Seating Die putting dimple in Casing

[Tawaliga]

I was just seating some bullets in a brand new seating die and noticed the stroke was a little difficult and did not feel smooth, so I inspected the finished cartridge and saw a very slight dimple just below the shoulder. Did another one and same thing. I sprayed some One Shot case lube up in there and loaded a few more. Much smoother, but still a very slight indentation just below the shoulder.

1. Any idea what the issue is?

2. Should I be concerned about firing the rounds that have the indentation in them?

 

[nhyrum]

Pictures would be helpful. You shouldn't lube a seating die, or need to anyway. It could be caused by your die being screwed in too far, which is common. You don't really crimp rifle rounds.

I'd start by talking the die apart, cleaning it and putting it back in, not screwed in as far

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[Tawaliga]

See pics:

This is a 7mm Mag btw, not that it matters

 

[nhyrum]

Are you positive the case(s) weren't like that before? That doesn't look like it could be the die at all.

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[Unclenick]

You must have some debris or a burr up in there. Shine a flashlight into and see if you can pick up on what is touching the side of the case. Turn the seating stem all the way down and remove it from the die. See the problem is there. If it's a defect you can't easily remove, RCBS will replace the die.

 

[nhyrum]

You must have some debris or a burr up in there. Shine a flashlight into and see if you can pick up on what is touching the side of the case. Turn the seating stem all the way down and remove it from the die. See the problem is there. If it's a defect you can't easily remove, RCBS will replace the die.

If it was a burr in the die, wouldn't the crease be completely vertical and start at the shoulder? It looks like something hit the case from the side, which can't happen when it's just moving up and down

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[Tawaliga]

So...I'm not sure how they got there, but there was some pieces of copper against the side of the wall about where the marks were being made. I generously sprayed case lube in there and then used some q-tips to clean everything off....now everything looks shiny and smooth, and I ran a case up in there to test it with no issues.

Now, should I worry about firing those rounds with the dimples in them?

 

[nhyrum]

Now, should I worry about firing those rounds with the dimples in them?

Nope. Shoot em

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[Tawaliga]

Thanks all!

 

[50 shooter]

The dimple will blow out when you shoot it.

There has to be a burr in the die, look inside of it and check it out. Maybe coming from the wax/vent hole in die?

 

[sako2]

Are you seating a flat base bullet or a boat tail ? Are the case mouths deburred ?

 

[44 AMP]

Clean the die. Clean the sizer too...

the size, and location shown in the pic indicates a burr or debris in the die. Could be a scratch that didn't get polished out. Could be a chunk of something "Stuck" to the inside of the die.

Use a case without the dent to see if its from the sizer (and you just didn't notice it) or if its from the seater die. Normally the seater die does not contact the case where the dent is.

Brand new seater die MIGHT have a bit of something in it that shouldn't be there and is causing the dent. Take the seating stem out, and clean the die body use cloth "patch" like you would for a gun barrel, to wipe out the die body.

Feel for a burr or scratch, as well as look, under a good light. If tis smooth inside put it back in the die and run a case into it. See if you still get the dent. If you do, call RCBS and explain what is going on, and what you have done. If its something they need to fix, they will. They're really good about that.

 

[Aguila Blanca]

I suggest everyone read post #7 before offering any more advice. Tawaliga already discovered that the problem was a metal sliver in the die, and he has removed it.

 

[gwpercle]

Every now and again clean your dies ...little bits of "stuff" get picked up and deposited in them . I picked up some primer grit , a tiny piece in a sizing die and it left long scratches in the case wall... I couldn't see the tiny spec of grit but it left a horrible scratch ...
a brass cleaning brush , cleaning rod and bore cleaner and I scrubbed it out.
So keep em clean !
Gary

 

[Metal god]

I suggest everyone read post #7 before offering any more advice. Tawaliga already discovered that the problem was a metal sliver in the die, and he has removed it.

I disagree with thinking this evaluation is over , you all/he "thinks" he found the problem . What seating die do you use that can put enough sideways force on a case to dent it below the shoulder . I say zero can do that including the comp seating dies that have sleeves . IMO that was not the problem . That dent looks like a shell deflector ding or extraction ding of some sort . I've seen many with different shapes and depths .

EDIT
In fact here is a case I just went and grabbed from a bag of once fired never sized LC-14 cases I have . This was the 6th case I pulled out , meaning didn't need to look far for the answer . He must of just missed it during case prep

Things that make you go hmm

 

[Unclenick]

Again, read post #7. He found a sliver. He removed the sliver. He tested the die without the sliver being present. The indentations no longer occurred. That's about as positive a piece of proof as you can get that the solution was found.

As to the mechanics of how that is possible, I can only speculate that the piece of metal debris was rolled or slipped over by the case on its way in, so the lateral force didn't appear until the expander in the die forced the neck to line up with the die centerline. That will generate lateral force. So might the bullet pushing down into the neck force some of that alignment. Either way, the case would have to roll or slip over the debris backward on its way out to leave it in position to dent the next case. It seems improbable, but the consistent production of the dents and scratches and the fact the debris remained present for him to find and remove later suggests that it was. Sometimes the unexpected occurs.

 

[Metal god]

I could go find hundreds of cases with that same dent in my once fired stock pile that have never been reloaded . I am as sure as one can be without having any idea if it’s true that the ding is an extraction ding in the case . LOL how’s that for confidence .

I crack me up ;-)