Cleaning re-sizing dies
- Thread starter baydog
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dok7mm
Well-Known Member
Pretty much after every loading session, unless I'm going to use a particular set of dies, in short order. It's a quick process, with Hoppes and a few patches. Good insurance against getting a sliver of brass out, before you end up scratching your brass. Seems like gritty little bits like to hide in your dies and mess things up.
I take em apart to observe dirt and debris before use. I use spray brake cleaner and a Q tip or cleaning patch on a brush to remove the crud.
I don't clean them that often. my brass is squeaky clean before it gets near them. About every 3 months I pull them down and swab them out with bore cleaner. I use the boretech eliminator but any of them will work fine. Now I wouldn't use sweets or any other copper remover.
Thanks dok7mm. Thats exactly whats happing too, starting to see some scratches And I have a bit of brass built up inside and it's a bear to get out because it's packed in there so hard. I know I'll get flamed for saying this but I have never really cleaned them. At the end of hunting season I usely spray some WD40 up in them to prevent rust but each year I fine myself useing them longer and longer after season goes out, I just like loading and shooting and it keeps me out of trouble until fishing season gets here...lol..Is there a good brass solvent you recomend because I really don't want to be scraping the inbedded brass out, I got a mostly RCBS dies but do have a pair of older weatherby dies that were my Dads and would like to keep them forever if possible.
Thanks
Scotty
Frank in the Laurels
Well-Known Member
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- Jul 15, 2007
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- 1,753
I never clean them...except for my Borden 6 PPC dies...... I have at least 40 different sets with 90% being RCBS and Belding and Mull that haven't been touched in almost 50 years of use...all that lube and dry tabs keep them from ever rusting...good as new and never had an issue.. Believe it or not I got a RCBS lube pad about 75. Squeezed the entire tube of lube on it and still use it to this day, 41 years and 10's of thousands of rounds over it...was white but now dark with tons of moly powder from the necks infused in it..
Wado
Well-Known Member
Never use Scotch Brite pads to clean them, they can scratch. I was converting .223 to .300 Blackout and was running brass that had been acid cleaned but not polished and clogged the vent hole in my die with junk so that's something to watch for. I started de-burring and polishing after sawing the brass and that eliminated the problem. I store my dies in a climate controlled room with a dehumidifier in the cabinet so they don't rust also. All of my Wilson tools get wiped down with Rusteprufe before I put them away. Part of living on the Gulf Coast.
jasent
Well-Known Member
I use flitz and a wool mop chucked in the cordless drill. Low speed and lil back and forth and it comes out spick n span
Thanks everyone. I've got about 10 set of dies most of them RCBS and have never really cleaned them and was starting to feel guilty about not really taking care of them but them never really giving me a problem. I got some dies that are at least 25 years old that I bought new and thought I might pay them back for working without a problem all these years. I think a bigger size bore brush, a little bit of solvent and a little spray of lube and they'll go another 25 years.
Thanks again
Scotty
Thanks again
Scotty
