Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Polishing expander ball?

Have any of you ever polished an expander ball on your sizing die? Is there a "best" expander ball design? I would think a tapered carbide expander ball would be about as smooth a surface as possible and produce consistent results.

The elliptical one Hornady uses is pretty good.

I've polished several different expanders.

I've been playing that game for years.....even bought a carbide ball which proved another disappointment. Get some Q-tips and apply a very small amount of imperial sizing lube to the inside of the case necks.....FWIW.

I've polished every expander ball I own. The biggest problem I had was on the upstroke so a tapered ball wont do much for that. I spin them in a drill press & using 600 grit wet/dry paper move up & down as possible concentrating on polishing the major diameter & rounding the edge opposite the decapping pin hole until it shines like a mirror. Some older dies required a few touches with a very fine file to get the shape right before polishing. There has been a noticeable difference in the amount of grating & drag when pulling it back through then neck. I also use Imperial dry neck lube (powdered graphite). Hornady's elliptical expanders seemed like a good idea when they 1st came out, but they weren't very smooth & the decapping rod wouldn't stay in place no matter how much the lock nut was tightened after a short time so they all went DTFR. Maybe they're better now? Never tried carbide. Never felt a need.

I believe some gun writer has published stuff about not only polishing expander balls, but testing them for straightness on the shaft.

Like vapodog, I tried the carbine expander balls and had little luck--but also have had great luck with very slight amount of Imperial Sizing Die Wax inside case necks. I apply it by smearing a tiny amount of wax on a nylon brush, then running the brush into the necks.

I have been using Imperial. Hoping to eliminate that step. I am old and lazy. Thanks guys and Happy 4th.

I polish every one of mine. I dont use anything on the inside of the neck either. Still turns out very concentric and accurate ammo.

It's very important to dry brush the interior of the case necks before sizing to remove the primer and powder residue. I've never found any lube was necessary if this is done. Use a nylon bristle brush.

Same here.

Instead of wet/dry paper you can use a wad of steel wool loaded with abrasive compound.

Ditto.

I have come to prefer "NO" expander ball.

I use more Lee collet neck sizers than anything else with a couple Redding bushing dies thrown in the mix for cartridges that I couldn't immediately get a collet die for.

Even the Lee Collet die benefits from contouring and polishing the mandrel. Forster and Redding usually don't need it but I may polish anyway. Other dies SOP. I use Hornaday One Shot spray lube and if it seems to need it I brush the case neck with motor mica. This is probably not needed but if there is a lot of carbon it may reduce this and I think it minimizes the drag from the expander ball if used and makes bullet pull more uniform. It also eliminated "cold welding" or oxidation of the bullet and case.

I am not familiar with the Lee Collet Die, better look into it.

Do a search for Mathman's instructions on that die and how to use it.

Much better than what Lee recommends.

DF

In addition to Mathman, Woods was another user who offered a lot of useful info on these dies if you run across his name in any of your searches. Both of these guys are who got me turned onto the collet sizers (and how to best utilize them) several years back.

Yep, Lee collet dies work well--especially if you're not into such anal-retentive techniques as measuring case-neck thickness variations.

You'll need a body die to set back shoulders from time to time when neck sized cases get sorta hard to chamber.

Redding makes a good one, but I've found it cheaper to ream the neck on a Lee FL sizer. So, get the Deluxe set, make a body die out of the FL die and use the Collet neck sizer.

This one was a .22-250 Lee FL sizer, is now a .22-250 body die. Or you can go up a caliber (or two) for the same case, i.e. use a .260 FL sizer as a body die for a .243; the 6mm case neck will clear the 6.5mm die neck.

Those dies are really hard and I used a grinder. Had a Dremil grinding tip that was worn down enough to fit in the .224 neck. You have to work on it a while, cut enough die neck so it clears the case neck. I'm not a big fan of LEE FL sizers, some are better than others. This one's highest and best use is as a body die.

DF

Another ditto here.

kwg

They do pretty well even when you are.