Why It’s Smart To Full-Length Your Brass Commentary By Erik Cortina. Should You Full-Length Your Cartridge Brass Size? Absolutely. Let Me Explain… I have seen this time and again, shooters struggling with their rifles trying to close the bolt while the wind is changing. They were so focused on getting their bolt closed and their rifle back on the bags, that they missed the switch in wind. Bang… Eight! The straw that broke my back was the 2017 Canadian Nationals. I was paired with a young woman who would try her hardest to close the bolt of her rifle. She would close the bolt most of the time, but she often could not get the round into the chamber. She was more focused on her rifle than the conditions. After we finished our string, she had five of the 15 rounds that didn’t chamber! This is way too much! I told her to consider Full-length sizing, or Controlled Full length Sizing as I call it. I told her to not worry about losing accuracy. I told her I full-length sized all my rounds, and asked if she had noticed how smooth the bolt was. She said they were both fantastic! Controlled full-length sizing DOES NOT harm accuracyI have found that Controlled Full Length Sizing DOES NOT reduce accuracy or brass life. I find I can concentrate much more on the situation when I don’t need to worry about chambering or extracting a round. It’s become second nature. After firing, I place my thumb on the stock and rotate my hand upwards. I reach into the ammo box and remove the spent case. I then pick up a loaded round and place it in chamber. When ready, I check the conditions and push the bolt in with my index and middle fingers. Controlled Full-length Size allows you to “bump” your shoulder by.002″ for bolt guns. *
Image courtesy of Sinclair International, which carries Full-length Dies. Whidden Full-Length Sizing Dies
AccurateShooter.com Editorial Board
You want a high-quality die that is a perfect match for your chamber. Whidden Gunworks offers both bushing FL dies and non-bushing FLs. If you’re looking for a new option, Whidden offers a click-adjustable FL die that is patent-pending. This gives you instant, precise control of shoulder bump. It works perfectly. *You may want to increase the shoulder bump on gas guns such as the AR10 to.003″ or more. For some benchrest cartridges a bump of.0015′ may be optimal. But.002″ is a good start.
