THE ACCURATERELOADING.COM FORUMS


Moderators: Mark
Go
New
Find
Notify
Tools
Reply
  
Resize loaded rounds?
 Login/Join
 
<slancey>
posted
I just bought a rifle that has been rebarreled to 6mm TCU. Some old rounds came with the rifle that were loaded with cases fired in the old chamber. The old rounds don't fit the new chamber.
Has anyone ever sized loaded rounds?
 
Reply With Quote
One of Us
posted Hide Post
I never have, don't think I ever will. Be safe, pull the bullets and powder, resize (w/o decapping pin) and reload.
 
Posts: 8169 | Location: humboldt | Registered: 10 April 2002Reply With Quote
One of Us
Picture of vapodog
posted Hide Post
quote:
Originally posted by craigster:
pull the bullets and powder, resize (w/o decapping pin) and reload.

thumb


///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
"Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery."
Winston Churchill
 
Posts: 28849 | Location: western Nebraska | Registered: 27 May 2003Reply With Quote
one of us
posted Hide Post
slancey

I think it goes beyond the question of sizing loaded rounds. I don't think it's a good idea to fire ANY handloads that were loaded by somebody else. Period. Bullets and powder are cheap. Pull 'em. You can always use the bullets for fire-forming, etc. Dump the powder because you have no way of knowing what it is. JMHO

Ray


Arizona Mountains
 
Posts: 1560 | Location: Arizona Mountains | Registered: 11 October 2004Reply With Quote
one of us
posted Hide Post
I agree that it would be scary to try someone elses ammo. BUT, if you get a Redding body die you can do the loaded resize quite easily.
I got a couple lately for the '06 and 300wby. I had some old ammo loaded for different guns (by me) and they resized like butter with no danger.
 
Posts: 2002 | Location: central wi | Registered: 13 September 2002Reply With Quote
One of Us
Picture of Two tone
posted Hide Post
Just think of some of the jokers you see on the highway each day. One of these guys could have loaded that ammo.

Life's too short to fire unknown reloads.



.





Reading the Instructions - a sure sign of weakness and uncertainty.
 
Posts: 147 | Location: Nova Scotia, Canada | Registered: 22 November 2006Reply With Quote
One of Us
posted Hide Post
Sorry, are you serious???? How could one do that anyway? van
 
Posts: 442 | Location: Idaho | Registered: 16 December 2005Reply With Quote
One of Us
posted Hide Post
if you did,you may actually size the bulets smaller depending on the die's neck dia.
 
Posts: 33 | Location: fremont,ca. | Registered: 25 April 2005Reply With Quote
one of us
posted Hide Post
Not sure if the last 2 posts were directed at my idea with the Redding body die or not. BUT, if they were.....the body die doesn't touch the neck area....only the shoulder and body. It is PERFECT to use in conjunction with a neck sizing die and ESPECIALLY with the lee collet die. You can hit the neck with the collet die and then push the shoulder back about .001" for perfect match to the chamber. I think it's far easier than trying to match bushings etc with different brands of brass.
I also had some friends that wanted me to try some of my loaded ammo in their 06's this fall. I took some of my favorite loads and used the body die to push them back to factory dimensions (they had been set up for my chamber). PRESTO....I was able to find some loads that their guns loved without having to do a bunch of reloading....just tapped into my past loaded rounds that were collecting dust.
 
Posts: 2002 | Location: central wi | Registered: 13 September 2002Reply With Quote
one of us
posted Hide Post
I'd never, ever fire someone elses handloads. Period. Pull the bullets, dump the powder, remove the de-capping pin on the die & then resize. I'd throw out the powder too since YOU don't know what kind it is. Just my opinion but you do what you want. Bear in Fairbanks


Unless you're the lead dog, the scenery never changes.

I never thought that I'd live to see a President worse than Jimmy Carter. Well, I have.

Gun control means using two hands.

 
Posts: 1544 | Location: Fairbanks, Ak., USA | Registered: 16 March 2002Reply With Quote
One of Us
Picture of woods
posted Hide Post
Me and kraky are on the same page with the Lee Collets and Redding Body Die. Haven't had to resize loaded brass yet but his idea of just using the body die is the way to go.

Come to think of it, I don't see how you could resize loaded ammo with any other die. A FL die would not work because it would try to resize the neck and you can't do that with a loaded bullet in it. No reason to resize the neck.

What other kind of die could you resize with excpet the body die? bewildered


____________________________________
There are those who would misteach us that to stick in a rut is consistency - and a virtue, and that to climb out of the rut is inconsistency - and a vice.
- Mark Twain |

Chinese Proverb: When someone shares something of value with you and you benefit from it, you have a moral obligation to share it with others.

___________________________________
 
Posts: 2750 | Location: Houston, Tx | Registered: 17 January 2005Reply With Quote
One of Us
Picture of Alberta Canuck
posted Hide Post
If you have some old, otherwise not useful full length sizing dies and a lathe (or a friend who has a lathe), you can just drill or bore out the neck sizing portion and create your own body die expressly for this purpose.

