? on RCBS' small base dies and bolt guns

[mark5pt56]

Anyone know why they aren't recommended for sizing brass for bolt guns?

[skyugo]

Anyone know why they aren't recommended for sizing brass for bolt guns?

there's just no need to reduce the brass to minimal dimensions because a bolt gun has enough leverage to easily chamber even a neck-sized cartridge.

a small base sized cartridge should work fine in a bolt gun though...

i just use regular lee full length resizing dies with my AR15. it has a 5.56 chamber. never had a problem with extraction or going into battery.

[mark5pt56]

I was thinking along the same lines, that it may be a over working the brass issue.

[skyugo]

I was thinking along the same lines, that it may be a over working the brass issue.

full length resizing or small base resizing does put more wear on the brass than neck sizing...

that said i've gotten up to 9 uses of .223 brass in my AR. granted this was with near minimum power loads, but bottom line-brass is pretty tough.

[chris914]

Once I have assembled enough components for a particular bolt gun I full length say 100 rounds and then shoot them keeping the once fired seperate from the full length. I then only neck size the brass for the next couple of loadings. After about 4 loadings, I full length if the brass still looks good and repeat the previous. I have been doing it this way for years. I agree on the camming action of the bolt gun. My mother has a Ruger 270 that requires a small base die. If the case was fired in any other chamber it won't fit in the rifles chamber unless it has been small base sized. When I volume load for 5.56, I run all the brass through a Redding small base body die to make sure that it feeds. I have yet to have a problem with the cartridge feeding. Just my couple of pennies.

[nicholst55]

I think that the use of small base dies has been way over emphasized in recent years. They were originally intended for use with commercial pump, semi auto, and some lever guns, that have less camming power than bolt guns. The average military-style gas gun has a sloppy enough chamber that small base dies are hardly ever needed. Bolt guns very seldom will require the use of one, assuming that you're not using range brass or once-fired machine gun brass.

Some people like to use small base dies simply for the peace of mind that it gives them. Nothing wrong with that, I guess.

[Bret]

I think that the use of small base dies has been way over emphasized in recent years. They were originally intended for use with commercial pump, semi auto, and some lever guns, that have less camming power than bolt guns. The average military-style gas gun has a sloppy enough chamber that small base dies are hardly ever needed. Bolt guns very seldom will require the use fo one, assuming that you're not using range brass or once-fired machine gun brass.

Well stated!