25-06 loss of neck tension phenomenon

Offroad Gary

Well-Known Member
just loading some rounds for my 25-06 and the cases which were full sized in my new redding die have little or no neck tension on the 100gn ballistic tips.

bullets measure .257", expander ball measures .257"

the sizing precess felt normal and i felt the expander do its work on the way out.

the speer bullets which also measure .257" appear to seat with more tension - how wierd is that, although i only tried 3 cases as thats all the speer heads i had

brass is RP and twice fired at most, with 53gn n160 under 100gn speer bullet. cases were tumbled before sizing and ultrasonically cleaned in h2o, fairy and vinegar solution after trimming to length.

any thoughts ?
 
Can you move the bullet in the neck by putting a bit of pressure on it or do you just find them easier to seat ?
boat tail bullets will seat easier than flat base ones.
Can you give us the sized case outside neck measurements before and after seating the bullets ?
 
don't know if it is something that could cause this problem but have you checked case length? Have you also tried cleaning and setting up your dies again from scratch?
 
I think your brass is suspect.~Muir

I was thinking that too, dies were cleaned before use and surely adjustment won't affect tension with redding A series dies? I've seen carbide expander balls advertised - are these any good - might order one with some new brass today.
 
I was thinking that too, dies were cleaned before use and surely adjustment won't affect tension with redding A series dies? I've seen carbide expander balls advertised - are these any good - might order one with some new brass today.

It really doesn't matter who made the dies or how they are outfitted if your brass is too hard. I am a little suspicious of the .257" diameter expander ball. If your brass is a bit arthritic it may be expanding the brass too much. Before you order a new ball, try spinning the current one in an electric drill and polish/stone the diameter down a bit. If it's .257" it won't be hurt by losing .0015" of diameter.~Muir
 
100 new sako brass and a carbide button kit ordered!

interestingly enough a steel button at the suppliers measured .2553 with a micrometer (my .257 was measured with an aldi vernier). they offered to replace the expander for me.

hopefully problem solved
 
Hi Gary.
Size a few cases with and without the expander to see what outside neck diameters you get.
I had to send two dies back to redding because they were not sizing the necks tight enough even after removing the expander.
They said they were out of spec and replaced them.
 
carbide expander measures .2545"
new sako brass is quality in a box (5 boxes actually) if only they made rifles like that!!
 
Gary

all my dies have the expander either removed or turned down - you dont need it.

The case mouths are expanded during the firing cycle....
 
Gary

all my dies have the expander either removed or turned down - you dont need it.

The case mouths are expanded during the firing cycle....

You mean Aftab sold me something I don't really need? I thought his shop only sold essential items like cleaning products!
 
Hi Gary ,I think you will find that the Sako brass is realy good,used to reload with Speer and Winchester brass on my 25-06 and then got some Sako,I believe it is the best in 25-06.
good shooting

Cheers

Willem
 
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