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Old July 23, 2006, 03:17 PM   #1
Stump1
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Neck sizing problem

I've been loading pistol shells for a while, and finally decided to buy dies and start loading for my rifle. Since I only have one 30-06, I decided to neck size. I had all my cases lined up, full of powder, and ready for bullets to be pressed in when I realized that, were it not for the powder, the bullets would have fallen right into the cases. I ended up dumping out the powder, full length sizing, and trying again. Everything worked out fine.

In the instructions to my dies (Lee), it says that if you want a tighter fit, you can have them send another neck sizer that will be .001 smaller. It doesn't seem like this should be necessary just to get a bullet to fit. I must be doing something wrong, what is it?
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Old July 23, 2006, 03:19 PM   #2
918v
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If your necks are too thin, the neck die won't size them enough.

Which neck die do you have? The collet one?
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Old July 23, 2006, 04:50 PM   #3
amamnn
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Lee neck die

I wish I had $5 for every time I have seen this question. Lee really needs to be more specific with their instructions. 99% of people who have this problem have not run the case all the way up to the top of the die, and/or have not adjusted the die correctly. If you have been doing nothing but pistol reloading it's understandable, I guess--just push on the ram a little harder until you feel the neck enter the sizer. After a few times, you'll get the feel.

I hope you FL sized the brass the first time you loaded it. I hope you checked the length and/or trimmed the brass. I hope you're not loading for an auto loader.

I know it may sound patronizing, but i'ts the internet, these things must be said.
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Old July 23, 2006, 07:49 PM   #4
Stump1
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Hopes

All of your hopes are right. They had been full length sized, single stage press, lengths of the brass were good.

After I tried it, I look at the instructions again. The die was touching the shell holder at the top of the stroke, and I didn't have any more adjustment left. There was just no resistance. I don't have any more empty brass, so I'll have to go empty some tomorrow and try again.

Oh, and it is the collet die.
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Old July 23, 2006, 07:55 PM   #5
donkee
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I like my LEE dies, they are great. When it comes to neck sizing though, I use the Redding neck sizers. Wonderful dies.......
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Old July 23, 2006, 08:03 PM   #6
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Ahh. The collet die. Good tool. It is not unheard of for Lee to have to make smaller collet mandrels for someone. If your LC brass has been fired several times, it may be springing back and need neck annealing before it will work well with the collet die. A half a thousandth of srping-back is normal, but work-hardened brass can do more.

Take the die appart and mic the mandrel diameter. It needs to be smaller than the bullet by more than the spring-back. Call Lee to see how much in a .224? Also you have to be sure the collet fingers are actually squeezing the neck against the mandrel. Can you see the marks left by the gaps between the collet fingers? You should see them clearly and they should be even depth all around. You get rid of them by rotating the case 180 degrees and reapplying the ram. This can get you a little smaller size, too.

Nick
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Old July 23, 2006, 08:25 PM   #7
918v
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Your shell holder must compress the collet for the sizing to occur. Adjusting the shell holder to touch the collet won't do any sizing. You must screw the die about half an inch further, and gently size the neck taking care not to crush the shoulder. Remember, you are not drawing the case through a typical sizer. You are compressing a collet around the neck. You do not need and should not use the camming action of the press to size the neck.
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Old July 23, 2006, 08:29 PM   #8
RERICK
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I use a collet die and had the same problem.I just took out the mandrel,stuck in the end of a drill and took a about 2 thousanths off it with some emry cloth and after polished it up with a little steel wool and now it works fine.
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Old July 25, 2006, 03:33 PM   #9
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I just checked my .223 Lee Collet Die mandrel diameter, and it is 0.2223", and it works just fine for .224 bullets. I even ran a fired case in just to be sure it hadn't shifted since I last used it. No bullet fall-through. Figure that in .30 cal you will be looking at a mandrel about .306".

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Old July 25, 2006, 04:38 PM   #10
Ausserordeutlich
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Just screwing the die down until it touches the shellplate probably won't get the job done. I load on a Rockchucker, and have always had to adjust the collet dies so that the press "cams over" at the top of the stroke. (when using collet dies.)
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Old July 25, 2006, 05:25 PM   #11
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That's what 918V pointed out above. The collet has to push up beyond the empty touchdown point to wedge its fingers closed. Refer to the setup instructions.

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