I have always heard that when PFL resizing you have to bump the shoulder(crush fit) occasionally to prevent any feeding problems. I am shooting a 7mag with nosler brass. i'm on my 7th reload and have never bumped the shoulder. I PFL resize about 55% of the neck. I have no problems opening or closing the bolt and have no feeding problems. My 270 is a different story. I can only PFLR 50% of the neck twice before I have to bump the shoulder. Are my loads that light on the 7mag (64 grains of 22 and 140 BT) or is it something else. I've only been loading for a short while and am still learning.
PFL resize ?
- Thread starter swampbuck
- Start date
rick smith
Handloader
- Apr 6, 2005
- 1,249
- 0
What die are you using for your PFL? It doesn't sound like you are pfl anything but the neck. To set a FL die to PFL, you need to start with cases that are snug to bolt closure. Make sure all the brass is from the same lot and has been fired the same number of times. You will need several pieces of brass that are tight to closure. Change to a different piece of brass after each die adjustment. The procedure has been covered before and can be found via a search.Rick.
- Thread starter
- #3
RCBS 7mm rem mag FL dies
All of the brass is from the same lot. I can put a fired empty case in the chamber and the bolt closes fine, and there is no tightness whatsoever. I have never been able to get that snug(crush fit feel) in my 7mag. It shoots MOA so there is no problem with accuracy. My 270 acts comp;letely different
All of the brass is from the same lot. I can put a fired empty case in the chamber and the bolt closes fine, and there is no tightness whatsoever. I have never been able to get that snug(crush fit feel) in my 7mag. It shoots MOA so there is no problem with accuracy. My 270 acts comp;letely different
Brass flows foreward when resized and the more tapered cases are the more they seem to grow. The growth will show in the base to shoulder lenght "usually".
You also may be pulling the shoulders foreward when the expander ball exits the case mouth. Are you lubeing the mouths when sizeing? Does the expander feel like it is dragging? I would bet you are moveing the shoulder on the 270 without realizing it and that is a big part of the problem.
You also may be pulling the shoulders foreward when the expander ball exits the case mouth. Are you lubeing the mouths when sizeing? Does the expander feel like it is dragging? I would bet you are moveing the shoulder on the 270 without realizing it and that is a big part of the problem.
- Thread starter
- #5
Are you lubeing the mouths when sizeing? Does the expander feel like it is dragging?
I am very lightly libing the case mouths. The expander ball does seem to drag. I dont have any accurracy problems out of the 7mag or 270. I guess what i am trying to say(ask) is that I would light to have that crush fit feel in my 7maqg like I have in the 270. It seems that I cant do anything to get that in my 7mag. does it matter or is that unusual
I am very lightly libing the case mouths. The expander ball does seem to drag. I dont have any accurracy problems out of the 7mag or 270. I guess what i am trying to say(ask) is that I would light to have that crush fit feel in my 7maqg like I have in the 270. It seems that I cant do anything to get that in my 7mag. does it matter or is that unusual
- Oct 30, 2004
- 24,275
- 2,986
swampbuck":2x9swe2g said:
Always lube the inside of necks.
Imperial sizing wax.
Here is how I set up my dies for a slight crush fit.
1. Put the Shell Holder in the press and raise the ram.
2. Screw the Full Length(FL) Die into the press so it is about a "nickle's thickness" above the Shell Holder.
3. Lube a "Fired" case (walls and inside the neck) and squash it.
4. Remove the Lube and try closing the bolt on it in the chamber.
5. If the bolt closes with no resistance, screw the FL Die into the press about 1/8-1/4 turn and repeat steps 3 & 4.
6. As you feel the resistance begin, slow down how much you screw the FL Die into the press so you are at about 1/16 of a turn, or "Fine Tuning". At some point you will not be able to close the bolt and you are extremely close to having the FL Die in the proper position.
NOTE: The reason for this is because the FL Die has begun Resizing the Case-walls down to the Pressure Ring. As it does so, the Case-body lengthens slightly which in turn moves the Case-shoulder slightly forward. Then as the "Fine Tuning" continues the Case-shoulder makes contact with the FL Die and is moved slightly reward(or slightly shortens the Case-head to Case-shoulder dimension).
7. Stop when there is a slight bit of resistance when closing the bolt on the empty case. You now have a "slight crush fit" for the case in that specific chamber, or Zero Headspace.
8. Once you get it where you want it, take some masking tape or a black marker and put a Witness Mark where the FL Die Lock Ring is positioned to hold the FL Die in this position. Loosen the FL Die and return the Lock Ring to align with the Witness Mark and sung up the Set-Screw.Screw the FL Die back into the press and try squashing another case. It should have the same resistance as the previous one. If not, you need to re-adjust the Lock Ring so it does. But you are extremely close to where you want it, so make very small changes at this point.
1. Put the Shell Holder in the press and raise the ram.
2. Screw the Full Length(FL) Die into the press so it is about a "nickle's thickness" above the Shell Holder.
3. Lube a "Fired" case (walls and inside the neck) and squash it.
4. Remove the Lube and try closing the bolt on it in the chamber.
5. If the bolt closes with no resistance, screw the FL Die into the press about 1/8-1/4 turn and repeat steps 3 & 4.
6. As you feel the resistance begin, slow down how much you screw the FL Die into the press so you are at about 1/16 of a turn, or "Fine Tuning". At some point you will not be able to close the bolt and you are extremely close to having the FL Die in the proper position.
NOTE: The reason for this is because the FL Die has begun Resizing the Case-walls down to the Pressure Ring. As it does so, the Case-body lengthens slightly which in turn moves the Case-shoulder slightly forward. Then as the "Fine Tuning" continues the Case-shoulder makes contact with the FL Die and is moved slightly reward(or slightly shortens the Case-head to Case-shoulder dimension).
7. Stop when there is a slight bit of resistance when closing the bolt on the empty case. You now have a "slight crush fit" for the case in that specific chamber, or Zero Headspace.
8. Once you get it where you want it, take some masking tape or a black marker and put a Witness Mark where the FL Die Lock Ring is positioned to hold the FL Die in this position. Loosen the FL Die and return the Lock Ring to align with the Witness Mark and sung up the Set-Screw.Screw the FL Die back into the press and try squashing another case. It should have the same resistance as the previous one. If not, you need to re-adjust the Lock Ring so it does. But you are extremely close to where you want it, so make very small changes at this point.