They work fine. Many years ago when I used to very heavily crimp bullets in place in some of the thinner walled cartridges, I'd do such resizing occasionally. Not a "common" part of my routine, but occasionally some of the shoulders would swell a bit too much during crimping to chamber in their rifle. (That was a result of using a roll crimp-type die and of not trimming the cases to uniform length EVERY time they were fired when using heavy crimps.)

So, I'd run the few that were too big to chamber, into into my home-made body die(s) just enough to bring the shoulder back to a diameter which WOULD chamber.

Of course it is not the correct way to load for best accuracy, but with moderate loads it is both safe to do, and safe to fire.

Still, you WOULD be better off to not fire anyone else's reloads, and especially not ones which aren't made to fit the chamber properly anyway.


My country gal's just a moonshiner's daughter, but I love her still.

 
Posts: 9685 | Location: Cave Creek 85331, USA | Registered: 17 August 2001Reply With Quote
One of Us
posted Hide Post
To me, resizing a load round is about as safe as trying to do trigger adjustments with a round in the chamber...

I am not so much saying it is stupid, as much as I am saying that I am sure too much of a chicken to try it!

I tried it once, and after about 3 or so, I asked myself, what if one of these just happens to go off... then I called myself a dumbass homer and haven't done it since...
 
Posts: 16144 | Location: Southern Oregon USA | Registered: 04 January 2005Reply With Quote
One of Us
Picture of Alberta Canuck
posted Hide Post
One more thought...1f you have a spare 7m/m TCU sizing die lying about, you likely can use it as a body die for the 6m/m TCU with no alteration. It should have a neck diameter plenty large nough to take both the case and bullet of the loaded 6m/m round. Just be sure to remove the decapping rod before trying to run a loaded round into it. Otherwise you'll have a badly bent decapping rod, amongst other problems.


My country gal's just a moonshiner's daughter, but I love her still.

 
Posts: 9685 | Location: Cave Creek 85331, USA | Registered: 17 August 2001Reply With Quote
One of Us
Picture of Alberta Canuck
posted Hide Post
quote:
Originally posted by seafire/B17G:
To me, resizing a load round is about as safe as trying to do trigger adjustments with a round in the chamber...

I am not so much saying it is stupid, as much as I am saying that I am sure too much of a chicken to try it!

I tried it once, and after about 3 or so, I asked myself, what if one of these just happens to go off... then I called myself a dumbass homer and haven't done it since...



Hey, Seafire! I surely agree no man should do anything in reloading that he doesn't feel absolutely safe doing. And, every man should make a special effort to know his own limitations with loading equipment, load development, and loading proceedures.

Still and all, why would you worry more about the round going off in a proper body die than you would when you run it into a bullet-seating die?

I don't recommend that everybody take up the practice....far from it!! But, in answer to the question asked, it can be done, and done safely, with the right equipment, procedure, and operator.

Best wishes from the rain forest...did that big wind affect you guys much?


My country gal's just a moonshiner's daughter, but I love her still.

 
Posts: 9685 | Location: Cave Creek 85331, USA | Registered: 17 August 2001Reply With Quote
One of Us
Picture of MickinColo
posted Hide Post
Full length dies under size the throat of empty cases, and than the expansion ball works them back out to a designed diameter. The throat area of the die is not designed to undersize a case throat with a bullet in it.

I would think this is a no brainier. Pull the bullet, dump the powder out and use it as fireworks in an ashtray (outdoors and away from the house or anything else that can catch fire), slowly and gently push the primer out, than resize the case.
 
Posts: 2650 | Location: Lakewood, CO | Registered: 15 February 2003Reply With Quote
One of Us
posted Hide Post
The British 303 was loaded with strands of cordite, then necked down for the bullet.
How would resizing set off a primer?.
Good luck!
 
Posts: 1028 | Location: Mid Michigan | Registered: 08 January 2005Reply With Quote
One of Us
Picture of Alberta Canuck
posted Hide Post
quote:
Originally posted by MickinColo:
Full length dies under size the throat of empty cases, and than the expansion ball works them back out to a designed diameter. The throat area of the die is not designed to undersize a case throat with a bullet in it.

I would think this is a no brainier. Pull the bullet, dump the powder out and use it as fireworks in an ashtray (outdoors and away from the house or anything else that can catch fire), slowly and gently push the primer out, than resize the case.



Depends on which dies you use with which cases.

For example, a .308 die will not size the neck of a .243 case or 7/08 case, regardless what it will do to a .308 case...but it will size the body of all three.

Likewise, a .308 "body" die will not size the neck of a .308 case. It is intentionally made to NOT size the neck.

I don't think anyone here is suggesting that any person use a standard unaltered sizing die to size loaded rounds of the same designation as the die.

But with the right tools and the right knowledge, iit IS quite possible...just seldom required.

Pulling the ammo down and reloading the brass is the easiest way for most folks to go, and the only recommended way for many, but not the only way for all. Done correctly, it is certainly no more dangerous than "depriming" cases with live primers.....


