New dies stretched out neck. Why ?

plott Hound · April 13, 2009, 04:56 PM

Just bought new dies for my 300 saum. Resized about 2 boxes . They seemed to be harder than normal. Apon trying to chamber them a no go. The shoulder and neck area has been pulled up. Took decapping pin out and ran back through to fix shoulder area and worked ok. Q... bad dies ? Hornady. Lubed good . Have reloaded lots. Never had this problem. Thanks for any help you may have . Don

**Unclenick** · April 13, 2009, 05:07 PM

Sounds like the decapper was stopping the brass from going all the way in. In a full-length sizing die the sides of the case often make contact before the shoulder. This squeezes the case out longer than it was, then, as it goes all the way home, the shoulder is set back to final size.

wncchester · April 13, 2009, 05:29 PM

"They seemed to be harder than normal. Apon trying to chamber them a no go. The shoulder and neck area has been pulled up. Took decapping pin out and ran back through to fix shoulder area and worked ok. Q... bad dies ?"

Well, you don't tell us what "seemed harder than normal" but let's think about this a moment.

You removed the decap/expander and sized, then the cases chambered, right? If so, it would seem maybe the dies are fine.

But, with the decapper/expander in place, the "shoulder and neck area has been pulled up." Perhaps the problem the expander is what's pulling it up? Maybe some internal neck lube would help a bit?

That case has a large diameter and a sharp shoulder. Any significant tugging of the neck would sure have a chance to stretch that area, right? Don't think that's Hornady's fault!

That near radical case shape is just one of the reasons I prefer conventional mag cartridges to any of the short ones. There were vaild reasons the old cartridges were shaped as they were, even though the useless old belts were only marketing gimmicks.

plott Hound · April 14, 2009, 10:48 PM

What was harder than normal was the act of sizeing the case. Just took more force than normal. Called hornaday ttoday. Wow ! Todd there is very helpfull. Easy to get ahold of. He has me trying some different lube inside neck. Measured case and it is on the large or fat side but still within specks. Thanks for help so far. Will post if problem is solved. Plott Hound

elkman06 · April 15, 2009, 12:59 PM

My Dad had this issue a lot. Two reasons..
First , not enough neck lube. After the sizing/decapping downstroke, it would drag and be hard on the upstroke/removal. This drag stretched the case out at the neck./
He also mounted his press on a relatively thin/lite piece of wood for a table top. He got a lot of flex of that wood so that when it flexed and the shell wasn't automatically coming out of the die, he would exert a lot of force on the upstroke to force the issue.
Both of these issues contributed to the stretched neck.
At 73 he is unsure of his own strength so has a tendency to slam just about everything these days. Car doors, drawers, etc.

elkman06

wncchester · April 15, 2009, 08:58 PM

"What was harder than normal was the act of sizeing the case. Just took more force than normal."

I assume you mean when pushing the case IN, not pulling it OUT and over the expander plug? And by "more force than normal", you mean "normal" with those cases in that die or "normal" with other, perhaps smaller cases/dies?

Sounds like a lack of good lube on the lower case body to me. And inside the neck to reduce expander extraction effort.

April 13, 2009, 04:56 PM	#1
plott Hound Junior Member Join Date: April 11, 2009 Posts: 2	New dies stretched out neck. Why ? Just bought new dies for my 300 saum. Resized about 2 boxes . They seemed to be harder than normal. Apon trying to chamber them a no go. The shoulder and neck area has been pulled up. Took decapping pin out and ran back through to fix shoulder area and worked ok. Q... bad dies ? Hornady. Lubed good . Have reloaded lots. Never had this problem. Thanks for any help you may have . Don

April 13, 2009, 05:07 PM	#2
Unclenick Staff Join Date: March 4, 2005 Location: Ohio Posts: 21,057	Sounds like the decapper was stopping the brass from going all the way in. In a full-length sizing die the sides of the case often make contact before the shoulder. This squeezes the case out longer than it was, then, as it goes all the way home, the shoulder is set back to final size. __________________ Gunsite Orange Hat Family Member CMP Certified GSM Master Instructor NRA Certified Rifle Instructor NRA Benefactor Member and Golden Eagle

April 15, 2009, 12:59 PM	#5
elkman06 Senior Member Join Date: March 14, 2006 Location: Wyoming Posts: 885	My Dad had this issue a lot. Two reasons.. First , not enough neck lube. After the sizing/decapping downstroke, it would drag and be hard on the upstroke/removal. This drag stretched the case out at the neck./ He also mounted his press on a relatively thin/lite piece of wood for a table top. He got a lot of flex of that wood so that when it flexed and the shell wasn't automatically coming out of the die, he would exert a lot of force on the upstroke to force the issue. Both of these issues contributed to the stretched neck. At 73 he is unsure of his own strength so has a tendency to slam just about everything these days. Car doors, drawers, etc. elkman06 __________________ "The right of the citizens to bear arms in the defense of themselves and of the state shall not be denied." Wyoming Constitution Article 1, Sec24 "Better to be tried by 12 than carried by 6"

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April 13, 2009, 05:29 PM	#3
wncchester Senior Member Join Date: December 1, 2002 Posts: 2,832	"They seemed to be harder than normal. Apon trying to chamber them a no go. The shoulder and neck area has been pulled up. Took decapping pin out and ran back through to fix shoulder area and worked ok. Q... bad dies ?" Well, you don't tell us what "seemed harder than normal" but let's think about this a moment. You removed the decap/expander and sized, then the cases chambered, right? If so, it would seem maybe the dies are fine. But, with the decapper/expander in place, the "shoulder and neck area has been pulled up." Perhaps the problem the expander is what's pulling it up? Maybe some internal neck lube would help a bit? That case has a large diameter and a sharp shoulder. Any significant tugging of the neck would sure have a chance to stretch that area, right? Don't think that's Hornady's fault! That near radical case shape is just one of the reasons I prefer conventional mag cartridges to any of the short ones. There were vaild reasons the old cartridges were shaped as they were, even though the useless old belts were only marketing gimmicks.

April 14, 2009, 10:48 PM	#4
plott Hound Junior Member Join Date: April 11, 2009 Posts: 2	What was harder than normal was the act of sizeing the case. Just took more force than normal. Called hornaday ttoday. Wow ! Todd there is very helpfull. Easy to get ahold of. He has me trying some different lube inside neck. Measured case and it is on the large or fat side but still within specks. Thanks for help so far. Will post if problem is solved. Plott Hound

April 15, 2009, 08:58 PM	#6
wncchester Senior Member Join Date: December 1, 2002 Posts: 2,832	"What was harder than normal was the act of sizeing the case. Just took more force than normal." I assume you mean when pushing the case IN, not pulling it OUT and over the expander plug? And by "more force than normal", you mean "normal" with those cases in that die or "normal" with other, perhaps smaller cases/dies? Sounds like a lack of good lube on the lower case body to me. And inside the neck to reduce expander extraction effort.