it's impossible to get more neck tension as the mandrel inside controls the final inside dia. what you're doing is having the collet move further down the neck which will eventually push the neck inwards causing the shoulder to donut.
Great video... As an old timer in reloading, I've use lots of the bushing type neck sizing dies. I've found that if you use a Redding Body sizing die, just sizing the body by pushing the shoulder back about .002 after a case has been fired and then using the Lee Collet die you can adjust the die to make the neck tension about .002 or .003 below bullet diameter and you can really make some concentric bullets. Run out will be minimum. This tool is now my "go to" tool for neck sizing...Just remember, neck sizing without bumping that shoulder back with a body sizing die, you're giving up case life and possible hard to extract cases after firing. Great video, Josh. Everybody who reloads ought to be using a collet type neck sizing die for real accuracy. At least in my humble opinion.
@johnday4765 thank you for commenting. I have not used the collet neck die yet but your description of why for concentricity/accuracy is exactly what I want to achieve and your experience confirms this.
You can special order Custom Undersized Collect Necksizing Mandrel for lee to your specification. I bump my cases .002 under, not touching the neck, then ran it through Lee Neck Sizing Die with a mandrel .002 under bullet diameter. This set the ideal neck tension. This also give you uniform concentricity. Works great.
2:00 very good advice there. One tip, when measuring a case, always pop out the primer first. Upon firing, the primer blows back to the bolt face and there is almost always at least a hint of firing pin crater. It will stand proud and affect your caliper reading. I like a press that cams over when using this die. It's hard to consistently judge 25 lbs of pressure. With a cam-over press, easy peasy. You might not know the exact pressure but it's the same every time. Good video!
One of these recently got me out of the shit! I had decapped and cleaned 120 pieces of brass. Full length sized them, trimmed them, primed them all good to go... then remembered I hadn't bumped the shoulders back...... aaaagggghhhh.... All very tight in the chamber. Bumped the shoulders back on them by 2 thou which drastically reduced the neck size. I got one of these neck size collet dies, ground the primer pin off and neck sized all of them. Only lost 2 thou overall length and saved 120 fully prepped cases 😅. Lesson learned.... Best money I've spent in a good while. Cheers for the video, It was a great help. 🇬🇧 👍
@btsantiago52 that did cross my mind, but then I'd have needed to buy a new full-length sizing pin anyway, (yes I know it's cheaper). The neck sizing die was just a handy extra that I can use purely to focus on the neck alone and sorted my problem.
Awesome glad you tuned in to check it out it really is a great die to use. I hope you enjoy it and hopefully it makes your groups tighter. Thanks for watching we appreciate it
It's been a while now that I have been using this Lee collet die and it has not failed me. But there are a couple of caveats that need attention. Early on I saw some rub marks where they call it meets the anvil of the die and I put some wheel bearing grease on the outside of those collet pedals. That has largely minimized the amount of wear. Also I am a big believer of running the sizing die twice for some added concentricity help. Just squeeze it turned around 90° and squeeze it again. I know a lot of people get down on these guys but I have had some of the best loads from this collet die. You got some great videos as always 👍
Great video. I was using collete dies for my AR. I was reloading brass from my gun and from my friends guns. I found that I have at least 10% of the brass was jamming and not rejecting or not going to battery. I have since changed to full length now and the problem of jamming have gone away.
Awesome glad you got it figured out. Thanks for watching and commenting. Also there is a tool called the Wilson case gauge that may help you also. Check those out on midway. Thanks again for watching
See now that's beautiful! A nice, no nonsense, no BS, concise video of what you need to do. And pay heed to how much you screw that Die in if you don't have a Lee press. I have an RCBS rebel and if I were to screw that Die a full turn, I would smash the hell out of that thing. I'm not bad-mouthing Lee presses, but they have a little slop built into them. They aren't as rigid as rcbs Rock chuckers. Lee presses work well but they flex when you run them up. Again, I really love Richard Lee, he is a definite visionary entrepreneur and I think he's run his business with integrity and love for his customers!
It ain’t lees presses that shine ! In fact they are garbage! Now the lee dies are the best on the market , maybe not in finish and shininess, but the least bullet runout of all the dies in its price range
Some of the Lee presses are built a little flexible and feel like an economical type press. Now the breech lock Challenger is one of their cheapest presses and it actually feels quite solid so I don't get their business model on presses. I love the Lee dies also. you can get everything you need for a specific caliber for less than 50 bucks. That's where they really shine in my book. And man their customer service is awesome. Probably get a family member when you call in. I have broken a couple of decapping pins. I call in, they verify my address, and I get a decapping pin brand new from them in 2 days. RCBS won't do that. But as far as presses go, RCBS is among the best. My press weighs 25 lbs and absolutely no flex whatsoever.
Lee calls for 2 turns with every other press besides a Lee press on my 308 collet die that i just bought so I’ll have to dig into this myself. I use an Rcbs press as well so I’m going to start at 1 1/2turns
You need to anneal your cases. I'm also from South Africa. Problem with only neck sizing is that you need to full size eventually, say every 4th of 5th time. If you don't your cases will get so tight that you will start having issues removing them from your rifle.
