Basic brass forming .375

[ORFish]

I am new to reloading, but just got 50 of the Hornady basic brass for my .375 Ruger. NO sure how to make them into normal cases. Do I just lube them up and put in the die? I have 2 dies sets, the 3 piece Lyman and the 2 piece Hornady. I appreciate any help!

 

[PARA45]

What do you mean by "into normal cases"??? Are you sizing 375 Ruger for a 375 Ruger caliber rifle? I would recommend reading the instructions that came with your die. Have you reloaded before, or this your first time?

 

[ORFish]

These are the straight wall basic cases that are .375 Ruger sized (https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1021375951). I just need to get them to the bottleneck shape. I am indeed shooting them in a .375 and new to reloading. Thank you

 

[USMA84DAB]

Can you not find any fully formed .375 Ruger cases? Forming these is possible, but why go through the hassle?

Keep an eye here:

Hornady 375 Ruger Brass Box of 50

Hornady produces brass with the same precision, attention to detail and focus on perfection that has made them a world leader in bullets. They measure...

www.midwayusa.com

375 RUGER BRASS CASE | Brownells

Hornady unprimed brass features tight tolerances, uniform concentricity, consistent weight and capacity. Their manufacturing processes ensure consistent bullet seating and uniform bullet release for optimal velocity and accuracy. Target shooters i...

www.brownells.com

The BIG vendors seem to be getting occasional shipments of product


It may work with just the resizing dies, but it is likely that you need some intermediate forming dies. I have never tried this cartridge. I do know you will likely need some forming die wax/lube, as in from Rooster Laboratories, applied to each case by hand before you go through each sizing step.

I have re-formed .460 Wby to .495 A-Square and you must coat the top 1/3 of each case with the Rooster Lube before running the case into the special die purchased from RCBS to do this re-sizing/shaping operation. Then I had to trim the old .460 case to the .495 length.

 

[PARA45]

That's not a 375 Ruger case, that is a generic case they use on their website. Have you received the 375 Ruger cases, or do you have some on hand? Do you have any reloading manuals? The beginning of most reloading manual have an area that shows you step by step the reloading process and resizing of cases.

 

[ORFish]

I do have the cases. When I got the rifle, he gave me some fired brass as well as 50 straight ones. When I asked him about it, he said he just would use lots of case lube and the .375 die. I kinda figured there may be intermediate steps, which is why I thought I would ask on this reloading forum first. I did not want to re-invent the wheel if someone had already done it.

 

[Ray B]

The main problem is the 30 degree shoulder. If you just run the straight case into the ruger die i suspect the case will start to be necked down to .375 but before it is completed the shoulder will collapse and leave you with a ruined case. the real answer is to get a forming die, which is a die meant to neck the case down to .375 but with a lesser shoulder angle, usually about 15 degrees. Gradual enough that the case will enter the die and have the neck reduced to 375 while being gradual enough that the shoulder doesn't buckle. Once the neck is established the case can then be run into a ruger sizing die which will set the shoulder to the needed 30 degrees. Generally forming dies, as the first die to use is called, are comparatively expensive, but off hand, I can't think of a standard sizing die that would perform the task of necking down the case to 375 without having problems with the shoulder.

 

[GuttormG]

Put those cases in a drawer, forget you have them and buy 50 new, formed cases. Or even better-50 cartridges.

When starting reloading there is enough basic things to learn, case forming is not basic..

 

[PARA45]

Since you are new at reloading, I'd suggest you stick with cases that are already form. No need for you to mess with this.

 

[Ray B]

An example of what I'm talking about. Some years back I got a 375RUM. With the introduction of the 375Ruger, the RUM faded and brass was difficult to locate. Research showed that the RUM case was a modified 404 Jeffery case. So I got some 404s and tried running them through a 375 RUM die. The results are pictured. This is not very much different than running a straight case into a 375Ruger die and I'd expect similar results. It was for me, a lesson. It ended well- I found a source of enough RUM cases to last me and got a Win M70 chambered in 404 Jeffery to use the cases that I hadn't ruined.

 

[ORFish]

Thank you all for the advice. In a perfect world, where one could buy brass and ammo, I would put these in a drawer. In pandemic times, one must work with what they can get access to. Still, maybe I'll just wait out the shortages rather than tackling this project. I am not in the dark on this, as I am reloading with a friend who has done 7mm/300MW/338 etc. He just has not done 375 or dealt with basic straight brass.

