o Magnifying glass – We use a flat 2?x2? magnifying glass. Pocket 4x-8x magnifier. It folds up easily. It is very handy and we use it to inspect bullets. This can be used to check flash holes for burrs and to check the meplats in your bullets before loading. This will ensure that you don’t get kernel splash. It’s also easy to throw out any charge weight that is clearly off. A film canister is a good trickler.
o Compressed air in a can — These can be purchased at office supply shops. After cleaning the neck with a brush and blasting out any debris from primer pockets, use the tube-attached can to blow out crud.
o Pin Vise – A simple pin vise equipped with a #53 bit can be used to deburr Lapua PPC flash holes and BR flash holes, without having to ream them. The Lapua PPC/BR flash hole diameter is 1.5 mm or 0.059?. Amazon.com offers a handy $8.29 pin-vise kit that includes 10 bits, including the perfect 1.5mm bit. Another vendor sells a #53 pin vie bit for.0595? Or.060? (depending on the source). Hobby stores sell pin vises and bits. Here’s an example with ten bits, including one that is 1.5mm. Pin vise sets are available for as low as $7 to $15.
o Bounce Dryer Sheets: These common dryer sheets remove “static cling”, which can cause damage to plastic reloading parts like powder measure cylinders, funnels, and plastic bins for reloading presses. Doc76251 was kind enough to share this tip.
Ballistol Aerosol- Use this versatile lubricant/solvent to achieve full-length sizing. Spray some on a small area to remove carbon from the necks of your cases. Apply a small amount of Ballistol to the case bodies. It is not necessary to give it a thick sheen. Ballistol is extremely slippery and easy to remove. It is great for general full-length sizing (on small case sizes) and doesn’t leave any residue, be it a gooey or waxy. For heavier case-forming jobs, we recommend Imperial Die Wax.
o Shotgun mop – Use Wipe-Out foaming bore cleaner to stick this in the chamber. This will seal the chamber and prevent the foam from getting into your action. To extract long chambers, you can attach one section of the cleaning rod.
Colored Sharpie Marking pen – Mark your bullets before they reach the bearing surface. The color then transfers to the target. This allows you to shoot multiple loads from the same point of aim, and can easily identify which load shoots tightest. Recommended for 300 yards or more. To equalize wind effects, you can test multiple loads round robin using colored bullet tips. For example, when testing seating depths, you can mark the longer-seated bullets red and the shorter-seated bullets green and shoot them in the same sequence. To see which group is better, just look at the colored marks on your target.
o Thin Latex Gloves- Keep a box of disposable latex gloves (the ones doctors use) in your loading area. These gloves will protect primers and powder kernels you are handling directly. Use gloves when handling fine blued tools and firearms to prevent the transfer of body oils and salts that can promote rust.
Plastic washers for neck mic – If you have a Sinclair Neck wall Micrometer Gauge with an integral stand, you can use thin plastic washers that adjust the height of your case on the mandrel. This makes it easier to measure the same spot on the case neck each time. MikeCR thanks for this tip (and the photo).
