Thread: I don't make things easy for myself... Die help requested.

Been shooting wallabies for a long time now and have developed a preference for using some overkill on them. Mostly because it's sometimes a bit snap-shooty, or awkward positions and I can't always get a perfect rest - so sometimes I just need to aim for centre of mass and rely on a bit more oomph to make up for a slightly larger wobble zone and less than perfect shot placement. The 223 does the job well but 20-30% of extra hate just flattens them more consistently with how I'm shooting.

With that in mind, I've been using my 6.5 Grendel a lot with 90gr TNT's and it's been going great. But I also had a problematic Remington 700 300blk which needed to be re-barreled, so I went with 6mm-204 Ruger.


55gr 223 right, 70gr 6/204R left.

That went for its first outing at the weekend. And it looks like it's going to be another awesome little round. 6x45 or 6 TCU with a little extra poke. Forming brass was a simple matter of necking up to 22cal, then 6mm, then poking a primer, powder, and a bullet in before shooting it at a roo. All my brass is now fired though and resizing it is proving to be a bit more tricky... Nobody makes dies for it.

I was hoping to use a 204 Ruger Redding body die and find someone able to open up the top a bit to ~0.263". Then I could use a mandrel to set the necks just right. But the gunsmiths closest to me are all getting a bit too risk averse and don't want to chuck a bit of hardened steel in a lathe.

Plan B was a 204 Ruger bushing die with a 6mm bushing. But I don't know if the opening at the very top of the shoulder prior to the bushing would be large enough for this to work.

Plan C is to see how far I get with neck sizing. Hornady does a generic 6mm neck sizing die (046041) but I don't know if the die body is short enough to get a 204 case up inside it far enough. Also can't find one in stock in NZ.

Anyone have any other ideas on how I could size these things?

hmm smokeyjason...any ideas??? terminater products will know how as they do these weirdo rounds

This might be a stupid suggestion I really have no idea but could you cut the 204 ruger fl die off at the point that it hits .263 and use it with the neck die? Another step I know just racking my own brain for ideas that way the fl in theory would get up to the base of the neck

what about the shorter version done on .223 case??? any dies around for that one??? they work fine just die will be higher and bottom of case not resized...

It did occur to me that I should flick a message to Greg, as I was writing this post. So yeah good call Mickey.

204R has a bit less taper and a sharper shoulder, so 6x45 dies are out.

Or running threw a 6arc die to do neck and shoulder and a cut 204 r die for the body?

6 ARC, 6 PPC, maybe even 6 BR dies could work as neck sizing dies, yes. Would still need to figure out something for the body and shoulder for when neck sizing reaches the inevitable conclusion. Same gunsmiths (presumably?) wouldn't want to cut a die any more than they'd want to ream one out.

Can @Jaco Goosen chim in hes a practical thinking ideas man

What about @akaroa1 ?

Originally Posted by dannyb

What about @akaroa1 ?

His good friend may be able to hone a body die out for me, if I can get the exact dimensions of one.

Have you looked on the American forums?

If you get a Redding Bushing die in 204R, you will need to ream out the junction where the bush sits, I did this for my 6x45 using a 223 Redding bushing die. Its pretty simple as the junction / bridge is not very thick. I used a mandrel on my Dremel with some 240 wet & dry paper strips to ream. If you don't open out, it'll just resize your necks back down again to less than .224

Did you find that the bushing was still sitting low enough to the shoulder to size the neck all the way down? I'd be going from 20cal to 24cal so it might be a bit thicker.

None of my Redding Bushing (well Neck Sizing) Dies size all the way to the shoulder junction. They stop short which is probabaly on purpose so you can not accidentally start to distort the shoulder by hitting the shoulder neck junction with the bush. That's even with them adjusted right down.
Became a problem for me when I wanted to do a tidy up neck turn and I was prevented cutting that slight radius out of the shoulder that I prefer. Risked reducing the neck wall thickness at the junction if cutting that far due to the unsized section. Body dies do of course.....

I'd be a touch concerned that if I didn't get it perfectly the same ID as the bushing that I'd either be doing something weird to the necks or encouraging donut formation.