Lee Collet Neck Sizing Die Sticking

[rduckwor]

My (308) neck sizing die has begun to stick with the collet closed.

I broke it down and cleaned it and lightly lubed the outside of the collet and the closing collar, no joy.

The collet opens evenly and is not bent. There is some wear on the collet from the closing collar, but it appears to be even and certainly is not severe.

Ideas?

Thanks,

RMD

 

[amlevin]

When I had this problem I not only cleaned the die well, I polished the mating surfaces with some 1500 grit wet/dry sandpaper. I then applied some anti-sieze for lube.

No more problems. Try the anti-seize rather than plain "lube". Seems to work better with the collet in my experience.

BTW, if you don't have any 'anti-seize compound', rather than buy a large container, check out your local Auto Parts Store. Stores like O'Reilly and Auto-Zone sell small single use packets that are used on brake calipers and anchor bolts. A many year supply for lubing Lee Collet dies for about a buck. 8)

 

[Jay Christopherson]

When I had this problem I not only cleaned the die well, I polished the mating surfaces with some 1500 grit wet/dry sandpaper. I then applied some anti-sieze for lube.

^ this.

 

[rduckwor]

Thanks. As a car nut too, I have anti-sieze.

I will give it a try.

Thanks again,

RMD

 

[bigedp51]

I experimented with the Lee collet dies but prefer full length resizing, BUT polishing the Lee Collet die is a must for slick operation.
Second NEVER size with the Lee Collet die without a case in the die, this will bend the fingers of the collet inward and cause sticking and hard operation.

Below, before and after polishing.

Third, uniform neck tension is easy to achieve with the right tools and plenty of duct tape and string.

 

[gotcha]

Anti-seize "trick" duly noted. Thanks Amlevin............... If you've over compressed the fingers of your collet and that is the source of "sticking" push a Tapered punch into the "fingers" of the collet, spread them a bit and the "fingers will re-set themselves at the next re-sizing.

 

[Fotheringill]

I like the die and find it produces more concentric rounds that the higher priced spreads. Last night, it was time for a cleaning. I did, but forgot to smear some white grease on the outside of the neck of the collet. A panic. I had to gently wrap in a towel and ever so lightly tap on the part that holds the mandrel. Done in one tap and now a fully functional favorite die again.

i did, though, replace the Lee lock ring with a Hornady or Redding that actually locks.

 

[normmatzen]

Too much sizing force can cause all kinds of problems such as sticking. Also, this can cause marking of the neck and even cold welding of the mandrel to the neck!

Very little force is required for a good sizing, adjust the die so at the end of handle travel it JUST sizes.

 

[JohnKielly]

This posting from another forum a long tome ago about sorted all my issues & concerns with Lee Collet dies:

Using The Lee Collet Die.
I started using Lee collet dies when they first came on the market and have found that they are very good for the purposes for which they were designed .
I have found that there is a lack of understanding of how to use the die properly and as a result people fail to see the advantages that the die can deliver over standard neck sizing dies.
This is not the fault of the product , it is just a lack of understanding of how the die works and what it will feel like when you operate the press correctly.
Standard dies use a neck expanding ball on the decapping rod and size by extruding the neck through a hole and then drag the expander ball back through the inside neck.
The collet die achieves neck sizing by using a split collet to squeeze the outside of the case neck onto a central mandrel which has the decapping pin in it’s base .
One advantage is that there is no stretching or drawing action on the brass.
The inside neck diameter is controlled by the diameter of the mandrel and to some extent by the amount of adjustment of the die and the pressure applied to the press .
This results in less misalignment than can occur in standard dies because of any uneven neck wall thickness in the cases .
Cases will last longer in the neck area and require less trimming. If cases have very uneven neck wall thickness then this can cause problems for the collet die they definitely work smoother and more accurately with neck turned cases but it is not essential.
When you first receive the die unscrew the top cap and pull it apart check that everything is there also that the splits in the collet have nothing stuck in them then inspect the tapered surface on the top end of the collet and the internal taper of the insert to make sure there are no metal burs that might cause it to jamb.
Next get some good quality high pressure grease and put a smear onto the tapered surface of the collet .
Put it back together and screw it into the press just a few threads for now . The best type of press for this die is a press of moderate compound leverage that travels over centre .
Over centre means that when the ram reaches its full travel up it will stop and come back down a tiny amount even though the movement on the handle is continued through to the stop .
eg. is an RCBS Rockchucker.
This arrangement gives the best feel for a collet die sizing operation.
Place the shell holder in the ram and bring the ram up to full height then screw the die down until the collet skirt just touches on the shell holder , then lower the ram .
Take a case to be sized that has a clean neck inside and out and the mouth chamfered and place it in the shell holder.
Raise the ram gently feeling for resistance if none , lower the ram.
Screw the die down a bit at a time .
If you get lock up ( ram stops before going over centre) before the correct position is found then back it off and make sure the collet is loose and not jammed up in the die before continuing then raise the ram feeling for any resistance , keep repeating this until you feel the press handle resist against the case neck just at the top of the stroke as the press goes over centre and the handle kinder locks in place .
This takes much less force than a standard die and most people don’t believe any sizing has taken place .
Take the case out and try a projectile of the correct caliber to see how much sizing has taken place.
If it’s still too loose adjust the die down one eighth of a turn lock it finger tight only and try again .
Once the die is near the correct sizing position it takes very little movement of the die to achieve changes in neck seating tension .
This is where most people come undone , they move the die up and down too much and it either locks up or doesn’t size at all .
It will still size a case locking it up but you have no control over how much pressure is applied and some people lean on the press handle to the point of damaging the die. A press like the RCBS Rockchucker , that goes over centre each time gives you a definite stopping point for the ram and the pressure that you apply .
There is a small sweet spot for correct collet die adjustment and you must find it , once found , how sweet it is ! Advantages : With a press that travels over centre it is possible to adjust the neck seating tension within a very limited zone. No lubricant is normally required on the case necks during sizing .

