How important is neck turning?

W

William Suter

Well-known member
I bought a new rifle a few months ago basically from a friend. He gave me some of the brass he was using. Its been neck turned and annealed. I know its important to competition shooter but I'm just a paper/steel puncher. How important is it to me? I don't have the tools for neck turning and its not my favorite thing to do but can and will if it makes a huge difference.
 
I would only turn to control case neck-chamber clearance. You need to know the rifle chamber neck dia, is it stamped on the barrel(custom barrel) ? If it's a factory barrel , any SAAMI spec case will have plenty of neck clearance. The old standby, if a bullet will fit into a fired case by hand(easy push to drop in) no need to turn necks.
 
There can be a lot of variation in brass thickness, Hornady comes to mind. However, this is one of the areas where higher quality brass really shines. Lapua and Alpha brass have some of the least variation in brass thickness I have seen. All this being said brass thickness is really important if say you are using a bushing style die. The thickness of the brass is directly related to the size of the bushing you will use and so you want it as uniform as possible. The brass thickness variation would lead to varying neck tensions using a bushing die since you might not be sizing uniformly around the case neck. This can lead to velocity variation that would affect long distance shots. I'm getting long winded but if you don't shoot very far or a gun with a tight chamber I wouldn't worry about neck turning.
 
Its a Mike Rock barrel. My friend said he just skim cut the necks Just enough to clean them up. I have some that haven't been cleaned up. May load up a few and shoot them along with a few that have. Should be easy to see if there is a big difference in accuracy. I don't want to start something if I don't have to.
 
You want .002 clearance between the neck of the chamber and the neck of a loaded cartridge to give room for the bullet to release when fired.

I've never turned a neck and have won stuff with factory spec chambers. I do have a .250 neck 222.Rem barrel on order and had to ream my Lapua brass top get clearance all my other brass works fine. Standard 222 Rem neck is .255.

Unless your working with a tight neck chamber I don't think neck turning is worth the effort .with good brass. Pretty much what has been said above.
 
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William Suter said:
Its a Mike Rock barrel. My friend said he just skim cut the necks Just enough to clean them up. I have some that haven't been cleaned up. May load up a few and shoot them along with a few that have. Should be easy to see if there is a big difference in accuracy. I don't want to start something if I don't have to.
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That's all that I do just hit the high spot. P Dogs, coyotes and deer don't seem to know the difference.
 
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Neck turning helps a bit w/concentricity but for hunting you won't gain a thing. It does, however, begin to help accuracy @ 600 yds and beyond. I think the added mental confidence in your loads is probably as important as the gain in accuracy :).
 
I have several very accurate rifles and have never turned a neck. If I were a BR competitor I could understand getting the most out of your loads but I'm not. Hate to sound cheap but if I don't need to spend more money for tools I'd rather not.
 
If you don't have a specific reason, need, or expected benefit from neck turning, then it's not a good idea.

I do neck turn, for all my bolt guns. But I have specific reasons, needs and expected benefits. And it works great for me.

- DAA
 
I convert 223 to 300aac bo, only ones I turn for tight-necked carbine. Out of neccessity. Doubt anyone shoots past 300 yds with 'junk' brass.
 
I've shot BR competition for over 35 years, & every chamber has been a tight neck. Just one of the many variables that needs to be addressed in the quest for the ultimate in accuracy.

In an average off the shelf hunting gun/barrel, you'll likely not shoot the difference in turned vs un-turned, & could make thing worse for brass life with skinny rounds & fat chambers.

However, with the Rock barrel, as stated above, you'll need to know the actual neck diameter of the chamber, & neck diameter of your loaded rounds with your bullet of choice. Even bullets can measure over 1 thou difference between brands & lots numbers. "Skim" cut can have more than one definition.
 
My club buddy tried it to improved 400 yard group size and only caused premature brass failure.
Was with lapua & hornady brass, the lost lapua brass $$ hurt some, and he gave up on it.
Personally don't see a need 400 yard and closer.
 
For factory chambered rifles it's usually not necessary. You need to know the neck diameter of your chamber to really determine. You can buy plug gauge pins from McMaster Carr for about 5 bucks each.
 
spotstalkshoot said:
So what brass and cartridge chamber?
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Its Lake City LR and chambered in 308Win. The reason for asking, Is my friend built the rifle. He used the LC brass, neck turned and annealed. I shot a unbelievable (for me) group at 300yds using his brass and pet load. One hole groups at 100yds and similar at 200. I have a bunch of Black Hills Match brass and its not neck turned or annealed and it doesn't seem to shoot quite as good as the LC. If turning necks give me this accuracy then I may start turning necks. I've heard you only have to do it once. I could live with doing it occasionally.

Rifle: Defiance action, Mike Rock carbon fiber barrel, Little Bastard break, AG Composite stock and a Trigger Tech trigger. Scope is a NX8 NightForce.
 


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