Sizing die advice.

[HAWKEYE10]

I got my new Lee dies in .223 yesterday and started with the full length sizing die. I adjusted it where it has contact with the shell holder per Lee instructions. I have two questions. First when I sized the first case it went down all most to the bottom before any sizing was done. Is this normal? Second question is I tried putting a bullet in the case mouth and it won't get started. I then chaffered the case mouth and that helped very little. What is your opinion? There is no neck expanding die like on pistol. Don

 

[Maximumbob54]

Loading rifle cases is almost nothing like loading handgun cases. With .223 the only bullets I will buy are boat tail bullets that allow you to easier seat them and not crush the case. I try to use my rifle's chamber as my test for if I'm sizing the case right. If you set the die too low it will bump down the case shoulder too much and wear out the case that much faster. If you don't set it low enough then it won't feed in right. I have found rifle is only easy to reload if you do all your case prep work ahead of time. I haven't found a way to load it fast and easy like straight wall handgun ammo. Getting the right amount of case lube for sizing is hard enough for me. I use a universal deprime die to punch the primers out, tumble them clean, use a spray bottle mixed with alcohol and water based case lube, size them, and then wash off all the lube then dry. I then hand prime all the cases, but this could be done on the press. I don't care for adding powder on the press as I use mixed .223 brass and some have different case volumes. So I set them in the loading block and use my Autocharge to pour the powder. Then I can check them all against each other and see if any of them look different. I have culled out several that the powder didn't even all fit in the case. At that point I seat all the bullets and I prefer to use Lee's rifle factory crimp die to set just a light crimp that takes off that case mouth square edge. The neck tension should be enough to hold the bullet, but I feel like the crimp will help the case not get snagged on anything. It may or may not be pointless, but it makes me feel better and all my ammo shoots better than I can aim. I cast bullets for my .30-30 ammo and use a Lee universal expanding die so the case mouth doesn't shave the lead off the bullet. Lots of guys prefer the Lyman M Dies instead. I haven't tried one yet. Good luck.

 

[Lenny_D]

I'm not familiar with Lee products as I use a RCBS Rockchucker single stage for rifle cartridges and a Hornady LNL progressive for pistol cartridges. When setting a sizing die for a .223 if firing out of a semi auto you should full length size and at times a small base die is necessary. You should screw the die in the press till it hits shell holder than lower the handle of the press and screw the die in another 1/8 to 1/4 turn. When you full length size there should be a "camming" action that you feel at the end of the stroke through the handle of the press.
I tumble my brass before de-priming because the media gets stuck in the flash holes and primer pockets of the cases and its a pain in the a** getting it out. I also use Hornady spray Case Lube to lube the cases before sizing. It say you don't have to clean it off afterwards but I do wipe down the cases with a rag dampened with either alcohol or lighter fluid. After sizing I check case lengths then trim if necessary.
Don't worry if a flat base bullet won't start by hand. The bullet seating die aligns it properly and the amount of pressure needed to seat the bullet is way less than it would take to damage the case. As stated above, boat tail bullets do start easier but some of my rifles are more accurate with flat base bullets. In my opinion there is no real reason to crimp the rifle caliber unless we are talking about a straight wall case or tubular magazine. When I load for my bolt guns I set my sizing die to just touch the case shoulder so as not to fatigue the brass. You can accomplish this by "blueing" up the case with a light coat of prussia blue and lower sizing die in small steps to ascertain when it sizes all the neck and just touches the case shoulder. But then that ammo is only for that particular rifle. Semi Autos should always be full length sized to ensure feeding. Good Luck and enjoy the loading expierience!

 

[H Richard]

Most of the instructions I have read on the sizing die state turn the die into the press until it contacts the raised shell holder, then lower the ram and turn in another 1/4 turn.

 

[cfplinker]

The decapping pin holder does the neck expansion as you remove the case from the die. In order to maintain neck tension the neck inside diameter will probably be .002 less than the bullet outside diameter. They will be hard to start unless you use a bevel base bullet or chamfer the inside of the case neck.

I use a case mike to set my sizing die. First I measure about 10 fired cases and then I set the die so that the shoulder is moved back .002 to .004 inches when I size the case. Before I got the case mike I followed the advise of a frient who said that the sizing die should just "caress the shoulder of the case" This way you are fitting the case to the chamber and should get a little more case life because you are not stretching the case as much when you fire it.