Does anyone make a FL bushing die that sizes the whole neck?

[bobinpa]

Hi folks. The title says it all.... I would like a FL bushing die that sizes the whole neck. I know I can get a die honed to spec but I would like to have the versatility of a bushing. I am trying to eliminate the possibilty of doughnuts or brass build up issues at the neck shoulder junction.
Thanks,
Bob

 

[JRS]

Yes Bob,

Al Warner, at Warner Tool Co.

By design, it eliminates brass build up, and retains the nice crisp neck-shoulder junction.

 

[artbosco]

Hi folks. The title says it all.... I would like a FL bushing die that sizes the whole neck. I know I can get a die honed to spec but I would like to have the versatility of a bushing. I am trying to eliminate the possibility of doughnuts or brass build up issues at the neck shoulder junction.
Thanks, Bob

Ideally, you only want to size about 70% of the neck. The non-sized 30% actually helps center the case neck in the neck chamber. Harrell's dies [for example] are actually designed to prevent sizing the entire neck. No need to forgo tested science.

Re-turn necks if perceived brass build up has eroded confidence.

 

[VaniB]

Yes, what Outdoorseman said; leaving a short portion of unsized neck helps to prevent case distortion during resizing. I set my neck bushings to resize about 90-95% of the neck.

 

[wwbrown]

Mark Spencer also makes very nice custom dies with inserts that size the entire neck and shoulder, his dies with one bushings run about 4 weeks and $137, I think his extra bushings may be less than Reddings are lately. Before I started installing my own barrels I would buy my own reamers to get the chamber I wanted. At $137 I think getting a reamer to match the reamer makes a lot of sense. Last Fall I did a 30-375 Ruger and I could have modified a Redding Type S for the round but it was cheaper to get a full up custom die for it.

 

[tashabay716]

Niel Jones makes FL and Neck dies that use bushings that size the entire neck. You can also bump the shoulder or not bump the shoulder with his dies and bushings. I have both the FL and the Neck dies and they are the best I have ever used.

 

[BoydAllen]

On the whole leaving a little bit unsized is better thing, a friend has a Jones 6PPC FL die, that he uses for his light and heavy varmint benchrest rifles. The match to his chamber reamer is exceptional, as is the straightness of his sized brass. I have never seen better. At the last match at Visalia, a HV/UNL, he shot his HV in unlimited, at 200, on a Sunday morning, and put together a .170 for his first try a shooting head up, because of the switchy conditions. He was using a Farley rest, taking his hand off of the stick after sighting. I have absolutely nothing against leaving part of case necks unsized, but after seeing his test groups, when working up loads, I would have to say that it is probably not an issue one way or the other, at least for his particular die and bushings.

 

[bobinpa]

On the whole leaving a little bit unsized is better thing,

Hi Boyd. Thanks for your input. Can you explain why you feel this way? I just don't understand what the benefit may be.
Bob

 

[bobinpa]

Yes, what Outdoorseman said; leaving a short portion of unsized neck helps to prevent case distortion during resizing.

VaniB, Thanks. Can you explain why? Is it that more brass or thicker brass is just more difficult to distort? It may seem like a stupid question but I just want to understand.
Thanks, Bob

 

[BoydAllen]

Bob,

What I was trying to express is that I have seen excellent results with both methods, sizing all the way to the shoulder, and not. This is based on experience, not theory. If someone thinks that he gets a benefit from doing it one way or the other, then he should do it the way that works the best for him, but I really think that some careful testing is the best way to determine this. Short version, there is more than one way to skin this particular feline.

Boyd

 

[Judd]

A Whidden die is close...it also has a bit of natural size in it. Meaning if you take a fired case and size it in the die with the bushing removed you will not be able to slide a bullet in there. I found this out while attempting to size a case to make a modified case only to have my bullet not slide in the neck. A Redding doesn't do this. I contacted John and he said he would open it up for me if needed but thought it was a good idea to leave it alone. I have and it's been a great die, I've since added 2-3 more Whidden dies to the stable.

 

[VaniB]

Yes, what Outdoorseman said; leaving a short portion of unsized neck helps to prevent case distortion during resizing.

VaniB, Thanks. Can you explain why? Is it that more brass or thicker brass is just more difficult to distort? It may seem like a stupid question but I just want to understand.
Thanks, Bob

Sorry for not getting back to you sooner, but I don't have subscriptons to any threads, and often I may or may not randomly revisit threads in the forums.

To answer your question, a case that has been fired in your rifle chamber will normally be as centered and perfectly concentric as you can get it. The uneven stresses that you exert onto a case when sizing it will sometimes slightly pull it out of that perfect shape. Leaving some of that brass undisturbed at the neck- shoulder joint serves to leave that original fire formed brass in tact just as it came from your chamber. I can tell you that I religiously check my fired cases for concentricity before and after hand loading, and have witnessed this first hand on the gage. But, as Boyd correctly stated; everybody has their own methods and ideas how to arrive at a perfect score. This is how I do mine, but to each his own!