450Bushmaster.net

I tried measuring per the photo, and all of my measurements came in at .500 to .5015 or so. As you mentioned though, this doesn't strike me as a very reliable means of looking for pressure. Unless anyone has any data that clearly shows the value added in performing this step, I'll probably not do it unless I'm working up into some really spicy loads.

TT

FWIW, I edited my previous post to reflect case shrinkage as well. Looking back on my historical records for this kind of load, the shrinkage was about what they usually do, despite being annealed. So softer does not appear to cause greater shrinkage.

Hoot

http://www.hodgdonreloading.com/reloadi ... le-reloads
Just to make sure everyone is safe use new cases only for pressure testing. If you really want to know then look at this website.
https://www.shootingsoftware.com/index.htm

The website (if you check out the pages) shows the strain gauges. They can be left on the barrels or taken off after testing.

The fired cases can be used for repeat loads that have proven safe until they fail the thunk test or show signs of fatigue or need annealing.