Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Re-Sizing 264 brass to 257, should I remove the expander ball or not?

Starting with 264 PPU brass (on sale at Grafs) the plan is to lube well then run them through a Forster FL sizer, then through a Lee Collet die hoping this will reduce run out. Or should I use the expander and skip the collet until the second reloading? Lee doesn't make a 257 Wby collet die but with spacers the 25-06 one will work.

When you run them through the sizer die without the expander ball, what is the resultant inside neck diameter? If it is in the 254 range, I wouldn’t worry about it.

I know you know this, but brass made from 264 will be about 50 thou short. Just means you don’t need to trim, ever.

I use 7 Rem brass for my brothers 257 Wby. Works like a champ. I pull the expander ball and use an expander mandrel to get the internal diameter I want.

Wonder what brass I could use to make 358Norma cartridges and not be short? Thanks. Cheers NC

338 Winchester would only be about 0.020" short, less difference than the 264x257 conversion. If they had to be to specifications then 300WM, 308 Norma or longer cases. The H&H cases would probably require neck turning.

Still waiting on dies, the Forsters are in short supply, most show them discontinued including Forster. I ground and honed the Lee Collet mandrel so it is more like a neck expander than the stock one. I will try it with imperial on the outside and motor mica on the inside to see if this works, if not imperial inside and out. Next batch will be the real thing but the Graf deal was too good to pass up and the PPU may be harder brass than the Norma.

Cut to the chase and put Imperial on the inside.

300 Win mag. I’ve read that people cut the chamber to be able to expand and not trim.

That’s what I did. After the chamber is reamed to 358 Norma, follow that with a 35 Whelen reamer to get to a case length of 2.61 inches. Lets you use trimmed 300 Winchester brass necked up, which I think improves the cartridge as the longer neck grabs more of those heavier bullets.

Making brass is easy. Your die needs a tapered expander ball from 30 to 35 needless to say. Use new brass (I used Winchester) and it’s a one pass deal to have 358 Norma longneck brass.

That's the concept of the .375 Epstein

That's good intel Rick. I've got a .358 Krieger and a Benchmark waiting to get done. Was thinking of a Newton again, but I hate trimming the brass after forming it. I have to take a .100 off. I am wondering if I shouldn't just do a 35/375 Ruger or the 358 Norma like you mentioned?

Scotty, at the time I thought the 358 Norma long neck was absolutely brilliant. It was however, over 15 years ago. Today? The 375 Ruger case may be a better way to go, although I have no experience with it.

But there is no downside to the longneck Norma. Like I said above, a one pass operation through the sizing die and you have brass ready to go.

I'll have to ponder that one a little.

One upside to that Long neck Norma is that you use standard 358 Norma dies. The sizer is the same although the expander ball needs to be tapered. The seater die needs to be backed off and the seating stem screwed in more to compensate; otherwise, you crimp the cases… A lot.

Thanks guys you have give me food for thought and several ways to go. Thank you. Cheers NC

I have done, both 7mm Mag and 264 WM cases into 257 Wby mag cases, I just lube them and run them thru the 257 dies with the expander ball with no trouble.