case gauge

[scooter]

Why does some of the brass slide in and out easy and some don't?after sizing it they all go in fine but after seating the bullet some do not.I use RCBS dies and run a 650.I must have set the seating die up wrong or something.I'm using .45 230 gr.sorry if this look funny I'm placing this in on my black berry

 

[Finalygotabeltfed]

Your bullets are to large in diameter, or your dies suck. Get some Dillon dies for that press and you'll never have that problem again.

 

[Jasper]

some .45 case gauges are picky.

my 200gr LSWC loads (1.165OAL) get picky with my Dillon case gauge, depending on the brass...some gauge fine, some go most of the way. every single one will gauge out in the barrel, and i've yet to have any issues with them.

see if some of your issues stem from certain headstamps. i know PMC brass NEVER passes a case gauge for me....but Winchester works every time.

 

[Fixxah]

Try a Lee Factory Crimp Die. They will all fit nicely in and fall out of the gauge.

I only use one on cast bullet loaded .45 ACP but swear by it.

 

[EddieCoyle]

I used to use a Lee FCD, but realized that it was just masking the problem. My problem was two-fold:

1. I wasn't sorting my brass by headstamp.
2. I wasn't belling the cases enough.

Some brands of brass are thicker than others. The sizing die is going to squeeze the brass down to a certain outside diameter. That means the inside diameter is going to vary with the thickness of the brass. Each brand of dies is going to size to a slightly different OD - this will sometimes even vary with different examples of the same brand of die. Some brands of dies don't do well with some brands of brass. Other brands of dies seem to be able to acceptably size just about anything.

If the inside diameter is too small for the bullet diameter, and you don't bell the cases enough, the bullets seat hard, and deform the case. A little extra belling on the case helps make the bullets seat easier. A good seating die (like the Hornady) that has a sliding sleeve to align the bullet prior to seating also seems to help. I used to bell the cases as little as possible thinking that it would make the brass last longer. I no longer think this is true. I found that I would either lose the brass, or my primer pockets would get too loose before I had neck splits.

The Lee FCD resizes the round after seating, so it will eliminate the problem, but not the cause.

 

[scooter]

some .45 case gauges are picky.

my 200gr LSWC loads (1.165OAL) get picky with my Dillon case gauge, depending on the brass...some gauge fine, some go most of the way. every single one will gauge out in the barrel, and i've yet to have any issues with them.

see if some of your issues stem from certain headstamps. i know PMC brass NEVER passes a case gauge for me....but Winchester works every time.

I have found this to be true also

 

[Gammon]

I used to use a Lee FCD, but realized that it was just masking the problem. My problem was two-fold:

1. I wasn't sorting my brass by headstamp.
2. I wasn't belling the cases enough.

Some brands of brass are thicker than others. The sizing die is going to squeeze the brass down to a certain outside diameter. That means the inside diameter is going to vary with the thickness of the brass. Each brand of dies is going to size to a slightly different OD - this will sometimes even vary with different examples of the same brand of die. Some brands of dies don't do well with some brands of brass. Other brands of dies seem to be able to acceptably size just about anything.

If the inside diameter is too small for the bullet diameter, and you don't bell the cases enough, the bullets seat hard, and deform the case. A little extra belling on the case helps make the bullets seat easier. A good seating die (like the Hornady) that has a sliding sleeve to align the bullet prior to seating also seems to help. I used to bell the cases as little as possible thinking that it would make the brass last longer. I no longer think this is true. I found that I would either lose the brass, or my primer pockets would get too loose before I had neck splits.

The Lee FCD resizes the round after seating, so it will eliminate the problem, but not the cause.

I agree. I used to use minimum belling to save my cases and it probably did, but not so much that I noticed it. I now use rather generous belling. The bullets seat much more easily and I have yet to notice an increase in case mouth splitting.