Lee 45acp Expanding die

[Dudedog]

Off thread, but

Never used dry media in my rotary tumbler (Lyman) but one time I thought I would be clever and add some Flitz to the wet load (works great in the dry so.....)
BAD BAD BAD BAD Idea!.
Everything came out coated with grey slime. Bleep Pins, cases, tumbler....
LOTS of 409 and hours later I had things cleaned up.
In hindsight I should have just tossed the brass since I had plenty but hated to waste it.
So no Flitz when wet tumbling. Wash and wax is ok.

So having said that I don't know if you would want the residue from dry in your wet tumbler setup.
It would work I 'm sure, but you would have cleanup to get back to wet.
If you want the extra bling from NUfinish/Flitz etc wet tumble then do a pass in dry with corncob NUfinsh/Flitz etc.
Wet tumbling does not make them quite asshiny but cleans the insides and primer pockets if you deprime them first far better than walnut or corncob did in my vibratory cleaner.

Hard to beat corn cob with Flitx and about 4 hours in the vibe cleaner for Bling.

 

[vaalpens]

For those that want to see pictures, here is one of the containers with some 357sig cases, ready 2b cleaned.
View attachment 807736

For those that are interested. I counted the 357sig cases and found a total of 656 stuffed into the container.

 

[9mmepiphany]

Has anyone used walnut or corn dry media in their Frankford Arsenal Rotary Tumbler with any success?

It should work as rotary tumblers are what they use to polish rocks.

The closest application that I have any experience with is a shooting friend who used a small cement mixer loaded with walnut to clean his .223 cases...he did large batches

 

[LiveLife]

Has anyone used walnut or corn dry media in their Frankford Arsenal Rotary Tumbler with any success? I know its a wet system unit but may it work with dry media too.

It should work ... The closest application that I have any experience with is a shooting friend who used a small cement mixer loaded with walnut to clean his .223 cases...he did large batches

Sure it will.

RMR uses cement mixer to clean/polish brass and bullets - https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?threads/not-another-brass-cleaning-post.824978/#post-10620894

We didn't like sending out dirty pulled bullets so to offer a better and prettier product we purchased this "tumbler" from harbor freight. It works like a charm.

Video of cement mixer in action - https://www.facebook.com/rmrbullets/videos/vb.162342093859053/643752402384684/?type=2&theater

 

[vaalpens]

Just a quick update regrading the expansion plug for the 45acp expansion die.

I expanded about 20 cases after I buffed the die to see if there would be any difference. What I found was that the cases did not stick us much anymore and the feel was probably similar to when the die was new. I checked the plug after the use, and saw the lines starting the appear again. I assume it will deteriorate again with usage.

Last night I opened a ticket with Lee to try and get some advice on how to resolve the issue. I did see that you can order a replacement part free of charge and only pay for shipping, but I decided to first ask them for an explanation before ordering a new plug.

This morning I received a response from Lee, and also received an email that my order has shipped. Lee took care of it and explained what the issue was:

"Thank you for the clear photos. It appears that the expander nipple on your expander plug has chatter marks (rough machining). I am sending you a replacement expander plug."​

Well now at least I know that they call the expanding area the "expander nipple".

 

[243winxb]

From Starline Brass FAQ

Why is it very hard to get expander and powder funnel back out of case?
There are two situations that create this problem. The first is one we have just recently identified. It seems to be associated with the dillon powder funnel and only a couple of calibers (45 Auto and 40 S&W). The land for expanding case mouth is too long and when you begin to bell mouth the bottom of expander gets into the thicker taper of case and wedges causing it to be very hard to get back out. We have modified several by increasing radius on end and slightly shortening expanding land and this eliminated the problem completely. **Call Starline** and we will take care of it if you wish. One other cause can be a burr at case mouth created by the final trim operation, which grabs onto expander as it comes back up. This situation does not often appear and can be fixed by deburring case mouth or inside lubing cases

**If using there brass**

 

[Tilos]

Just a quick update regrading the expansion plug for the 45acp expansion die.

I expanded about 20 cases after I buffed the die to see if there would be any difference. What I found was that the cases did not stick us much anymore and the feel was probably similar to when the die was new. I checked the plug after the use, and saw the lines starting the appear again. I assume it will deteriorate again with usage.

Last night I opened a ticket with Lee to try and get some advice on how to resolve the issue. I did see that you can order a replacement part free of charge and only pay for shipping, but I decided to first ask them for an explanation before ordering a new plug.

This morning I received a response from Lee, and also received an email that my order has shipped. Lee took care of it and explained what the issue was:

"Thank you for the clear photos. It appears that the expander nipple on your expander plug has chatter marks (rough machining). I am sending you a replacement expander plug."​

Well now at least I know that they call the expanding area the "expander nipple".

If you look at the pic you posted of the polished expander plug you will see specks of brass still galled on it.
This brass will continue to gall the cases and needs to be completely removed by polishing before the expander will stop galling.

edit: I've had good luck using Nu-Finish as the abrasive for polishing stuff and it works great, as good as Fitz.

 

[vaalpens]

From Starline Brass FAQ
**If using there brass**

The last batch I used were CBC brass, not Starline, but it could have also contributed the being difficult to extract. Thanks for the information.

 

[LiveLife]

The last batch I used were CBC brass, not Starline, but it could have also contributed the being difficult to extract.

CBC 9mm brass was found to be thicker than Starline brass in the "Myth Busting Neck Tension and Bullet Setback" thread and could explain why CBC 45ACP brass was more difficult to extract if case wall was thicker - https://www.thehighroad.org/index.p...neck-tension-and-bullet-setback.830072/page-4

Average Case Wall Thickness .100" Below Case Mouth:

• .01256" - CBC
• .0110" - Starline

Average Case Wall Thickness .200" Below Case Mouth:

• .0144" - CBC
• .01225" Starline

update ... response from Lee, and also received an email that my order has shipped. Lee took care of it and explained what the issue was:

"Thank you for the clear photos. It appears that the expander nipple on your expander plug has chatter marks (rough machining). I am sending you a replacement expander plug."​

Very nice.

 

[vaalpens]

CBC 9mm brass was found to be thicker than Starline brass in the "Myth Busting Neck Tension and Bullet Setback" thread and could explain why CBC 45ACP brass was more difficult to extract if case wall was thicker - https://www.thehighroad.org/index.p...neck-tension-and-bullet-setback.830072/page-4

Average Case Wall Thickness .100" Below Case Mouth:

• .01256" - CBC
• .0110" - Starline

Average Case Wall Thickness .200" Below Case Mouth:

• .0144" - CBC
• .01225" Starline

Very nice.

Thanks bds! So it seems that it could have been a combination of wall thickness and the chatter marks on the expander nipple.

This is not the first time CBC brass came up for me due to stickiness. I tested some 38spl loads with Unique and found that with one of the loads, the cases were difficult to extract out of my Ruger SP101. At the time I tested the load with other headstamps, and only the CBC was sticking.

https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?threads/38-special-sticking-cases.802647/page-2#post-10252707