Reloading 7mm rem mag cases shot from a different rifle not recommended?

[tinymike66]

hello, So today I was at a gunsmiths
He told me never to reloaded once fired 7mm rem mag cases unless they have been shot out of the rifle originally shot from.
he said that the dies do not size far enough down the neck to allow proper head spacing and that all factory are under spec and that's why they fit.

what ya all think?

 

[rral22]

He's full of it and I suggest you never use him for any gunsmithing you may need.

 

[Suther]

He's full of it and I suggest you never use him for any gunsmithing you may need.

+1.

I'm not a wise old sage or anything, but I've never heard anything like that before. Time for a new smith.

Just to clarify, he's saying dies won't size it enough, and it won't fit in the chamber right??

 

[Kelly Timoffee]

He is not a gunsmith.

Please disregard info he has given you as I feel you may be put into a situation that could compromise your safety if you follow his advice.

 

[tinymike66]

I found it odd considering how many people buy once fired brass and use it.
I reloaded a few already and trust me they will be shot hen I go.

Thanks

 

[Dogleg]

This is likely a case of a tiny bit of truth getting blown into a big steaming pile of crap.

There's always the chance that a case fired in one rifle can't be sized to fit into another with a randomly selected FL die. They probably can, but we get about a thread a month with someone wondering why his range pickups or otherwise salvaged brass doesn't fit into his rifle. I know that even amongst my own rifles cases tired in some of them are going to be a snug fit in some of the others if they go at all. My small base .300 Win FL and SM body dies gets a fairly steady work-out putting a little extra squeeze on cases that need it. I've also more than paid for the Willis tool salvaging Weatherby brass from one rifle that wasn't going to chamber in another.

I'd like to talk to the gunsmith myself. He could just have been saying that on a tight chambered custom barrel you can't bet on salvaging every piece of crap range pickup you find. If that's the case he's right. Not everyone can explain everything to everyone.

 

[tinymike66]

This is likely a case of a tiny bit of truth getting blown into a big steaming pile of crap.

There's always the chance that a case fired in one rifle can't be sized to fit into another with a randomly selected FL die. They probably can, but we get about a thread a month with someone wondering why his range pickups or otherwise salvaged brass doesn't fit into his rifle. I know that even amongst my own rifles cases tired in some of them are going to be a snug fit in some of the others if they go at all. My small base .300 Win FL and SM body dies gets a fairly steady work-out putting a little extra squeeze on cases that need it. I've also more than paid for the Willis tool salvaging Weatherby brass from one rifle that wasn't going to chamber in another.

I'd like to talk to the gunsmith myself. He could just have been saying that on a tight chambered custom barrel you can't bet on salvaging every piece of crap range pickup you find. If that's the case he's right. Not everyone can explain everything to everyone.

He was pretty specific.

 

[Hitzy]

hello, So today I was at a gunsmiths
He told me never to reloaded once fired 7mm rem mag cases unless they have been shot out of the rifle originally shot from.
he said that the dies do not size far enough down the neck to allow proper head spacing and that all factory are under spec and that's why they fit.

what ya all think?

Well he's retarded.
It's a belted mag, it headspaces on the belt, what does sizing the neck far enough down have anything to do with how it headspaces?
You would always FL size 1F brass regardless so that it DOES fit in your rifle, and yes that puts it back to factory dimensions, or undersized as he calls it.
Was he talking about neck sizing by chance? Because that would make sense, you would not likely neck size strange 1F brass for your own rifle.

 

[john-brennan]

Only if you just neck size would that be a factor, FL sizing should not matter if done properly.

 

[stubblejumper]

Only if you just neck size would that be a factor, FL sizing should not matter if done properly.

Once a case is fired in a larger than normal chamber, a regular FL die will sometimes not squeeze it down enough to chamber in a smaller chamber. I have seen this happen numerous times with various cartridges.

 

[remington jim]

hello, So today I was at a gunsmiths
He told me never to reloaded once fired 7mm rem mag cases unless they have been shot out of the rifle originally shot from.
he said that the dies do not size far enough down the neck to allow proper head spacing and that all factory are under spec and that's why they fit.

what ya all think?

Idiot ! RJ

 

[BigRobb]

Once a case is fired in a larger than normal chamber, a regular FL die will sometimes not squeeze it down enough to chamber in a smaller chamber. I have seen this happen numerous times with various cartridges.

This happened to me. Lee dies wouldn't fully size once fired 7mm rem mag brass from another rifle enough that they would fit into my rifle chamber. RCBS dies would. go figure. I dont know exactly where they were hanging up, but the bolt was VERY tight to close.

 

[bigedp51]

We live in a plus and minus manufacturing world and chambers and dies do vary in size.

