Problem with 7BR

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Problem with 7BR

Post by high standard 40 »

I've run into a real "head scratcher". Let me say first that I am no stranger to reloading. I've been loading ammunition for more years than I care to admit; many different cartridges and untold thousands of rounds. I've encountered a lot of stumbling blocks along the way and have learned to deal with all of them. Until now.

Here is the issue. While loading for a recently acquired XP100 in 7BR I have started to encounter what appears to be lube dents in the case shoulder when sizing. I've seen this before and I know what causes it and how to make adjustments in technique to prevent it. I can't seem to stop the shoulder dents this time. Now for some details. The gun is an original unmodified XP100 7BR. The sizing die is a Redding in full length. The brass is twice fired but from a different 7BR chamber. Sizing lube is Imperial. Now since the brass had been fired in a different chamber, I could not close the bolt without really heavy force, thus the need for the full length sizing and it required setting the sizer die to slightly bump the case shoulder to achieve the proper headspace. It resulted in the shoulder dents. As I was slowly adjusting the die for the proper headspace I never got a shoulder dent until I bumped the shoulder. So I removed the die from the press and cleaned it thoroughly. I used less lube and tried again. Same dents. I checked the shoulder area of the die with a cotton swab and found no lube. I cleaned the die again anyway and lubed only the lower half of the next case body and still get the shoulder dents. I dug around in my die collection and found an RCBS FL die and cleaned and tried it. The problem disappeared. So, any ideas what could be causing this?
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Re: Problem with 7BR

Post by ole95 »

Charlie I had almost that same oroblem many moon ago with a 308
And here Is the answer my simple mind came up with
I know the chamber the 308 had been fired in was a little over size and I had always felt like that sizing die was a little undersize and what I called the answer was that the stretched case when sized down that extra stretched brass simple crinkling ( extra metal had to go somewere)
When I used that die on a gun that's chamber was normal This did not happen
But I could detect more resistant than with other die
Probably didn't explan that right and probaby not the current answer
But I had time to kill waiting on my wife :-ss
jrs
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Re: Problem with 7BR

Post by high standard 40 »

Thanks for the input Richard. I see what you are saying and agree that it could be a possibility. But.........and there is always a but.......why did the RCBS die not cause the same problem? And additionally, I have formed many, many 30 Herrett cases from 30-30 without getting shoulder dents and that's moving a lot more metal. It could still be as you stated though. I have learned to never say never.
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Re: Problem with 7BR

Post by MetalCutter »

It's been my experience that Redding dies are a little more "tight" than RCBS. Not a knock on RCBS just something to be aware of. Plus Imperial sizing lube is pretty sticky and viscous stuff. The combination of oversize fired brass, tight dies and a sticky case lube stacked up on you and caused the lube dents. Imperial is the best stuff around for tough case sizing tasks but can cause dents if you're not careful with it. A good alternative for day to day use is Dillon's spray lube in the pump sprayer. It's alcohol based so spray it on liberally and give it time to dry. Works great and cleans up in the tumbler in a flash.

Cheers,
John
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Re: Problem with 7BR

Post by high standard 40 »

MetalCutter, I really don't think the Imperial lube is the issue. I started with a clean, degreased die and only applied very light lube to the bottom half of a case and still got dents on the first case into the clean die. Then upon rechecking the die and case, there was no lube on the shoulder.
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Re: Problem with 7BR

Post by 260 Striker »

Charlie, My first answer didn't take so here is my thoughts again. I have a Redding 30BR FL die and it does not have a bleed hole near the shoulder junction. I suspect if the dents are between the shoulder and neck that even a light film of lube is getting trapped due to the tight fit of the case and you are getting the dents. Even if you have no lube on the current case there may be enough residual lube left in the die to get trapped. Might even have dents from trapped air if the cases are fitting the dies that tight. I would also look at your RCBS dies to see if there is a bleed hole on that FL die that allows the lube/air to escape and not cause dents. Once you have fired the cases in your current 7BR I suspect the dents will go away with the Redding dies unless the cases are still a very tight fit in the Redding FL die. If the RCBS FL die does not have a bleed hole then check to see if the brass feels as tight in the RCBS die compared to the Redding die. The RCBS may have some looser tolerances and won't cause dents. I have had cartridges in the past than I could never eliminate the dents and I didn't notice any loss of accuracy but it just bugged me to never figure out how to eliminate the dents.
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Re: Problem with 7BR

Post by ole95 »

In my case one die was tighter than the other
This kinda like I ask my wife somethings
" are they any chance I could give the correct answer" =))
jrs
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Re: Problem with 7BR

Post by high standard 40 »

In comparing the Redding to the RCBS die, I can notice no difference in the effort it takes to size a case. Neither take much effort to size. In fact, you can almost size these cases with no lube at all. Let me state this again; there is no lube getting on the shoulder of these cases. None. Both the die and the case shoulder itself are dry, yet get dents. The Redding die never gave case shoulder dents until I needed to "bump" the shoulder to reduce headspace for the newer 7BR chamber. Ole95's suggestion of "the metal has to go somewhere" is plausible. Perhaps annealing the cases can solve this. And 260's air bleed suggestion has me thinking also. Thanks to all those who have responded. I'll continue to study this issue. I plan to take some close measurements of sized cases today and look for air bleed holes.
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Re: Problem with 7BR

Post by Hosspower »

I found the same issue last week with redding 7br dies. A second gun was squired so I was full length sizing. Kept getting dents no matter what I did. Even no lube at all. All I kept telling myself is this die needs a vent.

If you find a solution please pass it along.
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Re: Problem with 7BR

Post by high standard 40 »

Hosspower. Not wishing any bad luck to anyone, but it's good to know that I'm not alone with this issue.
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