.223 die problem ?

[Bruno2]

I have resized about 1000 pcs of brass and when I have been seating the bullets I am noticing that the bullets are not being seated straight . I am using kind of a homemade dial indicator and have been noticing the end of the bullet is not staying in the same place as I rotate it . What is going on ?

 

[ants]

My humble question, then I'll shut up.

Are you certain you have both dies properly adjusted? Not just seating die, both dies.
A case is often not perfectly concentric (the base for instance, is often out of square). Does your homemade tool assume perfect dimensions?

 

[redneck2]

It may be the expander ball. Sometimes the stem is bent and pulls the neck crooked when removed from the case. You can get small O-rings and put them above and below the lock nuts on the stem. Lets it float.

You can also try seating the bullet, then rotating the case 90 degrees and seating again.

 

[243winxb]

Does the seating stem fit the bullet correctly? What brand of dies, type?

 

[Bruno2]

The dies are an old set of RCBS .

The dial indicator is the base of a reloading press and I am using a dot made with a marker . I lay the loaded round flat on my reloading bench up against the base of the press with the tip of the bullet right beside the marker dot and I slowly rotate the round . I can see the bullet getting closer and further from the dot as I rotate it .

 

[steve4102]

Here you go. Lots of reading here.

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=470100

 

[ants]

Well, make sure you actually have a problem. If so, go to that thread Steve linked for you, and also read about it in the good manuals that cover these subjects. And the responses by redneck and 243 have good suggestions.

What if you roll two rounds on a flat surface, tip to tip? Do the tips stay aligned? Your homemade tool is very nice, but I would be absolutely certain that I have a problem before I start solving a problem.

And do they shoot straight? If the ammo is accurate, you may not have a problem at all.

 

[rcmodel]

I would suggest inside neck lubing before sizing.

If the necks are dry, friction can be high enough to warp the neck of the case crooked when the expander pulls through it.

There are several ways to go about it, including blotting the case neck on a lube pad, or using a nylon bore brush with a little lube on it to clean the case necks before sizing.
Or, you can just put some lube on your finger and wipe the neck with it to scrape off a little lube in the neck.

They also make mica neck lube that comes in a small jar and you just dip the necks in it.

Another thing you might try is to re-set your expander stem while centering it.
1. Back off the expander stem.
2. Run a sized & de-primed case up in the die.
3. Screw the stem back down while "feeling" around for the flash hole in the case.
4. Continue to adjust the decapper pin down to proper length and then lock the lock-nut with the pin still in the flash-hole.

That will center the threads/pin and help prevent off-center expanding which "could" pull the neck off to one side..

rc

 

[Bruno2]

thanks for all of the help guys.

I did line up two bullets nose to nose and rotated them they were a little out of symmetry , but , not as bad as I thought they would be .

 

[Bruno2]

When rotating the bullets a few minutes ago I found one that was really bad and I did notice this time that the neck was bent . The gap between the neck and the base of the press was changing and it was causing the bullet to REALLY be out of kilter .
So I guess my rod that the neck expander and decapping pin is attached to is bent and causing the expander to bend the neck over when resizing .

 

[snuffy]

What do you mean by "homemade dial indicator"? If you're simply trying to eyeball movement of the bullet while turning against the base of your press, that's hardly a test. And if you ARE able to see a wobble with just your eyes, there's something badly wrong with you dies or set-up!

Get one of these, then come back and tell us, in thousandths of an inch, how much off center those bullets are.

http://www.midwayusa.com/viewProduct/?productnumber=310955

Without this tool or one like it, you're wasting your time.

 

[Roadkill]

Clean the seater die.