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Tech Line & Tips (FAQs)

280 Ackley Improved vs. 280 Rem. Improved 40 Degree

The SAAMI spec cartridge carries the approved name of " 280 Ackley Improved " .
The older wildcat has several names including 280 Ackley Improved 40°, 280 Rem Improved 40°, 280 Imp 40°, 280 Ackley, 280 Rem Imp, and more.  
The SAAMI spec 280 Ackley Improved chamber is .014 inches shorter at the datum line headspace dimension than the traditionally accepted wildcat chamber spec as previously produced.  
Our current production dies are for chambers that are cut to the SAAMI specification and are stamped "280 Ackley Imp".
Any Redding dies made before 2011 are stamped " 280 Rem Imp 40° " and are built to the originally accepted wildcat specs.  
These older dies will not bump the shoulder of cases for a SAAMI chamber.  In other words, the old dies are too deep for the current SAAMI chamber.
Redding makes a Competition shellholder that is .014 deeper than the standard #1 shellholder so  the owner of a wildcat chamber can use the current SAAMI spec dies for safe resizing. 

Failing to use this shellholder or to back the die away from a standard shellholder by a minimum of 0.014" will result in too much shoulder bump which may create an unsafe, excessive headspace condition when fired in a traditionally dimensioned wildcat chamber.

To find the die part numbers for a current production SAAMI spec. rifle, please download our current catalog as a .pdf from www.redding-reloading.com.
You will find these dies listed in Series C and Category II. Limited quantities of the traditional wildcat dies which are marked " 280 Rem Imp 40° " are available at Custom Series Die prices.  See Rifle & Handgun Die Charts

Bottom line, don't rely on only the web. 
The names many list for this cartridge can be misleading. 
Remember, they are wildcat cartridges and adhere to no formal standard.

Note: Any dies that Redding makes for SAAMI approved cartridges are always stamped with the SAAMI approved name or abbreviation.



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