Getting Ready To Reload The 7.62x54R

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JimT
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Joined: Thu Sep 06, 2007 5:04 pm

Getting Ready To Reload The 7.62x54R

Post by JimT »

I started by cleaning the cases I fired the other day in my case cleaner. It's an old RCBS vibrating unit that I bought going on 25 years ago. The motor wore out and I replaced the motor last year and it is still going strong!

When I had the brass cleaned I started re-sizing and depriming them. During the process I found a 3 cases that had neck cracks. One had started to split on the case mouth and will still work for light lead loads if I don't work the brass too much. The other 2 had cracks in the middle of the neck. I think this is from (1) oversize chamber (2) or a tight die. I haven't reloaded these more than 3 or 4 times.
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So I decided to anneal the remaining cases. I set them in water that was about 1/3 of the case length deep, heated the necks with a torch and tipped them over to cool them. You don't need to tip them over into the water if you don't want to. It does not help with annealing. It is the heating that does the work of annealing. The main thing is you do not want to heat the cartridge case body.
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Some dip the cartridge neck in molten lead and I guess that will work. I find it much easier to use a torch. BUT ... I rarely do any annealing! This is the first time in 20-some years that I have done it and I have been reloading pretty consistently since the early 1960's.

We will see if it makes any difference with these PPU cases.
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GunnyMack
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Re: Getting Ready To Reload The 7.62x54R

Post by GunnyMack »

My 257 AI is notorious for split necks, I also took to annealing necks. I use a low flame with a torch but I hold the case and when I feel heat I dip the case, head up into water. Since I started doing that I haven't had a neck split. Though I dont shoot it much!
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2ndovc
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Re: Getting Ready To Reload The 7.62x54R

Post by 2ndovc »

I get a lot of splits with the older European brass that I've been using over the years. I bought a couple hundred new Privi Partizan last year and haven't had any split so far, but I probably should do that with the next batch. The only cartridge cases that I've ever annealed have been for the .35 WCF. I'd bought some Bertram brass from an old timer at a show years ago, and he'd suggested that I do so and wouldn't have any split cases. So far he's been right. I lose more brass from that nuclear powered ejector in that '95 than I've had split or damaged.

Glad you're enjoying the Mosin. For what ever reason, they and the Enfields have always been my favorite shooters.

Heading out to the range tomorrow morning with the Marlin I picked up last week. :D

jb 8)
jasonB " Another Dirty Yankee"


" Tomorrow the sun will rise. Who knows what the tide could bring?"
Bronco
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Re: Getting Ready To Reload The 7.62x54R

Post by Bronco »

I have a wildcat cartridge, a 20 Vartarg, that was splitting the necks! I knew the chamber was alright, it was the resizing die that was resizing the neck too much and the the expander ball was stretching, with difficulty, back to a larger diameter. It was working the neck brass way to much. I bought a RCBS bushing sizer die where you can get different size bushings. Now the neck is sized to where the finished diameter is 0.002" less than a fire case. The bullet is held firmly, the expander just barely drags back out of the neck and my neck splitting went from splitting after 2 or 3 reloads to where I am going on the 6th or 7th reload with almost no splitting! I'm just saying :)
Gettin old ain't for sissies!
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