Stuck at trimming stage... need some advice

[poli]

I just went through resizing some once fired .308 brass and ran into an issue while trying to trim them. I resized them using Redding FL with a .336 bushing without expander ball and now the pilot from my Forster trimmer won’t fit into the mouth of the case. What are my options? Should I run the brass again about half way through the press with the expander ball to enlarge the mouth? The only reason I didn’t use the expander in the first place was because I didn’t want to “pull” the brass on the way out and get inconsistent headspace (happened to me with my 22-250 brass). I didn’t trim the neck since I don’t have a trimmer yet.

 

[Milo 2.0]

If you run them through the expander like mentioned, you'll about have to resize them to get your neck tension back. I feel your pain, I've all but given up neck sizing, but having the neck die for times like this is priceless.
Whoever said reloading is a rewarding hobby needs a good swift kick to the balls!

If you had the die set right, or allowed for pull back, head space shouldn't be an issue. The Redding carbide expander really works better than that narley looking thing they come with.

 

[Lapua40X]

... the pilot from my Forster trimmer won’t fit into the mouth of the case. ... I didn’t trim the neck since I don’t have a trimmer yet.

I'm confused. If you don't have a trimmer how is it that the pilot on the trimmer won't fit into the mouth of the case?

 

[DanConzo]

40x--I believe he means outside neck turning. Poli--The Wilson trimmer, of course if you can afford it, doesn't use a pilot to trim the length of the case, but you would need the proper shell holder which the case fits in. They work very well and you don't need anything to mount it on if you pad your bench vise.

 

[poli]

I'm confused. If you don't have a trimmer how is it that the pilot on the trimmer won't fit into the mouth of the case?

I'm sorry - I wanted to say that I didn't turn the neck since I don't have a turner... trimmer, turner, they both start with "t"

 

[DanConzo]

Poli--I forgot-you can also mount your Forster pilot in a drill and polish it down with some emery cloth until it fits with a tad of clearance in your case mouth and still use your Forster.

 

[poli]

40x--I believe he means outside neck turning. Poli--The Wilson trimmer, of course if you can afford it, doesn't use a pilot to trim the length of the case, but you would need the proper shell holder which the case fits in. They work very well and you don't need anything to mount it on if you pad your bench vise.

So far I checked neck turners from Century21, Sinclair and K&M, but I'll check Wilson.

 

[poli]

Poli--I forgot-you can also mount your Forster pilot in a drill and polish it down with some emery cloth until it fits with a tad of clearance in your case mouth and still use your Forster.

Thanks for the tip!

 

[Hoier]

I have been running the 21st century lathe, and I would recommend it.

 

[DanConzo]

Poli--Wilson don't make a outside neck turner anymore, but the others do.

 

[poli]

Whoever said reloading is a rewarding hobby needs a good swift kick to the balls!

If you had the die set right, or allowed for pull back, head space shouldn't be an issue. The Redding carbide expander really works better than that narley looking thing they come with.

LOL... Agree with that... It can be painful - at least in the beginning until you get all the equipment

I will probably end up buying the neck sizing die and the carbide expander. I saw a video in which Dave Tubb polished down the expander. Is this recommended?

 

[Milo 2.0]

Whoever said reloading is a rewarding hobby needs a good swift kick to the balls!

If you had the die set right, or allowed for pull back, head space shouldn't be an issue. The Redding carbide expander really works better than that narley looking thing they come with.

LOL... Agree with that... It can be painful - at least in the beginning until you get all the equipment

I will probably end up buying the neck sizing die and the carbide expander. I saw a video in which Dave Tubb polished down the expander. Is this recommended?

As for polishing the expander, it has to be true or you'll have a lopsided piece. I chucked one up in a wood lathe to do this, on the phone 20 minutes later buying a new one!

 

[CatShooter]

I just went through resizing some once fired .308 brass and ran into an issue while trying to trim them. I resized them using Redding FL with a .336 bushing without expander ball and now the pilot from my Forster trimmer won’t fit into the mouth of the case. What are my options? Should I run the brass again about half way through the press with the expander ball to enlarge the mouth? The only reason I didn’t use the expander in the first place was because I didn’t want to “pull” the brass on the way out and get inconsistent headspace (happened to me with my 22-250 brass). I didn’t trim the neck since I don’t have a trimmer yet.

Put the expander back in the die, lube the inside of the necks and run the expander through the necks - you will be fine, as will your headspace.

 

[poli]

I have been running the 21st century lathe, and I would recommend it.

Hoier - I read a lot about this setup and the fact that it helps concentricity. What is your experience with the lathe regarding concentricity?

 

[barnesuser28]

Poli--I forgot-you can also mount your Forster pilot in a drill and polish it down with some emery cloth until it fits with a tad of clearance in your case mouth and still use your Forster.

+1 i had the exact same problem but i threw it in the drill and gave it some time with some 0000 steel wool and finished off with some iosso bore paste to give it a nice polish.

 

[poli]

Put the expander back in the die, lube the inside of the necks and run the expander through the necks - you will be fine, as will your headspace.

Would Imperial Dry Neck Lube work in this scenario?

 

[Hoier]

To be honest, I have never checked concentricity.

 

[CatShooter]

Put the expander back in the die, lube the inside of the necks and run the expander through the necks - you will be fine, as will your headspace.

Would Imperial Dry Neck Lube work in this scenario?

Probably.

 

[BoydAllen]

Bushing dies do not quite reach the shoulder, but if this is unfired brass, it shouldn't be a problem, just get an expander mandrel and die from the same company that makes your neck turner and lube and expand the case neck prior to turning. If you are talking about factory chambers and fired brass, you really should run the case through a one piece die, set to touch the shoulder, and then use the expander mandrel and turner. Those are your options, it is really pretty straightforward. One of the problems that I sometimes run into is that fellows that are new to this try to get creative, and do it their way, not fully understanding what they were stepping into. What ever you do, don't do it to all of your cases until you are very sure that you have the whole process fully in hand, and that the results are perfect. From time to time I read where some fellow did something to a whole batch of cases and is looking to fix a problem that would not have happened if he took more time and worked with a few cases. When I adjust my neck turners, I use "range brass", that was discarded by some shooter that does not reload, after I have the adjustment spot on, I switch to my new brass, with the confidence that it will be turned to the thickness that I had in mind. I use a caliber that is one size smaller than I will be turning so that I don't have to size the case for the expander to work. For example, if I am adjusting for turning a 6mm case, I will expand up a .22 caliber fired case, after first cleaning the inside of the neck a little.

 

[Hoier]

Wow Boyd! I wish I would have read that a week ago but I only wrecked 2 cases.