Thread: Expander ball coming loose on Hornady precision dies

Originally Posted by 30.06king

Yes, it's possible to break the decapping pin is seriously misaligned. A small misalignment shouldn't matter. When you screw in the spindle be looking into the die from the bottom ( where cases inserts ) and stop when it appears reasonably centred and lock it tight there.

I have also experienced loosening of Hornady expander plugs. My solution was to unscrew the assembly and run 2 or 3 twists of plumbers thread tape onto the threads, then a smear of grease, before screwing the expander plug back on. Been working OK so far. Actually, I like the Hornady eliptical expander plugs as I think they open necks more gently and have not been a cause of excessive runout.

Cheers mate, yeah the expander seems to be the issue, the spindle is new. I think I will give it a go regarding the plumbers tape, have used it to stop suppressors backing off at the range. Cheers!