30-06 Cartridge Gauge

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ninosdemente

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I have been reading a couple online articles and one book mentioned about utilizing a cartridge gauge. I found one in amazon for 30-06.

https://www.amazon.com/Hornady-Cart...6747137&sr=8-1&keywords=30-06+cartridge+gauge

As a beginner I'm inclined to get this. Is this a must or more of a just to make sure it was done properly? Is this something that will be used all the time even as one reaches an experienced level?

Any thoughts will be greatly appreciated.
 
Case gauges are always good to have on hand, fast way to check your brass. Having one in the calibers that you shoot the most is a good idea and most are cheap to buy.

I think I have one for every caliber that I own and the 50 BMG gauge wasn't cheap! I still use them all the time to check my brass.
 
It's a case length gauge, not a real necessity, but used to determine the optimum minimum and maximum length of cases, indicated by steps at the mouth of a .30-06 case and others. If the mouth protrudes above the upper step, the case is a candidate for some trimming. The gauge should be used after cases have been sized to get proper measurements. Note that your caliper can be used for the same purpose. The gauge does not provide measurement readings but visually shows max or min case lengths depending on how they fit in the gauge. If you have a caliper, the gauge will not add much to the process.

I have had an '06 case gauge for a number of years and really never used it much until just recently when I had a large number of '06 cases to process and using the gauge is much faster than using the calipers, should you want to check every one. The gauge can be used of course for adjusting your case trimmer when the gauge shows that trimming is called for.

But if you want one to supplement your caliper it could be of some help but again not all that necessary. Note that a caliper is more versatile since it can make a greater variety of measurements, not just case length.
 
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I have mixed feelings. I got a Wilson for my 9mm, it can be a picky round.

It did not reflect what the gun would take, barrel plunk test did that much better (and what the Wilson would reject, the gun was fine with, I did get an idea of how much rejection was too much, I had so few of those it goes unused

I had one case mfg that did fit the Wilson all the time, the rest no. That's a head scratcher for sure, no idea.

The problem is the gauge is a precision device and it does not reflect what your chamber really is.

When I resize (minimum shoulder bump back) I just take a few cases at random and see if they fit the chamber on the gun I am shooting.

So if you feel better with it that's fine, but if it rejects, then follow up with a check of the rifle.

A gun mfg is going to try to average at the max end of SAMMI so they don't wind up via variation below the minimum.

That's my opinion and I can't give supporting data but my one off with the Wilson would say that's accurate as well as real world where when someone buys a gun if it goes sub SAMMI, a factory round may not fit and that's going to cause a lot of unhappy people.
 
A guns chamber is the best case gauge you can have.
An after-market case gauge won't match the chamber in your gun most of the time.
The case gauge doesn't mimic your chamber diameter or the distance to the rifling. Both of these can prevent a round from chambering. Use the rifles chamber to measure your loaded rounds because then you know whether it fits or not.
 
Is this a must or more of a just to make sure it was done properly?
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You can tell by the responses there are reloaders that read the instructions and their are reloaders that turn the instructions into destructions.

From the beginning the Wilson case gage is a very accurate tool, it is a datum based tool meaning it is used to measure the length of the neck from the datum to the case mouth and from the datum to the case head.

Most reloaders thought the Wilson case gage was a drip in gage and they thought all they had to do was use their thumb nail. The instructions by Wilson suggest the reloader use a straight edge with the tool, forever I have suggested the reloader use a straight edge with a feeler gage. The reloader that does not have bad habits and has learned to measure before and again after can measure the length of the case, in thousandths from the datum to the case head. Reloaders that find the feeler gage/straight edge awkward can learn to use a flat surface with the feeler gage.

The Wilson case gage is a tool for the skilled reloader.

