who makes the best reloading dies for the best accuracy?

O

ob1coby

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two questions. Is there a generally accepted best accuracy die manufacturer? and 2 are any of the carbide dies on that list? I like the idea of them lasting a long time. Thanks
 
There are manufacturers who've gained a reputation for being "better" in the sense of "producing more accurate rounds" but in my opinion this is all perception.

And luck.

And pure-dee rednekkid ignorance ("Chevy VS Ford")

Take it from a real die fanatic. I've got thousands of dollars invested in dies from "low end" to the best-of-the-best hand-fitted-to-my-specific-chamber stuff and after having actually SPENT THE MONEY my perspective is that the difference between "good" dies and "bad" dies nearly always devolves to one simple item...... fit. If your dies FIT your chamber you will be happy regardless of mfgr. Spend your time and money finding this FIT, fuhGEDDABOUT who made it


:)


opinionsby








al
 
define accuracy, what guns, and as the man said what type of shooting...
( the best dies in the wworld will not make your grandathers hunting rifle shoot like a world class benchrst gun. if mod( minute of deer) is all you need..its probably not a die issue)

mike in co
 
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A set of Wilson hand dies made a very noticeable difference in accuracy for my off-the-shelf Howa 22-250 with a standard weight barrel after trying Hornady and RCBS dies. That's simply the way it worked for me. Bullet runout was near nill in my lightly neck turned cases.
 
the difference is probably that you quit PULLING a button thru the neck....great source of inaccuracy/bent necks.....
try using your horn or rcbs dies without the button....
mike in co
spfld said:
A set of Wilson hand dies made a very noticeable difference in accuracy for my off-the-shelf Howa 22-250 with a standard weight barrel after trying Hornady and RCBS dies. That's simply the way it worked for me. Bullet runout was near nill in my lightly neck turned cases.
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mike in co said:
the difference is probably that you quit PULLING a button thru the neck....great source of inaccuracy/bent necks.....
try using your horn or rcbs dies without the button....
mike in co
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Might have a hard time with bullet seating without that button...
 
As Al said, it is all about the fit. I find that, in many cases, it is easier and less expensive to have the chamber made to the die than the other way around. I would add that having the necessary tools to evaluate what you dies are giving you, and how different techniques work is important. Do you have a concentricity gauge, shoulder bump gauge and a way to measure where bullets touch the rifling, and to what length they are seated, measured off their ogives? Also, with proper lubrication, die wear is not usually a problem.
 
Thank you everyone for your help so far. I'm learning a lot. The reason I mentioned carbide is because I literally have over 10k rounds each of 223 and 308 to load. dillon and lyman both have carbide dies for 223 and 308, but I'm not sure of their quality. This thread is just about the dies so all definitions of accuracy are assuming that the rounds are being shot with the highest quality long distance rifles. So now with my questions refined... Assuming the best of shooting equipment and proper fitting, if you were trying to set a new 1000yd world record, what dies would you get to make your rounds. Thanks again for all of the help.
 
ob1coby said:
Thank you everyone for your help so far. I'm learning a lot. The reason I mentioned carbide is because I literally have over 10k rounds each of 223 and 308 to load. dillon and lyman both have carbide dies for 223 and 308, but I'm not sure of their quality. This thread is just about the dies so all definitions of accuracy are assuming that the rounds are being shot with the highest quality long distance rifles. So now with my questions refined... Assuming the best of shooting equipment and proper fitting, if you were trying to set a new 1000yd world record, what dies would you get to make your rounds. Thanks again for all of the help.
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I`d get a die cut by the smith that chambered my barrel cut with the same reamer used to chamber said barrel.
 
The nature of your reloading task will vary depending on whether you are loading for several rifles per calibers, whether they are semiautomatic or not. and whether you want the ammunition to be able to fit in any rifle of that caliber, or just specific firearms. For example, if I were trying for a new 1,000 yard record, I would not be loading with a Dillon, or using one load for thousands of rounds. On the other hand if I were loading for a semiautomatic, I the amount of clearance of ammunition to chamber would be quite different than for a bolt gun. Accuracy is the result of a coordinated system. What constitute the best dies varies a lot with the application. What is desirable in a bolt action target rifle, would not work in a semiautomatic target rifle.
 
DO NOT get a sizer made from the same reamer as cut your chamber. Seaters made from your chamber reamer are OK (altho a bitofa' PITA until you hone 'em out a bit) but trying to make a sizer from your chamber reamer is a no-go. You can't resize to fit your chamber with your chamber ;)

As far as different dies for different guns...... I'm of two minds here. I'm certainly not hyper-experienced with semi-autos as I've only reloaded for 5 or 6 of them but on two of the "accurate" ones I've run fitted dies with no problems and in any case I've used minimal resizing techniques successfully. In other words I've never found reason to make them sloppy even in semi-autos.

Now if it was a war gun and needed to fire filthy I'd say "Open Up Them Tolerances!!"

al

al
 
Al,
My perspective on reloading for semiautomatics comes, not so much from personal experience experience, but from paying close attention to what I was told by a fellow who shot his way to High Master in Service Rifle, who coached his son to the point where he was the first junior to wind High Civilian Service Rifle at Camp Perry. Oh, and whose gunsmithing skills were sufficient such that the main shooting team of the Marine Corps purchased one of his M1As, probably to take it apart to see what made it tick. He had a few reloading tricks, but in his opinion spending too much time fiddling with loads was a distraction from something that was more important....practice.
Boyd
 
yes spfld 99.9% of all Bench Rest rifle loading is done with neck insert or "bushing dies," or "button dies" as they're sometimes called. Some, like the Neil Jones and Warner, offer a proprietary neck/shoulder bushings but in all cases they're available in thou or half-thou increments specifically to eliminate the pull-thru expander ball.

al
 
I find that, in many cases, it is easier and less expensive to have the chamber made to the die than the other way around.
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Boyd

Does this involve using a reamer with dimensions derived from the die itself?
 
Close.... from sized brass, that way spring back is taken care of. I prefer to use old, work hardened brass, because it will come out of the die larger than newer softer brass. For tight necked chambers, an inexpensive one piece die can be made to produce excellent results. I tend to leave neck tension alone for tuning, and work with powder and seating depth, even so, some adjustment can be made by varying neck thickness.
 
I've had reamers made from the die. I've cerrosafed them and sent measurements and I've had dies shipped straight to PPG and never saw the die until I had the whole package. The reamers have been a good match. I quit doing it because factory dies are too small for me.

al
 
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