neck sizing 54r brass

[quickshot]

I have a small problem. I have caught the mn fever and I will soon have a 91/30 and m38 coming to add to the collection of 3 m44 that I already have. So far out of the 3 m44 I have the smallest bore dia is .314. It will shoot 2 moa with condoms all day and that makes me wonder what it will do with naked boolits. The only problem I have is that I have no neck sizing dies for this caliber. I read on surplusrifle.com that a .308win collett die and a will work for neck sizing but I really don't need .308 dia neck. So I got to thinking... could a .303 brit. collett die be used to neck size a 54r case??? Would I have to make any mods to it? Maybe this is just another futile musing of my more frugal side. Maybe this has some merit to it. What do y'all think?



Quickshot

[Shiloh]

As I don't have access to a machine lathe, I had Lee turn a mandrel for my '06 neck sizing collet die at .308 THe mandrel supplied was .305 This gives .004 thousands tension on my .312 boolits
for the '03 Springfield. it would be +/- .004 due to springbac effects but works well.

They could do the same for your .308 neck sizing collet die. It took about 4 weeks turnaround time and cost $10 plus a few dollars shipping.

Shiloh

[Freightman]

I only neck size my '54r brass with thr regular dies, just back the die out so the ball and sizer only size what you want to . I have the .311 sizing pin . This works great for me, I use a 190+ g boolit that I beagled the mold on and size with a LEE .314 push through die, then wrap them with teflon to get a little more .315 they shoot great.
You do not have to lube the brass this way and if you drop the pin a little it will de-prime the cases ( just barley)

[B747]

Quickshot

Another way to go especially if you already have a 7.5X55 Swiss Collet die is to use that die with a Decap Mandrel and Collet Sleeve for the 303 British.

Lee sells those parts on their web site for $4 each.
The 303 Brit Mandrel is .3085 and that setup works great on the 7.62X54R and C/B.
http://www.leeprecision.com/cgi/catalog/parts.cgi?1196533839.4821=90717

Wally

[Larry Gibson]

If you really want the best set up to neck size cases for different MNs using different bullet diameters then do the following; get a Redding bushing die for the .284 Winchester. Remove the decapping stem and either lathe turn or carefully grind of .15" from the bottom of the die. Radius and polish the die mouth. Fire formed 7.72x54R cases are a close fit in the die now and the 7.62 neck does go through the neck opening hole in the .284 die. Get 5 bushings in .002" from .328 to .336". This will allow .002-.004" neck tension on bullets of several diameters from .308” up through .316”.

As the 7.62x54R headspaces on the rim we find that actual chamber dimensions in these rifles vary considerably, especially the head to shoulder measurement on the case. To neck size for cases fire formed in a particular chamber simply put a case in the shell holder on the ram of the press and raise it. Screw the die body, sans decapping rod, down until the shoulder of the case bumps into the shoulder of the die. Back the die off slightly and tighten the locking ring down. Lower the ram and put the correct bushing in the die. Screw the decapping rod in until it tightens against the bushing and then back it off ¼ turn. Raise the ram and neck size the first case leaving the ram up and the case neck in the bushing. Then tighten the lock ring on the decapping stem. This leaves the bushing kind of free floating and aligns it for concentricity. Neck size the rest of the cases.

Select the correct bushing by taking the diameter of the bullet, add twice the thickness of the case necks and then subtract .004” (sets neck tension and allows for spring back of the brass) and use the bushing .001” larger if the number does not equal a bushing size you have. Example; bullet = .312, case neck = .12 x 2 = .024 - .004 = .332”. The bushing to use is a .332. Note when the necks are sized they are only sized down; there is no expander ball expanding the necks back out again. This obviously has several benefits; longer case life, better tension on bullet, no excessive tension to damage bullet, etc.

Use of this die will allow great versatility when loading different diameter bullets in several different Mosin-Nagant rifle/carbines.

Larry Gibson

[Three44s]

My many Mosins and I thank you all for your generous sharring of info!

