THE ACCURATERELOADING.COM FORUMS

Accuratereloading.com    The Accurate Reloading Forums    THE ACCURATE RELOADING.COM FORUMS  Hop To Forum Categories  Guns, Politics, Gunsmithing & Reloading  Hop To Forums  Reloading    Problem and remedy with Lee collet neck sizing die

Moderators: Mark
Go
New
Find
Notify
Tools
Reply
  
Problem and remedy with Lee collet neck sizing die
 Login/Join
 
one of us
posted


This collapsed case happened when setting up my new collet die on 300WSM Norma cases. Actually it took me 3 ruined cases until I figured out what was causing it.



The collet was machined too small to let the fired case fully enter the die. A brand new case worked fine.

So I reamed out the lower end of the collet and polished it with crocus cloth. A case fired in my R93 Blaser now sizes like it should.



Although Lee claims there are only 2 ways to collapse a case using their Collet die; not adjusted properly to the shell holder, and a neck annealed too soft, I have found yet another way...an opening not machined generous enough to fit the fired case from a rifle with slightly oversize chamber. The cases fired in my 25-06 Colt\Sauer are bulged out in the same manner but the collet die needed no TLC like this one.
 
Posts: 4799 | Location: Lehigh county, PA | Registered: 17 October 2002Reply With Quote
one of us
posted Hide Post
HMMMM---I've done that but I'll be darned if I remember how and what caused it. The die comes apart pretty easy....are the fingers opening properly and letting the cause mouth get underneath them??

is this a new die or an old one that suddenly went funky??
 
Posts: 2002 | Location: central wi | Registered: 13 September 2002Reply With Quote
one of us
posted Hide Post
The die looks used because of visegrip marks on the body to hold it while I attempted to unscrew the stuck on aluminum top cap with 'o' ring. It is brand new, unused, before today.

No, I disassembled the die and checked for a collapsed collet...that was not the problem.

All is now well and working as it should after my DIY fix.

The reason I posted this is because I remember some other folks who had collapsed cases and followed all the suggestions offered and still the problem did not go away. Perhaps their cases were not allowed to enter fully because that part of the collet that extends below the die body was not machined with a generous enough bevel, like mine. So this is just a heads up that what happened to me could be happening to others.

Perhaps the problem is endemic to short, fat cases. I don't know, this is my first.
 
Posts: 4799 | Location: Lehigh county, PA | Registered: 17 October 2002Reply With Quote
one of us
posted Hide Post
As Onefunzr2 notes, if the collet touches the fired case anywhere other than the neck, then it cannot function properly. Without measuring it is impossible to say, but either the rifle's chamber is larger than SAAMI specs, or the Lee collet is smaller than SAAMI specs. Either way, the fix described is the way to go.

By the way, it is fairly simple to modify a Lee Collet die designed for a (somewhat) smaller cartridge to be used with a larger cartridge of the same caliber. I converted a .22 Hornet collet die to use with .22 K-Hornet simply by running a drill bit as large as the K-hornet shoulder into the collet's shoulder area to allow the larger shoulder of the K-case to clear. Worked like a charm. I also use a washer of the proper thickness on top of the shell holder to resize .222 Magnum brass using a .223 Lee Collet.
 
Posts: 13262 | Location: Henly, TX, USA | Registered: 04 April 2001Reply With Quote
one of us
posted Hide Post
I'm not surprised, almost every kit of Lee dies I own needed some kind of polishing/altering.
 
Posts: 1459 | Location: north-west Italy | Registered: 16 April 2002Reply With Quote
one of us
posted Hide Post
Looks like a fine product Eeker
 
Posts: 4821 | Location: Idaho/North Mex. | Registered: 12 June 2002Reply With Quote
One of Us
posted Hide Post
onefunzr2, interesting situation. It puzzled me until you noted that the lower portion of the case was contacting the die. Obviously, that was pushing the inner sleeve up and closing the fingers before the neck was actually moving up to its final position. Encountering a closed collet will sure push the necks into the shoulder!

The nominally snug fit of the collet to the base of the case is one of the reasons that die keeps the necks straight with the body. Guess a larger than normal chamber can over do it!
 
Posts: 1615 | Location: South Western North Carolina | Registered: 16 September 2005Reply With Quote
  Powered by Social Strata  
 

Accuratereloading.com    The Accurate Reloading Forums    THE ACCURATE RELOADING.COM FORUMS  Hop To Forum Categories  Guns, Politics, Gunsmithing & Reloading  Hop To Forums  Reloading    Problem and remedy with Lee collet neck sizing die

Copyright December 1997-2023 Accuratereloading.com


Visit our on-line store for AR Memorabilia