New oops at the loading bench

[WestKentucky]

I have never had this happen. I don’t remember ever hearing of this happening. This was the 2nd case. First one did exactly as it should have. Yes the brass was lubed. Not it wasn’t hard to size. No real force on it when it blew out, just normal pressure. Just not my day to load I guess.

7.5x55 norma brass. Shell holder was a really good fit. I have no clue where the shell holder came from as it’s just a random extra, and I also don’t know what brand it is… what brand it was! Oh well, I’ll just order one.

Y’all ever had this happen?

Edit… it’s freed up now. Pulled a shell holder from my 7-30 waters set and I’m back to running.

 

[nettlle]

Looks like the wrong shell holder

 

[WestKentucky]

Looks like the wrong shell holder

No, right shell holder. Another #3 has it rolling again. I have so many old die sets though that there’s really no telling where this one was or what abuse it has had imparted on it over the years. It’s not cut like a Lee shell holder so maybe it’s one of my really old Lyman ones.

 

[snowman357]

could it have been the old lee and rcbs using different numbers and had the correct number but was the wrong brand a #3 rcbs and a lee #3 are not the same

 

[dobedo]

Foreign steel?

 

[WestKentucky]

Cases are trying to stick. Even with lube. I’m going to break everything down and get it squeaky clean and start over.

 

[Yamifrk]

Looks like rcbs takes a #2
Lyman takes #6

Ooops those are for 7-30 waters which still seems odd

 

[Theinkman]

Sizing some 9mm last fall had a shellholder that had a similar failure. Lee shellholder, rim just broke off. No undue stress or strain; just broke. Interestingly, the shellholder didn't look like steel when it failed. Had a crystalline structure kind of like pot metal.

 

[AJC1]

A shell holder is very hard. That was one that was not properly heat treated, because I will bet you can't do that again even trying. The brass will always give first.

 

[Another_Kelley]

A shell holder is very hard. That was one that was not properly heat treated, because I will bet you can't do that again even trying. The brass will always give first.

Yep, my first thought. Seen the rim peel back like that on brass, but the steel shell holder was first to give? Weird to see....

 

[Bazoo]

It's a Lee shell holder.

Shell holders for 30-30 case heads:
CH4D 2
Hornady 2
Lee 3
Lyman 6
RCBS 2
Redding 2

 

[74man]

If it is RCBS it will say RCBS and the number of the die and they are good about replacing the shell holder. Give them a call or email them and show them what happened and they will replace it, free of charge. I have had stuck cases but never has a shell holder come apart like yours. Good luck. What is that old saying "SH## HAPPENS".

 

[lightman]

Wow, I've never had that happen or even know of anyone who has. All of my shell holders are either RCBS or Redding.

 

[WestKentucky]

After cleaning and trying again I still had some very sticky cases. I changed lube and it went smooth from that point on. I ended up throwing the old can away and raided the kitchen cabinet for Pam like I normally use.

I’ll tumble everything today to clean it up and hopefully load tonight.

 

[jmorris]

That did happen to me once, when a die wouldn't size enough for my rifle and it took from the shell holder.

It lasted until didn't then I machined the die.

Look's like the outside edges are beat up on that one, is it not hardened?

 

[Random 8]

Which die set are you using? Which lube?

There are some issues here specific to 7,5x55 caliber brass, chambers, and die dimensions.

I'm going out on a limb here, and guessing your brass was fired in a K-31 and you are resizing in a generic Lee or RCBS "7.5 Swiss" die set.

The K-31 has a slightly different chamber shape and dimension than the older G-11, K-11. Brass sized to G-11 spec, as well as GP-11 milspec will work in either chamber. Brass sized to K-31 spec, as with the Hornady and Redding K-31 specific dies will work only in a K-31 chamber, as these dies work the brass less. Sizing brass fired in a K-31 in dies dimensioned for the G-11 or "all" chambers will require a lot of work to the brass sizing it back down. In addition to this, the 7.5x55 brass is very heavy and thick in the base, at least in RUAG and PRVI examples I have. I find the process similar to sizing heavy Greek HXP brass fired in a standard military M1 Garand chamber.

I have my best luck segregating my brass for the older 1911 chamber from brass for the K-31s. In the event I do have to convert from K-31 to 1911 chamber, a good deal of lube (I use Unique) is needed, and you will get some denting in the necks from time to time, but no stuck cases, blown out shell holders or deformed rims. Converting from 1911 chamber to K-31 chamber requires only fire forming of the 1911 or "7.5 Swiss" sized brass. Accuracy seems to hold up well in this case, but the cases do stretch through this process. If you are loading for a K-31, a dedicated K-31 chamber die set will be most helpful and pay for itself quickly in terms of extended brass life. The Lee #3 is the correct shell holder, I've loaded thousands of rounds in the one that came with my original die set.

