H. K. Uriah, SASS #74619 Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 I am having a problem reloading for my original Spencer. I use the RCBS dies. When I was getting brass, I went to Buffalo Arms and their website indicated that the new stuff on the market with the correct headstamp was made for the modern reproductions, and it would not work in an original However, the brass that they had made from cut down .50-70 brass would work just fine. So that's what I got. It works fine. The problem comes when it's time to reload. The expander die in the RCBS set never actually barely bells the case mouth, and it causes the brass to bulge. I saw something here on the wire that says the Lyman set bells the brass properly, so I spent the 20 bucks to get just their expander die. Same problem. Never bells the brass at all, and eventually causes the case to bulge. I took out the expander plug and saw that the whole thing just slides into the case with no resistance, and that near the end of the plug there is a step of some kind that does not quite fit in the case mouth. This is apparently what is causing the bulge, it just pushes down on the case mouth, causing it to buckle. The RCBS Expander is similar. So, it seems to me that the problem is that the expander plug on both of them is undersized. Anyone else have this problem, and can you recommend a fix? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trailrider #896 Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 When you say the existing expanders bulge the case, will the round still chamber? While I don't have an original .56-50 Spencer, I have loaded for an original .56-56 in the past. My suggestion would be to contact Huntington and discuss the problem with them directly. You may need to spend the extra money and have a custom plug made. That would be sure that the threads and the plug assembly fit the die body. Best of luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H. K. Uriah, SASS #74619 Posted February 8, 2019 Author Share Posted February 8, 2019 Yes, it will still chamber. But I still don't like it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sedalia Dave Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 Call the folks at Precision Reloading 1-800-223-0900 or 605-996-9984 They should be able to provide you with the proper Lyman M die and expander plug for your 56-50 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Boy Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 Quote The expander die in the RCBS set never actually barely bells the case mouth, and it causes the brass to bulge. (1) The Expander Die is not set up properly - Read instructions manual (2) Measure ID of case after expanding - then subtract 0.002" - then measure the bullet base ordered or resize bullets for 0.002 tension if needed And don't forget to slug the bore for lands and grooves for proper bullet diameter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Three Foot Johnson Posted February 9, 2019 Share Posted February 9, 2019 I remember having to turn out an expander plug for my .56-.50 dies, but I don't remember right off if I had to go bigger or smaller... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Coles SASS 1188 Posted February 9, 2019 Share Posted February 9, 2019 You might do a chamber cast and determine the size of you chamber. The original guns were commonly made with oversized chambers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Noz Posted February 9, 2019 Share Posted February 9, 2019 Here's a stupid comment: You do not mention resizing your fired brass. Do You? Would make a difference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H. K. Uriah, SASS #74619 Posted February 9, 2019 Author Share Posted February 9, 2019 Yes. I resize the brass. When I try to put the then resized brass in the expanding die, instead of belling the case mouth, it bulges the case about a third of third of the way down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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