ordering my first press tomorrow and need a few tips to get started

[blitz]

got a set of lee rgb dies and for some reason i just cant get the sizing die set right, it doesnt seem like it will adjust down far enough

 

[blitz]

im a little baffled it seems like no matter how far i adjust it, it will not change the headspace according to my dillon 223 case gauge, i have about 6,000 rounds of fired brass and according to the case gauge only about 200 of them have the wrong headspace.
i am just wondering if the lee sizing dies are junk or if i am doing something wrong.
i have adjusted it in every way possible and used plenty of lube while resizing so i dont think it is an error on my part, most likely i will go for the hornady dies and get another 100 free bullets out of the deal

 

[aboveandbeyond]

Give me a call. I should be able to help you 503 658 6336 Tom

 

[aboveandbeyond]

All major brand dies work fine. Some of the Lee products are considered "Cheap" but the dies are almost universally considered excellent. Are you using a full length sizing die(not neck size)? If you put the shell plate all the way up(handle down) and screw the die down until it touches the shell plate, you should be good to go. I have some Hornady 223 dies you are welcome to try if you think that will help.

 

[blitz]

another thing.... the press came with 2 primer sliders (supposed to be one for large and one for small) the hole on both of them are the same size (both large i think) are the holes on the small primer sliders supposed to be smaller?
it just seems kinda weird that they have one made for each but the holes would be the same size if that is the case..

 

[deadshot2]

Carefully read the sheet that came with the Lee dies. If you are only screwing the die down until it just touches the shell plate you haven't adjusted it properly. Lee dies call for another 1/4-1/2 turn so that any slack in the press is accounted for. If you don't you won't be forming the case with proper headspace. Not too bad if you are sizing brass fired in YOUR Bolt Action rifle. If it is an auto loader you need to make sure that the die is screwed down the extra amount.

I use Lee Dies exclusively for all my .223 loading on my Dillon XL-650. You can pay more for a set of dies but for this application you won't get a better die.

 

[aboveandbeyond]

I agree with "Deadshot". The shell plate does need to be under a little load. The handle will feel some release as it passes top dead center.

 

[blitz]

i tried adjusting it is far down as it goes with no change.

 

[deadshot2]

i tried adjusting it is far down as it goes with no change.

Next question. Is the case not going all the way into your headspace gauge so that the head is flush? If so, try inserting just the head of the case in the gauge, just the part of the head below the extractor groove. If it does not go into the gauge, your brass has been "overpressured" and the head has expanded. At least this is the most common cause among military brass. I merely take a fine, flat file, and "dress" the circumference of the case head. In most cases it's only a couple of thousandth's too large for the headspace gauge. I loaded a few thousand rounds and didn't even notice this until I started using the headspace gauge. The rounds still functioned fine, they just wouldn't fit into the gauge fully.

Just try the case in the gauge backwards, and again, just the extractor rim. You'll probably find the answer to your problem.

 

[blitz]

just wanted to say that i got the rcbs small base die set and the sizing die works great, so there was something wrong with the lee sizing die but i do prefer the lee seating die over the rcbs.
also i loaded my first 100 and took them out yesterday, didnt have 1 single problem with any of them through 3 AR's.
shot them through a mega, a dpms orcle and a suppressed dpms
i was using 55gr hornady fmjbt's, cci primers and varget powder.
10x 23.5gr
10x 24gr
and 80x 25gr
was having alot of problems with the lee beam scale i got so i dont know if those were perfect, i couldnt for the life of me keep it zeroed
the reason i made 80 of the 25's is because that was about the middle load so i was pretty sure they were gonna work well.

 

[aboveandbeyond]

So far, so good. Beam scales can be affected by static and mechanical malfunction. Generally they are more reliable(IMHO) than electronic scales but the electronic scales can be more accurate and sensitive. I know many will disagree. An unreliable scale is unacceptable- just too important. As long as you are loading varget, you will not be in danger of over charge as 24 grains is near the top. Still, I expect you will get the scale issue resolved. You are probably already doing this- check new loads for signs of preassure. There are many photos on the net with tutorials on the subject. There is no use in hot loads for target shooting. Yes, the miltary teams load very hot 600 yard loads for competition but it did not seem nessesary to me. I attained Master class with an AR and never loaded more than 24 grains of Varget with 69, 77 and 80 grain bullets. Thanks for the follow up. Was wondering about you today when I was working away on my reloading equipment.

