Starting to Load 6.5 Creedmoor - which dies?

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MMH

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Minuteman
Mar 17, 2013
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#1
I have loaded for some time but never have been as good of a precision rifle reloader as I would like to be. I have all the basic equipment & have been loading for 5.56 & .308 but now need to get set up for 6.5 creed.

Plan on full length sizing - which die model & manufacturer? Always have used standard Lee dies but wondering if better dies should be used
Any point in getting a collet necksizer? I use it on 300 WinMag because I use a body die on that cartridge.
Which seating die? I have used Forster & Redding micrometer dies. Also, could a 308 seating die be used for a 6.5 Creedmoor?
Plan on getting a Little Crow case trimmer.
Plan on getting a Hornady modified case to measure bullet jump.

Thanks!
 
#2
New Lee collet dies require you to crimp after because they induce a pronounced flare at the case mouth. Current Lee owner claims it is wonderful.

I like seating with an arbor press and inline dies. I use a Sinclair press and Wilson micrometer dies.

I would go with a Forster sizer die with a .289” custom size neck and a mandrel die with a .263” carbide mandrel.
 
#4
I'm using a combination
Lee neck sizer, redding body die, redding seater for one rifle. Redding full length sizer and forster seater with another. I have a forster full length sizer that seems a little " rough " on the first piece I ran through it(scratches on case body) could be my set up. . Very happy with lee and redding dies
 
#8
918v said:
If you send the Forster die back they will polish it out. You could take the opportunity to have them open up the neck from .284” to .289”
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I feel like they leave the off the shelf dies rough so you send it back for work…
I have two. One standard and one honed. Standard one is rough! And they said to send it in for polishing.
The honed one is much smoother.
 
#9
Funny ALL loading Dies meet rigid specs otherwise their rejected . The ONLY dies I don't have or use are Lee dies ,as I have preferences to manufacturers . However ALL brand dies will do the job.
 
#10
Specs and acceptance within their world. Redding dies are honed like shit and you end up with stuck cases. Had this happen with 3 different redding dies. They went in the trash. After switching to rcbs and wilson....no more stuck cases. Magic. If all dies were the same everyone would use shitty hornady or lee.
 
#11
Mighty Armory universal decap die
Forster full length sizing die w/ neck bushing
21st Century mandrel die
Hornady seating die with micrometer stem (came with the Hornady FL bushing sizing die, but prefer the Forster sizing die instead)
 
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#12
Mighty Armory de-capping die
Anneal (AMP is my preferred method)
Whidden full length bushing die, .288 bushing, no expander stem
Cortina precision mandrel die, mandrel .261?
Forster micrometer seating die (Whidden would fit nicely here too)

This is with a minimum spec SAMI chamber, some factory chambers are going to be cut larger so you will be sizing the brass down more each time.
 
#13
DeathBeforeDismount said:
Specs and acceptance within their world. Redding dies are honed like shit and you end up with stuck cases. Had this happen with 3 different redding dies. They went in the trash. After switching to rcbs and wilson....no more stuck cases. Magic. If all dies were the same everyone would use shitty hornady or lee.
Click to expand...

Redding dies need to be broken in. Once that’s done they’re fine.
 
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#17
DeathBeforeDismount said:
Yea they need about 25k pieces of brass to smooth out shitty machinig/honing. :)
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Yea… I got the Redding Master Hunter dies when I started loading 6.5CM. I had to send the resizing die back in because it was so rough I couldn’t fully resize a piece of brass without bulging the brass. Never seen that before in my other Redding, Hornady or Lee dies. I’m sure i could have gotten a better resizing die if I had known. I never had that issue with my 223 and 308 Redding dies. I guess their QC isn’t what it used to be.
 
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#18
R_A_W said:
My .223 Redding FL w/ bushing has remained pretty rough inside

I personally don't understand paying for a Redding Type S FL Sizing die when LE Wilson is machined better at about the same price
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Mine isn't great as well. It's not bad but it could definitely be better. The part in the bullet seating die where the seating stem and bullet travel through also need a polishing. They're not bad overall but I'd probably try something else if I had to do it again.
 
