Sizing for Varying Chamber Sizes

[Walt]

Last weekend I got out and shot a couple of boxes of .41 mag, one box in my Smith model 657 and the other in a Ruger Blackhawk. After I had reloaded a couple of rounds, I checked to see if they would chamber in my Ruger. They did not, coming within a quarter inch of dropping into the cylinder.

The chambers of the Smith are larger than those of the Ruger and loading on a Dillon 550, the carbide sizing die does not go down far enough to size down the little bulge remaining near the rim of the case. I have experienced this in loading .45 Colt as well so I took the depriming pin out of my sizing die, screwed it into my single stage press, put a stout washer on my shellholder and pushed the cases all the up into the die until the bulge was straightened. The problem with that is removing the cases in the absence of a shellholder. I initially used a punch and hammer to drive out the cases but felt uncomfortable hammering on my cases.

I suppose I could simply mark my boxes of ammo, "Smith only" or "Ruger only" but I prefer being able to load them in either brand.

I made up a device which allows me to use a lever to remove the cases and the setup works quite well.

[ywaltzucanrknrl]

I've had the same issue. In some cases I've just used a steel die instead of a carbide die to size as they will generally size a little lower on the case.

I've also ground off the base of some steel dies to get them to size down further on the case.

[black river smith]

Interesting 'contraption' to press out the cases from the sizer die. Definitely appears that it will work to do the job without 'extreme pressures' to the brass.

[GunnyMack]

Try a different shell holder? I know RCBS,LEE, HORNADY all have different height shell holders.

[Walt]

I load all my pistol calibers on Dillon 550s.

[Scott Tschirhart]

Necessity is the mother of invention.

I’ve not run into this problem and I load almost exclusively on an old Dillon 550.

However, I find that I need two different shellholders to load .480 Ruger ammo. The Hornady brass uses one and the Starline brass uses another.

[LeverGunner]

Nice looking shell puncher-outer Scott.

I would try thinning a shell holder and see if I could get them to size suitably that way.

Lyman's ram prime die has a solid shell holder that's quite handy too. Sure beats using a washer if you have many to do.

[Walt]

Good suggestion, Levergunner. I had thought of grinding down an unused shellholder but it's good to know a factory-made blank shellholder is available. Thanks

[J Miller]

Pick up a Lee Factory Crimp die, take out the crimping part and the bottom carbide ring will size the cases all the way down to the solid part of the head. I've done this on .45 Colt cases with good results.


Joe

[Walt]

Thanks, Joe.

I have a Lee factory crimp die but with it screwed all the way down to touch the shellholder plate on my Dillon it still doesn't size the brass down enough. Or did I miss something? I was unaware that their factory crimp dies have a carbide ring.

[Bronco]

I remember that one time I put the die into a drill press and with a file at the bottom removed a few thousandths to remedy the problem