Brass Resizing Question for the experts

[madd0c]

New reloader here,
Have resized a bunch of 308win brass on my RC single stage press, no issues. Went shooting today with my 223 and brought the brass home and decided to try my new 223 RCBS die. First 50 rounds zero issues other than some minor linear scratches at the bottom of the case which I assume was from tumbler dust on the cases.

The first 6 or so cases from the second batch went with no problem, then the 7th case the rim tore off. I was happy I got the stuck case remover as a "just in case" item when I got the press. I could not get the deprimer pin and neck sizer ball out, so I went ahead and carefully drilled and tapped the case with the depriming pin as far out as I could get it, and popped the case out of the die.

Cleaned the die with rem-oil thoroughly. and re-setup the die. The very next case tore the rim off and I had to repeat the case extraction. I then realized I hadn't lubed the second set of cases i was resizing. went ahead and lubed them up as well as lubed the inside of the die after cleaning it. Resizsed the other ~30 cases without a problem.

I have two questions:
1) Are the cases I sized before they were lubed properly possibly dangerous to use? I see no evidence of damage, but could the rim have a problem since the last 2 cases that were not lubed tore the rim off?

2) How the heck do you get the depriming pin and neck resizer out of the die before tapping the case if you get a stuck case? It didn't seem to cause any issues drilling and tapping with it in, but I would feel better without the chance of damaging the depriming pin.

Thanks for any input,
madd0c

 

[SPW1]

No your cases sized without lube will not be dangerous to use. The only reason for lube is to keep cases from getting stuck as you experienced. Normally you can unscrew and pull the depriming stem out the top by hand or with pliers if necessary but as far as getting stuck cases out I don't think there is a great way to do it, it is almost always time consuming. Best to just avoid it. When ever a case seems extra stiff going in don't force it, stop and find out what the problem is unless you want more stuck cases

 

[arizona98tj]

The expander and pin won't come out when the case is in the die....its OD is larger than the ID of the neck and the neck is supported by the die. I insert the die into the press as shown in the photo and let gravity keep the unloosened expander and deprimer out of the way.

I would check the brass you neglected to lube but it is most likely fine. There was residual lube in the die from the previous rounds being sized and so those rounds made the best of it. It lasted for a bit....then it was all used up.

 

[454PB]

The cases that were resized with no sticking problems should be fine.

Some decapper/expander assemblies can be removed from the top of the die, if not, at least thread the assembly as high as possible in the die before drilling.

 

[madd0c]

Thanks for all the info, and Arizona thanks for the picture.

Had me going "doh! why didn't I think of that!" Heh I just put it in a towel in a vise.

Oh, and SPW1 I got the RCBS stuck case remover set that has a drill bit, tap and a screw with a steel collet that fits over the die. As this was my first stuck case, I was very happy it took me less than 5 minutes to drill tap and pop out the case. The second one went even faster lol...but as for it being especially time consuming it wasn't bad at all total time of about 15 minutes to get out BOTH cases. I was very pleased with the inexpensive kit and it's results.

Thanks,
madd0c

 

[SPW1]

Oh, and SPW1 I got the RCBS stuck case remover set that has a drill bit, tap and a screw with a steel collet that fits over the die. As this was my first stuck case, I was very happy it took me less than 5 minutes to drill tap and pop out the case. The second one went even faster lol...but as for it being especially time consuming I was very pleased with the inexpensive kit and it's results.

Glad the kit worked, I was to cheap to buy a kit, but I haven't had a stuck case in seven or eight years because the hassle made me learn my lesson. lol

 

[rfwobbly]

Mr 0c -
I'm no expert, but here's how I would handle question #1... Case lube is highly effective stuff. When you lube successive rounds, the lube tends to spread and cover the entire inside of the die. When you ran your first batch, the inside of the sizing die got completely covered. Then when you ran your first 6 of the second batch, you were "coasting" on the lubricant residue left by the first set.

If you felt no undue pressures in the reloading machine handle, then those first several cases are probably OK. The "feel" of the machine is everything. This is one reason reloaders develop a process and stick with it. Not all reloading problems are seen (such as a broken case), some can be detected by feel and others by sound. It's important to get into that "zone" and be fully aware while reloading.

However, that being said, the safest answer is always.... just toss any cases you doubt into the garbage. What are we talking about here, 6 cases out of 100? You probably tossed that many because of being dinged or stepped on. We may pick up all our brass, but that doesn't mean we reload all our brass. Big difference.

"There are old reloaders, and there are bold reloaders. But there are no old, bold reloaders!" Play it safe and grow old.

Hope this helps!

 

[Walkalong]

We may pick up all our brass, but that doesn't mean we reload all our brass. Big difference.

Yep. If in doubt, chuck it out. (Into the scrap bin that is.)

 

[rcmodel]

Cleaned the die with rem-oil thoroughly. and re-setup the die.

That was your second mistake.
Rem-Oil is not case lube, and does not have a high enough film strength to keep from sticking another case. Clean the die with it if you must, but be sure get it all out of the die, and use case lube before running another case in it.

There is no way to remove the expander button from the case while it is in the die.
The case neck is sized under dimension in the die, and the expander expands it when you pull it back through the case neck after it is out of the dies neck sizing area.

You simply can't pull it through the case neck when it is in the die and smaller then the expander.

rc

 

[Walkalong]

Whenever I clean dies I use something like B12 Chemtool etc that will evaporate fully, but then I will lube that first case extra well. The only thing that sticks cases in dies is lack of good lube. So far so good. No stuck cases, yet....

 

[UltimateReloader]

If you are looking for a great lube, give Imperial Sizing Wax a try- very good stuff!

http://www.midwayusa.com/viewProduct/?productNumber=519525

 

[Randy1911]

Back when I use to load rifle cases, after resiziing the case I would rinse them in Acetone which is a very good degreaser (available at Walmart in the paint section) and it would dry very quickly. Be careful though, it is very flamable. That way I didn't have to worry about the powder getting contamanated by lube.

 

[madd0c]

Thanks for all the info.

I used remoil just to clean with and get the little brass fragments from the drilling and tapping out. I then cleaned it out thourougly. After I lubed the rest of the case properly i had no problems.

So I guess that IF I get another stuck case (which I doubt will happen for a while since I am very conscious of the lube now) I will just drill and tap per Arizona's picture.

Thanks guys!

 

[R.W.Dale]

O have had to drill and tap out a few but recently Ive found another method that works for removing stuck cases too.

For lee and rcbs FL dies Ive found that if you just remove or back out the decap/expander locking nut/ring you can take a brass hammer and hit the top of the decap pin a couple times and the case will usually pop right out in just a couple whacks. The brass hammer doesn't seem to damage the decap pin, but of course your press mounting will have to be pretty solid