#19
R_A_W said:
My .223 Redding FL w/ bushing has remained pretty rough inside

I personally don't understand paying for a Redding Type S FL Sizing die when LE Wilson is machined better at about the same price
Click to expand...
Wilson dies are like a work of art. Beautifully blended and radiused edges. It's amazing he can make them for 90 bucks. I run mostly matchmasters because with discount they are $75 a SET. But anything I need alacart or replacement for redding are wilson.
 
#23
I believe you answered your own ill stated response . " Everyone Does use Which ever Dies ". Sales will bear that fact . I also prefer RCBS as they've always had MY back . Hornady, Redding nor Wilson have Never sent Me an unacceptable product ever and I use them all .

As I stated previously I have several sets of Dies as over the years I've been attempting to " Permanently Lubricate the interior of the Dies " ,thus totally eliminating need for any lube . So Needless to say I not only have More Dies than any #5 reloaders combined but also a Brand variety bar None .

I've stuck more cases for obvious reasons than any #20 reloaders combined . I also have been successful at resizing #44 ,7.62X51 LC cases without any lube ,which came from a " Generous Chambered " , aka a Worn out M60 or more than likely a now discarded M240 weapon. Cases were considerably out of spec in other words. I've lost # 0 Dies and each and everyone regardless of manufacturer ,will still load sufficiently , so as to fit gas gun chambers or bolt guns in every caliber I load for .

IF we can ever solve the PDV or magnetron sputtering inside a small diameter cylinder ,it will revolutionize the shooting sports !. Chamber throats complete Barrel bores ,lasting 100K-200K rounds and more ,dies which need NO Lube . Any interior assembly such as expander balls which must be exposed as an exterior target can be placed in a High vacuum and done via PVD . PVD is Pulsed Laser Deposition . Less than half COF of that of Teflon with Diamond like hardness !. I have them and need zero neck lube . Coating is lifetime and mere microns in thickness .
DeathBeforeDismount said:
Specs and acceptance within their world. Redding dies are honed like shit and you end up with stuck cases. Had this happen with 3 different redding dies. They went in the trash. After switching to rcbs and wilson....no more stuck cases. Magic. If all dies were the same everyone would use shitty hornady or lee.
Click to expand...
PLD_Plume.png


Current report a new industrial application of aluminum magnesium boride AlMgB14 (BAM) coatings to enhance the hardness of tungsten carbide ceramic (WC-Co) and high-speed steel tools. BAM films were deposited by RF magnetron sputtering of a single dense stoichiometric ceramic target onto commercial WC-Co turning inserts and R6M5 steel drill bits. High target sputtering power and sufficiently short target-to-substrate distance were found to be critical processing conditions. Very smooth (6.6 nm RMS surface roughness onto Si wafers) and hard AlMgB14 coatings enhance the hardness of WC-Co inserts and high-speed R6M5 steel by a factor of two and three, respectively. Complete coating spallation failure occurred at a scratch adhesion strength of 18 N. High work of adhesion and low friction coefficient, estimated for BAM onto drill bits, was as high as 64 J/m2 and as low as 0.07, respectively, more than twice the surpass characteristics of N-doped diamond-like carbon (DLC) films deposited onto nitride high-speed W6Mo5Cr4V2 steel.
 
#26
For 6.5, I deprime and size with a forster and seat with an LE Wison/sinclair click type inline die and arbor press and have had excellent results thus far.
 
#27
Basic user said:
Broken in? With what do you recommend?
Click to expand...

An unsized case. You take a fired case, clean it, lube it with imperial wax, slowly run it into the die until you feel resistance, pull the case out and redistribute the lube on the case so it’s covered again, then run that case a little deeper until you feel resistance again. Pull the case out and repeat the cycle, each time running the case a little deeper until the die touches the shell holder.

Then repeat with another case. In my experience this works well, one or two cases maybe three. After that you can size normally.

Another consideration is how much you’re trying to size all at once. For example, a case fired out of a large chamber (machine gun) is going to be harder to size than one fired out of a minimum match chamber. So even if you have a super smooth small base die the case can get stuck. I size this case in a Redding body die first, then a small base die.
 
#35
918v said:
Keep window licking
Click to expand...


