Neck sizing
 

Do you fire form your new cases and then just neck size them and go from there working on your hunting loads? {For that rifle.}

never just neck sized, only neck sizer I have is to take 338 lapua cases down to 7mm for my 7mm AM, I just partial full length size till they fit well in my chamber, after 2-3 firings I have to bump the shoulders back .002" after annealing.
I do my load work with new cases, then fine tune my seating depth with once fired cases. Tried using fire formed cases for load work a few times and never saw enough difference to worry about it in anything unless your making radical changes in the case shape when forming.
RR

I'm just the opposite of RR. I neck size MOST of my rifle rounds. For me anyway, I find I get a good deal more case life out of them by neck sizing only. I do find a little more accuracy in a couple of my rifles by doing it because of slightly large chambers. The groups tightened up from 1.5 to just over 1/2 at 100 so with SOME rifles it can mean a pretty good difference in accuracy. Sloppy chambers in factory rifles is commonplace nowadays unfortunately.

SH54,That's what i am talking about. It works for me 90% of the time. If it don't,i just FLS them for that gun.

I partially full length resize them like RR mentioned, but I don't shoot enough any more that I ever shoot a case enough times to even have to anneal it.

I suppose it's a matter of what equipment you use, and what you decide to call it.

Using a Full Length Sizing die to neck-size, or maybe just bump the shoulder a bit, isn't just neck sizing, even though a lot of guys call it that.

I have a few true neck-sizing dies - ONLY neck-sizers, and I also do often use FL sizers as bump or neck-size dies, which does partially resize. Most of my loading is for AR's, which get a FL resize forever and always. For my hunting rifles, a partial resize & neck size is in order. Only neck-size only, pure neck size only, on bench bolt guns.

Neck size (mostly)
 

I neck size with a Lee Collet die because they give me a lot more shots than a typical "expander ball" type of die.


Every five or ten shots I need to use a full-length die to bump back the shoulder (and slightly squeeze the case diameter).


Check OAL every 5-6 shots, too. Trim if necessary.


I get 20 shots out of my 22-250 brass this way.

I don't full length resize my rifle or specialty pistol cases, I just try to size the neck. I know that's not truly neck sizing, but it's close enough for my needs. I think it helps with accuracy, especially in combination with seating the bullets just off the rifling.

For my bolt rifles I neck size only, because they are being shot in the same gun every time! If you are loading for different guns, it's best to go full length!

As for me I really don't care much about extending my case life for a few extra loadings. I always FL size and trim my cases. That way I know they will chamber easily in my rifle. I tried Neck sizing a couple times and really didn't see a significant enough improvement in accuracy to justify even a slight difficulty to chamber when I needed it.
Now if I was using that particular rifle for target shooting only, then i might consider it.

I bump the shoulder on my hunting rifles, full length the ar, and neck size the varmint guns. Gotta mix it up.

I neck size only. I have had neck sizer dies made for all of my toys, and I anneal as needed, and will only full length when needed. New cases are trimmed and full power loads are used for forming to chamber.

I keep reading these posts about you guys bumping the shoulder a bit. Now the way I understand a sizing die to work is that it is basically a mould that reforms the brass back to SAAMI specs. So in "bumping the shoulder back a bit" you're not very far from FL sizing. About the only thing you didn't size is the web area of the case which is done by camming the ram against the bottom of the die. Backing a FL die out a bit is not neck sizing - it is partial sizing.
If I'm incorrect I want someone try and explain how they neck size or bump the shoulder in a FL sizing die without resizing 95% of the case.

You got it. "Neck Sizing" by kissing the shoulder with a FL sizing die is a partial resize. "Neck Sizing" by bumping the shoulder with a FL sizing die is actually effectively a complete FL size.

There ARE neck sizing dies which don't touch the case body at all. These are typically labeled as such - Neck Size dies.

Bronko,i often thought the same way about "Bumping'.
I just could not understand how you could do it?
I have neck sizer only dies.
With these i seldom size the whole neck !

WE must have been taught by the some reloading god!!! If I feel that I am going to ONLY neck size a particular round for a particular rifle, I will buy a true neck sizing die to that set of dies and I have it. I own about 10 true neck sizing dies so far. All bench/speciality rigs.