 

[scrappydoo]

I noticed with my Lee scale that there's enough play in the arm that it can sometimes rub on the left side near the magnet. Before you zero it, try to center it and make sure it moves freely. Once I figured that out it holds zero perfectly for me.

 

[ron]

just wanted to say that i got the rcbs small base die set and the sizing die works great, so there was something wrong with the lee sizing die but i do prefer the lee seating die over the rcbs.
also i loaded my first 100 and took them out yesterday, didnt have 1 single problem with any of them through 3 AR's.
shot them through a mega, a dpms orcle and a suppressed dpms
i was using 55gr hornady fmjbt's, cci primers and varget powder.
10x 23.5gr
10x 24gr
and 80x 25gr
was having alot of problems with the lee beam scale i got so i dont know if those were perfect, i couldnt for the life of me keep it zeroed
the reason i made 80 of the 25's is because that was about the middle load so i was pretty sure they were gonna work well.

Congratulations good job. Maybe the scale problem is due to how Varget varys in a powder thrower? Varget is a great powder but it is one of the worst I have try ed for consistent metering.
Don't get me wrong I love the powder but it does not meter very consistent +/- .2 grains. I use Varget for 69s
and heavier bullets. I found excellent accuracy with W748 and H335 in the 55 and lighter bullets. Both of these powders meter precisely no variance. The Hornady 55's your using are a much more
accurate than winchester or remmington FMJ 55s.

 

[deadshot2]

Congratulations good job. Maybe the scale problem is due to how Varget varys in a powder thrower? Varget is a great powder but it is one of the worst I have try ed for consistent metering.

Varget is an extruded powder and doesn't meter well through any powder measure that relies on a slide, cylinder, or bushing to measure the charge. The electronic measures, where the powder is dispensed through a rotating tube, not unlike concrete being dispensed into a chute, don't have this problem. The other powders you mentioned are ball or spherical powders so they tend to flow better through the traditional measures.

The Hornady 55's your using are a much more
accurate than winchester or remmington FMJ 55s.

In speaking with Montana Gold, their 55 gr FMJ-BT has the same characteristics, (BC, SD, etc) as the Hornady bullet. Montana Gold is usually a lot less expensive.

 

[blitz]

well yet again more problems.
today my roomate and i were depriming and sizing brass, i was running the press and he was checking them all after with the case gauge.
but anyhow it was very hard to size them and i had to use alot of force (alot) so much that it broke a pawl actually i was thinking it was the new case lube, i was using rcbs but that ran out so i bought some hornady 1 shot case lube.
my roomate that was checking all the cases noticed that alot of them were dented around the neck, so i started checking the cases before running them through and found out it was the rcbs sizing die that was doing it, i noticed that if i took t he decapping pin out of it it would not do it.
so i used my lee die to decap and the rcbs just to size because for some reason the lee die wont size the cases.
i am wondering if anyone else has had this problem and maybe the decapping pin got bent somehow.
i also noticed that the lee sizing die puts alot of scratches down the neck and am wondering if this is normal for these dies because the rcbs one does not do that.

i took a couple pics the ones on the left are the ones that got bent by the decapping pins somehow and the ones on the right are the ones that got scratched in the lee die i also took a close up of the scrathes because the first pic did not get them well.
Imageshack - dscf2196a.jpg
Imageshack - dscf2204w.jpg

but i did resize and deprime about 200 rounds at the start with the rcbs die with no problems so i am kinda wondering what happened.
just happy i noticed it within like 20 rounds or so

 

[Browning55]

Sounds like you may have some buildup inside the die that needs to be cleaned out. Take it apart, remove any accumulated junk so it's back to new dimensions and it should work as it did originally.

 

[blitz]

yeah i forgot to say i took it apart and cleaned it all inside and put it back together and it was still doing it, that was when i took the pin out and it stopped doing it after that

 

[Browning55]

Hmmm - that is a puzzler since the decapping pin has nothing to do with "denting" the cases from the outside. Something obviously changed since you first started using the die which is why the first suspect would be buildup inside the sizing die. Never had that happen before. Will see if anyone else has encountered such a thing.

 

[blitz]

yeah it doesnt make to much sense to me at all, i took it all apart and didnt notice any imperfections just a little dirty so i cleaned it with hornady 1 shot dry lube and put it back together and the same thing until i took the decapping pin out, then i went through about another 30-40 rounds with no problems

 

[scrappydoo]

How many cases have you resized? I've done about 200 and have barely used any of my RCBS lube. I think you're using way too much if you've run out already.