I have a Reloading problem I need help to solve.

I just ordered me a
Belted Magnum
Collet Resizing Die Innovative Technologies - Reloading Equipment

It cost me $106.00 with shipping. I will let you all know how it works out when i get it. I am still sending my RCBS die back in hopes that a die custom to my gun will be just a little more accurate. Wish me luck.
 
Tall said:
I just ordered me a
Belted Magnum
Collet Resizing Die Innovative Technologies - Reloading Equipment

It cost me $106.00 with shipping. I will let you all know how it works out when i get it. I am still sending my RCBS die back in hopes that a die custom to my gun will be just a little more accurate. Wish me luck.
Click to expand...

If you have a friend that has a lathe or else access to a Sunnen Hone, make a simple case gauge to slide over your brass, You want an I.D. of about .513" / .514", and it needs to only be about a half inch wide. You can simply slide this over the top of the case and take it all the way down to the belt. If it stops before the belt, your case has grown enough to where it needs to be resized all the way to the belt. You can buy a needle bearing inner race that's already done for about $5, or hunt up a 13mm drill bushing. This is far faster than setting there with a caliper measuring cases, and a little more accurate. But on the otherhand a standard 12mm bushing is a little too large to check Mauser cases as it's about .472".
gary
 
I have solved my problem!

The problem is the head space is too long. the OAL to the shoulder was too long to fit in my gun properly. I was able to had to buy a bushing for my Hornady lock N Load OAL gauge. I took allot of measurements of the brass that wouldn't fit in my gun and the brass that would go in with a perfect fit.

The solution is to Anneal the brass and bring the properties of the brass to a softer and workable property. I tested this on several different brass. I heated the top third of the brass on my gas stove in my cordless drill until i got a light pink color on the brass. I then moved it to the sink and ran some hot water over it to cool it down. I then put the brass through the resizing die after lubing it up of course. Now the brass will perfectly go in my gun without any effort.

Now I need to figure out how to do a proper anneal on all of my brass. Some of the automated cool looking anneal machines are very expensive. I don't feel I have the experience to do this by hand watching the color or timer. If anybody has a good suggestion on an affordable machine I'm all ears.

Thank you for all of your input. I have learned allot through this process and i feel I will be an even more accurate re-loader and shooter through this whole process.
Tall
 
by quenching your hot brass in water or oil you have hardened it not annealed it. After heating the top third let it air cool then resize :rolleyes:
Don't worry about the expensive annealing gadgets. They work great but doing it by hand works just as well.
I use a small kitchen torch (used for crème brule and stuff like that) and to hold the brass I use spark plug plyers. After I heat up by brass I lay then down on the cement floor in my garage.
 
Last edited:
Annealing by hand is simple,after a few times you will get more comfortable with the process. Tip: use a propane torch in stead of a burner,it will be much faster. 2nd anneal in a darkened room. As soon as the neck starts to glow drop the case in cold water. After you get the hang of it,it will take about 8-10 sec a case. Also turn the brass slowly ie. 1-3 rotations a sec. It will heat up quicker. Good luck
 
I have seen videos on both ways, some quench and some air cool. Is there really a right or wrong way. I am amazed at the difference it made annealing the brass. I went and dug out the propane torch, It was pretty fast and hopefully I didn't over anneal any brass. I guess if I did then no big deal. Just wont last quite as long.

Now that that is done, my next firing I plan to be really particular when resizing them to try and get the head space to a -.001 than the head space in my gun.
 
g0rd0 said:
by quenching your hot brass in water or oil you have hardened it not annealed it. After heating the top third let it air cool then resize :rolleyes:
Don't worry about the expensive annealing gadgets. They work great but doing it by hand works just as well.
I use a small kitchen torch (used for crème brule and stuff like that) and to hold the brass I use spark plug plyers. After I heat up by brass I lay then down on the cement floor in my garage.
Click to expand...
Quenching brass does not harden it, on steel or most other metals it does but not brass. That said i do let my brass air dry after annealing on my benchsource.
 
What about using an air compressor and a air nozzle to cool the brass off after its annealed? How warm would the base have to get to be in the danger zone? I guess doing it the way some do were they have the bottom 2/3rds in water and then dump them over to quench the brass takes any worry out of the base getting to hot. I don't think it really matters which method a person uses as long as they are consistent and the heat doesn't travel to far down the brass.
 
jasent said:
Imo air cooling can allow heat to travel in to the shoulders. Water dropping works best for me
Click to expand...
I tested this, i painted a strip of 475* tempilaq (i believe brass starts to anneal at like 470 or 480*) all the way down the case and a strip of 675* tempilaq on the neckof some 22-250 brass. I then heated the case using my benchsource until the 675* melted. I then let the case air cool. The 475* melted about 3/8 of an inch below the shoulder.
 
Tall said:
I have seen videos on both ways, some quench and some air cool. Is there really a right or wrong way. I am amazed at the difference it made annealing the brass. I went and dug out the propane torch, It was pretty fast and hopefully I didn't over anneal any brass. I guess if I did then no big deal. Just wont last quite as long.

Now that that is done, my next firing I plan to be really particular when resizing them to try and get the head space to a -.001 than the head space in my gun.
Click to expand...

it's an absolute no no to let a piece of brass air cool after annealing. The heat will transfer on towards the base and soften the part you don't want to touch. Reason I said cold water was to shock the brass and stopping the heat transfer. Everybody has their own personal way to do this process, but I prefer to keep the heat in the necks and about two thirds of the shoulder. The heat will transfer very fast, and by the time it's quenched the anneal process hould be slightly into the first .150" of the case body itself or maybe even a little less if I work fast enough.

I don't use a torch, because it's harder to get a very even heat without heating the entire case body. I feel that if the brass is softer in some areas it will effect the performance of the case. I use the burner on an electric range with a plate that has down pins pressed in it. Once the plate gets hot enough I simply slip the cases over the down pins and watch a welder's temp stick line. After a few cases you start to build up a rythem, and about every six or eight seconds your dropping a case in cold water. I use a 450 degree stick, but have used 500 degree sticks as well.
gary
 
Hi, did you check your case lenght. Also check your case neck when seating your bullet may have gotten disformed.

Mike
 
That was one of the first things I checked was my case length. The 7mm remington Mag case Max length is 2.5" I trimed everything back to 2.490" according to the speer manual. As soon as I annealed all the brass casings that wouldnt fit, I was able to full length size them and now they all fit perfect. I think the brass was just too hard to resize. Now I see how important it is to anneal brass. To maintain acurasy I plan to check the head space after a brass is fired and then reduce the brass head space by .001". I will also use Larrywillis.com belted magnum collet resizing die.Cost me $106.00 might as well put it to good use.
 
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