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Posted: 7/29/2014 5:19:32 PM EDT
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Got a new scope coming in so i figured I'd make up some work-ups ive been meaning to make. I have some pet loads already made to dial in the scope but figure while im out i might as well do a few work ups since I use summer time in AZ to stock back up on my reloads.
Anywho, I was making 50x 308's. 168gr SMKs and XBR 8208 (41.6-43.4gr). While making the rounds, the XBR would leak of of the powder die when i was filling the cases. If i had to guess, after the 50 cases were done, i prob had enough powder to make another round (around 40gr's) over the bench.  I had my 223 die head in there last and swapped to the 308. I never had any kind of leak from any powder/caliber before this. Any idea what could cause this? when i finished i checked everything and it all seemed legit. Just for grins i cleaned out the powder/powder bar and the die. It took 2 q-tips to clean all that and they werent that dirty. Havent made anything since, waiting for 2k 9mm to come in and 2k ss109s. Edited your title. Do not use all caps, we do not like to be screamed at. All caps=screaming on the internet. dryflash3
EDIT: opps, sorry, didnt realize it was in caps. |
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One thing that has caused mine to leak powder is for the shell plate to be too loose which allows the case to enter the powder die at an improper attitude. I have also polished the inside of the powder measure which seems to have helped with weight repeatability.
Vince |
| I tried going fast and super slow and no matter what it leaked. I have already polished everything as well. Only think I can think of is the shell plate may have been loose. I do know it was pretty easy (easier then normal) to spin. I will try this weekend when i get my 9mm + titegroup. |
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I would say this - STOP!
The powder should not "leak", not even ball powder leaks. Where is it leaking from? Only you can tell. Find it and fix it. Make a few rounds and watch for the leak. Does it fall out of the bottom of the powder die as you lower the ram? If so, you are either not giving the powder time to fall into the case (going to fast) or you have powder bridging. If it is coming out of the cases after filling, it may be due to rough handling. You could be spinning the shell plate too fast or stopping it too abruptly. Each of these scenarios (each cause) has a remedy but tell us what's going on and we can focus the discussion around a solution for your problem. |
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The powder isn't leaking, there is no way an extruded powder could leak through when fine pistol powders don't leak. That leaves one of two or three explanations: You aren't allowing enough time for all the powder to fall into the cartridge case, its an extruded powder and takes time to fill the case, if you rush it, the remaining powder falls outside the case, making it LOOK LIKE it might have leaked. OR, the powder is bridging, hanging up in the drop, then dropping when a case isn't up inside the powder measure where it would normally be when dispensing, again, looking like its leaking. Sometimes, if cases are very full of powder, and the shell plate isn't properly tightened down, the cases can flop around, knocking some powder out of the cases, again, looking like its leaking. |
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I set my Dillon 550B up for .308 with Mil-Spec and Sierra 168gr SMKs the other day it worked fine with the Dillon measure and the .308 powder funnel included in the .308 caliber conversion kit,
However, the charge weight varied about .3 to .4 gr with IMR-4064 - a lot more than I liked, so I switched to my Redding BR-30 measure using a powder die adapter. Using the Dillon specified RL450 powder die under my Dillon powder measure adapter, I had powder leaking everywhere with my Redding BR-30 measure, even with the powder die screwed all the way down to the shell plate, and the measure screwed all the way into the adapter. The funnel on the bottom of the BR-30 was just not long enough to reach and seal against the mouth of the case. So….I did the following: 1. switched to a regular 550B powder die; 2. used the .308 powder funnel in it (which won't stay in the RL 450 die); 3. screwed the powder die all the way down to contact the shell plate; and 4. screwed the BR 30 measure down into the adapter until it contacted the top of the .308 powder funnel, with a cartridge on the shell plate and elevated to the fully raised position. Essentially, the cartridge presses the .308 funnel up in the standard powder die until it contacts the bottom of the funnel on the BR-30 measure and ensures no leakage. The end result was no leakage and charges within .1 grain. ----- My suggestions for a Dillon measure are: A. If you are leaking powder, your charge weights will be all over the place, so I would not have loaded any rounds, let alone 50. B. Recheck your set up of powder die, powder funnel and measure to ensure that you have full contact between the case mouth, powder funnel and the bottom of the measure. If it's an automatically operated "fail safe" measure that should be the case, but with the older manually operated Dillon measure that may not necessarily be the case. C. Make sure the powder funnel is inserted right side up, otherwise if it is upside down with the tapered funnel side down, you may have a few grains hanging up on the square ledge that normally meets the case mouth. D. I have not found bridging to be an issue with my Dillon measures even with extruded powders such as IMR 4064 and IMR 4895. Larger grained extruded powders like IMR 4831 or IMR 4350 could be a problem, but it would and should be uncommon as the measure should be moving enough with each cycle to ensure the powder doesn't bridge. However, you should visually inspect the level in each case until you've measured enough charges to determine that bridging is NOT an issue. I'd run the press but pull the charged rounds off the press at the seating station and place them in a reloading block, then visually inspect the level in the whole block to ensure there is no variation in powder levels. After a couple blocks with no issues, I'd call it good to go and run the press as normal. E. Operating the press really fast might theoretically be an issue, but it would have to be very fast in .308. Even with an extruded powder, the 45ish grain .308 powder charges and the size of the neck and powder funnel for .308 will not require more than a second or so for the powder to fall all the way from measure to case. Of the above options I suspect "C" is the most likely culprit if you're running an automatic Dillon measure. |
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