by Sweetcorn » Thu Jan 03, 2019 9:23 am
I've checked brass that I've resized and brass that's just been once fired. They all measure about the same. If I just barely touch the brass with the expander die, I can push a bullet well beyond seating depth easily with my thumb and pointer finger.
Right now, I'm using a Lee die set, but I have a Hornady die set that I've ordered and it should be waiting for me at home today. I called Lee and asked if they had any issues with out of spec sizing dies, or complaints in general about their 450 sizing dies. They said no, but I could send the die set in and they'd inspect it.
It really seems to me that the case walls on my brass are too thin.
From the cartridge callouts I've seen, the loaded case should measure ~.480" where the bullet is seated, away from a small taper crimp.
On my brass, wall + wall + bullet diameter = .013" + .013" + .452" = .478"
Seems like my brass should be .001 to .0015 thicker per wall. That would enable the sizing die to squeeze it in enough to where I could have some neck tension.
I will be able to try out the Hornady set tonight and see if there's any difference, but I'm not expecting to see much. Next step will be to order some Starline brass, but I wanted to see if others here had similar issues with Hornady brass.