Example, I have a "standard" Lee full length .223 die that will size the cases smaller in diameter than a small base die will.

You are dealing with chamber diameter, die diameter and brass spring back after sizing.

Even with belted cases fired in "your" rifle sometimes a collet die must be used to size the case just above the belt. This is because "some" dies do not reduce the case diameter just above the belt enough.

Belted Magnum Collet Resizing Die
http://www.larrywillis.com/

Bottom line, what this gunsmith said could happen with any caliber rifle and any set of dies. Meaning a chamber at the minimum diameter and a die at the maximum diameter might give you problems.

 

[jethunter]

Anyone can say anything and if you don't try it yourself then you still won't know. I'd say your gunsmith is mostly incorrect OR he's not explaining himself well. Reality is that thousands upon thousands of people successfully reload and re-use previously fired brass that didn't come from their rifle.

 

[Ganderite]

Actually, I understand what he is saying, and I agree with him, to a point.

The round is supposed to headspace on the belt, but most makers make cases to headspace on the shoulder. As a result, there is a small bulge forward of the belt, that wont get sized. This can cause a problem in a different rifle.

I would not go so far as to say "Don't do it." But I would say "After sizing, chamber each case to make sure it is worth loading."

I don't know if the belt is properly located on European cases.

 

[roscoe69]

just think. radicals like me are using 7 mm rem mag brass to make 257 wby.

 

[H4831]

Once a case is fired in a larger than normal chamber, a regular FL die will sometimes not squeeze it down enough to chamber in a smaller chamber. I have seen this happen numerous times with various cartridges.

I too, have had this happen multiple times, where FL sizing with RCBS dies would not let the brass case chamber in another rifle.
In every event of this happening, it was rectified by annealing the shoulder area of the offending brass case, then resizing it. The old brass worked perfect after that.
The reason for this is the old brass has work hardened and when it is FL sized, the shoulder will spring ahead, as it comes from the die, just enough to stop the case from going into the other rifles chamber.
After annealing it is softer and will not spring back when the pressure from the die is removed.

 

[Johnn Peterson]

I too, have had this happen multiple times, where FL sizing with RCBS dies would not let the brass case chamber in another rifle.
In every event of this happening, it was rectified by annealing the shoulder area of the offending brass case, then resizing it. The old brass worked perfect after that.
The reason for this is the old brass has work hardened and when it is FL sized, the shoulder will spring ahead, as it comes from the die, just enough to stop the case from going into the other rifles chamber.
After annealing it is softer and will not spring back when the pressure from the die is removed.

What you've described sounds like an issue I unknowingly ran into a couple of years ago. At gun show, I purchased a set of RCBS dies for a recently acquired 7x61S&H. To start, I screwed the FL sizing die down until it touched the shell holder and commenced to cycle the first case through. A tough push and I found that I peeled the belt back. I'm guessing the former owner of the die had trimmed or faced off the base of the die to a level just above the belt area, to allow the die to size the brass just a touch lower. From my supply of acquired once fired brass obtained at gun shows, I found a couple that wouldn't chamber in my rifle. I used these to adjust the die, going down about 1/4 turn on the sizer until they would chamber. I then locked the die there. From this, I'm assuming the original die owner ran into the same issues you've mentioned.
I've purchased an additional set of dies since, and there were still issues where some of the brass previously fired from another rifle and sized with the new die wouldn't chamber. I never thought about annealing being a possibility to cure my problem and, I took the easy route and have stayed with that first altered sizing die. No problems. I've been reloading for a 'few' years and the only time I've run into that problem, is with the 7x61S&H. An associate of my son, and again with 'his' 7x61S&H, had run into the same problem so I trimmed a sizing die for him and explained how I set my die up.

 

[tinymike66]

We live in a plus and minus manufacturing world and chambers and dies do vary in size.

Example, I have a "standard" Lee full length .223 die that will size the cases smaller in diameter than a small base die will.

You are dealing with chamber diameter, die diameter and brass spring back after sizing.

Even with belted cases fired in "your" rifle sometimes a collet die must be used to size the case just above the belt. This is because "some" dies do not reduce the case diameter just above the belt enough.

Belted Magnum Collet Resizing Die
http://www.larrywillis.com/

Bottom line, what this gunsmith said could happen with any caliber rifle and any set of dies. Meaning a chamber at the minimum diameter and a die at the maximum diameter might give you problems.

wow $100 for that collet die!!

 

[Dogleg]

Hey, a bag of cheap magnum brass is 60, and many more are from 2-5 bucks each. When I sold one .257 and wanted to use the pile of brass I had in a couple others I saved enough to buy a rifle never mind pay for the specialty die. 100 bucks means little in this sport.