reloading dies maintenace

shootsafe · April 4, 2012, 10:20 PM

I have Hornady New Demensions 3 die set in 9mm.

What is the process to maintain these.

What to clean with?

Process?

How often?

Shootsafe

Nathan · April 4, 2012, 10:34 PM

I wipe them down with CLP bi-annually!

jdillon · April 4, 2012, 11:18 PM

I clean mine by running some patches soaked in denatured alcohol. I live in a dry climate so rust is not an issue.

TMD · April 4, 2012, 11:23 PM

I use a Q-Tip and rubbing alcohol to clean out the inside of mine every so often.

Ideal Tool · April 5, 2012, 01:41 AM

Hello, shootsafe. I shoot mostly cast bullets in both rifle & revolver...so lube buildup can be a problem. I clean with Hoppes on a 1/4" piece of nylon rod I turned a "Jag" on end...wipe out excess & if not being used for awhile, will very lightly coat all surfaces with a protective oil..just like you would with any metal parts of a firearm.

F. Guffey · April 5, 2012, 05:13 AM

And I clean my dies with a towel on a dowel.

F. Guffey

GTOne · April 5, 2012, 06:33 AM

A $3 can of electrical contact cleaner from trashmart auto aisle(safe for o-rings and plastics/rubber), spray the heck out of them. After that I give them a quick shot of Rem dry lube to help keep anything bad happening, like seizing or light rusting. It is a must-do for new dies and once a year or whatever, depends on climate also

If and when they start getting ugly drop them in your tumbler(disassembled) for a great way to bring back that look-new luster.

hooligan1 · April 5, 2012, 07:23 AM

I use "non chlorinated" brake cleaner, I just take them apart ans spray the crud out and hit them with an air hose, to blow everything out. Then I spray them with G-96, and blow them out again, wipe off any excess and put them up.
Sometimes when you purchase old dies at a ydsale and the las owner let them rust,,, I throw'em in the tumbler for a few days and that makes'em new again.

As far as How often? aty least twice a year for my dies.

BigJimP · April 5, 2012, 12:35 PM

I clean my dies with a little bit of shooters choice gun cleaner...and a cotton patch or a Q tip .../ take the die apart...

I clean them every time I change calibers...maybe every 3,000 rds or so .../ so they're ready to go - the next time I go to load that caliber.

mumbo719 · April 5, 2012, 06:05 PM

Wipe them down in/out with WD-40 monthly or more during the humid Florida summers.

cryogenic419 · April 8, 2012, 11:35 AM

I used to take the dies apart and hit them with non chlorinated brake cleaner and use a small nylon brush to scrub away old oil, dirt, etc. Then a very light coating of gun oil on a patch followed by a dry patch just to remove any excess oil. Worked great and never had any problems until I moved to a new house and all my reloading gear was in an upstairs room. Don't know if its because of a slightly higher elevation or if its the house itself I have a ton of humidity now, some items started to develop surface rust. Saw numerous posts here and elsewhere about rust protection and Eezox so I gave it a whirl. Anything that is metal gets a nice layer of Eezox and I haven't had issues since.

As far as frequency goes, I had been doing it about once a year unless I was loading a ton of rifle rounds and wanted to get any excess case lube cleaned out.

jepp2 · April 8, 2012, 08:39 PM

My brass is deprimed and tumbled and very clean before it gets to my sizing die. After use I will run a patch through with CLP on it. It serves to remove any residue from the die and put a protective coating on the internals of the die. I now live in a very dry area, so external rust is no longer an issue.

A quick way to determine if you need to clean your die is to just pull it apart after sizing a batch of brass. Run a clean dry patch through the die on a brass jag, and check the patch. It will tell you more about what cleaning is necessary than anyone can.

wncchester · April 9, 2012, 08:12 PM

Dies are very simple chunks of tubular steel. Cleaning them and protecting against rust is important but how and with what we clean and oil them really isn't critical.

Doug B. · April 11, 2012, 05:38 AM

Brake cleaner, blow out with air and lube/protect with a silicone spray lube when I feel they might need it. No rust in dies after 25 years.

Kevin Rohrer · April 11, 2012, 09:31 AM

I pat mine on the head annually and let them know I appreciate their service to my reloading.

grisbald · April 11, 2012, 08:48 PM

@ Kevin:

I got a good laugh out of your statement.

April 4, 2012, 10:20 PM	#1
shootsafe Member Join Date: March 2, 2008 Location: Lincoln, NE Posts: 83	reloading dies maintenace I have Hornady New Demensions 3 die set in 9mm. What is the process to maintain these. What to clean with? Process? How often? Shootsafe

April 4, 2012, 11:18 PM	#3
jdillon Senior Member Join Date: October 7, 2011 Location: Southern NM Posts: 141	I clean mine by running some patches soaked in denatured alcohol. I live in a dry climate so rust is not an issue. __________________ "Emergencies have always been the pretext on which the safeguards of individual liberty have been eroded" - F.A. Hayek

April 5, 2012, 07:23 AM	#8
hooligan1 Senior Member Join Date: July 18, 2010 Location: Independence Missouri Posts: 2,828	I use "non chlorinated" brake cleaner, I just take them apart ans spray the crud out and hit them with an air hose, to blow everything out. Then I spray them with G-96, and blow them out again, wipe off any excess and put them up. Sometimes when you purchase old dies at a ydsale and the las owner let them rust,,, I throw'em in the tumbler for a few days and that makes'em new again. As far as How often? aty least twice a year for my dies. __________________ Thanks for coming!

