[Caleb C]

I'm sizing some 270 win brass on Hornady die with zip stindle. Cases are lubed before hand and everything seems to be by the book. There's little resistance when the body and neck are being sized but the neck expander button is catching the case. I had to take a rubber mallet to the press handle to get the last one out. Any idea why the expander button would be getting stuck in the neck?

 

[PhillipM]

It's because there is no lube in the neck. When I started reloading in the early 80's I had that problem and the solution at the time was to get some dry mica and dip the necks before sizing because if you ever got that gooey case lube in the neck it would not easily be removed. For a time I tried it though, squirting case lube on a nylon bore brush and passing it through the neck.

Today I exclusively use Hornandy One Shot case lube. I spray it at an angle coating the outside of the case and inside the neck then roll them about 180 and spray again and let dry. All the issues you have are a distant, unpleasant, memory. With no lube you will wind up buying a stuck case remover in short order.

For what it's worth, if you are adjusting your sizing die with a case mic, your readings will be off because you will stretch the case a little prying it out of the die.

 

[Caleb C]

I'm not too concerned with stretched cases. I measure and trim everything after sizing. I will try some lube in the inside of the case neck. I've got some RCBS case lube that I've been spraying on the outside of the cases but it never occurred to me to coat the inside as well. I also plan to tumble everything again after sizing. This should remove the lube from the cases.

Thanks for the help.

 

[Beladran]

if you ever try to neck up a bullet you will quickly learn the value of lube in throat. i spent the better part of a day getting a 30-06 case out of a 338-06 die :tears:

 

[msredneck]

Buy some dry lube...mica...lube the inside of the case neck..that's one reason why they make case neck brushes...you should also make sure you have chamfered and deburred your brass...expander can hang up some on that...for that reason many don't use f/l or neck dies with expanders...they use ones like Wilson with bushings....you are probably stretching the neck a bit too much

There's a lot of case prep tasks for precision rifle reloading...lots more "involved" than pistol

 

[Guest]

You will need to resize the ones that stick because if you don't, they probably will not chamber. You need to check them all with a headspace gauge to make sure they're will chamber.

 

[captain-03]

+1 on all the response above!! WTG guys!!

 

[Caleb C]

Great advise. I used RCBS case slick on the inside of the necks and then resized. I tumbled them all again to remove the lube. Now I'll start the painstaking process of measuring and trimming with the trusty ole Forster elbow grease powered trimmer. I do need some headspace gauges. That's a good point.

Thanks. Ya'll bailed me out again.

 

[Hammer]

Today I exclusively use Hornandy One Shot case lube. I spray it at an angle coating the outside of the case and inside the neck then roll them about 180 and spray again and let dry. All the issues you have are a distant, unpleasant, memory. With no lube you will wind up buying a stuck case remover in short order.

+1 on the Hornady One Shot! I use it on all bottleneck cases now. I was using the regular case lube on the necks and using a brush for the inside of the case necks.
I tried the one shot, and never looked back at the regular roll-on lube.
I do as Phillip said. I put all my cases in a case block, hold One Shot can at about a 30-45 degree angle, and spray over all of them. Then, I rotate the block 180 degrees and repeat. Lube works like a charm. Have not had a stuck case at all since using this method and lube.
Plus, it is not a petroleum based lube. No need to wipe off cases after lubing and sizing. I clean mine in the sink with some Dawn, rinse well, and spread them out to dry. Sometimes I put them on a cookie sheet and put them in the oven at very low temp to dry them out.

 

[Guest]

Actually, what I did to eliminate the sticking on my die was to remove the decapping pin assembly and put it in a drill press and emory (sand) the expander ball down about .003". This made a big improvement and allows the case to grip the bullets a little tighter when the bullets are seated. Works for me.

 

[sigma74216]

I just wanted to say. I have know idea what you all are talking about. Lol

 

[Caleb C]

Washing brass in Dawn and drying in the oven...........I like it. Good idea. I'll be trying that next time.

SMGJody, how do you ensure that you're removing the same amount of metal from all sides of the expander button when you mil it down? It seems like it would be very easy to remove uneven amounts causing it to be elliptical as opposed to perfectly round.

 

[Guest]

It's spinning in a drill press. I use a caliper to make sure of the amount of metal I want to remove. It is not perfect, but it works for me. In truth, I actually use a mill bas***d file for the first .002 and then 400 grit for the final .001. You can't get very elliptical removing .003.

 

[Guest]

If you have a set of calipers or micrometer, remove the zip spindle assembly from the die and measure the largest diameter of the expander portion of the spindle. Take a cleaned, lubricated shell case and size it without the spindle assembly in the die. Measure the inside diameter of the resized shell case neck. I believe you will find that the neck of the shell case is being sized smaller than the diameter of the expander portion of the zip spindle. When the shell case goes into the die, the neck pases over the expander portion of the spindle to round the neck in preparation for going into the neck sizing portion of the resizing die. The problem begins when you lower the ram and the shell case neck has to pass over the expander ball again. If it's too tight, the expander grips the case neck causing resistance and , sometimes, stretching of the neck out of dimensions. I turn down the expander in my dies so there is still some drag on the neck of the case, but not enough to get it out of dimensions. If you don't have a case gauge to check case length/headspace, you need one to check to see if the cases that are getting stuck are being pulled out of dimension as you force the ram down to get the case out of the die. This is just the way I do my dies and it works for me. Lubing the case necks works also. Either way, you need a case length/headspace gage for the calibers you are loading.

 

[msredneck]

You could also send for expander back to the Mfg and they will do it for you...

Its one of the reason's you buy several bushings when you buy nice Wilson neck dies...lets you "tweak" the tension...cause all brass aint the same thickness..

I've about quit reloading any rifle brass that aint made by Lapula

 

[smoffett]

+1 what 'neck said. Get the manufacturer to make you a button in the size you want. Carbide if possible, because it should not require any lube on it.