Problem Reloading with Hornaday One-Shot

[Caldad]

After reloading 223 for about 25 years. I can remember those first weeks of trial and error. first thing I would say to you is there is a tool called a stuck case remover you will need one is very reusable as far as your lube. everybody has their preference I prefer a non-aerosol spray on lube

Which one(s) have worked well for you?

 

[Caldad]

Thanks to everyone for all the great feedback! There have been a lot of good ideas.

 

[mike8170]

If you are interested, I can send you a sample of some new lube I bought. It's really cheap, and seems to work incredibly well. I've sent out a couple samples already. It's the natural product that most other reloading lubes are based on. It's the consistency of vaseline and you rub a little on your fingers, then touch the outside of the cases as you load them. I've yet to have one even feel rough, let alone stick. It's also safe to leave on (I don't, but you can) for shooting, and its safe to interact with powder and primers (in case a little gets inside the neck. PM me your address if you are interested.

I've done about 3000 .223 cases and I barely have a dent in the top of a 1lb tub of the stuff.

I should have stuck with this thread a little more, though I like it rough once in a while!

BTW, I am interested in some of this. RCBS lasts a long time the way I use it, about 1 bottle for 4k rifle rounds, but I am always looking for efficiency.

 

[SSGSAD]

I guess I'm special, I use the RCBS and roll the cases on a pad.

Me too, I am kind of old fashioned ....

 

[SSGSAD]

I use a neck brush.

Same here .....

 

[mike8170]

I don't neck brush mine. I worry about the lube breaking down the powder. But, I haven't had an issue by not neck lubing. The only stuck cases I have had were my dumba** fault.

 

[Skip]

The neck brush, if it has ANY lube on it, is one reason that cases don't grow when resized. That with the use of the pad is the best way to prep a case, in my opinion.

I't not sure why, other than some chambers may be more generous than others and that makes cases bigger but, it seems that the 223 can really stick those cases.

I have had more stuck cases with that caliber than any other, that is the reason that I went back to the pad and neck brush. I have NOT stuck one case since then. AND, I never stuck a case when I used Pam either. Oh, I used the kind with olive oil in it too. I do some work for a company that bottles it, or did, and bought it in their store for fifty cents a can.

 

[red_zr24x4]

I guess I'm special, I use the RCBS and roll the cases on a pad.

^^ This is what I do also.
You need to do the case mouth on about every 5th - 10th round, it seems to really help out.

 

[Broom_jm]

The neck brush, if it has ANY lube on it, is one reason that cases don't grow when resized. That with the use of the pad is the best way to prep a case, in my opinion.

I't not sure why, other than some chambers may be more generous than others and that makes cases bigger but, it seems that the 223 can really stick those cases.

I have had more stuck cases with that caliber than any other, that is the reason that I went back to the pad and neck brush. I have NOT stuck one case since then. AND, I never stuck a case when I used Pam either. Oh, I used the kind with olive oil in it too. I do some work for a company that bottles it, or did, and bought it in their store for fifty cents a can.

I have used a lot of different lubes when resizing cases. When batch loading using a single-stage press, none is better than Imperial Sizing Die wax. I have also tried many different methods of lubricating case necks, including not lubing them at all. The one conclusion I can offer that is universally true, regardless of what lube you use, or don't use, is that sometimes bottle-neck cases grow in length during the resizing operation. There is no amount or type of lube that can prevent that from happening...period. When an excess diameter of brass is squeezed back down to a smaller diameter, the metal must go somewhere, and UP is the only space available. Lube cannot overcome the laws of physics.

What lubing the neck CAN do is result in much better concentricity in your sized case necks...that can be measured with a run-out gauge. With no lube it is possible to wind up with an uneven pulling and stretching of the case neck by the expander button, but guess what? I've resized thousands of cases without using any lube at all inside or outside the case neck...and still shoot MOA groups with that brass.

OK, I'm not a bench rest shooter. I don't buy Lapua brass. I shoot normal, everyday rifles. I'm not even a great shot, imo. But, I have reloaded a round or two and what I shoot goes right about where I aimed. The only part of a case that really needs to be lubed during the sizing operation is the body of the case.

If you don't believe me, resize 10 cases with neck lube and 10 cases without. Load 'em up with your pet load. Put your finished cases in 2 different identical containers. Have your wife or a friend switch the 2 sets of cases around so that you don't know which ones you're shooting first or last. If you can tell, by group size, which is which...take pictures and you'll have a great story to tell. I'll eat humble pie with crow on top.

I've tried it both ways; even took a poll about lubing case necks on another popular shooting website. Plenty of folks do it both ways and there doesn't seem to be a conclusive answer as to whether or not it makes a dang bit of difference.

 

[Skip]

The one conclusion I can offer that is universally true, regardless of what lube you use, or don't use, is that sometimes bottle-neck cases grow in length during the resizing operation. There is no amount or type of lube that can prevent that from happening...period. When an excess diameter of brass is squeezed back down to a smaller diameter, the metal must go somewhere, and UP is the only space available. Lube cannot overcome the laws of physics.

No, the laws of physics cannot be excluded by using lube, in fact, they are proven out by it. Less friction, means less stretching. Rough against rough, means more drag, more friction, more resistance to that movement, yada, yada.

Maybe a better way to put it would be, reduces stretching to a minimum. In most cases, from my experience, the case growth becomes almost nonexistent.

 

[Skip]

Oh, as a p.s.: Imperial Sizing Wax is good IFyou know how to use it. Too much of a good think is bad. It can cause a seal to occur and wreak havoc with the shoulders on bottle neck cartridges too!

