30-30 Win (off topic) attn. re loaders

Ellis Kinney · Feb 17, 2021

Bought a set of 30-30 RCBS sizing dies. Used. The cases want to hang up in the sizing die even with plenty of lube and the expander ball mikes out at .312. The bullets fall through the neck into the case. 30 cal. bullets are .308. Has anyone experienced this problem and what did you do for a solution?? Thanks, Ellis

old · Feb 17, 2021

Contact RCBS all there stuff is life time warranty no questions asked and if bad they will replace them for free. I have 30/30 dies my self and reload them at times when I have the brass to do so

Ellis Kinney · Feb 17, 2021

Hey, Old. I'll be glad to ship you some 30-30 brass for free if you can use it. I have a lot of extra laying around. Just pay for shipping. Ellis

old · Feb 17, 2021

The way things are going I'd love to have it. If things hit the fan you never know if you need more ammo. My e-mail is open

TimV · Feb 17, 2021

If the dies are used, it's possible someone substituted another expander. This might also account for the brass sticking if it's expanding out enough to bind in the die. If you trust your micrometer's reading of the expander's diameter, you can chuck it up in a drill, lathe, or whatever you have handy and polish it down a couple thousandths with fine emery cloth or similar abrasives. Of course, that's a one-way trip, and if you go too low you may need another expander. Are you lubing the insides of the case mouths? Failure to do so can also cause problems.

mjbrown · Feb 17, 2021

Aren't the neck expanders adjustable or removable? Anealed brass?

cjunrau · Feb 17, 2021

I have a lee and it always worked great till the last time I went to load. Almost every case got stuck in the sizing die and I had to fight to get them out. I even used oil instead of lube to see if that would help. Nothing worked. then the inside ripped out and I had to knock it out and wrecked it completely. Turns out there was a little rust up top that I could not see and am guessing that is why.

Gordy in MN · Feb 17, 2021

I have loaded a lot o 30/30 and never had a problem. It may be for a 32 Remington! Just a thought. Gordy in Mn

Ellis Kinney · Feb 17, 2021

The dies have 30-30 stamped into them, so that is not the problem. Since I only have one 30-30 in Savage 99 I think I can get by just neck sizing the brass. I tried sizing the brass without the expander in it, but the brass still doesn't want to go in completely. I'll order a new expander from RCBS. I prefer Lee dies, but this set was on Craigslist and I needed them. Ellis

Square Eye · Feb 17, 2021

I just broke out my reloading setup again a couple of weeks ago. Hadn't been used this century. No problems with the 30-30 dies. I did run out of bullets, though, & havent been able to find any more.

GordoSD · Feb 17, 2021

How many rounds of loaded ammo do you have?" Shoot that girst amd save it in a special zip lock bag. That is you new "fire formed" brass for ammo for YOUR rifle. Your rifle did the full length resize. No sizing required at all Just check case length. Dies are for brass you picked up at the range or bought or someone gave you.

MarkB_MI · Feb 17, 2021

I'm guessing the dies were used to make cases for some oddball cartridge, such as 7.65 Argentine Mauser or 7.7 Arisaka, for which the previous owner didn't have dies. The body of the Argentine Mauser is fatter and longer than .30-30, but by backing off the die it might be possible to neck size 7.65x53 brass. The .311 expander is a dead giveaway that the die wasn't used for .30-30.

The expander issue is simple to fix as any decent gun shop will carry replacement .30 caliber RCBS decapping assemblies.

I'll bet the die body has a bit of corrosion. If it was only used to neck size, it wouldn't have been lubed and probably rusted over the years. You should be able to clean it up with a bit of emery cloth.

MarkB_MI · Feb 17, 2021

> No sizing required at all Just check case length. Dies are for brass you picked up at the range or bought or someone gave you.

For bolt guns, yes. But it's a good idea to full-length size cases that are used in a lever-action rifle, and there aren't a lot of bolt guns chambered in .30-30. Regardless, you still need to neck size unless you have a super-tight match chamber.

teddy52food · Feb 17, 2021

Ellis; I could use some of that 30 30 brass too. Thanks, Don.

JK-NY · Feb 18, 2021

.308 is correct size bullet for 30/30 . I dont have a spec for the expander for RCBS as my 30/30 dies are Redding, but.312 seems to be too big to me. I agree with the other posts that suggested that the expander button has been swapped out. How good is your brass (has it been reloaded before ?) I would recommend not to reuse any cases that got stuck in the die if you have cases to spare. Check for rust in the die too . That can cause cases to hang up too.

Bret4207 · Feb 18, 2021

(quoted from post at 18:38:58 02/17/21) If the dies are used, it's possible someone substituted another expander. This might also account for the brass sticking if it's expanding out enough to bind in the die. If you trust your micrometer's reading of the expander's diameter, you can chuck it up in a drill, lathe, or whatever you have handy and polish it down a couple thousandths with fine emery cloth or similar abrasives. Of course, that's a one-way trip, and if you go too low you may need another expander. Are you lubing the insides of the case mouths? Failure to do so can also cause problems.

Yup, you probably have a set of dies intended for cast bullet seating. The expander in most RCBS dies can be swapped out for a different size IIRC. For jacketed bullets the expander usually runs closer .307 to allow for some spring back, but the RCBS website should outline what you want. If it's new, take/send them back or call RCBS and request they make it right. They have a rep for being good about that. Otherwise, a different expander is a low $ item.

JK-NY · Feb 18, 2021

Not to hijack this thread but has anyone been able to buy reloading components at their usual sources? It seems to me that most evry place online is out of stock for primers and powder? I have enough bullets and primers for now but I would use up alot of my supply of rifle powder if I did any amount of reloading. I have also noticed crazy prices on ammo and reloading components on a couple online gun/ammo online auctions. I am a bit skeptical about buying old powder , even more so when containers have been opened .

Ellis Kinney · Feb 18, 2021

I live in Northern Ky. east of Cincinnati. Everybody here is out of nearly all reloading supplies. On line Midway, buffalo Arms and Brownells are all on backorder with no notification for when supplies will be in stock again. I sent an e-mail to RCBS about my expander and stuck case problem and the response was that due to high traffic it might be 10 days before I got a response. I have stockpiled enough supplies to last years. Ellis

GordoSD · Feb 18, 2021

Yes, I did forget about the lever action aspect. I've bought hundreds of firearms and never owned a lever action.

JK-NY · Feb 18, 2021

I use Grafs and they are in the same boat , a lot of supplies are out of stock. Locally I have used Runnings which is similar to TSC but with a large sporting goods dept. It has been hard to get anything in the line of reloading components there for some time. I wish I had stocked up a couple years ago ,but dealing with my stage 4 cancer for going on 2 years and a lot of resulting life changes kind of took priority.

30-30 Win (off topic) attn. re loaders

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