Reloading .223 Hornady bullets with RCBS die and RCBS Rock Chucker

[retired]

"ram is raised to the top of the press the die is screwed down to touch the shellholder"
the brass makers love you, rcbs lawyers love you,
an excellent way to shorten the life of your brass.
will it shoot, yes,
will it last long..NO

I have the same press an dies RCBS . Setting up your die the decapping pin is tight in place an extending about 3/16 from the base of the die . Ram is raised to the top of the press the die is screwed down to touch the shellholder . To make sure there's nothing screwed up measure your expander ball an your bullets . After sizing check your case length an trim if needed remember to chamfer inside an out everytime. Some brass may be thicker . After sizing an trimming measure the outer diameter with your dial caliper , the thickness of the brass at two positions on the case mouth 12 & 6 o'clock position. Example your bullet is .223 your case thickness is .008 x 2 = .016 the OD of the case is .237 you would have .002 neck tension on the bullet . I think your problem is in your setup not equipment , just double check everything . Using the RCBS Case lube on the inside of the case neck with a Q Tip helps with the expander , and when sizing the case if the case seems tight when sizing lower the ram an add alittle more lube to the case an neck not the shoulder . You don't want a stuck case . Hope I Helped in some way.

Chris

 

[cw308]

retired
Yes oversizing your brass will not last as long , this is a person that is new to reloading , having a problem resizing . After going through the basics and getting comfortable reloading , he can fine tune his rounds . First lets get him to first base with chambering and firing all his rounds . Headspace an ogive settings in the next go round .

 

[retired]

why teach him WRONG to start with???
sorry i do not buy into it.
nor can he adjust "headspace"...so if you are going to teach, use the correct
terminology.

retired
Yes oversizing your brass will not last as long , this is a person that is new to reloading , having a problem resizing . After going through the basics and getting comfortable reloading , he can fine tune his rounds . First lets get him to first base with chambering and firing all his rounds . Headspace an ogive settings in the next go round .

 

[cw308]

retired
Well , why don't you give him some help instead of dueling with me . Iets see what you can add . I have been reloading for 30 years it could be overwhelming for a beginner . If he follows the directions that comes with the dies he'll be fine . What does retired think the OP's problem is .

 

[retired]

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
did you read the first page ?
( i was taught how to load 38 spcl/45 acp target ammo when i was 9...that was 60 years ago. i have been loading cf rifle since the early 70's. number of years means little if you learned nothing.)

retired
Well , why don't you give him some help instead of dueling with me . Iets see what you can add . I have been reloading for 30 years it could be overwhelming for a beginner . If he follows the directions that comes with the dies he'll be fine . What does retired think the OP's problem is .

 

[cw308]

retired
Well old timer I have 2 years on you , when I was 9 I was playing baseball so you got me there . Tried bushing dies for neck tension .Gray Ghost is just starting . I was happy when I first started reloading the round went bang an didn't blow my face off . I wanted to keep it simple . I must say , it's fun dueling with you but it's not helping GG . Be Well .

Chris