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| Article written by: Mark Trope | |||||||||
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| Getting a rifle in a caliber for which one has never loaded also means acquiring a new set of reloading dies. I have been extremely impressed with Redding reloading dies ever since I started loading for a 7mm-08 heavy sporter I put together on a Mauser action, (see article http://www.surplusrifle.com/shooting2005/duckeaglepart1/index.asp and http://www.surplusrifle.com/shooting2005/duckeaglepart2/index.asp. That experience made it a “no-brainer” when it came time to choose dies when I began loading for my Swiss K-31. | |||||||||
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Redding Reloading
Equipment |
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Warranties don’t get any better then this, however, dies still have to be prepped and cared for. |
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| Petroleum based shipping preservative keeps dies fresh during shipment; however, it must be removed prior to using the dies. | |||||||||
| Redding’s dies come coated with the usual petroleum based shipping preservative (Note.1). The shipping preservative must be removed prior to using new dies. Removing shipping preservative and properly preparing dies for loading operations is a simple task and only takes a short amount of time. | |||||||||
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| Much cheaper then spray “gun cleaner”, and works just as well | |||||||||
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| This says it all | |||||||||
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A can with cat litter soaks up flushed fluids |
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Flushing shipping preservative from FL die body |
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| First, I remove the decapping/expanding assembly from the Full Length (FL) die and use spray disk brake cleaner to remove the shipping preservative from the inside of the FL die body (Note.2). Spray disk brake cleaner cuts petroleum products and best of all; it leaves parts clean and dry. | |||||||||
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Decapping rod, pin and expander ball are coated with shipping preservative |
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Ready for cleaning |
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| Flushing away shipping preservative | |||||||||
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| Coating expander ball with wax base case resizing lube | |||||||||
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| Start pin so it just peeks thru end of die | |||||||||
| Next, the decapping/expanding rod is cleaned. Once the decapping/expanding rod is dry, I lightly coat the expander ball with resizing lube prior to reassembling the die. This way the expander ball has an initial coat of resizing lube for its first trip thru a resized case neck. While reinstalling the decapping rod, make sure the decapping pin protrudes thru the bottom of the die just enough expel old primers, but not so far that the rod hits the web of the case. If that happens the rod will bend! Better to start with the rod a bit short if necessary; and adjust it down a bit at a time until the old primer just pops out. After the FL die is reassembled, it’s time to clean & prep the seater die. | |||||||||
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Flushing shipping preservative from seater die body |
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| The bullet-seating stem is removed from the seating die body. Once the bullet-seating stem is removed, spray disk brake cleaner flushes the shipping preservative from the inside of the seating die body. The recess in the end of the bullet-seating stem must also be cleaned of shipping preservative. | |||||||||
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Shipping preservative coats seater plug inside and out |
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Flushing shipping preservative from seater plug |
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Start seater plug in just a couple of turns to start with Lock nuts on both FL and seater dies will be turned down after all adjustments are finalized |
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| The bullet-seating stem needs to be clean so no film of oil is between stem recess and the bullet being seated. The stem needs to seat clean metal to clean metal so every bullet seats to the same depth. After the bullet-seating stem is prepped, thread it back into the die a few turns. With the dies cleaned & prepped, they can be adjusted for the press. | |||||||||
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| Dies are cleaned, prepped and ready to be adjusted on the press | |||||||||
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| Redding supplies an Allen wrench & spare decapping pin with every die set | |||||||||
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Insert the proper shellholder in the ram (Note.3), and raise the ram to its highest point. With the 7/8-14 lock ring loose, turn the die down until it makes firm contact with the shell holder. This will insure the case gets completely resized. If you own a “C” type press, then you may want to lower the ram and give the die an extra ¼ turn to compensate for spring in the press frame. The 7/8-14 threaded lock ring can now be turned down against the top of the press frame, and its setscrew tightened with the Allen wrench. Lube a brass cartridge case with resizing lube. Also put a bit of resizing lube on cotton tipped swab and lightly lube the inside of the case neck. Put the case in the shell holder and resize it. Check to make sure the old primer is expelled. If not, turn down the decapping/expanding rod a bit at a time until the old primer is expelled. To adjust the seating die, first install the shell holder in the ram, and place the cartridge case in the shell holder sans bullet. Raise the ram to its highest point. Now thread the die into the top of the press until you feel it barely touch the top of the case neck (Note.4). This point in the die is the crimp shoulder. Most bottleneck rifle cases don’t require crimping. Therefore, back the die up ¼ turn, now the 7/8-14 threaded lock ring can now be turned down against the top of the press frame, and its setscrew tightened with the Allen wrench. Now we are to the point where we can adjust the bullet-seating stem. Recall we only turned the bullet-seating stem in a couple of turns initially? In this way we can turn it down a bit at a time, and not chance driving the bullet too far into the case all at once. Place you bullet in the case neck and slowly raise the ram. Chances are the bullet will just start in the case neck. Back the ram down and turn the stem in a little bit more. Raise the ram and seat the bullet a bit deeper. Keep this up until the bullet is seated to the depth you’ve selected. Cleaning, prepping and adjusting new dies does not take long, do it right and you will get long and good service from your new dies. Don’t forget, every now & then dies will need to be re-cleaned. “Hey, how come there are no pictures of the dies being adjusted?” Patience dear reader! Hint: we now have a set of 7.5X55 dies, and I have clean Swiss K-31. Can you guess what the next reloading article is going to be about? : -) |
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| Article written by: Mark Trope |
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