I have Wilson case gage and I have home made gages, The distance from the datum to the case head for the 30/06 family of cases is the same meaning I can use the 30/06 case gage for the 25/06 etc. The exception would be the 270W and the 280 Remington. A skilled reloader should understand the distance from the datum to the case head on the 280 case is .051" longer than the 30/06 from the datum to the case head. AND! the case length from the mouth of the case to the case head is .041" longer. I did say the case gage is a very precision cage but some treat it like a drop in gage.

For reloaders that can keep up it is easy to determine the trim length of the case.

F. Guffey

Any thoughts will be greatly appreciated.
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"...Is this a must..." Nope. Mostly a way of separating you from your money. Millions upon millions of rounds have been loaded without 'em since long before case gauges existed.
"...faster than using the calipers..." Calipers can be locked and used as a gauge that's way faster than putting the case into anything.
"...the distance to the rifling..." You can forget that altogether. It's a load tweaking technique that is not necessary.
 
The case gauge doesn't mimic your chamber diameter or the distance to the rifling.
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I was thumbing through one of my old industrial catalog last months, and then? a thought occurred to me, the though had to do with nomenclature. Reloaders believe the case has head space, my Wilson case gage instructions claim the tool is a case gage. reloaders try to call it a case head space gage. My instructions were printed in 1953, back then the case did not have head space, the case had a length that was measured from the datum, back then reloaders thought the datum was a straight line with an arrow pointing toward identifying it as 'THE DAATM LINE'

Your chamber is the gage: I make chamber gages, if I need a chamber gage I search through barrels of take off barrels. I think nothing of paying $5.00 for a worn out barrel, I cut off what I do not need and use the rest. BUT! There is a problem with a chamber gage; the reloader can not measure a fired case in a chamber gage. For that reason the Wilson case gage is designed to measure a minimum length/ full length sized case and a fired case. All a reloaders must develop are good habits, one good habit is to measure before and again after.

I have said it is possible to measure the outside diameter of a case with a Wilson case gage, I should have said I can but no one else can. And then there is the comparator.

F. Guffey
 
My point was that just as the gauges vary in dimensions so do chambers. I will bet $100 that the cases I feed into my old 03A3 will not fit a case gauge. They will be too large in diameter and too long. Not too long from the datum to the case head but too long from the datum to the mouth of the cartridge. These cases haven't been full length sized in the past 20 or more loadings. The case necks have a bulge just above the shoulder that fits the diameter of my chamber neck. The case is .486 in diameter just above the web. With my reloads it still shoots under an inch at 100 yards in a 20 round aggregate.

Unless I had a custom gauge made the cases would not fit but they fit my rifle just fine.
 
The case necks have a bulge just above the shoulder that fits the diameter of my chamber neck. The case is .486 in diameter just above the web. With my reloads it still shoots under an inch at 100 yards in a 20 round aggregate.
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If I said that everyone would respond with: "I am so confused", but you are lucky because I understood everything your said/typed. There was a shooter at Sierra that wanted everyone to know he was the best by telling them it was the shooters' ability and sizing the case had nothing to do with accuracy. He has a cute little saying that went something like the case could fit the chamber like rat scat in a fiddle case. I never understood why reloaders got all giggly about the cute little saying.

Back to the .486" at the web, if you do not size the case and or return it to minimum length you are cutting down on all that case travel and you are not causing the case to expand when fired. Time is a factor.

For me the bore is the first thing to go, gain, I have one rifle with a chamber that is .016" longer from the datum to the bolt face than a minimum length/full length sized case. I measured the chamber length first and then formed cases to fit, I adjusted the sizing die off of the shell holder .014" and then started sizing/forming 280 Remington cases for the long chamber. When I fired the formed cases in the chamber they turned into once fired cases. Adjusting the die off the shell holder .014" gave the magic .002" clearance.

And no; the shoulder on the 280 Remington case did not move when I fired it and it, it not move when I sized it.

