cast iron single stage press can make very accurate ammo, but the more expensive presses makes it easier.  The mechanical advantage of these presses do the work for you. 

I've measured trying the rotation method and not,  don't see any difference. The Lee seating die has a floating seater, as long as the case is concentric the bullet get seated concentric. 

Deviation of .003" runout or less, is normal.

Also to note, the redding micrometer seating die has the same results.   Making me think that the case concentric its is more of a factor that bullet seating.   The way to remedy that is consistent case wall thickness, so that the cases stretch and size evenly.  IMHO

Also to add, unless one is shooting 1000 yards plus, a couple thou run out isn't going to be much of a factor.

When firing, the case expands to the shape of the chamber which is the main reason why full length resizing is not needed if you're using the same case in the same firearm.
You still need to FL size eventually.  after two or three firings the case will be too tight to close the bolt.  At this point you consistency will be out the window, some cases may fit while others won't be able to close the bolt...    In a semiauto it's a reall no-no to not FL size, slamfires can occur.

The concentric neck is an interesting concept but too much work to me for little reward.

That's my understanding with the more expensive dies. They're easier and more convenient to work with compared to the cheaper Lee dies. I'm not sure since I've yet to see an experiment that compares the dies for accuracy.

Do you have an annealing machine or do you hold the case by hand to the blow torch? Just curious...
I used to spin cases and a cordless driver over a map gas torch.  Now I have a Giraud annealing machine to speed things up.  I've had quality rifle brass [Lapua] with 10+ reloads on them before a cracked neck. (inspect each and every case for issues before reloading) 

Especially the presses with the cam over, to my understanding...

You still need to FL size eventually.  after two or three firings the case will be too tight to close the bolt.  At this point you consistency will be out the window, some cases may fit while others won't be able to close the bolt...    In a semiauto it's a reall no-no to not FL size, slamfires can occur.

So a quality FL die with light lube won't mess up the shoulder like a cheaper Lee will? I agree that this will only be an issue at 1,000+ yards.

I assume you anneal on every firing not only to extend case life but also for consistent neck tension? Do you also turn necks on your Lapua brass? Do you ever prep other brass, say for practice use ,and how do you go about that?


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