What did you do at your reloading bench today?

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  • lazarus

    Ultimate Member
    Jun 23, 2015
    13,678
    Something else I learned today reading people's posts. A heck of a lot of us are shooting and reloading 6.5 grendel.
     

    steves1911

    Ultimate Member
    Dec 2, 2011
    3,026
    On a hill in Wv
    Charged and seated 500 308 with 168gr amax and reloader 15 in record time. Love that intelliropper more and more everytime I use it. By the time I tap the case to settle powder and seat a bullet its got the next charge weighed and ready to go.
     

    SigMatt

    Ultimate Member
    Mar 17, 2007
    1,181
    Shores of the Bay, MD
    Cleaned off my bench, got my 9mm dies set up and deprimed some 9mm pickup brass with the new press. Then went through my stash of brass to find everything I had. Got my bullets and brass organized and I am now planning some reload sessions. I did decide I want a dedicated decapping toolhead on my press so I can deprime brass and then media clean and sonic wet clean it before loading. So I ordered some universal decapping dies. For now it is going to be sorting once-fired brass, getting it cleaned and I'll worry about loading later. Just to get a handle on what my component stocks are. I'm pretty deep on powder and primers for the moment. Not that I'll be buying any. Been snapping up bullets and brass where I can get it.

    Matt
     

    davsco

    Ultimate Member
    Oct 21, 2010
    8,607
    Loudoun, VA
    after making and shooting some test loads a few days ago, selected one and loaded ~200 rounds of 124g 9mm. plunked every single one in one of my barrels.
     

    Pinecone

    Ultimate Member
    MDS Supporter
    Feb 4, 2013
    28,175
    My lee collator and tubes showed up to use with my App press. Not on the press, but I put it together and dropped a case in. Then I dropped a few cases in. then I dropped a large handful. And another large handful. It is like MAGIC!

    I am still grinning and giggling about it. It is going to speed up my processing on the App SOOO much. That was all 9mm. I see some guys saying they needed to modify it with some 1/2 PEX and others that it is only the occasional upside down 9mm (or smaller) case. I'll need to play with it. See if it is worth while getting a new collator and setting one up for 9mm and smaller (not sure if I'll run 32acp or 9x18 through the App, but I am running 9mm on it).

    Yeah, a pretty simple device that works well.

    I get about 1 upside down case per tube. Which is OK.

    I did buy a replacement collator from eBay that supposedly works better for .223 brass.
     

    U.S.SFC_RET

    Ultimate Member
    Dec 8, 2005
    6,696
    I have a Smith and Wesson model 52-2 that I created some snap caps for. I am also reloading 150 38 Special mid load wad cutters.
     

    erwos

    The Hebrew Hammer
    MDS Supporter
    Mar 25, 2009
    13,866
    Rockville, MD
    While I wait for items to come in and for a reasonable opportunity to try out test loads, I spent yesterday evening (and a bit of this morning) cleaning some of my backlog of range pickups. Overall, fairly happy with how it all came out. I don't have OCD for ultra-shiny brass, so I just run it for an hour in the wet tumbler, separate the pins, and then throw it on the "brass dryer" (nee "dehydrator") to dry off it overnight. Will be experimenting soon with doing another wet tumbling run to clean off resizing lube and cleaning out primer pockets.
     

    lazarus

    Ultimate Member
    Jun 23, 2015
    13,678
    Hand primed 75 9mm cases that I had previously resized and expanded. Loaded some 7.62x39 dummies. Neck tension is way too low. So I need to troubleshoot those.
     

    gre24ene

    Ultimate Member
    Mar 6, 2012
    1,519
    I have been wet tumbling, resizing, depriming, removing crimp, trim and deburr, and re wet tumble approx 5k 223 cases.

    Have completed about 2k, the rest are at different stages. waiting on some lanolin to make some case lube.
     

    Seagrave1963

    Still learnin'
    MDS Supporter
    Feb 6, 2011
    10,001
    Eastern Shore
    I have been wet tumbling, resizing, depriming, removing crimp, trim and deburr, and re wet tumble approx 5k 223 cases.

    Have completed about 2k, the rest are at different stages. waiting on some lanolin to make some case lube.

    I just got some the other day - I can ship you some if you get in a bind.
     

    lazarus

    Ultimate Member
    Jun 23, 2015
    13,678
    Are you using a .308 or .311 expander? Or are you using .308 bullets with a .311 expander?

    .311 expander, .310 bullets.

    I think I got it worked out finally.

    Neck tension might still be a problem, but it at least SEEMS to be okay on the final dummy. I was trying to test out my franken SKS I assembled from a variety of parts without disassembling the bolt to remove the firing pin to use a "loaded" case and feeler gauges as I don't have head space gauges and have no desire to spend the money on them (the cut to the chase, it head spaces correctly).

    Case was getting stuck in the chamber and had to mortar it open each time. Doesn't do that in my Norinco SKS.

    Chamber was a little rough so I polished it up and it helped slightly. Slathered the case in marker and it is hitting hard on the case shoulders, not as much in my Norinco (so one chamber/headspacing is a bit tighter than the other rifle).

