Please Help with Resizing

[5RWannabe]

I use a Forester FL sizer die for my .308

I have no problems resizing brass that was fireformed in my SS 5R Chamber. (new winchester brass from bimart)

my problem is that i bought some "once fired" brass online, a mix of LC 04 LR, winchester, Remmy, Federal, Hornady brass.

most of this brass will not chamber in my rifle before or after resizing.

When i attempt to resize using the forester FL die, they are very sticky when trying to close the bolt, i dont want to use the force that would be nessassary to close the bolt.

Im not sure how im setting up the die wrong.

my technique is to raise the ram, screw in the die untill its lightly touching the shell holder. (should i screw it in harder?)

the forester dies tell me to allign the neck puller/expander ball thingy so the bottom 1/3 of the ball is in line with the small hole used to force excess lube out. i believe i have this correct. and when i use this setup for my own fireformed brass it works great.


im not sure where to adjust, do i need to make a stronger contact with the shellholder? or do i need to reposition the expander ball sizer part?

before rezizing with the brass that dosent fit. when i insert the brass into the chamber and try to close my bolt , it stops before i have fully pushed it forward, does this mean im not resizing enough of the case (the area just ahead of the web) or would it be that my neck/shoulder is to long?,




after resizing that same brass i can get the bolt fully forward, but it takes to much force to rotate the bolt to the locked firing position.

 

[rymart]

Re: Please Help with Resizing

Do you have a headspace measurement tool? If not, you need to get one. This sounds like you need to bump the shoulder back a little bit more. FYI, most sizing die instructions will not get you to bump the shoulder back enough to make a difference. Standard is to bump the shoulder back 0.001" - 0.002" for bolt guns and 0.003" - 0.005" for autos.

All of my sizing dies need to be 'cammed over' slightly to bump the shoulder. 'Cammed over' means with the ram all the way up (with a shellholder in place) screw the die down until it touches the ram, them keep going a little bit more. You shouldn't more than a full turn more.

 

[Tripwire]

Re: Please Help with Resizing

Body die........

 

[5RWannabe]

Re: Please Help with Resizing

i do not have a headspace tool, i am about to return a holster that dosent fit my xd to midway i think ill invest in one.

 

[Tripwire]

Re: Please Help with Resizing

Soot up a piece of that brass with a candle and try to chamber it.

Carefully extract it...you'll see where the problem is.

 

[rymart]

Re: Please Help with Resizing

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Whisky Shot</div><div class="ubbcode-body">i do not have a headspace tool, i am about to return a holster that dosent fit my xd to midway i think ill invest in one. </div></div>

It's a good investment. I use the Hornady Lock-n-load. Didn't cost too much, but gets the job done. Tightness when closing the bolt is almost always related to headspace.

 

[Tripwire]

Re: Please Help with Resizing

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: TikkaSporter</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Tightness when closing the bolt is almost always related to headspace. </div></div>

Unless the case body has been blown out by an over sized chamber in another rifle...or the brass is hard, has too much spring back, won't hold a "size", and needs annealing.

Etc......

 

[5RWannabe]

Re: Please Help with Resizing

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Tripwire</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Soot up a piece of that brass with a candle and try to chamber it.

Carefully extract it...you'll see where the problem is.</div></div>


ill be trying that low tech method first great idea, i was looking around for a sharpie but couldnt find one.

 

[Tripwire]

Re: Please Help with Resizing

Don't give me the credit for it, I didn't invent it......

Simple/Easy/Low Cost yeah, but I wouldn't call it low tech....before I made this to actually measure what the die was doing, sooting was how I set up a sizer die for many years.

Actually there's nothing low tech at all about being able to actually SEE the results of a fit, where physically seeing it is impossible. Sooting is how I inlet a wood rifle stock for a true fit....smoke the metal with an oil lamp, insert into the rough inletting, shave off all the sooted marks. Keep going until there is a 100% sooted inlet, aka true fit.

Tell me how low tech it was to get this piece of ebony to fit this piece of walnut, perfectly....yeah, I dared to soot the ebony.

Regarding brass and rifle chambers, a sharpie works well for finding the rifling and a max COAL with a bullet in a dummy round, but soot works best for seeing chamber fit. Just remember to clean the chamber when you are done. I use shotgun bore mops on a pistol rod to clean chambers, appropriate size of course.

 

[427Cobra]

Re: Please Help with Resizing

You need a small base die to resize your brass!

 

[avidflyer]

Re: Please Help with Resizing

Same problem I had. You need a small base die as stated, my RCBS part number is 15503.

 

[FLIGHT762]

Re: Please Help with Resizing

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: TikkaSporter</div><div class="ubbcode-body"><div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Whisky Shot</div><div class="ubbcode-body">i do not have a headspace tool, i am about to return a holster that dosent fit my xd to midway i think ill invest in one. </div></div>

It's a good investment. I use the Hornady Lock-n-load. Didn't cost too much, but gets the job done. Tightness when closing the bolt is almost always related to headspace. </div></div>

The Hornady Head space set is a good investment. I like to use a digital caliper. Here's a good article that shows how to use it.

http://www.inlandshooters.net/index.php?contentid=9

 

[rymart]

Re: Please Help with Resizing

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Tripwire</div><div class="ubbcode-body"><div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: TikkaSporter</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Tightness when closing the bolt is almost always related to headspace. </div></div>

Unless the case body has been blown out by an over sized chamber in another rifle...or the brass is hard, has too much spring back, won't hold a "size", and needs annealing.

Etc...... </div></div>

Still usually a headspace issue once you have run it through a FL sizing die and it's a tight chamber fit... blown out from oversized chamber or work hardened brass are what caused the headspace issue in the first place. Yes, it could be blown out laterally also...

 

[Leaddog]

Re: Please Help with Resizing

As previously mentioned..... A small base resizing die with cure your problem.

 

[5RWannabe]

Re: Please Help with Resizing

Thank you for all your input, it seems i only needed to screw down my die alittle further. sorry for being a newbie just wanted to make sure i was covering my bases. and what my options were.

i still plan on getting a headspace gauge as soon as i get my midway credit posted.

Thank you all again.