Doesn't this die also bring the neck into concentricity? I just pulled my collet neck sizer die out after many years of not being used. Thanks for the refresher vid, well done man 👍😎🇺🇸
Well one of the main reasons for this die for me is to have less bullet run out that is why I have concentricity gauge. I have a video on that also check it out sometime to. Thanks for watching
Hi Josh and Hunter's Adventures, thanks for the video. I resize 308 and when i resized my case every time have bump the shoulder with 0.04". I made different settings on Collet Neck Sizing Die but the result is the same. Have you had such a problem or someone else?
@@siah5506 and if your reloading for a semi auto gun, no neck sizing, full length only. neck sized brass will not feed reliably in a semi auto gun. also most pro shooters use full length sizing.
My Lee 223 set only has full length sizer, collet neck sizer and a dead length bullet seating die. I made a few cartridges and did not even use the collet neck sizer, mainly because i really don't know what it is used for, except that you can use it and not the full length sizer when only reloading brass that has only been used in you rifle. My question is, is the dead length bullet seating die putting any kind of crimp on the bullet? Do i need to buy the lee factory crimp die?
Thanks! I have a Lee set for .308 but their instructions are confusing. In one paragraph they say 1 turn. Then, in the very next paragraph they say 2 turns for 'other' press brands with a confusing explanation.
Is there an ideal tension? If I get mine about like yours where it barely comes in and out by hand is that adequate? What’s the cons to having less neck tension ? Thanks!
Lee says run the die down 1.25 turns after contacting ram at top of stroke. If you do only 3/4 turn, how can you be sure the ram is not at the top of the stroke before the collet fully closes on the neck?
Josh And Hunter’s Adventures yes I’ve pulled it apart and found it was not polished and were the four cuts on the collet are were extremely sharp so I gently rubbed them with 1500 grit sandpaper by putting a piece in one and one beside it and gently rubbed it as for the outside of the collet and were it matches in polished them both was this a good idea or have I made a big mistake
The collet marks are normal, they are actually partially unsized portion on the neck that landed between the fingers of the collet. Best way to make them less of an issue is rotate the brass 45 degrees and size again. That will place the unsized portions into the collet. (The instructions say to do so (90 degrees) for better accuracy but I honestly think it's mandatory to be able to size the entirety of the neck.)
That is the downfall to this if you don’t put the tension on it more say more than others than yes you will have different neck size tension. But honestly you can feel it and the way I showed it works pretty well. If you try I think you will see what I am saying. Thanks for watching
I bought one for my 300 win mag, out of box I couldn't get the guts out to lug it. Had to force it apart with a doll rod and and a small hammer, and wouldn't slide back together. Tried multiple cases with different depths and pressure on the press . Couldn't chamber the brass but the bullets were snug. Not impressed!
My thing is did he resize then neck size? My fire formed brass at two full turns like the instructions say my shell holder is no where near closing all the way. Instructions say you need to feel the collet, 25lbs min after primer removed and you feel the stop. I see a lot of guys doing it like the vid here. Am I missing something?
Post from @DLN-ix6vf 4 months ago (edited) it's impossible to get more neck tension as the mandrel inside controls the final inside dia. what you're doing is having the collet move further down the neck which will eventually push the neck inwards causing the shoulder to donut.
Honestly it’s a trial and era you just half to do it by feel there is no gauge to use or anything best thing to do is check the case make sure the bullet won’t just fall in the case.
First mistake headspace check…he checked the case without depriming. The primer will interfere with the measurement. The recess in the cap should be enough not to concern yourself with “25 pounds of pressure” nonsense. The bullet should not go in the neck even with a custom madrel at .001 neck tension.
I like to deprime in a decapping die first. Reason for this is, the first measurement might not be correct because the primer could be proud! Your way, the intitial measurement could be wrong, make all subsequent measurement wrong too.
@@joshandhuntersadventures5046 I think you missed my point! Your first measurement was with primer in. If the primer is protruding when you measure it, then you decap it, the measurement will be different. I find it safer to decap before any measuring is done. Mine is a decaper ONLY, it does not size in any way.
Well the primer is spent already and the reason for measuring was only to show people that we were not bumping the shoulder any at all. That we are sizing just the neck of the case.
All depends on MANY variables. Powder, bullet, primer, chamber demensions, charge weight, seating depth, brass hardness and the list goes on and on. Best to try a proven load with more/less neck tension, record results and compare. I generally set up my target loads with lower neck tension(.0015) but go for more on hunting ammunition if not crimping.
@@kassilewis5511 I never crimp myself and always work up till you find your right load that the gun shoots. Always work till you find what your gun likes don’t go off someone else’s load.
@@joshandhuntersadventures5046 I agree. Consistency is the key in handloading. As many of the variables that the loader can control should remain constant for more accurate results in load development as well as verification. Start low and work up. Any component changes afterward, dial back the chosen charge, then rework the load.
Will give everyone some advice, I have been reloading for over 25 years and have done many thousands of rounds, Deprimed clean primer pocket holes resized lubed and reloaded. I have purchased and used a lot of Lee's cheap junk over the last two decades. DO NOT BUY LEE's CHEAP GARBAGE. Buy dies that will not tear up your brass like these collet dies do. spend just a little bit more money and get some good quality items and do it right and you'll be happy for 27 years of reloading.
