Need some reloading help

[mikenyE9]

I just tried reloading the 6.5 for the first time and for some reason the bullet seating die crushed the neck on the two cases i tried. Useing brand new Redding 6.5 Grendel Dies on a RCBS single stage press. Have never had this prob with any of the other calibers i reload. Can anyone give me any ideas to what could be causing this??

case.jpg

[txgunner00]

What sizing die are you using? Bushing type? If so, what bushing? What head stamp on the brass?

[davidj]

Why is it that the great majority of members (myself included) experience this the first time they reload grendels?

[richie301]

Did you chamfer the case necks inside and out? Apply case lube to full length resize. Everyone can help if you supply more information as texasgunner said.

[Bwild97]

How did you set up your seating die? for all of the dies I have ever used, you first thread the seating die in just a few turns, then put an empty case in the shell holder, raise the ram to full stroke, thread the seating die in until it contacts the empty case (you'll feel some resistance). For a light crimp add 1/8th of a turn, for no crimp, reverse 1/8th of a turn. Now set the lock ring and tighten.

If you want to crimp, you HAVE to trim your brass to one length unless, you use the Lee factory Crimp Die. But that adds another operation to a single stage press.

[ricsmall]

How did you set up your seating die? for all of the dies I have ever used, you first thread the seating die in just a few turns, then put an empty case in the shell holder, raise the ram to full stroke, thread the seating die in until it contacts the empty case (you'll feel some resistance). For a light crimp add 1/8th of a turn, for no crimp, reverse 1/8th of a turn. Now set the lock ring and tighten.

If you want to crimp, you HAVE to trim your brass to one length unless, you use the Lee factory Crimp Die. But that adds another operation to a single stage press.

I have to agree with bwild, It almost has to be in your seating die setup, or your case necks need trimming. I have reloaded thousands of rounds, albeit not for grendel, and have never crushed a case, so check those things and lighten up. It shouldnt take much pressure to seat bullets.

[mseric]

Back your seating doe out of the press and watch this go away.

[mikenyE9]

They are AA Lapua Brass. Lubed then up and used full size die for sizing. Set it up by with press all the way up, screwed the seating die down till it touched the shell plate, then backed it off a turn. After the neck crushed on the first one, i screwed it all the way down then tried it again with VERY light preasure, and it was still jamming, so i slowly un screwed it while still applying light preasure to see if i could find a sweet spot but it never happened. The case gets wedged in the seating die when it is just past 3/4 into the die. the length on the brass is 1.510 after full size die.

[ricsmall]

They are AA Lapua Brass. Lubed then up and used full size die for sizing. Set it up by with press all the way up, screwed the seating die down till it touched the shell plate, then backed it off a turn. After the neck crushed on the first one, i screwed it all the way down then tried it again with VERY light preasure, and it was still jamming, so i slowly un screwed it while still applying light preasure to see if i could find a sweet spot but it never happened. The case gets wedged in the seating die when it is just past 3/4 into the die. the length on the brass is 1.510 after full size die.

back your die all the way out. with case in shell holder, run press to top of stroke. screw seater in until you feel the die contact case, then back out 1/8 - 1/4 turn. move your seater plug to change oal to desired length. if that doesnt work you have faulty die or wrong die.

[Bwild97]

Could it be possible that his stem is sitting between the oal adjuster and the bushing? Causing the jam up.

[ricsmall]

Could it be possible that his stem is sitting between the oal adjuster and the bushing? Causing the jam up.

idont know. all of my redding seating dies have only a seating stem, no bushings. I may be misunderstanding the question though.

[Bwild97]

Oh, Right; he has Redding Dies. Sorry I can't offer any help with Redding dies, I have never used them. Maybe he should completely disassemble the die and reassemble it, making sure to remove all the machining oil from the die body and internal surfaces in the process, and might find the problem then.

[fkleinbu]

What is happening is the bullet is not entering the case mouth, and the neck is being pushed into the case as it is pushed into the die..

There are two main reasons which could cause this.. First, and I am assuming this has been done, but the case mouth needs to be chamfered slightly.. By the way, if you are using boat tailed bullets (I don’t remember if you said), they need the least amount of chamfering..

The second reason would be the expander ball on the sizing die (the expander ball by the way is the thing above the de-capping pin).. When you size a case, the die squeezes the neck more than it needs to be squeezed.. The neck is then set to the proper size by the expander ball as the case is drawn out of the die..

If the expander ball too small you can run into this problem – this doesn’t seem likely, but can be easily checked.. With a micrometer, very carefully measure the diameter of the expander ball, and let me know.. Also if you can measure the inside diameter of the case mouth that would also be very handy.. flk k

[mikenyE9]

I am useing boat tail bullets, Hornady 123 AMax. I chamfered the case, placed the shell into the the press, brought it to full stroke, screwed the seating die down till there was resistance, locked it off and tried to seat a bullet, and with the seating cap screwed all the way down, it only sat the very back of the bullet (oal 2.475). 0.262 was the measurement i got off the expander ball ( which i am assuming is the round porting that the decapping pin fits into. This is really fustrating the crap out of me!!!

[mikenyE9]

Gentleman, I am kicking myself in the ass repeatedly right now and feel like a GIANT JACKASS!! I rectified my problem with a very easy fix. IT REALLY HELPS WHEN AFTER YOU INITIALLY CLEAN OUT YOUR DIES THAT YOU PUT THEM BACK WITHOUT SWITCHING THE SEATING CAP AND THE DECAPPING ROD ASSEMBLIES!!!!! So much hate right now, ruined 3 pieces of brass and ripped my friggin hair out!!! I thank you all for all of your help!!! I appreciate it!!