Quote Originally Posted by newcastle View Post
I have just started the process of going through all my old cases (several thousand of them) and removing the old primers. I have the horandy reloading turret stuff and all the kit I need. couple of questions.
1. Over the last couple of thousand rounds I kept the cases and marked which rifles they came from. Generally shoudl I only refire these cases in teh same rifles to prolong case life?
2. When I have primers removed. Is there a recommended cleaning method? My inclination is to use a fine mesh bag in the dishwasher (when the wife is out). Would that be good enough?
3. Finally regarding the cases that are not marked. Do I resize the whole thing or just accept that not every cartridge will fit into every rifle I have, or is this asking for case separation and trouble down the line?
newcastle

Take your marked cases before any resizing is done and see if they will fit any of your other Enfield chambers and take note of how the bolt closes. I have three Enfields that are so close that neck sized cases will fit all three rifles.

Below is a Wilson Case Gauge, it is nothing more than an American SAAMI "civilian" .303 chamber, the surplus South African amunition in the top photo is setting .002 below the lip of the gauge as any "normal" unfired case should fit. Please note the case is headspacing or resting on the shoulder of the case and not the rim, this gauge is normally used to adjust your full length resizing dies for minimum shoulder bump.

In the bottom photo is a new American Remington case and it is setting over a 1/4 inch below the lip of the gauge. This means the shoulder of the case is a 1/4 of an inch shorter than standard Britishicon military ammunition.



Now below is a fired case in the Wilson gauge and the case is sticking up over the top of the gauge and it should be level with the top of the gauge "IF" you had a civilian non-military .303 chamber. The amount of the case protruding from the top of the gauge is the distance the "military" chamber was lengthened to keep the mud of Flanders from jamming the military .303 Enfield.

"NOTE" The standard military .303 Enfield chamber is longer than a civilian .303 chamber "AND" our full length resizing dies.



Now remember if a full length resizing die is used the shoulder of the case will always be pushed back too far unless you use non-standard die adjustments.

You can try and go to the hardware store and find washers that are the correct thickness or you can order headspace control shims for your reloading dies to give you the minimum amount of shoulder bump to chamber a cartridge.





If you do not adjust your "CIVILIAN" full length reloading dies for the "LONGER" British military chamber your full length resized cases will die an early death.



The above message was brought to you by the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to .303 Brass Cartridge Cases.