Blue68f100
Member
That's a good reason to always sort by head stamp on rifle rounds. The difference in volume can be dramatic between the mil and commercial brass.
Only one I had wasn't me-I am pretty OCD about my loading, and only use single-stage presses. (An RCBS Jr. 3 and a MEC 600 Jr.) But when I was about 12, and was 'borrowing' some of my Dad's Red Dot for some pyrotechnic displays in the sand box with some plastic armymen and tanks, I spilled some. I cleaned up the spilled powder and put it in my Dad's ashtray on the reloading bench. Yes, he smoked while reloading. Well, he didn't after he set a cig in that ashtray full of Red Dot, and I couldn't sit down for a while, either.
I had a 9mm “fizzle” at a friendly competition. It wasn’t the normal bang, it was just a fssssst and smoke. After an immediate unload and show clear, there was a round stuck in the barrel, thankfully no recoil so no new round chambered. The culprit was a .380 case that head spaced on the extractor.
I have a LNL progressive, and an RCBS lockout die after the powder drop. There are light strips under the dies shining light all over the place and I wet tumble with stainless so the cases show powder charges really well and I attempt to insure there’s a decent amount of powder in every case.
The next reloading session, I found another .380 case had made it through the entire process and it was only dumb luck that round hung up on the ezject system and when I grabbed it the bullet pulled right out of the case.
My process change was to add a shock bottle case gauge after loading.
Even if it gets to the press you should be able to tell that there is no pressure on the handle when your resizing the brass. When you feel no pressure it is either a .380 or the 9mm case is split.Solves that pesky .380 problem BEFORE it gets to the press.
I’m not trying to start an argument, but “should” is the operative word. The idea of this thread was to post situations and process changes. I’m not being defensive, but, you won’t catch every .380 case through the force (or lack thereof) of the resize. I have caught some that way. I have also caught some just due to them dropping on the base plate and noticing their height is lower than a 9mm. The RCBS lockout die is a relative measurement tool, and it will pass a .380 case with a lesser charge as well as 9mm case and an adequate charge.Even if it gets to the press you should be able to tell that there is no pressure on the handle when your resizing the brass.
No problem here, but what is a shock bottle gauge.