Starline 223 brass difficult to resize

Cases are different by brand. Some are thicker others are tuffer brass. As long as it sizes no problem.

carnaby said:

Anyone else noticed this?

I got my press set up to full length resize Winchester 223 brass. Just followed the usual full length sizer setup and the brass comes out just right with headspace back to spec. Throw a Starline case in there and no dice, headspace still way to high and won't chamber.

Had to screw the resizing die down so that the die is compressed significantly without a case in the press before the Starline comes out OK. Ran Remington brass thought it before and it comes out fine but the Starline is different. Curious if I'm doing something wrong but I don't think so. Tried a bunch of different shell holders and all give same results. My LNL progressive same thing.

Also tried RCBS and Hornady dies, same result.

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I load StarLine Brass in my 10mm Auto Pistol and Carbine. I actually run the new brass thru my sizer first. I think it is simply Thicker or Tuffer than a lot of other Brass. Have quit Using any Range Brass for the 10MM as I am finding too many issues with It. Only Reloading My own StarLine Brass. You can Tell a Lot of difference in the Starline Brass. Much harder to get thru the Sizer but doable. That is why I use it.

That is one reason I anneal my brass every cycle. Also depending on what type of lube your using can make a difference too. Some lubes are thick film, where wax is normally thin film.

Try Imperial Sizing Wax. it give the least force for all my sizing lubes. If I'm sizing one and it's hard I add more lube. I'm using Big Boss II press and it has a lot of leverage. I'm also using Redding Dies.

carnaby said:

I anneal frequently. Definitely helps but I still have to use a lot of force on the die to get starline to resize properly. It does have the least case volume of all 223 brass I've ever used so yeah, possible that is due to thicker case walls, which in turn would make them harder to resize.

I lube with Hornady One Shot. Good stuff. I also use Unique, same result.

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Spray the sides of a gallon zip lock well with Hornady One Shot. Put about 25 or so casing into the bag and roll them all around. Repeat. I think this may help.

All brass is not created equal and that is pretty much a given. When I size brass I try to keep all the brass in lots by manufacturer. That includes any GI brass and even at that there is no guarantee each cartridge case is the same as the one I sized before it. I select a sample of whatever I have and resize them, sometimes for a specific rifle and sometimes just back to a nominal case dimension case head to the datum point on the shoulder, as it applies to for example .223 Remington. After resizing my sample and getting the die where I want it I resize whatever I have be it a hundred or few hundred cases. I am not going to resize a mixed lot of brass so I don't much worry about spring back and getting a mixed pile of numbers. Having several methods for measuring a resized case I like the RCBS case micrometers, while pretty much caliber specific I find them to be accurate.

As to case lube? Years ago RCBS marketed an aerosol much like the Hornady One Shot and I still have a bunch of aerosol cans. Then too there is the roll your own versions using a mix of alcohol and lanolin. Personally I never had any difference in results based on the lube but wouldn't rule it out. I assume the thread starter is lubricating all their cases the same.

Anyway, all things considered I revert back to all brass is not created equal so I figure setting up a resizing die will not be equal for all brass of a given cartridge.

Ron

I had the same problem with Starline.It's thick and tough.I was using it in a 223 bolt gun with very tight chamber dimensions,and it didn't work well because the necks are a little too thick.It works fine in my AR and my Vanguard,but they both have more normal chambers.I got along better when I used Redding sizing die wax than I did with One Shot,but not by very much.It's great brass,but a bit too thick for some rifles.Their craftsmanship is on a par with Lapua from my experience.