Three 44s

[Frank46]

Been thinking about your problem in regards to neck sizing your 7.62x54R brass. If you have to cast bullets large enough to fit the bbl, why don't you try just seating them in the fired cases?. Just bellthe case and seat. There just may be enough springback to allow you to do this. Just a thought, Frank

[chuebner]

Been thinking about your problem in regards to neck sizing your 7.62x54R brass. If you have to cast bullets large enough to fit the bbl, why don't you try just seating them in the fired cases?. Just bell the case and seat. There just may be enough springback to allow you to do this. Just a thought, Frank

This is exactly my technique for a Finn M39 with a .310 bore and an M44 with a .312 bore. I use the Lee case expander to gently bell the case mouth and load either the Lee C312-155 or C312-185. Then I use the Lee taper crimp die to take out the bell. The Lee 308 Win collet die works well also as per the surplusrifle.com article. I've loaded the same bullets with no damage to either bullet or case.. Neck tension is a little firmer though.

Charlie

[Craig67]

Please send Lee an email asking them to make a X54R collet die.

With the huge amount of Mosin's in North America now I think it would sell.

[beemer]

If you have a collet for the 303 Brit. you can buy a collet and a mandrel from Lee and modify them to work on a 7.62x54. Both parts have to be shortened to work properly. The collet can be shortened in a lathe and the mandrel just cut off. The mandrel for the 303 is fine for .312 bullets but a little tight for the .314 boolits I use. I turned a larger one for my cast loads.


beemer

[jonk]

It is slow and a pain- but Lee does make a Lee Loader in this caliber that neck sizes only. Whack, whack, whack.

[mike in co]

It is slow and a pain- but Lee does make a Lee Loader in this caliber that neck sizes only. Whack, whack, whack.


THE PROBLEM WITH THE LEE HAND LOADER IN 7.62X 54R IS "THEY" DECIDED THAT .308 IS THE "CORRECT" DIA ! large dia casts will not go thru, and the neck is too tight.

i have multiple lee loaders in this caliber....one has a flaw...its set up for about .312 as received!
all the rest are 308 based.
i have redone the stem and the "throat" on a 303 brit to handle 316 boolits, but have not tried to recut the "necks" to get custom fit.
i like the 284 bushing die suggestion.
mike in co

[Pathfinder1cav]

Quickshot,
If you HAVE a .303 Lee neck size die already & do not want to modify it, you can use The cheap & dirty way that I use it for my Finn M-39. Just drop a .065" thick, 1/2" washer over the case before running it up into the die. That sizes the neck the right diameter apx. 1/16" short of the shoulder (which I believe helps accuracy by centering the case in the chamber).
My 91/30 shoots cast real well that way also.....Good luck
Oops! edit that to use the 1/2" washer when I use the .303 mandrel in the .308 neck size die- not the .303 die body!

[Larry Gibson]

Besides using the .284 Bushing die for the 54R a shortened '06 die with pretty much the same array of bushings is good for NSing the .303, the 7.7 Jap, the 7.65 Argentine and the 7.65-'06. Of course the '06 die with the right bushings can also NS the .280, 270, 6.5-06 and 25-06. The .308 Winchester Die can load a plethora of cartridges base on the .308 case (none larger than .the 31s though). It ca also be used for the .32 Special and 30-30. Slightly shortened it will handle even more. Again though the really nice thing about using the bushings is you can size the neck ONLY to give the right tension on the cast bullet without over sizing it only to expand it back out.

Larry Gibson

[walltube]

Thumbs up for Larry Gibson and the Redding S neck dies. Tried a 7.62x54R in a
.300 Win Mag die. Die a bit too long, but a lathe guy should solve that minor problem.

[Ricochet]

THE PROBLEM WITH THE LEE HAND LOADER IN 7.62X 54R IS "THEY" DECIDED THAT .308 IS THE "CORRECT" DIA ! large dia casts will not go thru, and the neck is too tight.
That's the problem with their standard dies, too. I had to separately order an expander ball for .303 British to get the necks big enough to seat a .314" boolit without crushing the necks, and it overworks the brass to size it down far enough to be tight on a .308" bullet and stretch it back out to accept a .311" one. I've heard some sets ship with both expander balls, but mine didn't.

[WineMan]

Anyone use the CH4D bushing dies for this purpose?

Dave

[kycrawler]

i use a 32 s-w long die set to neck size 30 caliber cases the sizer die does 308 and 06 perfect and the seater works for 303 and 762x54r