    I had two issues. One, the neck expander/depriming rod were WAY too far down. That helped some. Then I needed to seat the die further in. I am used to all my other dies for Hornady and I think all my Lees are the same way (though I ONLY have Lee pistol dies, no rifle) where it is touch the shell plate. I looked closer and it says touch the shell plate and 1/4-1/3 more.

    I did that and the cases fit in the chamber and dropped back out. So I must not have been getting the case shoulder set back far enough on sizing.

    The bullets were sometimes getting pulled back out or dropping in to the case when messing with this. The last dummy doesn't seem to be with the seater die turned down to the shell holder and then 1/4 turn more like it says to in the directions (I am used to turn the seating/taper crimp die in until it touches the CASE, then back it off a turn, sometimes turn it back down just a little if you want/need more taper crimp).

    I just decided to say F it and ordered a Lee FCD for 7.62x39. Midway had one in stock for $11 and I needed a couple of other things.

    That is sort of aside from the case sizing issue, which I appear to have worked out properly now. Bullets have a crimp ring and on top of that, I'd prefer not to have to worry about if a bullet is a little loose in a case or not. I'll need to mess with that too to make sure there is the proper crimp on the case, but now, fingers crossed, that'll take care of any concerns there.

    Honestly it is a stupid project. I've got probably 1.5 cases of 7.62x39 steel. Might even have 2. Another 200+ rounds of brass cased. But I picked up 100 federal primed cases for cheap a couple months ago and 250 bullets to go in. At some point I'd like to load up some SST hunting ammo for my SKS (yeah, I have a box, box and a half of Hornady SST steel for it, but I'd like to roll my own).

    I've got two guns in 7.62x39, a really nice Norinco and a parts gun Sinosovietyugo (Norinco barreled action, norinco magazine and gas parts, yugo stock, soviet bolt, bolt carrier and dust cover).

    No idea how the frankenSKS is, but the Norinco HURLS brass like it is trying to pitch it in to the next county. I manage to find most of it and fortunately my range has some foam along the ceiling of the rifle range, so it mostly comes out okay. But I doubt I'll get more than 2-3 reloadings out of it. Reloading it light for FMJ plinking might fix a lot of that though.

    The franken SKS I think I've decided to get it to the range to check function and sell it. I was going to strip the wood and refinish it dark (my Norinco is finished blonde and looks sexy). But I doubt I'd add any value. Basically sell it as a 7.62x39 range toy or a project gun for someone. Only thing it really needs is the wood refinished (gas tube guard is a different color than the stock, and the stock is dinged up a lot), missing bayonet and the dust cover pin retaining pin is broken off (still works and retains the dust cover, which is a really tight fit, but a replacement retainer pin would be nice eventually, for someone who wants it just right).

    Anyway, I got the Lee dies cheap ($19), components to reload it fairly cheap (I think I paid $60 for the 100 pre-primed cases and 250 bullets) and I am in another $5 for a lee shell holder and $11 on the FCD (turns out all I have is a Lyman #1, which is supposedly 38spc/357 only. I've been using it for 6.5 grendel. Lyman #3 is for 6.5 grendel and 7.62x39, which is a bit odd as Lee and Lyman are the only two that have seperate shell holders for 38 and 7.62x39. Hornady, RCBS and I think Redding use the same shell holder for 38spc as 7.62x39. So I figured screw it, get the "proper" shell holder to go with Lee's dies and caliber).
     

    BUFF7MM

    ☠Buff➐㎣☠
    Mar 4, 2009
    13,576
    Garrett County
    Ok so I’ve run out of pills to load and have stooped to seating these in cases, do you think I’ll get any Keyholing? :innocent0
     

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    Melnic

    Ultimate Member
    MDS Supporter
    Dec 27, 2012
    15,278
    HoCo
    Ok so I’ve run out of pills to load and have stooped to seating these in cases, do you think I’ll get any Keyholing? :innocent0

    Try putting some screws into a boards an shoot at it.
    If you try to shoot a Phillips head screw on a board, a flat head will come out.
    If you try to shoot a flat head screw on a board, a Phillips will come out
    If you try to shoot a Hex head screw, a Torx will come out
    If you try to shoot a Torx head screw, a Hex will come out
    If you try to shoot a spanner head screw, a jelly bean will come out
     

    rob

    DINO Extraordinaire
    Oct 11, 2010
    3,099
    Augusta, GA
    Ok so I’ve run out of pills to load and have stooped to seating these in cases, do you think I’ll get any Keyholing? :innocent0
    Got to be careful reusing those cop killer bullets you find laying around on the ground of your local gas station... ;)

    Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk
     

    guzma393

    Active Member
    Jan 15, 2020
    736
    Severn, MD
    Case feeder stopped working and went to clear out the jam and this little bugger fell out. I was expecting a few bugs out of lee progressive presses but this is ridiculous...
    aabebecfd5d834bb9c12f9a73a3edb10.jpg


    Sent from my Moto G (5) Plus using Tapatalk
     

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