If you have further questions regarding this cartridge, including pet loads, I am intimately familiar with loading the 7.5 Swiss in both k-31s and G-11s for match shooting. Feel free to drop me a PM.

Hope you find this helpful.

 

[FROGO207]

OP you asked about others having problems. I had a Lee shellholder get a side ripped out while sizing 243 brass and a RCBS shell holder loose a side while sizing 30 Carbine brass. Things happen and sounds like you figured out a work-around

 

[WestKentucky]

Which die set are you using? Which lube?

There are some issues here specific to 7,5x55 caliber brass, chambers, and die dimensions.

I'm going out on a limb here, and guessing your brass was fired in a K-31 and you are resizing in a generic Lee or RCBS "7.5 Swiss" die set.

The K-31 has a slightly different chamber shape and dimension than the older G-11, K-11. Brass sized to G-11 spec, as well as GP-11 milspec will work in either chamber. Brass sized to K-31 spec, as with the Hornady and Redding K-31 specific dies will work only in a K-31 chamber, as these dies work the brass less. Sizing brass fired in a K-31 in dies dimensioned for the G-11 or "all" chambers will require a lot of work to the brass sizing it back down. In addition to this, the 7.5x55 brass is very heavy and thick in the base, at least in RUAG and PRVI examples I have. I find the process similar to sizing heavy Greek HXP brass fired in a standard military M1 Garand chamber.

I have my best luck segregating my brass for the older 1911 chamber from brass for the K-31s. In the event I do have to convert from K-31 to 1911 chamber, a good deal of lube (I use Unique) is needed, and you will get some denting in the necks from time to time, but no stuck cases, blown out shell holders or deformed rims. Converting from 1911 chamber to K-31 chamber requires only fire forming of the 1911 or "7.5 Swiss" sized brass. Accuracy seems to hold up well in this case, but the cases do stretch through this process. If you are loading for a K-31, a dedicated K-31 chamber die set will be most helpful and pay for itself quickly in terms of extended brass life. The Lee #3 is the correct shell holder, I've loaded thousands of rounds in the one that came with my original die set.

If you have further questions regarding this cartridge, including pet loads, I am intimately familiar with loading the 7.5 Swiss in both k-31s and G-11s for match shooting. Feel free to drop me a PM.

Hope you find this helpful.

Wow. There’s a lot to take in here. I’m going to have to look into pretty much all of what you’re saying.

As for lube, what I started with was One-Shot which I found when I moved. I know people have had stickers with it so I applied a bit heavily. What I ended with was Pam cooking spray. I have used Pam for about 20 years and have only had issues with .308 which I’m relatively sure I have a bad resizing die because if I have the expander in it then it hangs up and rips case heads like crazy, even with different expanders in it. Without expander that one works… anyways that die set had stickers with everything that has ran through it. I trust Pam, but my standard operation is to resize with Pam, tumble it to remove the lube, prime off press, load. The vast majority of the brass I just sized was Norma with a bit of prvi mixed in. The dies are CH I believe. I don’t know what rifle the brass was fired in because it was gifted to me along with the dies. It will go into my 96/11 this week as I’m going to my parents a few times anyways and that’s where I shoot.

 

[Arkansas Paul]

Haven't seen that one before.

 

[Random 8]

I thought I remembered the thread where you had a new Swiss rifle and looked it up. K-11 I believe. The FL "7.5 Swiss" dies are appropriate for this rifle and the 96-11. Don't know about C-H dies, but I would assume they are spec for the 1911 chamber as these rifles were imported first prior to the K-31 coming in. The dedicated K-31 dies are a relatively recent innovation, and as far as I know all are specifically marked as such. Unless you throw a K31 into the mix, you are good to go.

I've never used Pam for resizing, but it seems to be working for you and I've seen others report good results. The biggest takeaway in your scenario, is that the 7,5 Swiss brass is very thick and heavy in the web and base. Significant force is needed to FL resize, and sufficient and appropriate lube needed. Akin to resizing large caliber military brass fired in a semi auto. Enjoy your new rifle!

BTW, try working around 42-43 grains of Varget, N140 or IMR 4064 and a 155 BTHP at 2.990". Please verify with published data. You should be impressed with this rifle!