Necking down ??

[Hoopie]

I'll be getting into handloading this Christmas if Santa comes through for me. I'll be loading the .25-06 among other things. Seeing the price difference in brass between the .30-06 and the .25-06 makes me almost cringe. A lot of the info i find on the internet about reloading mentions necking down and trimming the 30 into a 25. None of it though goes into detail about that process. The trimming sounds straight forward enough. How hard is it to neck down, do i need any special equipment, and how do you do it? I have a feeling this is a painfully simple topic, but i've never reloaded and don't really understand the concept. Any info would be greatly appreciated.

 

[ribbonstone]

Basicaly, will need a .25-06 full length sizing die set...standard loading dies, not neck sizers or the Lee collet type.

Would remove the decapping/rexpander assembly from the 25-06 die...lube the 30-06 case LIGHTLY (or you'll get lube dents)...and size them. Works best with NEW cases or with once fired brass. You remove the decapping aseembly just in case; if a case curbles in sizing, would trp the rod and you'd be likely to ruin it in getting it free.

Once they are all formed, put the decapping/expander assembly back in the die and run them through a second time.

Then trim to length.

Test chamber EACH case to be sure it's formed correctly before you load them.

PROBLEM: sizing doWn THICKENS case necks...may need to inside ream or outside turn the case necks to get them to the right thickness. IF too thick, may chamber fine, but not have any "slack" to release the bullet when fired.
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All things considered, looking at the cost of 100 new 30-06 case vs 100 new 25-06 cases, why would you bother forming cases?

 

[loadedround]

Hoopie: Necking down from 30-06 to 25-06 is straightforward as you said. Suggest you start with new commercial 30-06 brass and lube lightly. Take your full length 25-06 sizer die and set it to just kiss your shell holder. Then just run your 30-06 thru the 25-06 sizer die. Check for case length, trim if necessary and chamfer inside and outside of case mouth and presto 25-06 cases. I own two 25-06 rifles and have not yet bought 25-06 cases to reload. Mark your boxes with caliber...25-06 rounds shot in a 30-06 rifle are not too accurate.

 

[USSR]

As ribbonstone said, necking down a cartridge case thickens the necks, and depending upon your chamber, may require neck turning.

Don