7.5 x 55 Swiss Hornady Dies

[rjohnson4405]

Okay,

I've seen a lot of recommendations for other dies, but I've managed to use the Hornady dies for six other calibers so I'd like to not change.

I'll soon be picking up a K31 and want to reload for it.

Midway lists two die sets for 7.5x55 Swiss:

One for 299 diameter: http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=494507

One for 308 diameter: http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=719799

Which one do I want and why? I would like to use 308 bullets if that's the deciding factor, which is all I can think of that might be the difference, but I want to be sure before I spend the money.

Thanks,
rjohnson4405

 

[brentwal]

I'm sold on Hornady dies, but you may want to read this article.

Link

The 299 dia dies are for older, IIRC pre 1911 series of S-Rs

 

[Canuck-IL]

Call Hornady (800.338.3220) and ask, specifically about the "overworking the brass" issue. When I was shopping for dies 2 years ago, they were aware of the issue and explicitly told me that the single set they sold at that time was not cut for the K-31 chamber. Perhaps the newer offering is.

Since the brass is not always easy to find, I went w the Redding die set, hoping to maximize brass life.
/Bryan

 

[lordgroom]

Some how my post disappeared.

I know you asked about the Hornady dies but I have no experience.

It's said the Redding dies are the only ones set up for the K31 shortened chamber. I have seen other posts about seriously overcamming the lee dies to bump back the shoulder approriately.

I have the Redding deluxe die set and the neck bushing die and It works well.

To answer your other question, I size cast bullets to .310.

 

[Canuck-IL]

It's said the Redding dies are the only ones set up for the K31 shortened chamber

but all that conventional wisdom came about before Hornady began offering a second set of 7.5 Swiss dies. I'd guess these probably are for the K-31. Give them a call.
/B

 

[SP Shop Foreman]

All we've ever had on the shelf here is RCBS, but a number of others work well too. The boss has used them exclusively for developing load data for at least the past 20 years.
Check this 0ut.
http://www.swissrifles.com/ammo/reload1.htm

And this.

http://www.swissrifles.com/sr/pierre/data.html

Thanks

Allen
SP

 

[Canuck-IL]

Yes, they all 'work,' including the Lee set - the point of the Redding cut dies is that they work the (expensive) brass less than a die that is resizing for the older chamber cut.
/B

 

[SP Shop Foreman]

I have yet to see a brass life to die comparative. A lot depends on the makeup of the brass.

Allen
SP

 

[DaveInFloweryBranchGA]

The new Hornadys are certainly worth checking out and a call to Hornady could probably clarify their purposes. They are the most recently out dies for the Swiss caliber on the market, so I suspect they'll do the job nicely for K31.

Regards,

Dave

 

[lonniemike]

A K-31 with a .299" bore would have some serious land wear(over .003") as new spec bore for the 31 should be under.296". A call to Hornady would be a great idea. At present I know of only Redding as a manufacturer of a K-31 specific die for it's more generous chamber area for use with GP-11(Swiss mil ammo). The 31 doesn't have a shortened chamber.best-o-luck

 

[lonniemike]

Any of the Swiss straight pull models with a .299 bore will have serious bore wear issues as new bore spec dias go from about .295" for the 1889 models, about .297" for the 1911 models, and about .296" for the 1931 models(per Small Arms of the World). No models have a .299" bore. All models use a .308 projectile. Regarding the link supplied by brentwal referencing failure to fire and light primer strikes---any of the Swiss reloads that fail to chamber completely, due to not sizing enough or an OAL that is to long, may be prone to not fire. You pay your money and make your pick. All the Best

 

[DaveInFloweryBranchGA]

I'm not sure if Midway has a misprint on the .299 and I wouldn't be suprised if that was, based on things I've seen with their website, but the reviews for the dies tell it all. Every customer who reviewed them appeared to be very happy.

Dave