SmallCaliberCentral

Is it normal for NOSLER custom .204 brass to have minimal growth or "stretch" after loading for the fourth time. Measurements are still averagering 1.830 to 1.835 with only 1 case going to 1.840. Havent had to trim once. With all the other calibers i load for , i would be trimming before now. Playing with 5 different powders & loading 1 to 2 grains under MAX. Shooting the SAVAGE MODEL 25 with SIERRAS 32gr & 39gr.Thanks.

Doug...Nosler "Custom" brass comes trimmed under minimum length spec's. and I doubt you will have to trim this brass for a very long time. The shoulder angle of the .204 case does help to slow down or prevent the case from stretching as much as for example the .22-250 Rem. IMHO the Nosler brass appears to be a bit softer than Winchester or Remington but buying the Nosler "Custom" brass saves a lot of work as it is almost ready to load as it comes from the box. Keep em centered.

Whats an reasonable amount of times that i can expect to reload this brass, keeping everything in mind such as case head expansion & neck splitting, ect.

I had roughly 27 reloads out of my last batch. I did anneal them several times.

If your using a FL die it needs to be adjusted for the headspace on your rifle. Not just screwed down on to the ram like the directions might say. The directions are usually wrong

jo191145 wrote: If your using a FL die it needs to be adjusted for the headspace on your rifle. Not just screwed down on to the ram like the directions might say. The directions are usually wrong

Could some one pop in and elaborate on this... or tell me where to read about it?

If I'm resizing cases that have been fired in my rifle with a FL die I set my die so that it just touches the shell holder with the ram all the way up and then turn the die back up about a half a turn. Size a case and see how it chambers. If its still to tight lower the die slightly and size again until it chambers fairly easily. That's how I do it anyhow and there is probably better ways but this works for me. I normally neck size the cases about 5 times before I use the FL die

Here's how a bump die is set up, a FL die can work the same. Take a fired unsized case and measure the shoulder to body junction with a dial caliper, then lock the caliper.

FL size a case with the die the way it is now set up. See how far that locked caliper will slide down the sized case body. Set the case aside.

Back out the FL die a few turns. Size a fired case and check the shoulder/body junction, the caliper (still locked down) should not slide below the junction, or at most a few thousands.

Screw the die in a quarter turn, size again, then check how far the caliper will slide down the case body. Repeat this drill until the caliper slides about 1/4 the way down the case body. This should be less than the first FL case you sized and set aside. If it's the same, back the die out a bit and try another. Lock the die in place with the lock ring once you are satisfied. Try chambering the sized brass to be sure the bolt closes. You now have minimum headspace. Your rifle is probably set up with a tight chamber, which is desirable.

Nosler brass is made by Norma - good stuff (oh my, I let the cat out of the bag).