Wrench for die lock nuts

[mikerjf]

Do they make one big enough?

 

[zeke]

At one time imagined keeping my lock rings in set position and changed most of them over to knurled with little lock bolts. Know i set/adjust/square the die each time and lock the Knurled rings down with channel locks tighter than i can with my hands. Somewhere there is a box with all the original lock rings.

 

[Pantera Mike]

RCBS make a good one and the price is reasonable IMO.

RCBS Die Locking Ring Wrench

I use the same one, and it’s fantastic. A deep well socket often isn’t long enough to do the job but the open top of this wrench makes that a non-issue. I find that on my Dillon RL450 (old-school progressive) the dies will back out if they are only hand-tightened. Nothing like knocking out a few hundred rounds only to realize that your seating die has loosened and the last few boxes are too long to fit in the magazine and all have to be run through the seating die again!

 

[pasote]

Exactly

I use my Grandfather's 1951 blued steel Channel Locks, model #421.

Exactly! I have a matched set of blue steel jacketed channel locks that I inherited from my father. They are sitting next to my Redding ultramag press. They work beautifully!

 

[Racer X]

If one is tightening die lock nuts tight enough to need a wrench, it is a good idea to make sure the die is centered on the cartridge case. The thread fit between die and press is a running fit that can be wobbled. CoAx presses don't have the issue, but all other conventional "C" or turret presses do. It is a very good practice to tighten the lock nut with a cartridge case part way into the die to make sure the die is coaxial and centered. Fussy? Yes, but when I used to use a "C" press it made a difference on badly bulged brass (SMLE) with a lot of runout I was trying to get to feed again.

Pretty sure this is why Lee dies now use the O ring with the "lock" nut. Just enough wobble allowed for the die and cartridge to line up without side loading anything.