Reloading 300 Weatherby

[stlbndr]

Just started loading my 300 wby and I'm have an issue. On the down stroke of the seating die I noticed that the bullet was being held by the die and pulling it out a little. So I thought that if I just adjust the die down a little more it would crimp more and all would be fine. NOT SO MUCH!!! Infact what is hapening is the brass is getting crushed where the neck and shoulder meet. I haven't been able to put one out yet without destroying my brass. Any info would be greatly apreciated.

 

[REDHEAD]

Interesting; I haven't had that problem. Of late I have a problem with the size die . Seems to drag right away to the point I don't want to force it. I'm talking about a 1/3 of the way down. You mensioned something about crimping? Maybe your not reaming the inside neck case good enough ? I haven't found any reason to crimp rifle shells. Can tell you never crimp an auto pistol case. I'll follow your post. Hope you get it resolved fast. Good luck.

 

[stlbndr]

Yeh I don't crimp rifle loads normaly also. But since the die was pulling the bullet out I thought I would give it a try. So I guess my real problem is that the die is pulling the bullet out of the brass on the down stroke. I can adjust the die to stop smashing the brass but then the bullet comes out. Could I be having a problem with my size die? On the seating die I lower the die until it touches the brass then adjust the seat until I get the max recamended bullet length. At this setting it pulls the bullet out. On the size die I raise the shell holder all the way up then lower the die until it touches and tighten it down. Then I adjust the primer pin until it nocks the primer out. This is my standard set up that I do on all of my dies. But it doesn't seem to be working on this round.

 

[stlbndr]

Redhead, I also forgot to mention that I have the same issue on my size die that you do. It feels like it's going to get stuck while i'm pussing in. I put a good amount of lube on my shells and it doesn't seem to be as bad but every shell has to be lubed well.

 

[backwoods83]

Use a neck die instead of a full length, weatherby cases do not need full length sized but once every 5 or 6 rounds, you do not have enough neck tension to hold the bullet, that is your issue, i'd almost bet you can push a bullet down in the case by hand and pull it back out with your fingers.

 

[jimbires]

I ran into this on my 300 wby . I was using nosler 180 grain balistic tips ,and I think accubonds too , with hornady dies . the bullet profile was not matching the bullet seating stem . the bullet was actually getting wedged into it .when I looked at a bullet that was stuck I could see a ring , scratch , around the ogive where the die was cutting in . Hornady makes other style seating stems to match bullets with different profiles . I bought a redding die set instead and it works fine . Jim

 

[stlbndr]

Backwood83, I think you hit the nail on the head. I am able to push the bullet in and pull it out with my fingers. I have been using a full length size die to size them. I will try a neck die instead. Thanks for your help it sounds like this will do the trick.

jimbires, you also have a very strong point that I am going to consider. I am using a Hornady die set. I didn't know that you could purchase different stems for different bullets. I am use Burger bullets mach grade 168 grain and also notice the cut that you are talking about. It cuts right into the ogive. Thanks for all of you guys input to my problem. I think I will have a much success after making these changes.

 

[jimbires]

here is a link to Hornadys' custom seating stem . jim


Hornady Manufacturing Company :: Reloading :: Metallic Reloading :: Dies & Die Accessories :: Die Accessories :: Miscellaneous Die Accessories

 

[stlbndr]

jimbires, thank you for doing the foot work in finding the insert and posting a link. I think I will also be able to find the neck sizer on the same website. When the two items come in and I try them out, I will repost my results. Thanks once again for all of your help.

 

[stlbndr]

So I went to my local gun store to purchase a neck sizing die. After the third shop I decided that i'm going to have to order one. When I made this decision, the guy behind the counter said they have an old reloading trick. Instead of bottoming out the sizing die to the shell holder place a nickle between them. This gap will make the sizing die only do a neck size. Has anyone tried this and does it realy work? I tried it but I can't tell if it's sizing the whole thing or just the neck. I seated a bullet into the shell and it feels way better then it did before but still not the way i'm used to.

 

[jimbires]

the coin trick is probably only allowing you to size the neck . the problem doing this is you will need to bump the shoulder back after 2 or 3 firings , or the brass case will be hard to chamber . you need a tool to measure case length with . RCBS doesn't make a precision mic for the 300wby , that I know of , I like these . I'm using the Hornady tool to measure my wby with . I'm also using a set of redding competition shell holders . I measure my case length to the shoulder on a fired case , then I resize with a .010 redding shell holder . if I didn't push the shoulder back .002 - .003 , I then use the .008 shell holder . I keep going shorter with the shell holders until I moved the case shoulder .002 - .003 . sizing like this the case will chamber easily and your brass life should be much longer .

setting the die up with the coin should not have changed your neck size , diameter . it should fit the bullet the same as when you were adjusted down tight . Jim

 

[stlbndr]

So with a neck sizing die does it size the neck and shoulder? Or just the neck? Will I have to run the brass through the full length sizer after so many shots also?

 

[jimbires]

So with a neck sizing die does it size the neck and shoulder? Or just the neck? Will I have to run the brass through the full length sizer after so many shots also?

a neck sizing die ONLY sizes the neck . it does nothing to the shoulder . when using a neck die , you will also need a body die , or full length die , to bump the shoulder back . or you can adjust the full length die to bump the shoulder back a couple thousandths and your doing both in one step .
yes you will need to bump the shoulder or your brass gets hard to chamber . I use a full length die so it gets bumped every time . first fired brass seldom needs the shoulder pushed back , ( bumped ) it hasn't grown enough yet . Jim

 

[stlbndr]

So correct me if I'm wrong but your saying I would be better off using my full length die allways but adjust it to so it touches the sholder and bump it back a couple of thousandths. So then I go back to my one of my first statments that redhead and I were talking about. When doing a full length size it almost feels like the brass is going to get stuck in the die. It actually squeals. I have to lube each one quite a bit to do the sizing. I will try the last step that you suggested and see if I get the same results. Maybe I'm trying to size them to much.