550 - Powder Funnel Sticking

[kingdarb]

Heya folks. I load 9mm on a 550 and I am a fairly new reloader. I have done about 3k rounds on the press, and so far, so good. That said, I am having an issue now. I am finding that cases are sticking a bit after being charged with powder. I had a closer look and it appears that the cases are hanging on the part of the funnel that bells the case (the belling is set right - not too big or too small - the funnel is not getting rammed so far into the case that this is the issue).

The brass is all various types of once-fired factory.

I have never lubed pistol cases. I am going to give it a try before too long. That said is there something else that may be causing this? Could it be that I have to take some steel wool to polish the funnel? Has anyone else encountered this?

[atbarr]

Heya folks. I load 9mm on a 550 and I am a fairly new reloader. I have done about 3k rounds on the press, and so far, so good. That said, I am having an issue now. I am finding that cases are sticking a bit after being charged with powder. I had a closer look and it appears that the cases are hanging on the part of the funnel that bells the case (the belling is set right - not too big or too small - the funnel is not getting rammed so far into the case that this is the issue).

The brass is all various types of once-fired factory.

I have never lubed pistol cases. I am going to give it a try before too long. That said is there something else that may be causing this? Could it be that I have to take some steel wool to polish the funnel? Has anyone else encountered this?

Brian sells Dillon 'One Shot', you need to lube your cases, even when using a carbide die set.

[Sarge]

It's a very common problem. The case is not sticking on the flaring part of the funnel it's sticking on the expander portion. Some buff it, some sand it, some mill it, some change to a 1050 funnel and some just get used to it. I tried all of the above and chose to just get used to it.

If you were to sort your brass you will probably find it is worse in some and better in others. FC and CCI are better in my press. They seem to have thinner case walls so the dimensions are not as tight.

Lubing won't help much unless you lube inside the case mouth. I tried lubing the funnel but it only helps for about 10 seconds.

Eventually you can learn to manipulate the handle on the upstroke to minimize the feeling. Just sort of power through it.

[kingdarb]

It's a very common problem. The case is not sticking on the flaring part of the funnel it's sticking on the expander portion. Some buff it, some sand it, some mill it, some change to a 1050 funnel and some just get used to it. I tried all of the above and chose to just get used to it.

If you were to sort your brass you will probably find it is worse in some and better in others. FC and CCI are better in my press. They seem to have thinner case walls so the dimensions are not as tight.

Lubing won't help much unless you lube inside the case mouth. I tried lubing the funnel but it only helps for about 10 seconds.

Eventually you can learn to manipulate the handle on the upstroke to minimize the feeling. Just sort of power through it.

Hey thanks. Yeah its not really hard to power thought it. I can still move the handle easily enough despite the sticking. I just wanted to see if it is correctable or not...

[Pat Miles]

If you are using Dillon case lube do not spray it into the mouth of the cartridge to try to fix your sticking problem. Powder will start sticking to the powder funnel and in the case mouth causing erratic powder drops into the cases. Using Hornady One Shot will not cause the powder to stick. It will help if you polish the external surface of the powder drop die that expands and bells the cases. The problem will eventually disappear after you have reloaded the cases a few times. There is usually a tiny burr on the inner mouth which happens during the manufacturing of the brass. It is irritating.

Pat