Yeah, go ahead and ask how I know that!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[LongRangeBushy]

I use the Hornady one Shot on my .223 cases. Works very well for me, I also use the rcbs pad and lube But I read the instructionson the hornady and decided to try it. I stand 50 cases up in the loading block as recommended and then spray the tops about a 45 deg angle. Some of the spray goes inside the neck and you can see the lube run down the side of the case.. The trick i found is to spray diagonally across the loading block in a couple of quick swipes -- then i rotate the block to do the other side. Touch them with a quick neck brush and size. It doesnt take very much spray at all just quick spurts. If you keep your dies clean you shouldnt have any issues.... i think sooner or later everyone sticks a case.....

 

[Broom_jm]

No, the laws of physics cannot be excluded by using lube, in fact, they are proven out by it. Less friction, means less stretching. Rough against rough, means more drag, more friction, more resistance to that movement, yada, yada.

Maybe a better way to put it would be, reduces stretching to a minimum. In most cases, from my experience, the case growth becomes almost nonexistent.

Measure a case, then remove the decapping pin/expander ball and run the case through a properly-adjusted full-length resizing die. Do this with 20 cases or so. Not all case stretch occurs as a result of the expander ball coming back through the neck of the case. When cases separate from finally being stretched too much they typically do so just forward of the web.

What about straight-walled cases that stretch, like the 30 Carbine? Those don't have a neck, per se, yet they most certainly do grow in length during the resizing process.

I've loaded cases 4 or 5 times before they needed to be trimmed, but that's usually with a tight chamber and mild loads. No neck lube required. Things don't always work exactly as you would think they do, at first glance.

 

[dagibson1507]

Anyone try the rcbs lube die? Best lube I've ever used is lee lube thinned down with rubbing alcohol 10-1. Put it in an old pump sprayer and your gtg. 25k+ cases and not a stuck one yet.

 

[Skip]

Stay on topic, we are talking about 223 here, not generously chambered straightwalled "pistol" type cases.

 

[boyscout]

I use the lube pad too! 458 socom, 30-06, 223 not one stuck. It doesn't take much lube either. I used alot at first, then backed off a bit.

 

[Caldad]

Well, I decided yesterday that I wanted to make sure nothing was wrong with my resizing die, so I went to the outfitter to buy the one and only lube I had used in that die in the past that worked- LEE. Before someone asks why I need to buy more if I've only loaded a few cases with it... I left it in my workshop... it froze, and turned to a cottage cheese consistency. I really wanted to find something that was easier to apply... that's why I had bought the One Shot (which I had kept indoors, so temp wasn't my problem with that). ...back to point- the outfitter was out of LEE Case Lube, and when I spoke to a guy that worked there, he told me that he had reloaded for 25 years, and suggested Dillon Case Lube. I was skeptical, since it was the only lube they had in stock. I wasn't sure if he was just selling me what they had in stock, or if he really believed in it... he acted like it was the greatest thing since sliced bread. Well, I used it today, and it's even better! I can't believe how smooth resizing 223Rem is... it was so good that after about 50 cases, I cleaned all the oil from my press, and lubed it with D.S.L.. Now my LEE Classic Turret press operates as smooth as butter... smoother! Resized about 500 223Rems today.

D.S.L. comes in a pump, and all I did was place the brass in a plastic storage container- gave it about 4 squirts (approx. 200 cases each time)- shook them around some- gave it two more squirts- shook it some more- and let it sit so the alcohol could evaporate. That's it! It almost seemed to simple.

If anyone else near me (Evansville) wants to give D.S.L. a try... I found it over at Buck & Jake's between Evansville, and Boonville.

 

[Caldad]

Thank to everyone for all the great ideas. I learned a lot, and incorporated many different suggestions when resizing today. It helped a ton!

 

[Broom_jm]

Stay on topic, we are talking about 223 here, not generously chambered straightwalled "pistol" type cases.

OK, back on topic! The OP was using a spray-on lube and didn't get a uniform coating on each case. When attempting to resize a case with insufficient lube, it got stuck! Rolling cases on a lube pad makes it dang near impossible to "miss" one case entirely and when there isn't enough lube on the pad, you get a warning, as cases get harder and harder to resize. If you're paying attention, you apply more lube to the pad before a case gets stuck.

With the sizing die wax, you learn how much to have on your fingertips and how to apply it to the case body. It's not unlike knowing how moist your fingers will need to be to turn a single page on your Midway monthly flyer.

In all honesty, I've not tried the aerosol case lubes. Seems messy to me and adds an expense that I just don't need, since I batch load every bottle-necked case I work with. If I was using a true progressive press and felt a need to speed up the process, I would probably give the spray-on stuff a try. Until then, the lube pad or Imperial Sizing Die wax works too well, and lasts too long, to even consider anything else. This is one of those, "if it ain't broke..." kinda things.

 

[Skip]

OK, back on topic! The OP was using a spray-on lube and didn't get a uniform coating on each case. When attempting to resize a case with insufficient lube, it got stuck! Rolling cases on a lube pad makes it dang near impossible to "miss" one case entirely and when there isn't enough lube on the pad, you get a warning, as cases get harder and harder to resize. If you're paying attention, you apply more lube to the pad before a case gets stuck.

With the sizing die wax, you learn how much to have on your fingertips and how to apply it to the case body. It's not unlike knowing how moist your fingers will need to be to turn a single page on your Midway monthly flyer.

In all honesty, I've not tried the aerosol case lubes. Seems messy to me and adds an expense that I just don't need, since I batch load every bottle-necked case I work with. If I was using a true progressive press and felt a need to speed up the process, I would probably give the spray-on stuff a try. Until then, the lube pad or Imperial Sizing Die wax works too well, and lasts too long, to even consider anything else. This is one of those, "if it ain't broke..." kinda things.

Good boy, I knew you could do it!

To this, I wholeheartedly agree.