My country gal's just a moonshiner's daughter, but I love her still.

 
Posts: 9685 | Location: Cave Creek 85331, USA | Registered: 17 August 2001Reply With Quote
One of Us
posted Hide Post
quote:
Best wishes from the rain forest...did that big wind affect you guys much?


Not really.... we lost power for 18 hours... but with my son in Boy Scouts and me being an adult leader...

being without power, but having a lot of camping stuff, lights, coleman stoves etc... it was pretty much like camping in the house for 18 hours.. nothing worse than that!
 
Posts: 16144 | Location: Southern Oregon USA | Registered: 04 January 2005Reply With Quote
one of us
posted Hide Post
My 2 cents worth:

I have on a few occasions ironed out a wrinkle in the shoulder of a live round. Carefully, gently.

Having said that I rank how safe I FEEL (note the emotion descriptor - not the statistal probabilty of an incident):

Safest: Pulling the bullet with a collet puller.

mid: gently sizing live round

Fearfull: Using hammer (inertia type) of bullet puller. (Heard of 2 or 3 explosions from first hand users.)

FWLIW


Tim K
(trk)
Cat whisperer
Chief of Smoke, Pulaski Coehorn Works & Winery
 
Posts: 621 | Location: Virginia mountains | Registered: 25 December 2002Reply With Quote
One of Us
Picture of Alberta Canuck
posted Hide Post
Seafire -

Glad to hear you came through unhurt and in good shape. We had the highest winds I've ever seen in this neck of the woods. Would estimate a few gusts at over 80 mph. Have seen worse around Astoria, but that's one reason we don't live in Astoria. We only lost power for a few minutes, even though the wind did pick up a half-full 8 gallon bucket of water off the uipper deck and throw it into the pasture next door. Didn't roll it off the deck, either, picked it up & threw it.

Anyway, am glad to hear you guys weathered the storm (pun intended).

AC


My country gal's just a moonshiner's daughter, but I love her still.

 
Posts: 9685 | Location: Cave Creek 85331, USA | Registered: 17 August 2001Reply With Quote
One of Us
Picture of MickinColo
posted Hide Post
Hi Canuck,

Very true, it would be easy to body size a case in the parent cartridges’ sizing die as long as it’s a smaller caliber as your examples show.

The topic started with a question about the 6mmTCU. I believe the parent case for this round is a 223 Remington.
 
Posts: 2650 | Location: Lakewood, CO | Registered: 15 February 2003Reply With Quote
<slancey>
posted
Well, I pulled 60 rounds and extracted the powder, it's RL-7.
I'll use new brass and full-length resize it to expand the necks.
I like the idea of body sizing the loaded stuff, but there aren't many 6mm TCU body dies lying around.
Thanks for the input about not trusting the reloads. I trust my friend's judgement when it comes to the brand of powder, not going to chance my face on his reloading techniques.

A side note on RCBS dies:
Those smart folks put a tapered expander in one of the dies. Obviously they knew reloaders would be necking up .223 brass.
 
Reply With Quote
One of Us
Picture of Alberta Canuck
posted Hide Post
quote:
Originally posted by MickinColo:
Hi Canuck,

Very true, it would be easy to body size a case in the parent cartridges’ sizing die as long as it’s a smaller caliber as your examples show.

The topic started with a question about the 6mmTCU. I believe the parent case for this round is a 223 Remington.



Yes rhat's my understanding too...but as mentioned above, a standard 7 m/m TCU die will work fine as a body die for 6m/m TCU loaded rounds. Not that he probbly has a 7-TCU,but he MIGHT have access to one through a friend....


My country gal's just a moonshiner's daughter, but I love her still.

 
Posts: 9685 | Location: Cave Creek 85331, USA | Registered: 17 August 2001Reply With Quote
One of Us
posted Hide Post
quote:
Originally posted by Alberta Canuck:
Seafire -

Glad to hear you came through unhurt and in good shape. We had the highest winds I've ever seen in this neck of the woods. Would estimate a few gusts at over 80 mph. Have seen worse around Astoria, but that's one reason we don't live in Astoria. We only lost power for a few minutes, even though the wind did pick up a half-full 8 gallon bucket of water off the uipper deck and throw it into the pasture next door. Didn't roll it off the deck, either, picked it up & threw it.

Anyway, am glad to hear you guys weathered the storm (pun intended).

AC


thanks AC...

glad things were pretty uneventful up in Roseburg also!
 
Posts: 16144 | Location: Southern Oregon USA | Registered: 04 January 2005Reply With Quote
One of Us
Picture of MickinColo
posted Hide Post
Hi Canuck,

LOL, I was waiting for that shoe to drop.

Why bother, be safe, just pull the bullets, dump the powder, and resize the brass in the proper dies.
 
Posts: 2650 | Location: Lakewood, CO | Registered: 15 February 2003Reply With Quote
  Powered by Social Strata  
 


Copyright December 1997-2023 Accuratereloading.com


Visit our on-line store for AR Memorabilia