April 11, 2012, 05:38 AM	#14
Doug B. Member Join Date: February 22, 2006 Location: Cadott, Wisconsin Posts: 20	Brake cleaner, blow out with air and lube/protect with a silicone spray lube when I feel they might need it. No rust in dies after 25 years. __________________ "Be A Good Listener. Your Ears Will Never Get You In Trouble"

April 11, 2012, 09:31 AM	#15
Kevin Rohrer Senior Member Join Date: May 19, 2010 Location: Medina, Ohio Posts: 480	I pat mine on the head annually and let them know I appreciate their service to my reloading. __________________ Member: Orange Gunsite Family, NRA--Life, Varmint Hunters' Assn., ARTCA, American Legion, & South Cuyahoga Sportsmen's Assn. "Gunnery, gunnery, gunnery...all else is twaddle!" --Admiral Sir John Fisher, RN

April 4, 2012, 10:34 PM	#2
Nathan Senior Member Join Date: July 1, 2001 Posts: 1,259	I wipe them down with CLP bi-annually!

April 4, 2012, 11:23 PM	#4
TMD Senior Member Join Date: August 9, 2011 Posts: 421	I use a Q-Tip and rubbing alcohol to clean out the inside of mine every so often.

April 5, 2012, 01:41 AM	#5
Ideal Tool Junior member Join Date: October 6, 2010 Location: Michigan Posts: 1,080	Hello, shootsafe. I shoot mostly cast bullets in both rifle & revolver...so lube buildup can be a problem. I clean with Hoppes on a 1/4" piece of nylon rod I turned a "Jag" on end...wipe out excess & if not being used for awhile, will very lightly coat all surfaces with a protective oil..just like you would with any metal parts of a firearm.

April 5, 2012, 05:13 AM	#6
F. Guffey Senior Member Join Date: July 18, 2008 Posts: 1,589	And I clean my dies with a towel on a dowel. F. Guffey

April 5, 2012, 06:33 AM	#7
GTOne Senior Member Join Date: December 28, 2011 Location: IL Posts: 124	A $3 can of electrical contact cleaner from trashmart auto aisle(safe for o-rings and plastics/rubber), spray the heck out of them. After that I give them a quick shot of Rem dry lube to help keep anything bad happening, like seizing or light rusting. It is a must-do for new dies and once a year or whatever, depends on climate also If and when they start getting ugly drop them in your tumbler(disassembled) for a great way to bring back that look-new luster.

April 5, 2012, 12:35 PM	#9
BigJimP Senior Member Join Date: February 23, 2005 Posts: 9,952	I clean my dies with a little bit of shooters choice gun cleaner...and a cotton patch or a Q tip .../ take the die apart... I clean them every time I change calibers...maybe every 3,000 rds or so .../ so they're ready to go - the next time I go to load that caliber.

April 5, 2012, 06:05 PM	#10
mumbo719 Senior Member Join Date: June 27, 2008 Location: Tampa Bay, FL. Posts: 328	Wipe them down in/out with WD-40 monthly or more during the humid Florida summers.

April 8, 2012, 11:35 AM	#11
cryogenic419 Senior Member Join Date: March 29, 2009 Location: NW Ohio Posts: 203	I used to take the dies apart and hit them with non chlorinated brake cleaner and use a small nylon brush to scrub away old oil, dirt, etc. Then a very light coating of gun oil on a patch followed by a dry patch just to remove any excess oil. Worked great and never had any problems until I moved to a new house and all my reloading gear was in an upstairs room. Don't know if its because of a slightly higher elevation or if its the house itself I have a ton of humidity now, some items started to develop surface rust. Saw numerous posts here and elsewhere about rust protection and Eezox so I gave it a whirl. Anything that is metal gets a nice layer of Eezox and I haven't had issues since. As far as frequency goes, I had been doing it about once a year unless I was loading a ton of rifle rounds and wanted to get any excess case lube cleaned out.

April 8, 2012, 08:39 PM	#12
jepp2 Senior Member Join Date: December 24, 2008 Location: Loveland, CO Posts: 1,014	My brass is deprimed and tumbled and very clean before it gets to my sizing die. After use I will run a patch through with CLP on it. It serves to remove any residue from the die and put a protective coating on the internals of the die. I now live in a very dry area, so external rust is no longer an issue. A quick way to determine if you need to clean your die is to just pull it apart after sizing a batch of brass. Run a clean dry patch through the die on a brass jag, and check the patch. It will tell you more about what cleaning is necessary than anyone can.

April 9, 2012, 08:12 PM	#13
wncchester Senior Member Join Date: December 1, 2002 Posts: 2,700	Dies are very simple chunks of tubular steel. Cleaning them and protecting against rust is important but how and with what we clean and oil them really isn't critical.

April 11, 2012, 08:48 PM	#16
grisbald Member Join Date: October 23, 2011 Posts: 20	@ Kevin: I got a good laugh out of your statement.