Resizing issue

[grizlywinkleman]

I have a set of dies from CH tool and die corp. in 300 wby mag. Does anyone have any experience with this company? When I try to re-size my brass they keep getting stuck in the dies. I've tried three different lubes but I can not get around this problem, it just keeps happening. Although I have had these dies for a while, its my first time using them. I'm not sure if I'm doing something wrong or what? I've never experienced this issue. Any help is much appreciated.

Thanks
Ryan

 

[rscott5028]

Have you disassembled the dies and cleaned them?

Can you tell of they've been scratched or scored inside?

When you did get your cases unstuck, did you measure to see if they come out with proper dimensions?

Imperial Sizing Wax is pretty good stuff.

 

[Bullet bumper]

I agree that the dies may still have transport grease inside them that has gone dry . If they are new but have not been used at all and stored the grease can dry and become a problem.
Also the brass may be dirty . Polish up the brass with fine steel wool and wipe them off .
Dismantle the die. Get a wad of fine steel wool and wrap it around a stick ( wood only ) and wet it with bore solvent . Then scrub out the die push up hard so some of the steel wool goes up into the neck area . Then wash it out with Turpentine or some solvent. Inspect the inside of the die if it looks smooth it should be ok. Lengthwise scratches will not cause sticking cases , they mark brass though. Circular reamer marks or scores can cause case sticking .
Use a purpose made sizing lube . I like RCBS liquid .
Also make sure you are doing your sizing at the top of the press ram travel stroke so that when it comes time to extract you have good leverage .

 

[Gene]

CH Tool and Die Co. went out of business about 40 years ago. I still have several sets of their dies and a case trimmer (it is a exact duplicate of the Wilson trimmer). I agree with the suggested cleaning methods. You might want to replace the dies with something newer.

 

[Bullet bumper]

Wideners still sell them Widener's Reloading and Shooting Supply INC

From Wideners site , " CH/4D was formed in 1990 when CH Tool & Die and 4D Custom Die Co. merged. This merger combined the standard caliber product line and 5 decades of industry experience from CH with the hard to find product list and short run production know how of 4D," End Quote.

This seems to indicate that Ch tool and die was still around in 1990 in some form. I was still buying their products in the mid 80's .

 

[Gene]

Well, I learn something new every day. I googled them. Had no idea they were still in business - I have not seen their ad anywhere in many years. Now, they even produce bushing dies. I wonder why they don't advertise? Looks like they are doing a lot of custom speciality work. Thanks for the heads up.

 

[boomtube]

"When I try to re-size my brass they keep getting stuck in the dies. I've tried three different lubes but I can not get around this problem, it just keeps happening. Although I have had these dies for a while, its my first time using them. I'm not sure if I'm doing something wrong or what?"

The original CH company was a pioneer in reloading and made very high quality tools. Of course you could replace them with a lesser qualty modern made die set.

Cases stick in dies for one reason; improper lubing. Either the lube is wrong or improperly applied; usually the latter.

Clean the die's interior and then lube the lower/thicker part of your cases well, you won't have any more trouble.

 

[grizlywinkleman]

I have been lubing my brass with rcbs lube pad and lube, and I have tryed Lyman motor mica, and Lee lube. I will clean the heck out of my dies and inspect them and my brass as soon as I can. I HATE steel-wool but I will do what I have to do. It is like nails on a chock board to me.

Thanks for all the great advise. Some things just aren't in reloading books.

Ryan

 

[bassin93]

and definitely try the imperial resizing wax like rscott mentioned. I have used it since 1980 and have found nothing better for tough resizing.

The rcbs is crap and I have stuck more cases with it then anything else. The Hornaday One shot is good but like I said above, Imperial, nothing better

 

[SidecarFlip]

I'm anal about surface finish as it pertains to loading dies (and other things too).

I want the interior of my dies to have a mirror like surface because the more polished the interior is, the less chance of a stuck case and I dislke scratched brass so I always clean them (brass) prior to sizing, in fact, I'll tumble prior to decapping and maybe tumble again, I like shiny and clean.....

What I do with dies is I take a small (fairly tight fitting) felt bob and put it on a screw mandrel and chuck the mandrel in a die grinder. Then I put a tiny amount of Clover Fine Lapping Compound on the felt bob and run it up inside the die and polish the interior to a mirror finish and inspect the interior with a bore scope. Probably a bit anal on my part but I've never had a stuck case and my brass always gets resized with no scratches plus I don't bust a nut resizing even large magnum cases....

I don't want to experience a stuck case. I hear they aren't too bad to get out but I've never had to unstuck one....yet.

.......and I use Hornady One Shot.

 

[grizlywinkleman]

Well I tried to clean my dies and brass with 0000 steel wool but I am still having the same issue. My brass got shinier and my dies definitely look a lot cleaner inside. When I look inside the sizer die there is some very light horizontal rings, but they all look like machining marks. I looked at another set of my dies and they had the same marks just maybe a little more faint.

My brass measures out just fine although I cant really measure the weatherby shoulder to accurately.

I was unable to find any felt bobs or clover fine lapping compound at any of the hardware stores, but I may be able to find something similar in the coming day or two. I didn't even know what a felt bob was until I googled it.

I'm starting to think the dies are just poorly made? Not sure? Hopefully I will figure this out.

Trying to post pics, my computer is acting goofy.

Thanks
Ryan

 

[grizlywinkleman]

Top piece of brass has not been ran through the die, second was ran through without using steel wool, and the third was ran through after cleaning with steel wool. Shoulder looks a little off on the second piece also??? I stopped early on the third.

I noticed that the only scratches on the brass are vertical and their are none horizontal.

 

[esshup]

Ryan:

Couple of things.

1) What case lube are you using? If using a spray-on lube, are you waiting for the carrier to evaporate before resizing?

2) How old is the brass?

3) Is the brass clean before it sees the die?

4) Forgive me for asking this, but has anyone showed you how to resize/reload, and is this your first reloading experience?

5) Have used these dies before without problems?

I have some OLD .257 Wby brass made by Speer. The shoulder on that brass is considerably different than the stuff you get today.

I stuck my first case trying to resize some .45-70 brass that was probably 100 years old. It squeaked and squawked when going in the die, even with Imperial, and I eventually ripped the rim off one piece, sticking it in the die. I needed a LOT of pressure on the die to size them, while new once fired brass resized with 2 fingers. I think it had something to do with the age of the brass.

 

[grizlywinkleman]

I am using rcbs lube and pad, the brass is once fired factory ammo from about 2 years ago, I tried brass uncleaned, tumbled, and scrubed with steel-wool. Same results. I have been reloading for about 2 1/2 years now. I reload for seven different cartridges but I would still consider myself a rookie. I have never watched someone reload in person, but I have read all my books and I have a RCBS reloading video that I still watch from time to time. I have never used these dies before. My other posts go in to a little more detail.

Thanks