Case Trimming – A Fact Of Life
IT is quite common for me to get letters from readers who are experiencing problems with their reloads becoming hard to chamber after only four or five reloads. I tell them that this is quite normal and advise them to check the length of their cases and if they exceed the maximum case length listed in their manual to trim them back to length. As a rule I never hear from them again so, evidently, this advice solves their problems. However, it isn't always that simple.
The first thing I do when setting out to reload a batch of brass is check the length of every case, preferably by using a micrometer. Handloaders who don't pay attention to the length of their cases, sooner or later will run into trouble. There is a correct length for each and every cartridge case established by the factory that designed it. Maintaining this length is critical and cannot safely be ignored.
Cases are of the correct length when we buy them new, either as unprimed brass or in factory loaded ammunition. The question
