Rusty Dies So Quick!!!

[Centurian22]

Well I learned the hard way how not to store my dies in the turret. I was switching my LCT from .308 to .32s&w long and wanted to 'protect' the dies while in the turret. So I put them in an old plastic coffee can. Kept them in the house (climate controlled obviously). Opened it to check on them not even 4 weeks later and they were COVERED in light surface rust!!!! I flipped out. I always take good care of my stuff and thought I was doing the right thing but obviously not. Now I have liberally sprayed them with oil and I am storing them open not sealed.

Any advise on how you store your dies while in the turret to protect them from rust and damage would be greatly appreciated.

 

[blarby]

Disassemble them.

Get the oil off.

Tumble them in corncob and nufinish.

The CC will strip all of the corrosion away, and the nufinish will protect them indoors for AT LEAST a year.

 

[gamestalker]

This is something I hear about from time to time, but I have personally never experienced this problem, and some of my dies are more than 40 years old. I don't really do much to them when I'm finished using them either. I just make sure I keep them in the plastic container they came in. I now live in a very dry climate, but I used to live in the mid west for about 7 years and would give them a quick wipe down, inside and out, with some gun cleaning solvent, no oil though. When preparing to use them the next time, I would just rinse them out with some acetone and that's about it, I guess I've been lucky?
GS

 

[KansasSasquatch]

I used to have problems with that when I reloaded in my garage. It's not climate controlled. Spraying the outside of the dies down with Hornady One Shot CLEANER and Dry Lube (not case lube), wiping them down, and giving them another light spray helped. Now that I reload in my basement I don't have any problem. I give my dies a very light spray after a reloading session and I can leave them out for months without rusting. Just remember to clean them after you handle them with bare hands, finger oils are a major cause of flash rusting.

 

[Fire_Moose]

How were the inner workings?

I'm same as above. Store em in the open. I found the tops of the red Lee round holders make a good 3 die stand for the common switch outs. Other then that they are open in the plastic boxes.

Of course this only works with a few calibers.....

Sent from my CZ85 Combat

 

[kingmt]

First lighten up. Everything oxadises it is a protective layer in itself. As said etc will stop it.

 

[cwbys4evr]

I keep mine in the turret sitting on my bench in the open. It's been a month since I did anything with pistol and so far so good. I think keeping them in an enclosed container, which will trap moisture no matter how climate controlled the space is, has something to so with it.

Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk 2

 

[jjjitters]

I just put them in the stock container and give a quick squirt of silicon dry spray. If they stay on the turret I have oiled up my fingers(not dripping, just a light coating) ,then I rub the parts of the die that I touched. Spray wax would be another good option. I have 2 rifle sets that are now all brown because I used to load in the basement(it was a bare /unfinished and moist feeling). I had to cover my dies in oil to keep them from rusting.

 

[photosaurus]

I'd follow Blarby's advice (#2) and then wipe them with Sentry Solutions Tuf-Cloth.

 

[PhotoBiker]

Centurian, did you wrap them in anything like a towel or cloth before putting them in the can?

We are both from Maine, we should have a very similar climate. I store mine in the plastic die containers they shipped with. I keep them in my basement (yes, a typical damp New England basement) along with all my other tools that have been down there for over 15 years with no problems.

I'm trying to figure out what caused the moisture in the first place. Did they go from a cold to warm room? (Like from the garage to the house)

 

[bigdaa]

+1 on blarby.


Store all dies in the house. You can stock up on small sealed desiccant packs and slip them in the container you keep your ides in.



One thing.........I use the consumable desiccant material that pools the moisture up. Yes, it has to be poured off, but man o man does it work fine! I NEVER get rust on anything.

I use it in the safe and in the ammo cab's. No reason you couldn't have it in the closet you store your dies and such in.

 

[fguffey]

http://www.leeprecision.com/cgi-data/instruct/90064.pdf

Nothing rust around here like a Lee die, again, I purchased 40 pounds of reloading equipment for $20.00, I attempted to sort out the Lee dies and give them back to the dealer I purchased them from, no deal, he insisted I did not pay for the Lee dies, he claimed he threw the Lee dies in for free. I did not want to carry the extra weight through the parking lot.

Rust and storage: I could have used the coffee can method for storage, instead of loading the can then closing the lid I would have heated the can after loading, then, sealed with the lid. There is something about the concept that does not get past reloaders, anyhow, when the can cools there is less air in the can, less air (atmosphere) means less moisture.

Keeping the lid shut and sealed, the can can double as a barometer, when the lid is concaved the pressure on the outside is higher on the outside of the can, when the lid is convex-ed pressure on the inside is higher on the inside, when there is no flex of the lid there is no seal.

Same with ammo cans, load them, heat them then close the lid (before they cool).

F, Guffey

 

[Certaindeaf]

Hmm, I've now a hankering for some preserves.

 

[45lcshooter]

tumble them(dry, no nu finsh or anything else) then use a light metal polish on them. they come out more shiny than they were new.

 

[brickeyee]

Vapor phase Corrosion Inhibitors (VpCIs) are far more useful than desiccants, especially in a small even reasonably sealed container (like the plastic boxes dies come in).

 

[HOWARD J]

I wipe mine down with BARRICADE rust prevent & store in plastic dollar store containers.
Good for over a year with no rust

 

[Jesse Heywood]

If you really want to keep them from rusting clean and apply Renaissance Wax.

 

[arizona98tj]

To the OP, what was the brand of your rusty dies?

 

[Centurian22]

The dies were Lee but I fault my own actions not their product. I bought the turret specifically for keeping the dies set and not having to re adjust everything every time I want to load some rounds, otherwise I would have stored the dies in their case. No I didn't wrap them in anything. I suspect it was hand oils. As the surface rust was spotty and looked like it could be fingerprints. No there were no temperature fluctuations. What really caught me off guard was I had the .308 dies sitting in the turret in the press for two months just fine no issues, then less than on month in a cleaned (and what I thought was dry) coffee container and boom rust. I guess left out the air circulation must help prevent the hand oils from rusting the dies but once closed off and contained it causes an issue. Luckily the inner workings of the dies all still looked great. I don't have a tumbler as I clean with ultrasonic.

I plan to clean them with a brass brush (the tooth brush style) and keep them oiled / wiped down and in the open. Once I have / build my work bench and reloading station I will construct something on a shelf to hold the turret with the dies in place. This setup will be in my basement but will have a dehumidifier running near it all the time.

Lesson learned, glad I checked it when I did even though it was a fluke. I easily could have gone several more months without bothering to look. Note to self, always wipe off with oily rag and store in open. Thank you all for the input.