Thread: Case Sizing Dramas

sooner or later...you will not quite put it on right and case will get stuck in dies...requireing MAJOR force etc to remove it.....

Originally Posted by Micky Duck

sooner or later...you will not quite put it on right and case will get stuck in dies...requireing MAJOR force etc to remove it.....

Yep, the one and only time I got a case stuck in a die was trying snake oil water based spray lube for full length sizing. Out it went!

Lee lube is also water based I believe. Why would you want water in your dies.

Originally Posted by rossm-96

Sorry, dent is in the shoulder.

Carpediem sent me a detailed reply of how to clean and polish the dies. He has had the same trouble with grit in Lee dies.

Vietnamcam, - i just follow the instructions about setting up the sizing die, -screw in to touch the shell holder and 1/4 turn more. How do you do it? I occasionally have trouble not sizing cases far enough and they wont chamber, which i fix by screwing the die in a little further. I have a pretty weak press which may not be helping.

It is a annoyance of mine that most dies prescribe to set up the FL die as you have described.
The problem with those instructions is that they often cause an excessive headspace issue, they give those instructions to ensure that 95% of users ammo chambers but that means in some cases it is WAY oversized.

Over sized ammo will result in case web thinning and case head separation the consequences of which can range from a stuck part case in the chamber and the end of your shooting threw to serious injury and the END of your shooting.

The best way to set up FL size in my opinion is.
Remove the decapping rod/sizing button

You need at least a few cases that are tight to chamber.
Wind down to holder and up half a turn.

work with one case for a start.

There is a few things that happen as the die is adjusted down and how it happens and when is all dependent on your actual chamber dimensions vs your die dimensions.

With the die high it will neck size only, case should chamber as tightly as before sizing....adjust down 1/16th-1/8 turn.
As the die comes down it will start to size the walls of the case inward which will also push the shoulder forward as that brass has to go somewhere, case will be tighter to chamber or will not chamber....now you are actually sizing the brass but not yet the headspace dimension....wind down 1/16th turn.
Now you get to the nitty gritty winding the die down 1/16th turn at a time till it just chambers with little or no resistance this will be .001-.003" less than "Tight" to chamber.

Reinstall decapping rod and button and recheck, if it has now become tight to chamber you may need to revise your inside neck lubing as the button is pulling the shoulder forward.
For the life of your brass and the life of your eyes you dont want to be excessively FL sizing.

minimal measuring equipment is needed to reload like this.

For your peace of mind your comment about not chambering suggests you are not over sizing but you asked how I set up a die so there it is.

As above posts excess lube sounds like the culprit.

@veitnamcam. Spot on

Originally Posted by Rated M for Magnum

Ok what's wrong with the Lee lube? It's been going good for me for a couple of years but I don't really have anything to compare it to

I've been using it for over 15 years with no problems I must be doing something wrong

Originally Posted by northdude

I've been using it for over 15 years with no problems I must be doing something wrong

Well the Lee stuff that came with my kit was like watery gritty tooth paste, chucked it straight in the bin and got some imperial sizing wax job done

if all else fails fill the size die with trail boss lite it up, then put it in the dishwasher then try imperial sizing wax it,s neva let me down even stoped the misses complaining once I started using it:
IF this STILLdoesn,t work throw it in the rubbish bin and get a new misses thats good at reloading