open up a Type S die

[wolfman]

I'm trying to get set up to load for a 6mm-250 AI. I've got a Type S FL .22-250 AI die. The opening just below the bushing is .267. My fired cases are .275, so I'd like to have this die honed out to .277, give or take. I'm tempted to try a grinding stone like Dremel offers. They've got stones that measure .279 in both silicon carbide, and aluminium oxide. Anybody think this is doable, or am I nuts?

 

[Preacher]

I did it to a 284 bushing die so I could load for my 338/284 with no problems..
I did it with a carbide cutter on a lathe....
being really careful it can be done with a stone and your dremel tool.
Were all nuts give or take a few 'O)

 

[tac284]

I bored out a Redding die in 257 Weatherby to make it a 6.5 weatherby die. I bored it in the lathe though and used carbide just as Preacher did with good results.

Not sure where Redding and other dies come in at as far as hardness but if you want to do it by hand you could try finding a 9/32 HSS taper hand reamer. MSC, Enco or ebay is where I would look. Good luck! and if you do use the taper reamer let us know how it works please.

 

[gzig5]

If you are going to use a stone, it must be smaller than the hole it is working in or it will end up bouncing and chattering around. An ID grinder might work but as the others have said, in a lathe with carbide tooling is the way to go. Might be able to rig it up in a mill with a boring head if you don't have lathe access.

 

[WayneShaw]

You can get carbide tipped drill bits fairly cheap, no where near the cost of an all carbide bit. Drills right through.

 

[ebb]

I read of a guy that will modify a standard die to take bushings, $35 was all he wanted. I am not sure but Jim Cartensen or something like that comes to my feeble mind. Might be easiest and have a guaranteed result. Once he bored it you could use any bushing.

 

[JohnHenry]

http://www.accurateshooter.com/technical-articles/full-length-bushing-dies-and-die-conversions/

 

[wolfman]

thanks John. I'll drop Jim a line.

 

[JohnHenry]

thanks John. I'll drop Jim a line.

wolfman, FYI I had him open up the hole in the shelf where the bushing sits in a fl 204 "S" type die for my 22-204. That was two years ago and the cost was $35 incl shipping. I found the best way to contact him was via his cell phone. A busy guy as his quality work is in demand.

 

[wolfman]

thanks John,

I think that's the way to go.

 

[wolfman]

Got yacking at a machinist buddy today, and mentioned the project. I happened to have the die in my pocket, and after he checked it, he thinks he can do it. Here's hoping!

 

[Tozguy]

You can get carbide tipped drill bits fairly cheap, no where near the cost of an all carbide bit. Drills right through.

For do-it-yourselfers without a lathe this looks like a better option than the Dremel grinder. Dremel stones that are small enough to fit in the hole (like for sharpening chainsaw chains) are too short to reach far enough into the die from what I can see. If I am wrong please let me know because I have a 223 die that needs to be openned up to 6mm.

 

[jscandale]

Can I ask, why hot just open it up to whatever diameter that you would like with a decimal specific chucking rearmer? If this is the option that you take, I would suggest getting a .276 or .277 solid carbide chucking reamer and be done with it. You can get such an item at McMaster. I have several of them for various operations. I would definitely suggest a solid carbide to cut through the case hardening of the die, they polish the reamed area.

JS

 

[wolfman]

I think my guys checked the outside for hardness and the top of the bushing seatfor hardness, and figured he could use a HSS drill in the lathe. Is he going to run into problems when he hits the bottom of the seat? If so I'll send it off to Jim to make sure it's done right.

 

[jscandale]

A drill??? Why don't you just use a hammer and chisel?
A drill is for making rough holes to an approximate size. A reamer is for making a hole to a particular size.

JS

 

[Erik Cortina]

A drill??? Why don't you just use a hammer and chisel?
A drill is for making rough holes to an approximate size. A reamer is for making a hole to a particular size.

JS

+ 1

Boring bar would also work but reamer is easier.

 

[boltfluter]

A boring bar is the way to go. A reamer will just follow a crooked hole that you would most likely drill in such a hard material.

Regards, Paul

www.boltfluting.com

 

[wolfman]

A drill??? Why don't you just use a hammer and chisel?
A drill is for making rough holes to an approximate size. A reamer is for making a hole to a particular size.

JS

Alright! UNCLE! I'll send it to the master. I guess I did ask for your input after all!

 

[Tozguy]

I don't have 40$ to spend on a reamer for doing one hole and since we are talking about a clearance hole in a bushing die, a cheap carbide drill properly ground works just fine. This isn't a maybe or possibly or most likely type of assertion. I did one yesterday and the carbide drill cut the hardened die just fine.

 

[wolfman]

Called my guy to hold up, but was too late. Turns out he did just fine, except he didn't quite understand the purpose of the bushing that I had left him, so he drilled that out too! The good news is the hole seems to be centered fine, and doesn't touch the necks of the case, so I should be in business, once I gt my hands on another bushing!