 

[Ray B]

One method that I've read about but not tried, I understand it's what trumpet makers use when bending the tubing to make a horn, is to fill the tube with water and freeze it. then while it's frozen, do the bending. the ice in the tubing keeps the tubing from kinking and collapsing. If you want to give the method a try I'd do just one case for the trial. Remove the decapping pin/expander from the die. Put a fired primer in the primer pocket (to keep the water from running out), fill the case with water and place in the freezer until it is solid. Remove from freezer, wipe condensation from case and coat liberally with lube. Insert case into press shellholder and press the case up until it meets resistance in the die. this will be the sides of the case pushing against the tape in the die. Keep raising the case until it meets solid resistance- this will be when the case mouth meets the shoulder in the die. Push just a little bit, then drop the case out of the die and examine. Hopefully the case will be "normal" with just what resembles a crimp in the neck. Back in the shellholder and up to resistance and little more push. Remove and examine. Should be as previous but with the neck approaching 375. the ice will start to push out and the excess can be removed. Repeat the process until either the case collapses, which means the project needs further refining, or you have a case that you can allow the ice to melt and run out, then put the decapping pin/expander back in the die, run the case back through the die and you should have a working 375 Ruger case.

 

[Viral_SIGness]

I am new to reloading, but just got 50 of the Hornady basic brass for my .375 Ruger. NO sure how to make them into normal cases. Do I just lube them up and put in the die? I have 2 dies sets, the 3 piece Lyman and the 2 piece Hornady. I appreciate any help!

I have one of the cases you speak of, and it's a lot easier to just get .375 Ruger brass. I posted here in the classifieds and got a great deal on some once fired brass.

The cases you have are meant for wildcats built on that case (at least that's how I understand it).

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

I am new to reloading, but just got 50 of the Hornady basic brass for my .375 Ruger. NO sure how to make them into normal cases. Do I just lube them up and put in the die? I have 2 dies sets, the 3 piece Lyman and the 2 piece Hornady. I appreciate any help!

@ORFish
You have me confused, are you loading for the 375 Ruger or the 375H&H. Either way I don't understand why you didn't get the correct brass to start with instead of basic.
The basics brass is more for a specialized reloader.
Bob

 

[Ray B]

Bob- Not to put words in ORs mouth, but He bought the rifle, a 375 ruger from a private party. Included in the sale were 50 375 ruger straight cases. apparently the original purchaser bought the cases thinking they were formed to 375 ruger rather than what would be called "basic" cases. So now he is seeking information on how to form the basic cases into ones that fit his rifle. An easily made mistake considering the on-line stores, and easily formed IF proper dies are used, however quite an expense for the forming of 50 cases and the availability of actual 375 Ruger cases.

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

Bob- Not to put words in ORs mouth, but He bought the rifle, a 375 ruger from a private party. Included in the sale were 50 375 ruger straight cases. apparently the original purchaser bought the cases thinking they were formed to 375 ruger rather than what would be called "basic" cases. So now he is seeking information on how to form the basic cases into ones that fit his rifle. An easily made mistake considering the on-line stores, and easily formed IF proper dies are used, however quite an expense for the forming of 50 cases and the availability of actual 375 Ruger cases.

@Ray B.
I understand that now after reading the full post. If'n I was him I would see if I could trade/ swap those cases for the proper ones. Yes the could be formed but what a pia and unneeded expense in forming dies
Bob

 

[fourfive8]

It is a large step down in one radical sizing step for that much bottleneck. Maybe a bridge too far?

Could try one case in multiple steps- to minimize loss if it doesn't work. Anneal the upper 1/2"-3/4" of the parent case. Apply a lot of lube as was suggested. Remove decapping stem with neck sizing button from die. You don't want to be fighting two directions each time you cycle the case in and out of the die. Ease down maybe 1/4" of the neck and back out. Repeat in and out, increasing the depth in short steps until neck is of proper length and case is hopefully "chamberable". If that works, then simply re-insert decapping rod/neck button and run case part way into die to size neck to correct ID dimension. Try a combination of regular liquid case lube like that from RCBS plus a little bit of Imperial sizing wax.

If it doesn't work, you might just have to bite the brass, bid on and win some on GunBroker or buy some factory ammo. Shoot the factory ammo and use that brass. The factory ammo is not a bad idea because you can get some range time, tweak the scope and check the rifle for cycling. Also, that brass will then be properly fireformed. Be sure to check case length and trim if necessary.

 

[ORFish]

Thank you all. They were included in the price as well as some bullets (a few hundred). I will get them listed on the classified and try to buy some elk/eland-appropriate bullets (light, but high B.C. for 300 yard shots.

 

[Viral_SIGness]

Thank you all. They were included in the price as well as some bullets (a few hundred). I will get them listed on the classified and try to buy some elk/eland-appropriate bullets (light, but high B.C. for 300 yard shots.

I'll buy the basic cases!

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

Thank you all. They were included in the price as well as some bullets (a few hundred). I will get them listed on the classified and try to buy some elk/eland-appropriate bullets (light, but high B.C. for 300 yard shots.

@ORFish
Sorry my friend but light and high B.C. don't go together.
Bob.