Why is my 7.62x51 brass hard to size?

[PanhandleGlocker]

I tried sizing some 7.62x51 brass I had because I have the bit to take out the military primer crimp now and I figured I could finally put this brass to good use. This is once fired, odd headstamp brass from back when I had a DPMS .308. It was stuff Walmart used to sell that’s all I remember. (After a quick Google search I think it may have been ZQI brand. Anyone heard of it?)

Anyways, here’s some detail.. I lubed it like I normally do my .308 brass which I never have a problem with and this stuff WAS A PAIN to size. It was so hard on the upstroke I only did 3 and gave up because I was worried about getting a stuck case. All the other military brass I have that was factory reloads from Amer-I-Can ammo sizes just fine but this once fired stuff I have is a pain. Does anyone have any insight? Thanks again guys.

 

[swampratt]

Were the reloads from Amer-I-Can ammo shot from the same DPMS rifle?

Usually when brass is shot from an automatic rifle it gets much larger than when shot from a bolt rifle.

Now not all brass has the same alloy.
I had hundreds of rounds of LC05 7.62 and it was very hard to resize.
Shot terrible groups compared to my winchester cases anyway.

Bad enough I sold the few hundred I had left.

I was able to test different lubes with that hard to size brass.
Imperial and Hornady unique case lube.

Hornady actually allowed the brass to slick through easier.
Case necks were also lubed on the insides of the neck with a Qtip.

Cases were brushed with a nylon bore brush before lubing and sizing.
Larger than a .308 brush of course.

That does help just a little bit more.

I have never used any spray lube and what I read about it is it needs to dry before you size
or it will be a bit harder to size cases.

 

[PanhandleGlocker]

Were the reloads from Amer-I-Can ammo shot from the same DPMS rifle?

Usually when brass is shot from an automatic rifle it gets much larger than when shot from a bolt rifle.

Now not all brass has the same alloy.
I had hundreds of rounds of LC05 7.62 and it was very hard to resize.
Shot terrible groups compared to my winchester cases anyway.

Bad enough I sold the few hundred I had left.

I was able to test different lubes with that hard to size brass.
Imperial and Hornady unique case lube.

Hornady actually allowed the brass to slick through easier.
Case necks were also lubed on the insides of the neck with a Qtip.

Cases were brushed with a nylon bore brush before lubing and sizing.
Larger than a .308 brush of course.

That does help just a little bit more.

I have never used any spray lube and what I read about it is it needs to dry before you size
or it will be a bit harder to size cases.

No the reloads I had were not shot out of that DPMS rifle luckily.

And yes with the One Shot Hornady lube I use I spray and let sit just like the instructions tell me. I had a feeling it may have been because the brass was shot from a semi auto. I wonder if a carbide die would help if they make those in rifle sizes? I only have about 50 cases that are hard to size so it’s not a total loss I guess if I can’t use them… Not like I’m sitting on 500 of them.

 

[undeg01]

Odd. I have sized and loaded quite a bit of 7.62x51 that I ran through my Remington R-25, and I too use the spray lube. I have never experienced any as difficult as you describe. Some harder due to the heavy brass, but not near that difficult.

As swampratt stated, those military cases proved to be far less accurate than other factory brass.

 

[PanhandleGlocker]

Odd. I have sized and loaded quite a bit of 7.62x51 that I ran through my Remington R-25, and I too use the spray lube. I have never experienced any as difficult as you describe. Some harder due to the heavy brass, but not near that difficult.

As swampratt stated, those military cases proved to be far less accurate than other factory brass.

I may just toss them then. Not worth getting a stuck case…

 

[swampratt]

I would get some Hornady Unique Case lube and go from there.

Apply with your fingers and Qtip inside the neck.
You can also resize the cases 2 times or 3.
Will not hurt a thing and you can measure body size on 1st sizing and 2nd and 3rd and see if it changes.
Brass has spring back and some much more than others.

Do not toss them just yet.
Save them for now and Someone like me will work them over.
Or you can turn them into 45acp shot shells

 

[dennishoddy]

I ran into some eastern communist bloc .223 brass that was almost too hard to resize. It was shot from my rifle. Don't remember the headstamp on it, but it got tossed into the scrap bucket. Way too much soft good brass out there to mess with problem stuff.

 

[AKmoose]

I would get some Hornady Unique Case lube and go from there.

Apply with your fingers and Qtip inside the neck.
You can also resize the cases 2 times or 3.
Will not hurt a thing and you can measure body size on 1st sizing and 2nd and 3rd and see if it changes.
Brass has spring back and some much more than others.

Do not toss them just yet.
Save them for now and Someone like me will work them over.
Or you can turn them into 45acp shot shells

Try the Unique, made it easier than anything I've tried. A few still wont completely fit in the case gage and are chucked.

 

[Shadowrider]

I would get some Hornady Unique Case lube and go from there.

Apply with your fingers and Qtip inside the neck.
You can also resize the cases 2 times or 3.
Will not hurt a thing and you can measure body size on 1st sizing and 2nd and 3rd and see if it changes.
Brass has spring back and some much more than others.

^^^ Do this right here but I'd add Imperial to the list. I have both and they are good. Either will work far far better than the Hornady spray. After having to go get a stuck case removal kit I completely quit using it on rifle brass. I buy it from Amazon 4 large cans at a time for pistol brass, but it's a total no-go on rifle brass.

 

[dennishoddy]

Man, I love the Hornady one shot spray. I don't wait for it to dry. Spray and play. Never had a stuck case and there have been thousands of brass cases ran through those dies.