I haven't been reloading rifle for a while. I started on some 25 and 30 Remington and was having trouble with the sizing die. I had a few cases stick and i had to do the stuck case drill. I thought it was a problem with old cases and cases shot in oversize chambers. This week I started on target loads in 30-06 for my Garand. I ran into the same problem, really sticky cases from the resizing die. When I got the stuck case out and really cleaned the die i was surprised at the goop I got out. I decided to start with new case lube. my old can was probably 10 years old. Go a new can of spray lube and my problem disappeared. I loaded 150 rounds of 30-06 this morning with no problems. My 30-06 dies were old Herters I bought in the 60s, I replaced them with new Lee dies with the new factory crimp die.
SWCA 892

The dies might be OK, just need polishing. Some gray Scotch Brite will polish things up quite well without any danger of altering dimensions. On the other hand, if they're pitted, new dies were a good purchase.

They used to advise you to clean your dies yearly or so, depending upon use. A quick polish on the inside of the sizers, and so on. Guess they're become fungible commodities now.

I had a couple of jars of lanolin sitting around quite awhile, when I opened them, I ended up throwing them out.

That will do it.

Yeah, the dies and other tools require regular cleaning and maintenance. I load a lot of cast lead bullets and find that bullet lubricant will always find ways to gum up the dies, so periodic cleaning is just part of the routine.

Case lubricant will certainly build up in sizing dies. Not difficult to remove as part of routine maintenance, but it will continue to build up until the dies become unusable without cleaning. I like to use old worn bronze bore brushes loosely wrapped with 0000 steel wool to clean out my reloading dies.

I settled on Imperial sizing wax some years ago, and find it leaves minimal residue. Unfortunately I still reload enough cast bullets that I have to clean them out of the lube build up. The bronze brush with the steel wool sounds like a good idea.

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H Richard
SWCA1967 SWHF244

I'm still using Herters dies.

And a Herters press, and a Herters powder dropper, and a...

I still have a few Herter's die sets. Not used often, but they are good dies. It wouldn't hurt to soak dirty sizing and seating dies overnight (or longer) in mineral spirits. For many years, I have used STP oil additive as a sizing lube. I'm still on the same can of STP after more years than I care to remember.

I have a bottle pf rcbs case lube, must be 25y old, still works but there are better case lubes.

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NRA Cert. Inst. IDPA CSO

And I was thinking you were going to ask about old stock primers and powders.

Yes. If you have been away from the reloading bench for a while, it would be wise to thoroughly inspect all of your components and then re-familiarize yourself with your reloading procedures.

Case lubricant can deteriorate quickly.

Powders also deteriorate.

Primers tend to be stable for decades, but the components of the primer can corrode.

Cases can corrode.

Equipment should be inspected for rust and corrosion but also to be sure lubricants haven't deteriorated and gummed up the device. Also, rust changes the dimensions of a part so even cleaning the rust off may not be sufficient; check the dimensions with a micrometer and make sure they're still in specification.

Pay particular attention to scales/beam balances. Accumulated dust in the pivots can affect readings. The weights can corrode (and that changes their weight) and affect readings.

I was away from reloading for nearly two decades. It ended up costing me nearly $400 dollars on new and replacement parts and components to restore my equipment to reliable service.