Necking down nickled cases???
Hey guys.. I have a problem..I have been reloading wildcats for over 20 years... I came upon a 30-338 bolt gun and have been working up loads for it..using .338 brass cases. I got me some nickled Federal cases, and they don't want to cooperate with me necking them down to 30 cal. I tried full length resizing... bulged the neck..I tried my neck sizing die...Bulged the neck.... ????????????? What method should I use to get the darn things sized down to 30 cal... Thanks...
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Generally speaking, the nickel plating will make the brass stiffer or more brittle. I wouldn't mess with the nickel plated cases as they will probably split after you work them-if you can get them sized.
Mobuck0 -
What mobuck said - when you want to play games with the case configuration, stick with standard brass. You *could* try annealing the cases before trying to form them . . . I do this even when doing mild forming chores . . . but no promise it would improve your results with the plated cases.
"There is nothing lower than the human race - except the french." (Mark Twain) ". . . And liberals." (me)0 -
Have made .256 Win Mag cases necked down from nickled .357 Mag cases. They seemed to take to the necking down process better than the standard brass cases.
You need to neck down in stages. You're going from .370" OD on the neck down to around .340" (give or take a thousandth). If you could find an old 8mm neck sizing die, that would take you down to .355", which would be half way. Then, it shouldn't be too big a step on down to the .30 caliber.
Use lots of neck lube and apply press pressue in incremental stages, also.
Keep off the Ridgeline0 -
I shoot a .308 Norma mag. (remarkably similar to the 30-338) I have necked nickel 338's down with some success, but I have had better luck opening 7mm mag up. It is virtually the same case.
Since the .308 Norma is a European case, the dimension from the face? of the case head to the front of the belt is a nominal .2189". Both the .338 and the 7mm maghave a nominal dimension of .220". This causes hard chambering (not to mention wreaking havoc with headspace).
Thanks to the marvel of modern manufacturing, .220 is an ideal, not an absolute. This sloppiness works in my favor, as some will chamber with no problem.
One advantage to using 7mm cases is you can try them before forming. Those that chamber easily go to the Norma, the others are re-cycled to my buddy who shoots a 7mm.
I have been told 7mm cases will have a thin neck, but my experience shows they last just as long as factory cases.
This may be more info than you wanted, but one of my favorite pastimes is playing with my cases to discover what can be made from what. This may be a result of my fondness for obscure cartridges. ( 350 Rem mag, 284 Winchester, 308 Norma, etc.)
It ain't what you shoot, it's what you hit.0 -
A lot of good info, but don't forget to use Imperial die sizing wax. This stuff is slippery! 0
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