What is going on here....

[Chris C]

I have around 150 .308 once shot by me brass I'm processing. This has a military crimp and IS NOT berdan primer or steel case. Ran through about half perfectly fine and the pins start bending. Second one bent after doing about 5 cases. What is the deal? My last problem where I bent one of these unbreakable pins was trying to deprime brass berdan primer cases. Not the case this time.

[shooter]

 those things break all the time, I started making my own, sometimes the hole is off center and you hit the edge

[Chris C]

No kidding.  That's a little bit of false advertising on Lee's part then.  The hole being off center would explain the marks on the inside of the case.  I'm going to email Lee again for replacements but this time ask for about 10.  Is there a better stronger decapper out there? 

[shooter]

I use a piece of drill rod, for the shaft, and a small piece of bearing for the pin, still break them

   also make sure the top is tight, if its not, the rod can be off center,

   and check your shell holder, Ive had a little dirt get into that, and make the case be off center

   you cant go real fast using this,

[Chris C]

Thanks for the tips.  I'm going to try and make something myself for now like you did. 

[newfalguy101]

crimped primers can be a real bear to de-cap, I don't recall breaking any pins, but, have managed to punch the pin through more than one, and I have had the pin slide up the shaft ( I use Hornady dies )

[Chris C]

I must have lucked out with the 1k pieces of .308 LC brass I bought from a forum member on here about a year ago because using the same die set punched right through those with no problem.  The last two times processing .308 brass have kicked my die set's butt!  LOL 

You bring up a point that a friend did about not tightening the pin down so much that it won't move.  I guess at least at that point it will push up instead of breaking.  The other thing he suggested was slowing down when depriming but don't see how that would help since like I said did 1k of Lake City w/o a problem.  This stuff is the white 100 round boxs of Atomic ammo you can get at Cabelas or whatever FC brass is.... 

[noylj]

This may not apply, but I use a Lee Universal Decapping Die for all my depriming needs.
I start with the collet slightly loose and run a case into it. While the pin in aligned with and in the flash hole, I tighten the collet TIGHT.
So many problems are taken care of by aligning and locking dies with the case/round in the die.

[Chris C]

This may not apply, but I use a Lee Universal Decapping Die for all my depriming needs.
I start with the collet slightly loose and run a case into it. While the pin in aligned with and in the flash hole, I tighten the collet TIGHT.
So many problems are taken care of by aligning and locking dies with the case/round in the die.

Thanks for the tip.  I will try it next time.