HELP my first stuck case

[Lonewolf74]

Ok got a stuck case and the big problem is screwing the decap expander assembly up as far as it will go still leaves a little of the decaping rod sticking out the bottom of the brass. How am I suppose to drill that? Is there a way to remove it without drilling?

 

[Rich Coyle]

Interesting. What brand of die?

 

[Gord0]

You should be able to unscrew it all the was and pull it up until the expander ball is at the neck

 

[Lonewolf74]

It's a forster FL die and I can pull it up till the expander hits the neck but even at that point the decap rod is still sticking through the flash hole, about even with the bottom of the case.

I was gonna take the decap rod off cus I use a universal decap die and don't need it in my sizing die...now I really wish I actually did it.

Only thing I can think of is to try and tap it out with the decaping rod assembly but I'm afraid of wrecking my die

 

[WildRose]

It's a forster FL die and I can pull it up till the expander hits the neck but even at that point the decap rod is still sticking through the flash hole, about even with the bottom of the case.

I was gonna take the decap rod off cus I use a universal decap die and don't need it in my sizing die...now I really wish I actually did it.

Only thing I can think of is to try and tap it out with the decaping rod assembly but I'm afraid of wrecking my die

Hmm, never seen that.

I'd just cut off the decapping rod, then pull up the expander ball and drill away.

I don't see how you could wreck the die using the rod assembly as a punch to tap it out. I guess it's possible you could damage the threads a bit but I doubt you could do it to the point of making it unusable.

 

[LoneTraveler]

Do you know if the de-capping pin has a head on it? And does the inside sizing button holds the pin tight? You may be able to pull the de-capping rod up and wedge it in the neck of the case,Loosen the sizing button, Then run the de-capping rod down then clamp a vice grip on the decapping pin and remove it to give you enough room to drill the case. Remove the whole de-capping rod out through the drilled hole. This giving you room to tap and run bolt in to remove stuck case. Accomplished this move on a RCBS 222 Rem. die years ago. Good Luck on this Boo Boo.

 

[Barrelnut]

Think you have this problem because Forster dies have the expander ball way up high on the expander rod. This is something they do because it supposedly lessens neck runout. I would try to adjust the die so that the decapping pin was sticking out of the flash hole as far as it would go and then cut it off. Maybe then run the rod back out as far as it will go and see if you now have enough room to tap the case.

 

[sedancowboy]

The big selling point of the Forster Dies is that the Expander ball is at the top of the rod to keep it better aligned with the neck thus causing less run out. So you can't back it off.
On Forsters web site is a drawing of the inside of the die. As someone else mentioned pull the pin out with vise grips It may have a head on it I could not tell from the drawing.
The good news is a replacement rod assembly is only $16.

 

[sedancowboy]

I found the instructions on Forsters web site.

[URL="http://www.forsterproducts.com/pdf/instructions/stuck_case_remover_sc1000-001.pdf"

 

[Lonewolf74]

Thankyou for all the responses guy's. After it happened the first thing I did is go on forster's sight and I be danged the sight wouldn't come up. So I looked at the die for a while tried to see if I could wiggle the case loose with chanel locks...then put it away and didn't look at it for the rest of the night. So I'll see what the instructions are on forster's sight and go from there. Just cutting as much of the expander rod off as I can is a great idea though...in my frustration I wasn't coming up with any ideas that didn't involve smashing stuff lol.

Thanks again guy's

 

[waltercrouse]

I have had stuck cases :

A) Drill the primer pocket with #7 drill bit . Be careful if you drill to deep you screw up the unthreaded expander still inside the case.

B) Tap the drilled primer pocket with a 1/4-20 tap to thread the casing.

C) Take a socket that will go a round the outside of the case ,it will need clearance to have the stuck case move out the die's neck area

D) You will need a bolt with long threads for 1/4-20 with two each nuts and large flat washer to be used to put pressure on the socket.

E) Thread the bolt thru the hole of the socket into the threaded casing and apply pressure . You need two wrenches to remove the case from the die. Once the case is removed ,a hacksaw will be needed to cut the case to remove the stuck expander ball. The case will be vertical and cut the top of the case not to damage the free floating expander ball.

This a pain in the *** to do ,but it can done. RCBS I think sells a stuck case kit. This what I came up with and it works.

 

[Lonewolf74]

Thanks all for the help. I looked at the forster removal system it pulls the expander decap assembly out from the top of the die then you tap the case out with a steel rod they provide. I like the idea but then I'd have to wait to get the kit.

So my dilemma now is do I wait to get the kit or do I just cut the decap pin off and drill and tap the case, I could get that done and be back in business tonight?

Starting to develop a love hate relationship with this reloading stuff!

 

[gohring3006]

You can try to put it in the freezer for a couple of hours, then take it out and spray penetrating oil around the case and the top of the die where the decapping pin goes in getting the oil in inside the die. Do this all while it's really cold. Then screw it in your press upside down, and heat the die not the case with a torch, get some pliers and try and turn the case head as your heating it. This worked for me once, after that I bought a RCBS stuck case remover.

 

[Rich Coyle]

gohring3006,

Clever.