Explain please just how brass smooths hardened tool steel .especially seeing as one is lubing the brass being inserted ?.

Don't mean to burst your bubble but just suggesting reloading dies need " Breaking in " is some what ludicrous to say the least .

In 58 years reloading using everyone's dies ,not once has a cartridge failed to be sized ,expanded , charged or bullet seated and if applicable tapered or roll crimped ,thus fitting given chamber of caliber of weapon .

1215 carbon steel is a low-carbon, resulfurized and rephosphorized steel that belongs to the family of free-machining steels.

Adding sulfur and phosphorus to the steel composition promotes the formation of fine, uniform, and dispersed particles, which act as chip breakers during machining operations.

As a result, this carbon steel exhibits excellent machinability , allowing it to be easily machined into intricate and precise components.

Regarding its mechanical properties, this carbon steel has moderate strength, good toughness, and high ductility. Its tensile strength typically ranges from 78,000 to 85,000 psi, while its yield strength is about 60,000 psi.

The steel also has good wear resistance, making it suitable for applications that involve sliding or abrasive wear.

Hardness Rockwell C 64-85 is typically achieved . Hardness varies from manufacturer to manufacturer as does selection of Steel used .
Like may other things if one is large enough ,custom blends with additives ,Cr , C and Si along with a variety of surface enhancing heat treatments can make some damn tough Tool steels .

You know about Nitriding ,such as barrels and such . Well ;

Gas nitriding is a thermochemical case hardening process used to increase wear resistance, surface hardness and fatigue life by dissolution of nitrogen and hard nitride precipitations.


Benefits ​


Favoured for components that are subjected to heavy loading, nitriding imparts a high surface hardness which promotes high resistance to wear, scuffing, galling and seizure. Fatigue strength is increased mainly by the development of surface compressive stresses. The wide range of possible temperatures and case depths, which allow adjustment of different properties of the treated parts, give gas nitriding a broad field of applications.




 
#42
918v said:
Did you not read what I wrote? I lube the brass. I use imperial wax.

You guys are ridiculous. Dude is sticking cases. I offer a solution that has worked for me for 3 decades. And all you can do is give me shit.

Fine. Be that way. I don’t care.
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I agree with you, Redding dies have to be broken in to work. They suck, I bought one set, had the issue you describe, contacted customer support about it and they wouldn't even respond. Never bought a second set and have been happy with that decision. Too many other brands that do what they're supposed to do right out of the box, and if there is an issue they actually handle it. Redding has a known issue and they refuse to correct it.
 
#43
918v said:
Did you not read what I wrote? I lube the brass. I use imperial wax.

You guys are ridiculous. Dude is sticking cases. I offer a solution that has worked for me for 3 decades. And all you can do is give me shit.

Fine. Be that way. I don’t care.
Click to expand...


Try reading this " Correctly " : NOT a single Die manufacturer has ever recommended " breaking in dies " totally ludicrous to even consider such nonsense .

I believe you answered your own ill stated response . " Everyone Does use Which ever Dies ". Sales will bear that fact . I also prefer RCBS as they've always had MY back . Hornady, Redding nor Wilson have Never sent Me an unacceptable product ever and I use them all .

As I stated previously I have several sets of Dies as over the years I've been attempting to " Permanently Lubricate the interior of the Dies " ,thus totally eliminating need for any lube . So Needless to say I not only have More Dies than any #5 reloaders combined but also a Brand variety bar None .

I've stuck more cases for obvious reasons than any #20 reloaders combined . Should be obvious as too WHY I've stuck cases .

Try running 7.62X51 cases out of a worn M240 dry and see how many You stick ,I've gotten #44 before it happened . MY Dies however have had various coatings applied ,some successful some Not . Hence why it's known as experimental
 
#44
i've been using hornady match grade dies with a .287 bushing, so far so good. loaded around 1000 rounds and havent noticed any sticking or anything. After firing I tumble, anneal, lube in a ziploc with one shot, size, tumble, trim, deburr chamfer, prime, charge, seat. I haven't had bad luck with the hornady dies yet and as long as you set the screw on die once you get it set up they stay pretty consistent in CBTO and I've seated Berger/Hornady/Sierra/Barnes bullets with them no problems.
 
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