I do not have an X-Die; I do have lots of .30-30 brass; and I don’t mind “using up” batches of cases. I do cull preemptively, and have not suffered a case separation in over 40 years.
The brass I am now using in my Savage Model 1899 .30-30 is Winchester headstamp, on its 12th reload. On its first reload the median length of resized cases was 2.030”, and on its 12th reload the median is 2.056”. Cases are sized in FLS die for shoulder headspacing. Case loss to date from “lost in the grass”, shoulder pinholes and preemptive case stretch culls is about 45%.
I check my cases for stretch visually from the outside, and by looking down into the case in sunlight. Most cases will show some stretch when the inside is viewed. This is a shadowy ring down near the web. Eventually this ring becomes more defined, but usually affects only part of the circumference of the case. This stretch becomes visible long before external signs appear, such as the crazed brass “incipient separation” ring. Then it becomes a matter of judgement as to when to cull.
What I have noticed more recently is that there are other signs of case stretch deriving from the uneven nature of near-web case stretching.
The first is that even with a modest load, the occasional case may be sticky to extract. If this is not noticed at the time, running the unsized empties through the rifle afterwards may find it. The tight spot is over the point of maximum stretch, and the tightness appears to be exacerbated by the case head being ever so slightly off square (due to the stretch), pushing the case against the chamber wall at the point of stretch.
The second indication of uneven stretch is that the case mouth may strike the expander plug as the case goes into the resizing die, or after resizing it may still strike the plug of the M Die.
Apart from the diagnostic value of these signs – one-off sticky extractions and case mouth hitting the expander plug – I wonder also if the out of square case heads might explain shots out of the group. In future I shall be noting carefully the POI of any paper shots associated with one-off sticky extraction.
The other problem with the one-off sticky extraction is if it is giving an erroneous indication of excessive pressure for the load as a whole.
You are only as good as your library.
