Reviving old brass.

hayscott said:
Jackie,

I’ve got a die that I was given that is similar to what you have done. I have it mounted on my press along with a turned down shell holder so that the entire case body gets sized. I’m getting it down to .4385 consistently to keep the clicking under control.

Thanks,
Scott
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Scott - how often do you squeeze the butt? :)

Every time you size or does it just need it occasionally?
 
Jerry in our application we are sizing every four or five firings. We hit the ring die every four or five and then the FL die.
 
I've done several things over the years

I've turned the cases in the past on the butts but my crude setup made it difficult. Thanks for posting the pictures. Many of us learn a lot better from seeing things than reading. I settled on the small base die and have been using that for a few years but I can see it's better to turn the cases smaller.

I got past chasing speed and high pressure so my cases don't get worked hard anymore. I'm gonna try using a Wilson case holder and chuck it up in my lathe and see what there is for runout. Heck, I guess I could just make a bushing with my reamer, couldn't I? The Wilson is done so I'll try that first. Good Stuff, This.

I'm returning to the CF world after a few years in the Black Arts.

Pete
 
Butt sizing

Jerry W said:
Scott - how often do you squeeze the butt? :)

Every time you size or does it just need it occasionally?
Click to expand...

Occasionally, if I start to feel any increase in bolt lift or the dreaded click. During matches I’ll take a quick measurement after sizing every couple matches to confirm shoulder bump and the butt size. I have the die easily accessible in my Harrels turret press so I can put the squeeze to the cases whenever I need to.
 
Well

FBecigneul said:
What do you mean by turn the cases smaller? Remove metal from the web area? Think about it.
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It's more like the head area. It's only about .001", hardly anything to be concerned about. I just did 100. Used the size of a new case as a guide. Only a thou or so.

I had a Wilson trimmer holder that is a tad smaller than a BR case. It ran true in my 3 jaw so I went to it. Well let ya know what happens. I got one of them three rings of steel guns to shoot em in :).

Pete
 
Brass

Brass is one of the components of this Sport,that is expendable. When it gets old, why try to resurrect it, just buy new brass.

Just my opinion.


Glenn
 
I’m one who feels squeezing the brass is time well spent. First, while you are only taking off .001 this time, over the life of the brass I’d be taking about .01 and Second while brass is expendable I have better things to do than prep new brass when it gets tight. Now, I’m talking .30BR brass and as such you get much more uses out of it than you do with 6PPC.
 
The whole Reason

I was interested in annealing the whole case was to avoid the hard bodies one gets from continuous squeezing. If the necks get too hard after 6 or so sizing, Imagine how hard the bodies are when they are never annealed! Just to calm everyone down, I relented on the full length annealing, now this! What is the real difference between turning a thou off a case or making a chamber bigger as some suggest? In my opinion, lots of folks worry needlessly over not much.

In regards to new brass often, Not only is it expensive but there is a lot of work involved in making it new often. If one shoots a lot and has a lot of cases, new often is not an option, at least for me. I live on a modest income and don't have the extra to spend replacing perfectly good brass. It's the way I choose to do things as some others apparently do.

Pete
 
As I see it Pete, an enlarged chamber only prolongs the agony before you have to web size the first time and then after that, it’s back to square one with a larger based cartridge.
 
Al sez no

FBecigneul said:
As I see it Pete, an enlarged chamber only prolongs the agony before you have to web size the first time and then after that, it’s back to square one with a larger based cartridge.
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but I'm with you and why I decided to trim some to see what happens. I have several hundred cases I bought years ago from a guy who didn't anneal and wanted to realize something out of his cases other than scrap value. I have 500 of them resurrected and in boxes now. I have given some away with rifles I have sold and some are not usable but I'll bet I have 200 more that can be made usable. Of course, me, I decided a long time ago cases are a container the things that make accuracy goes in and have proven it to myself over and over.

How to find a way to soften bodies without destroying the case is the quest.

Pete
 
FBecigneul said:
As I see it Pete........[/QxUOTE]

Again with the guesses....... opining on things you haven't tried.

I have cases that have been fired hundreds of times. I HAVE them.....I' ve won wood with them, and some of them have been used in multiple guns. To equal effect.

Now, if you've ACTUALLY DONE THIS, I'll retract my judgements, until then, arguing from a position of zero experience is very, Midwestern.

The fact that you sell a tool to address this "problem" doesn't make the problem real. I too have 7 different squeezers to address stretched cases and primer pockets. And some of them "work"


LOTS of tools in this category IMO, perhaps most of them.....last night a guy emailed me about these "concentricity checkers", even sending links and pictures so I could give my opinion. My "opinion" was... I OWN all of the tools shown...... come on over and try them all out..... but I haven't used one for years. And I never picture myself using one again.



I've learned to avoid problems not "fix" them
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Imagine that, you know and have done it all. Al. And no one else has.
You may have also noticed that I avoid conversing with you and on posts in which you have extrapolated your beliefs.

Oh, and I’ll let my results speak for themselves.
 
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FBecigneul said:
Imagine that, you know and have done it all. Al. And no one else has.
You may have also noticed that I avoid conversing with you and on posts in which you have extrapolated your beliefs.

Oh, and I’ll let my results speak for themselves.
Click to expand...

Sorry, ain't goin' there with ya' Big Guy........ I CAN speak liberal....just choose not to

I'm asking, why not just avoid the problem?

One of the Great Gunsmith's had my favorite answer....."well, a man's gotta' have SOME pride! I don't want my rounds to look bulged :) "
 
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What appears to be true is

it don't hurt nuthin to trim them. I shot another 70 today with zero issues. I guess, under the circumstances, scuffing out a thou or two in the chambah likely won't hurt anything. I haven't miked the cases but I'm a thinkin they haven't expanded any from turnin.

Pete
 
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