F. Guffey
 
ninosdemente said:
I have been reading a couple online articles and one book mentioned about utilizing a cartridge gauge. I found one in amazon for 30-06.

https://www.amazon.com/Hornady-Cart...6747137&sr=8-1&keywords=30-06+cartridge+gauge

As a beginner I'm inclined to get this. Is this a must or more of a just to make sure it was done properly? Is this something that will be used all the time even as one reaches an experienced level?

Any thoughts will be greatly appreciated.
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I wish I knew you were buying one. I have 2 to sell. One was used only a few times. The other one is brand new, from a friend who decided to get out of reloading. Never have found that doohickey useful at all.

-TL

Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk
 
I've never even seen one of those before. Is it supposed to let you know if a case has been sized correctly? If so there a chance it and the chamber of your rifle are different. I have two 243 and cannot interchange the ammo. The Rem 700 ammo won't chamber in my Mossberg.
 
Yes in a way tell you that it has been sized correctly. In particular, let you know at a glance if the case is in need of some trimming. Also, before sizing a case after firing, will reveal how much the case circumference has expanded. If the case has a tighter than usual circumference before sizing indicated by difficulty to insert in the gauge, that might indicate an oversized chamber. It becomes difficult to really justify its use most of the times. I have three of them, a .243, a .30 carbine, and a .30-06. The '06 is the only one that has seen any real use due to checking a large number of cases.
 
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The Wilson case gage is a tool for the skilled reloader.
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Phew, at last, now I know why a Wilson doesn't work for me. I lack skill.

I am so relieved, I worried it might have something to do with difference between gauges and the gun chamber.

I can relax, as long as I am not a skilled freeloader I don't have to worry about all that pesky skill stuff. Obviously I was failing and did not know it.

Now If I give it away does that change my skill level? Out of sight out of mind? Or am I tarnished for life?

Kind of the corollary of "if A mans says something in the woods and a woman is not around to correct him, is he still wrong?"
 
"The Wilson case gage is a tool for the skilled reloader"

Phew, at last, now I know why a Wilson doesn't work for me. I lack skill.
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Skilled, knowledgeable, a good listener, can read and comprehend; The Wilson case gage does not work for a lot of reloaders, they do not understand the Wilson case gage is a datum based tool. The Wilson case gage measures from the datum to the case head, the bottom cut on the Wilson case gage when measured correctly measures the length of a minimum length/full length sized case from the datum to the case had. The next cut/step represents the length of a go-gage length chamber.

If the reloader measures a minimum length sized case the head of the case should align with the bottom cut, if the case is fired in a go-gage length chamber the case head shoulder alight with the top step of the case gage. The difference in height between the two cuts .005" for the 30/06 case gage.

I know, that is difficult for most reloaders to wrap their minds around, they had rather spend most of their time talking about tolerances, variations, pluses and minuses and talking about what SAAMI says 'it is'.

I am the fan of transfers and standards, that could make me the only reloader that can measure the length of a die from the shoulder to the deck of a shell holder or measure the distance from the datum of a case gage to the first and second step. Wilson suggested using a straight edge, they informed reloaders the little steel ruler they carry in their top shirt pocket is a straight edge. It is possible reloaders no longer ware shirts with pockets or use little steel rules, but for me I had no problem with the steel rule I added the feeler gage for precision ,measurements.

Many years ago I wondered how Wilson made such a precision gage, I took out a lead bar and placed the Wilson case gage on the lead bar with the small end down I then placed a 30/06 case into the gage and drove it in with a straight pin punch until the case head disappeared. After driving the case into the case gage I turned the case gage around and then drove the case put. The case I drove out formed to the inside of the gage. That is when I found Wilson used a radius on their datums. I have also driven cases into unknown chambers instead of making a chamber case. So; if anyone wonders about the inside diameter of a Wilson case gage try and figure a way but I suggest you shove yourself away from the keyboard first.

A reloader can stack tools in front of them that is so high they can not see over the stack. That is something they insist on doing but if the reloader understands the Wilson case gage they do not need SAAMI.

