.223 Dillon full length re-sizing on a Dillon 650

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Chasingpink

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Hello All

What is going on here???

I am starting to get ready to reload some(a whole lot) .223 for my AR
So first I tumble all my brass that I have collected and sorted by brand. I am on the FC lot currently. then lube them up
Throw about a thousand in the case feeder and start to re-size and de-prime only on my dillon 650
Then I start checking the cases with the dillon head space and case gauge and this where I feel things get wired.
Out of about 1000 cases I get about 25 that are going to be to loose for head space and about 100 that are going to be to tight for head space and the rest pass the test.
So I take the 100 that are going to be to tight and run them through the sizing die one more time with out making any adjustment to the sizing die. Now out of the 100 I get 84 that pass the gauge and 15 that are still going to be to tight for head space and one that will be to loose for head space. So I run those 15 back through the sizing die again again not making any adjustment to the die and then they all pass the gauge test.

Should the die not size the brass correctly the fist time? Does this mean if I run the brass that has passed the head space gauge through the sizing die again as I plan to when I start adding primer, powder and projectile to the mix that brass will change in size?
 
Throw the fed brass into the recycling bin or trash can. I have used some 2x fired then they get pitched. Very inconsistent brass. Lake city or Winchester are much better.
 
If you are buying once fired brass or range pickup brass the cases were fire formed for a different chamber. This causes different spring back rates when the case is sized and is also effected by how many times the case has been fired, meaning brass hardness.

Now add this to a press that has any looseness or slop and you end up with cases with varying shoulder location.

This is a reason why the dies instructions tell you to turn the die 1/8 to 1/4 of a turn more after the die makes contact with the shell holder and remover the slop.

You can try pausing at the top of the ram stroke for a few seconds as this reduces brass spring back.

I buy bulk once fired military Lake City brass and I size it on a single stage press with the press reaching cam-over. I use a small base die and pause at the top of the ram stroke.

NOTE, I have read many times with reloaders with progressive presses having the same problem because of shell plate flexing.
 
All brass has some form of spring back. My processed .223 /5.56 gets resized 3 times on the camdex and I still get .001+/- variation on shoulder datum. Albeit mixed brass from different firearms with high-speed tooling
 
It would be too hard to hit stop and start 3100 times per hour... I may be fast..... But I would wear my pointing finger down to a nub

If you are trimming with a Dillon RT or a derriviate I would recommend putting an addional sizing die before it, don't set it too low as you don't want brass spinning in the trim die, however it will improve your overall quality siginificantly between shoulder position and consistency of trim length.

 
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Thanks for the replies
Yes all the brass is range pick up
Guess I'm going to have to invest in more sizing dies. But in the meantime I will try the pause method
 
My Dillon Sizing Dies works great, same with Forester, difference between the 2 is the Dillon is a SB which is helpful for semis, brass sized with Dillon fits with my JP gauge. I agree on the pause method especially if the brass are range pickups.
 
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