LAHUNTER

Guys, I just took some pics of what my full length sizing die looks like when the handle is all the way down. Does it look normal?
Also the other pic is what the shell looks like when I am finished. Can you see the color difference. Is the die supposed to stop resizing right there? Does all this look normal? Sorry about the poor quality pics. They were from a plam pilot.

thanks,
LAHUNTER

handloader1

According to the instructions from the set of Lee Dies I own, you are to turn the die 1/4 to 1/3 turn more after you touch the shell holder. It looks normal to me send the dies back to Lee. Good luck.

BigBob .30-06

LAHUNTER,

The " color" difference may have nothing to do with your die. When a round is fired, the case expands against the walls of the chamber and loses it smooth appearance. From the photo, I think that is what' s indicated. There is also a second point illustrated. About 1/4" in front of the extractor groove, there' s a bulge. This is also a normal occurrence. A case wall tapers in thickness for its entire length. The rear, or web, section of the case gets pretty thick when compared the the thickness of the case even 1/2" in front of the extractor groove. This results in the case expanding at a different rate as pressures climb. The thicker the case wall, the higher the pressure required to cause it to expand. When the chamber is on the large side, it may cause quite a bulge. The closer to the extractor groove this bulge is located, the higher the chamber pressure.

It is hard to tell from the photo, but I think your die needs to be just a little lower. If the die just touches the shellholder, that' s not deep enough. Loosen and raise the locking ring. Lower the die until it is snug against the shell holder. Size a fired case and try it in your rifle. If the case chambers with just a little feel, your done. If it doesn' t, turn the die deeper in 1/4 turn steps and size the same case until it does chamber. Then run the case into the die and adjust the locking ring. This should solve your problem. Good luck. [&:]

LAHUNTER

Good news and bad news.

First off, thanks for everyones help on trying to help a newbie with reloading. With everyones help, I think I have my FL resizing die working properly. I simply adjusted my FL sizing die " in" a little more. Lee' s instructions told me turn the die between a 1/4 and a 1/2 turn, neither of these worked for me. I took someones advice and simply turned it furter in (5/8 turn past the shellholder). I tried it on some of my problem cases, and those now chamber smoothly in my gun. I am gratefuly for everyones help, again. That was the good news.

The bad news is, I found out first hand what happens when you don' t use enough lube. I knew I should have lubed that case! I now have a stuck case in my resizing die. (I will chalk this one up to inexperience/stubborn headedness). Won' t do that again. I tried to remove it first w/ pliers, then I drilled the primer pocket out and still nothing. Does anyone have any tips on getting a stuck case out?

I can' t wait to get past all the problems and stupid mistakes, so I can actually start enjoying reloading. Does anyone know the warrenty on LEE dies? If not, does anyone have any old .270 dies that anyone is willing to part with at a decent price?

LAHUNTER

westbronco

Just call Lee and ask them. They will probably tell you to return it for repair without charge. Then it' s only postage. Most companies in the reloading business are very helpful. Do not dig around in the die and scatch it. Also get a can of spray lube, a neck cleaning brush and some Imperial Die Wax. The IDW is especially good for heavy duty sizing or just neck sizing where you don' t need to lube the whole case.

BigBob .30-06

LAHUNTER,

Aw gawd! Been there and done that. I think anyone who has loaded for awhile has. RCBS offers the stuck case extractor set for less than $15. Works like a charm. Good luck.[&:]

Troy R

The rifle you are loading for is it a SAVAGE?

Vapodog

Try this....full length resize your cases and see if they will fit in the chamber at that stage. If they do and they don' t after seating bullets, there' s clearly something wrong with your seating process.

LAHUNTER

I finally have everything working right. I bought some new redding dies and they arrived last night. I was wondering if I was having problems with my old dies (lee rgb), so I went ahead and bought some good dies, (after sticking a case in my lee' s). They arrived last night and after carefully reading their instructions and going through each procedure in the reloading process, it was now time to try and fit the completed cartridge into my gun. Same problem as before, trouble closing the bolt. After trying this I eleminated my dies as the cause, and started thinking what it could possibly be. After examining the bullet on the cartridge, I noticed some marks on my bullet. I went back to my reseating die and seated my bullet a little deeper until I could easily close the bolt. They work perfect now. I was setting my OAL to what the reloading books was recommending, and I never thought to second guess them. It was a very simple fix after hours of headach and also spending extra money on new dies.
I am glad everything is working right now. Now maybe I could start to try and enjoy reloading. Thanks for everyones help.


troy r.
I have a ruger m77 MarkII, .270.

gunsite

I ran into this my self. My oal was to long. Now I check oal first before I do any thing else. Then one time I wasn't paying any attention and I turned the seating die down alittle too much. And I bulged the shoulder just a tad they wouldn't
let the bolt close. This does happen I guess this is why reloading is so much fun.
I guess what I am getting at is you can't be to careful. Get a good pad and put
reloading greaase on it roll your cases across it they go into the dies a lot easier.be sure to wipe the grease off after reloading.

I too reload for an Ruger 77mk11 270

gunsite