Reforming 218 to 25/20

[Cliff]

I've got a few once fired 218 bee in the mail to me. I had planned to expand these in 2 steps. I want to use a 243 expander and follow it with a .257 expander. Now that they are on the way I'm being advised to fire form these. Any of you guys tried this. I plan to load some 60 grain Hornady for my old Savage bolt. Advice appreciated.
Cliff

 

[Calamity Jake]

I've converted 223 to 7 TCU and 30-30 to 7-30 waters and 30 Herriot . use a good lube, inside and out, expand with 243 then you should be able to run them thru the 25-20 fl sizer then trim to length and deburr.
For fire forming use a mid range load and if possible seat bullets out far enough to engage rifling
when the bolt is closed, this method will insure that the case is expanded to full head space.
You may have to use a heaver bullet to get one long enough.

 

[Firpo]

First thing you’ll want to do is anneal the cases a bit. From what I just read you’ll have much more success in upsizing the 218 Bee as opposed to going the other way with 32-20 brass which also poses the problem of rim thickness. Just go slow and expanding the neck in steps is certainly a good idea. Also don’t forget to lube the inside of the cases well after you clean before processing.