Re-loading help

[whitetailfan]

Hey all you hunters out there - rifle question - if you can help.

In my late night thread 'the plan' I am reloading some 7x61 Sharpe and Hart shells for the upcoming season.  My problem is finding the shell holder to fit.

I have an RCBS press and dies, but the #4 shell holder that is typically used for 7mm Rem mag or 300 Wthby mag will not work on this particular brass.

The mag belting is just a shade wider than on the above models, and will not slide into the holder.

The RCBS manual quotes holder sizes of 4,5, or 26.

I'm going to take brass into the gun shop and test the other two if they have them in stock, but I thought I would throw out the question to any gun guru's who might have this rifle, or know of someone who kept theirs original and did not bore out the chamber to accept 7mm Rem cartriges.

Thanks

[TomG]

Interesting problem.  Is there any possibility that the RCBS is mislabeled or that the rifle has already been rechambered for something other than 7x61?  I don't have either a 7x61 S&H case or a #4 RCBS shell holder, but a .300 H&H Mag case(same head, belt, extractor grove specs.) fits my Lee #5(same specs. as the RCBS #4) perfectly.

FYI; Here are two sites you may find helpful. 
http://yarchive.net/gun/ammo/belted_magnum.html
http://ammoguide.com/cgi-bin/ai.cgi?sn=fBjdxMWEwe&catid=442&CARTNAME=7x61+Sharpe+%26+Hart%2C&curr=ai
Hit demo if you get an expired message.

Is this one of those "The first correct answer gets a prize" contests?
;D

[whitetailfan]

TomG,
Thanks for the response...sorry no prize other than my eternal gratitude (and that never goes very far with my wife, so I don't expect you to do back flips over it)  ;)

I took in a casing, and it appears to properly fit with the #26 so I exchanged my #4.  We compared the wiggle factor to a factory 300 wby load in the #4 and its the same or better, so I seem to have a winner.

I use a Lee auto-primer.  It is super slick compared to using the feeder tube in the reloading press.  I know that I got two holders for it, so hopefully my alternate is the #5 per your recommendations.  I have only loaded 25-06 shells so far and it is definitely a different holder.

Thanks again for your help, nice to see another re-loader out there.

[TomG]

Good show WTF, I have extra Lee #5s so if you have trouble finding one let me know.

[whitetailfan]

I forgot to mention...I am disasembling several complete cartriges, because I don't know what their load is, nor the bullet grain (there are at least two different styles).  I'm taking them apart with an inertia hammer.

Is it safe to de-prime a live primer, using the resizing die with the primer removal pin?

[Chez Bubba]

NOOOOO!

Soak them in a tub of water for 24 hours, dry & then de-prime. Especially since you don't know if they're corrosive or not.

Kirk