[smilie=b:I am looking to purchase a NS die for a 300WM Hornady lists two {.308 std and .307 mag }I looked at three other brands and no one else specs dia. other than .308 ???????????:?:[smilie=f:
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[smilie=b:I am looking to purchase a NS die for a 300WM Hornady lists two {.308 std and .307 mag }I looked at three other brands and no one else specs dia. other than .308 ???????????:?:[smilie=f:
Lee makes a collet die for the 300WM. Unless you have a match rifle, you can't go wrong with a collet die. I have at last count somewhere around thirty of them. I find they work the necks much less than any conventional neck sizer with an expander ball.
Only a bushing die is more versatile, but 99% of the time is not necessary with a factory chamber. It will, however, let you NS to whatever diameter you want with a simple change of bushing. It sounds from the way you phrased your post like that's what you are looking for.
thats because they neck size down then pull the neck over the expander ball.
the expander can be 308 to allow spring back of the brass for a final inside diameter of 306.
you need the smaller inside diameter to have enough neck tension to hold the bullet during primer and powder ignition.
the other ball sizes allow you to have more or less neck tension.
even some of the 31 cals [303 7.7 etc.] size down to the smaller size then use a larger expander ball to gain a bigger diameter.
the hornadys are just specifying a longer die body with tthe 307 mag designation, and you might even have better results with a bit tighter neck tension. if it truly is 307.
Which one to buy: conv.,collet or bushing? Does brand matter?
For the 300WM I would go with the .307 give you more neck tention on your bullets for the recoil of that hound.
If you always crimp though you would get away with the .308
Good Luck Ken
Ken's reply makes good sense. I avoid conventional NS dies because of the extra working of the neck by the expander ball, only Lee makes the collet, and I don't own a match rifle to advise who makes the best bushing die. Collet dies are relatively inexpensive and work great for me. I have heard good things about Redding's & RCBS's bushing dies but don't own any of them. I think I'd be crimping for the 300WM anyway (everyone I know who loads it and shoots 165-200gr bullets in it does), but just to satisfy my own curiosity I would fill up the mag with uncrimped rounds and fire all but the last one then measure its OAL to see if the recoil pulled the bullet any. I assume it would, but it's always interesting to see how crimped/uncrimped affects the accuracy and POI too.