How do you polish your Lee Collet die?

[thefitter]

I know many people polish up the internals of their LCD. How exactly do you do it?

Thanks

 

[masterblaster1]

steel wool wrapped around drill bit, also hit it with some lapping paste using a shotgun bore mop, I just got a nice dremmel, I will do a proper polish job on them soon.

 

[thefitter]

Only the body? I thought some people polished the collets also?

Thanks

 

[Toolbreaker]

I stone the inside/outside corners of the collet fingers to just remove the sharp edges where the collet sizes the neck. It doesn't need a large radius, just enough to remove any burrs & break the corners. I then chuck the collet closer in a lathe chuck and the collet itself in a drill chuck in the tailstock. Apply a small amount of lapping compound to the collet on the working angular surface, & lightly lap the mating angles together. This probably isn't necessary, but it makes me feel better that the two surfaces are mating fully around the circumference of the collet when it closes. Finally, clean the compound off & apply a small amount of grease to the mating surfaces you just lapped and you're good to go. Clean & re-apply grease every 2-300 rounds.

 

[thefitter]

What about the rod?

Thanks

 

[Toolbreaker]

As long as it's sized to give you the neck tension that you're after & not tapered across the length, I don't see much benefit to polishing it. It certainly wouldn't hurt anything if you wanted to, though . I did grind the OD of the mandrel on my .223 LCD, but that was just to increase my neck tension slightly.

 

[mudduck]

I polished mine with 1000 grit wet or dry sand paper around a drill bit work good for me.

 

[bigedp51]

Google "How to polish Lee Collet die" then at the top of the page click on "images". This will take you to a internet world of polished Lee collet dies. (and a wealth of information)

https://www.google.com/search?q=how+to+polish+lee+collet+dies&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=PpZvU-yRHKm_sQSUtIHoBQ&ved=0CAkQ_AUoBA&biw=1024&bih=643#imgdii=_

Below the collet and mandrel have been polished with the results in photos.

"What are the best dies for reloading .223 rem"
http://www.shootersforum.com/handloading-equipment/56252-what-best-dies-reloading-223-rem.html

When it comes to getting information Google is your best friend and all you have to do is ask.

Meaning you asked your question here in "one" forum, and by Googling the question you get all the answers from the entire internet. By going to images it lets you look at the most promising information.

Now find the photos of the cases with marks on the neck, deburring and polishing the inside and outside of the collet helps eliminate some of these marks and makes for smoother operation.

Just remember Google is always you best friend for information.

 

[thefitter]

Google "How to polish Lee Collet die" then at the top of the page click on "images". This will take you to a internet world of polished Lee collet dies. (and a wealth of information)

https://www.google.com/search?q=how+to+polish+lee+collet+dies&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=PpZvU-yRHKm_sQSUtIHoBQ&ved=0CAkQ_AUoBA&biw=1024&bih=643#imgdii=_

Below the collet and mandrel have been polished with the results in photos.

"What are the best dies for reloading .223 rem"
http://www.shootersforum.com/handloading-equipment/56252-what-best-dies-reloading-223-rem.html

When it comes to getting information Google is your best friend and all you have to do is ask.

Meaning you asked your question here in "one" forum, and by Googling the question you get all the answers from the entire internet. By going to images it lets you look at the most promising information.

Now find the photos of the cases with marks on the neck, deburring and polishing the inside and outside of the collet helps eliminate some of these marks and makes for smoother operation.

Just remember Google is always you best friend for information.

Thank you. I agree...to a point.

I ask questions here because I trust and respect this group. I can not say the same about many other groups/forums/internet sources.

Unfortunately in my experience there is a lot of bad info available online. I have learned over the years WHERE I feel comfortable asking WHICH questions.

Also haven't you heard about the Google big brother conspiracy?