Me? I fire a case, stick the fired case in the Wilson case gage and measure the case head protrusion. When I measure the length of the case from the datum to the case head I know the length of the chamber. I know if the chamber is a go-gage length chamber, I know if the chamber is a short chamber or I know the chamber is a long chamber and If I do not have bad habits like checking the protrusion with my thumb nail I will know the length of the chamber from the datum to the bolt face in thousandths.

And if the reloader does not have a straight edge they can use a flat surface, again, I have no problem incorporating the use of the feeler gage when using a flat surface.

F. Guffey
 
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I have recommended reloaders purchase R. Lee's book on modern reloading, I have also recommended those that own the book read it.

R. Lee furnished drawing of cases and he furnished case dimensions, something that has escaped the attention of reloaders is the line drawn through the shoulder; we all should understand the line is not a line, it is a circle/round hole. There are no pluses and or minuses, tolerances, spreads to give the reloader a reason 'it can not be done', the length of the case from the line/datum is the minimum length/full length size of the case. The case length from the line/datum to the case head in Lee's book should be the same as the length from the datum to the low cut on the case gage & again, the top of the gage to the datum should be the same length as a go-gage when measured from the line/datum to the end of the gage.

F. Guffey

For years reloaders claimed the line was drawn half way between the neck/shoulder juncture and the shoulder/case body juncture, the diameter of the hole/datum for the 30/06 is .375, and I ask how can the datum/line be drawn half way between the two junctures on the 8mm57, 30/06, 280, 270 etc. all the way down to the 25/06? If the datum diameter is .375 for all of the cases/chambers.
 
I got a Garand "Special" from CMP and wanted to make "perfect" reloads for it and got a case gauge. After firing 200 or so HXP ammo I began processing the brass for reloading and checking with the gauge. I had one out of 8 or10 that would not gauge, and I measured every dimension I could think of, and every trick I have ever tried to get the brass to fit the gauge. I bought some Hornady brass and got the same results, but got a bit fewer "rejects". The "bad" brass was about .008"-.010" tall. I purchased a RCBS F/L sizing die to replace my Lee, quadruple checked my methods, but still got "bad" cases after sizing, trimming and deburring. I went on the CMP reloading forum asking if any of the Garand fellers knew anything about my problem. One member asked if the brass/reload would chamber in the barrel. They did. I carefully marked an entire case to see what may be happening when I fired a round. The rounds marked and fired were carefully inspected and it turns out the brass was hitting the OP rod on it's way out during ejection, dinging the rim just enough to keep the case from gauging. I still have that gauge, somewhere, and now trust my measuring tools and guns to check my reloads...

So, IMO, no, a case gauge is not a necessity...
 
The rounds marked and fired were carefully inspected and it turns out the brass was hitting the OP rod on it's way out during ejection, dinging the rim just enough to keep the case from gauging.
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If I gage a case and the case head/rim has a ding the straight edge will not fit the top of the gage as being lever or parallel and then there is the test where I stand the case up. A ding will cause the case to lean one way or the other. I have suggested reloader stick the case head into the die and or gage, I know it is not likely the reloaders will discover a problem but I have small base dies that are mistakes.

Unclenick said he marked cases with a punch and then said the raised metal around the dent is flattened when sized. I added the part about the NAVY and gloup makers.

F. Guffey
 
Well I'm really lost. Sounds like one of those old tools that screw's into the press and the case is run up into it and anything out the top get's filed off. It was a case trimmer, had to be crude. At any rate rather than puzzle me I can't figure out a use for it? I've seen that datum line drawn years ago, not a clue what it's for. What is the data that come's from this tool good for?
 
Come to think of it, a very good friend got me an RCBS Precision Mic for a 25-06 years ago, mid 90's. To this day I have not been able to figure out how it works or what it does! Probably a lot more tools like that out there.
 
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