Need minor advice on necking down

[SplatCat]

Guys, I need some advice. I am ready to neck down some .221 Fireball cases into .20 VarTarg cases, and have never necked down any cases....ever! I don't want to screw it up with a stuck case.

The cases have been sorted, the primer pockets uniformed and the flash holes deburred. My question: Since the neck is going to be squeezed to .20, shouldn't the outside of the neck be lubed also to prevent the neck from sticking to the die? Ordinarilly, I lube only the body of the case, plus a very light lube,usually mica or die lube on a cotton applicator) on the inside of the neck, but never lube the shoulder of the case.

Also, should the expander button portion of the die be removed during insertion of the case into the .20 die, or should it be left in? Or...does it make any difference?

Any other advice, tricks, precautions, etc.?

Thanks,

Barry

 

[Preacher]

I would use a tiny bit of Imperial sizing die lube on the start of the neck, but not enough to smear down to the shoulder as that can lead to problems with lube dents. I would also leave the expander in the die unless I found it posing a problem.

 

[rstreich]

Lately, I've been using Ballistol for necking down and FL resizing. It works pretty well and cleans up easy. You can give it a light spray if you have the aerosol or just wet a paper towel with it and wipe the case with it if you have the liquid.

I always take the expander out 'cause the next step for me after necking down is to run it over an expander mandrel separately.