If you still cant get enough neck tension to hold the bullet properly for a particular purpose then you will have to polish down the mandrel.
Be careful poilishing the mandrel down and only do it a bit at a time as a few thou can be removed pretty quickly if you overdo it.
You can't get extra neck tension by just applying more force. The amount of adjustment around the sweet spot is very limited and almost not noticable without carrying out tests.
For example , to go from a .001 neck tension to a .002 or .003 neck tension you would be talking about polishing down the mandrel.

There are some other advantages but I will leave you the pleasure of discovering them .
One disadvantage that I have found with the collet die is that it needs good vertical alignment of the case as it enters the die or case damage may result so go slowly.
Also some cases with a very thick internal base can cause problems with the mandrel coming in contact with the internal base before the sizing stroke is finished.
If pressure is continued the mandrel can push up against the top cap and cause damage . If you are getting lock up and cant get the right sizing sweet spot, then check that the mandrel is not too long for the case you can place a washer over the case and onto the shell holder and size down on that.
It will reduce the length of neck sized and give the mandrel more clearance. If it sizes Ok after adding the washer then the mandrel could be hitting the base.
This is not a usually problem once you learn how to use them .
The harder the brass is the more spring back it will have so very hard brass will exhibit less sizing than soft brass because it will spring away from the mandrel more. If this is happening to excess then use new cases or anneal the necks.
Freshly annealed brass can drag on the mandrel a bit in certain cases because it will spring back less and result in a tighter size diameter.
I have experienced it. I always use some dry lube on the inside and outside if I get any draging effect . Normally you dont need lube.
I make up a special batch 1/3 Fine Moly powder. 1/3 Pure graphite. 1/3 Aluminiumised lock graphite. Rub your fingers around the neck and It sticks very well to the necks by just dipping it in and out and tapping it to clear the inside neck . After a few cases it coats up the mandrel .
Other dry lubricants would work also.
Use the same process for normal neck sizing also.

I noticed a definite improvement in the accuracy of my 22-250Rem. as soon as I started using a Lee collet die instead of my original standard neck die.
Readers are encouraged to utilise the benefits of responsible reloading at all times. Although the author has taken care in the writing of these articles no responsibility can be taken by the author or publisher as a result of the use of this information.
John Valentine. © 21/01/2002.

 

[Mikemci]

Lube is required, but if you don't get in there and polish those machining grooves out, you will have frequent problems, no matter how much you lube. Just my .02

 

[Fotheringill]

Norman hit it on the head above

"...Very little force is required for a good sining, adjust the die so at the end of handle travel it JUST sizes...."

Many people adjust the die incorrectly. See this from Kielly's post above;

"...If you get lock up ( ram stops before going over centre) before the correct position is found then back it off and make sure the collet is loose and not jammed up in the die before continuing then raise the ram feeling for any resistance , keep repeating this until you feel the press handle resist against the case neck just at the top of the stroke as the press goes over centre and the handle kinder locks in place ...."

Do that and to prove it out, push a bullet down the neck on an unsized piece of brass. It will be loose. Follow the above steps and then try the same bullet into the neck. It will not be able to be pushed in. Size the neck and check with a micrometer for OD on the neck and concentricity with the appropriate tool.

Very LITTLE pressure on the ram is required, not the 45 lbs. or 25 or the like. It is more akin to the feel of sizing necks with a Redding bushing neck die rather than standing on your tippy toes and pulling the lever that operates the ram.