Thread: What are you using for pressure estimation in your handloads.

Originally Posted by Micky Duck

I do what the manuals TOLD ME TO DO when starting out.....watch primers and primer pockets,use feeler guage for brass deteriation. if a load feels hot,it probably is hot. ejector swipe, heck Ive seen some REALLY hot loads that shouldnt have been..factory loads that blew primers out,blackend around primers,so flat the primer was nearly out to writing on case head. first reload and case had split, my early Norma manuals have pictures of what a primer SHOULD look like...so does the Nick Harvey book come to think of it... YES I know different primers are different hardness but if you use the same primers the pressure signs should all other things being equal behave the same way...softer primers arguably will show load is getting hot sooner than a hard primer...and there is a wealth of information out there telling you which are hard or soft.
bottom line for me...stick to published load and dont try to hot rod it ...most important is dont use chronicgraph so velocity chasing doesnt occur,others will argue using one tells you if load is getting hot...yes and no.... each rifle is different.. some like it hot some are over pressure at middle of road data levels.
some barrels/chambers/actions are just slow by comparison to same rifle off same production line.... without using said chronic graph you would never know this and could be quite happy with an accurate load that kills well.

did you perhaps also get told not to use powder you cannot 10000% verfiy is what you are told it is ? .......too soon ?