reloading in cold and hot temperatures

[carolina flatfoot]

I live in the southeast and have my XL650 mounted on the 3rd floor of our house. The 3rd floor does not have heat or AC. In the summer the temperature gets up to 100 degrees F. I ventilate it and set up a fan and I can work thru it for 45 minutes at a time, no problem. However...in the winter the temperature can range from 50 to 30 deg.F. When reloading recently, I noticed that the brass seems to be harder to deprime causing powder to jump out of brass sometimes while turning on the shell plate. Does anyone out there in bullet- making-land have the same issues and if so, how can I combat it? I thought about bringing the brass downstairs with me, so when I bring it up to reload, the brass won't be real cold, but...then I thought about condensation issues. I already keep the powder in normal temps, so don't worry with that. What is it...going from cold to hot makes big condensation. So brass, primers and powder going from 70 deg. F (hot to cold) to 30 deg F. I can use a space heater and most likely won't be up there more than an hour at a time. Thanks for any input.

[kevin c]

I'm not sure the temp change in the brass is the main cause of your problem.

Are you using lube?

Did you check the sized brass to make sure it's not scored (dies can get scratched or burred, and that can dramatically increase resistance on sizing)?

Is the brass binding on the powder die as it pulls free after flaring (I had a nasty problem with that using new brass).

Is anything binding the shell plate (primer mechanism, case feed, pawl advance, etc.)?

[FLL1911]

I am really not sure if the temperature is the cause, but theoretically it could be possible. Case and primers are made of different metals with different expansion / contraction amount as temperature changes. Suppose that brass contracts more than the primer material at 30 F. The direct consequence is that it will require a lot more effort to remove the primer.

I not saying that it is happening since I do not know the expansion characteristics of both metals, but you can run a quick test by putting some cases in the freezer until they get the same temperature you have in the winter, and then compare the pressure need to deprime them compared to the cases you kept at 100 F degrees.

If you do the test, post the results. It would be nice to know what is causing the problem.

[No.343]

I have my press in the garage and have never had that issue with brass. Maybe you should look at your lubricant for the press itself?

[carolina flatfoot]

I'm now reloading on the 3rd floor of the house where it is 36 degrees F. I have a Dillion XL 650. When i get to stage 4 (die 4) in the reloading sequence (place the bullet over the brass and pull the handle section), I am geting brass that is peeled down the side of the bullet after that station. I believe it is the cold temperatures. I wasn't having this problem in warmer temps. Again, maybe I should bring the brass downstairs with me and then bring it up when it's time to reload, so its not so cold. Maybe if the brass isn't so cold it will perform better. Any advise??

[scribble]

I have been dumb enough to run out of ammo on some of the coldest days of year the year up here and then run through the snow to the garage to load up for a match the next morning. My press and all components are in the garage and it is currently about 15 deg f outside right now. I have never had any problems affected by heat or cold other than freezing hands.

Pictures would help.

Edited January 21, 2009 by scribble

[dwt]

Try increasing the case mouth flare alittle.

[trodrig]

I load on a 650 that's still in the garage and have recently loaded on a pretty cold day (for Central Texas ~45) without issue. All components except powder and primers are kept in the garage. I'm not quite sure I understand though. You mentioned that the primers are a little harder to punch out but, how does this cause powder to jump out of the cases when at the time you're punching out the primer all of the rounds are up inside the dies? Maybe I'm just not understanding the sequence of events?

As for the other issue can you post a pic of it?

Thomas

[Duane Thomas]

In order to stop the shell plate from "snapping" into the next position, thus spilling powder, in any temperature, try clipping the spring that powers the steel ball under the shellplate. The way you do that is to unscrew the bolt with a hex wrench, pull it up and out of place, push the wire loop to the side, then lift off the shellplate; underneath the shellplate, buried in the frame, you'll see the steel ball. Lift it out (I use my Brownells Magna-Tip screwdriver), then lift out the spring underneath the same way. Advice on how many coils to clip varies. I wound up doing a coil and half. I'd say start with half a coil, reinstall everything and cycle the press. Then if necessary clip more, half a coil at a time, until the shellplate rotates smoothly into position with no powder spillage.

[Duane Thomas]

Addendum:

BTW, if you're not using case lube, you should be.

[carolina flatfoot]

the suggestion on the increasing the Case Mouth flare was just what I needed. Didn't have enough bell on it. Thanks DTW. Hey I'm making stupid Rookie mistakes, but I'm learning. I'm using assorted used brass from the police range so i think that is the reason for the inconsistency on the depriming, some are easy and some harder. One more question? Case lube- when you all clean your brass are you adding case lube to the medium?, I use the walnut medium. Thanks again.