300BlkTalk

What is (are) the go-to 300 Blackout Die(s)? I ordered an RCBS small base die in this cartridge sizing to reload subsonics with mostly cut down .223 brass. In tens of thousands of rounds of rifle/pistol reloading, I've never had stuck cases like I've had with this die. Looking for another solution, no more small base. This thing is hot garbage.

Small base dies just size the case down a bit more than "regular" dies. Hard to figure how that would cause a problem with stuck cases. How are you lubing them?

Lots of other good sizing die choices out there, though, if you're convinced that'll solve your problem.

Welcome to the forum!

I've cleaned / degreased the resizing die with Gun Scrubber and sprayed it with Dillon lanolin lube, just the same as all my other dies, repeatedly now over multiple evenings, but it's nearly been 50/50 success / failure with an edge to once fired 300 AAC over cut down .223. My RCBS stuck case remover tap is actually becoming worn out, so I'm calling it for trash pickup on Monday morning.

I've always liked Dillon dies because they allow you to crank stuck cases out, but they don't offer a steel die in Blackout. So, I'm looking for other suggestions on an accurate, less problematic die... and if it's conducive to hand cast bullets that I'd ultimately like to use, so much the better.

So you've sprayed the die itself with lube. Are you also lubing the cases?

I don’t know if there is a direct correlation or not, but I have never stuck a case and don’t even own a stuck case removal tool. Loading for probably 40 years and forming plenty of wildcat rounds, including swaging bases.

Never stuck a case, never used a spray on lube.



May be a tight die, but I would check the lube first

Like dellet, I don't own a stuck case remover. Dunno that I'd even know what one of those looks like. And while there are lots of good reasons to favor one brand or style of die over another... its facility in removing stuck brass might be the most curious I've ever heard.

Based on your description, GoneHiking, I'm going to hazard a guess that somewhere along the line you missed the instruction that rifle brass has to be lubed, each and every time. I can see how one might end up not knowing that if one's first reloading experience was with straight-wall pistol calibers using carbide dies - those carbide dies being blessed, magical inventions. But everything else has to be lubed. Every single time it gets sent into the sizing die. And, yeah, it's a pain in the ass.

You can use a spray-on lube, of course. My guess is that's what most handloaders use, as it's quicker and handier. But, again like dellet, I've always foresworn the stuff, never confident that I could get the right amount of lube where it needed to be, without getting it where it shouldn't be.

Let us know how your subsonic project works out.

I absolutely lubed the brass, just the same as with any other rifle brass. I've never had this problem with other rifle dies in other calibers. Very rarely, I've had .30-06 brass get stuck if they haven't been adequately tumbled and some gunk builds up inside the die over time. That's been a simple matter of cleaning and relubing the die to restore proper function. Anyway, I'd love to hear some recommendations on good dies for 300 Blackout.

See, there I go, assuming things that turn out to not be true!

One last comment on the lubing and then I'll let it go... that you've ever had a stuck case suggests something amiss in that process. I'll just leave it at that.

I'll leave it to others to recommend a good sizing die for you, as I'm using the same RCBS SB item that is causing you problems.

Good luck with it!

Back in the early days of the cartridge
Forster sized cases the closest to SAAMI minimum, Redding was next.

Your problem likely has less to do with the die than it does with what ever rifle the brass was fired in. In theory a small base die should never be needed. In reality generous cut chambers, over pressure loads and over gassed AR’s cause the web to expand where it should not. The die covers the symptom, does nothing to correct the problem.

If your lube is good, then it’s either a bad die or brass expanded way too far at the web. You might try a regular die or even a 223 die if you have one and see if you have better results. If you have a regular 223 die run a few cases in that, then into the small base die. You might be trying to swage the web too much in one step.

The 223 die will act like a body only die on the blackout case.

I use Lee dies with the Factory Crimp Die. Haven't had any issues. I use an RCBS lube pad and lube for the cases prior to sizing.