Need Help on Lee Deluxe Rifle Die

[jmart]

The flash hole is GTG all the time, it doesn't change dimensionally after several loadings.

What does change is the primer pocket. Over time after several firings, and especially if you load near max, the pocket will increase in size and primers will seat too easily. I don't know how to advise you other than to segregate your brass and keep tabs on how many loads through a case. Also, you'll find that some brands of brass are tougher in the casehead area and can take more reloads (Lake City) than others which have softer pockets and are good for maybe just a single reload (cheapo Federal). Since you live overseas, I have no idea what you have access to.

When you start seating primers and you feel minimial resistance, it's time to be wary. Don't tempt fate and try to string another reload out of them, just dump that lot of brass. I realize that may be a vague description, i.e., "minimal resistance", but over time you'll develop a feel for what constitutes "too little". You'll just have to learn along the way.

One other thing I never mentioned earlier and you never asked about, you'll probably come across brass that has crimped primer pockets. For excample, you'll shoot some commercial XM-193 (LC, Privi) and then you'll want to reload them. Before you reload these, you'll need to remove the crimp (otherwise you'll crush new primers when you try to seat them). This is a one-time operation. LC brass is a good example, their pockets are crimped and you can tell this by the depressed ring right around the pocket's perimiter. You have two options of removing this crimp:

(a) reaming it out. This involves cutting it out. Hornady makes a economically priced tool that you can use either by hand or chuck it in a drill/cordless screwdriver. If you use it by hand, get the knurled reamer handle along with the reamer.

(b) swaging it out. This involves displacing metal, or simply moving it out of the way. The best tool for this seems to be Dillon's primer pocket swager. It's pricey, but everyone that has one talks highly of them. The cheaper alternative is RCBS's swager that is press mounted, but end user reports are less flattering. It's a bit more tempermental and supposedly is sensitive to primer pocket depth -- mis-adjust it and you bend the rod and have to order another.

My advice since you are overseas, if you can spring $90 for the Dillon unit, get that. Otherwise pick up a couple of the Hornady reamers at $5-6 per reamer, and get a handle if you elect to use this by hand.

[lanceriley]

ok so no need to check flash holes.

most of our ammo is military m193. say 90% of the time. it's probably the type that fell off the truck.

yes i've heard of the crimp.

er... 90$ unit for removing the crimp??? i think that's tooo pricey for me. i'll probably get the 5-6$ reamers. so far I think that's what my friend is buying. most of our reloading kits are LEE and dillong. Hornady and rcbs are common but mostly can be bought through black market connections.

as for "easily" priming... is it similar with pistol primer? i've loaded like 20k rounds of pistol. I've never segregated or encountered loose primer pockets. they always break first. i'll just try it out when I got all the tools

All of our Ar15s are Military m16 recievers. yes that means we have full auto. yes it is legal to own here. i've heard some primers popping off during full auto. any idea? or is it the reason why the primers are crimped by the military? because of full auto fire?

[ar-junkie]

ok so no need to check flash holes.

most of our ammo is military m193. say 90% of the time. it's probably the type that fell off the truck.

yes i've heard of the crimp.

er... 90$ unit for removing the crimp??? i think that's tooo pricey for me. i'll probably get the 5-6$ reamers. so far I think that's what my friend is buying. most of our reloading kits are LEE and dillong. Hornady and rcbs are common but mostly can be bought through black market connections.

as for "easily" priming... is it similar with pistol primer? i've loaded like 20k rounds of pistol. I've never segregated or encountered loose primer pockets. they always break first. i'll just try it out when I got all the tools

All of our Ar15s are Military m16 recievers. yes that means we have full auto. yes it is legal to own here. i've heard some primers popping off during full auto. any idea? or is it the reason why the primers are crimped by the military? because of full auto fire?

Its important to make sure your flash hole isn't plugged. Normally reloaders find tumbling media in there, but if you don't tumble you still need to make sure it is open. I would really suggest that you get a swager and not a reamer. You can easily over-ream a shell and cause the primer to lose gas and/or pop out. I would suggest http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpag...eitemid=447022 this. It is a cheaper reamer it just mounts to your press and is decent priced compaired to the 90 for the blue one.