A little input on reloading dies please?

[Pops1911]

I have always had nice predictable results with the Lee carbide dies. I recommend them for general purpose reloading. You want to start shooting flies consistently at 1500 yards, you might want to invest in different dies. Have fun.

 

[Caveman Jim]

+1
Especially the long ogive bullets with a very pointy end. How's that for proper terminology?
What I mean is, bullets like Berger's 300gr OTM or Hunter Elites in 0.338 caliber. Pointy thingys, not to be confused with the points in Bob Seger's "Main Street."

Maybe Night moves?
"And points all her own sitting way up high
Way up firm and high"

 

[7SFCW4]

...for bottle neck rifle cartridges, the deciding factor, for me, is the CRIMP DIE

 

[jordanka16]

...for bottle neck rifle cartridges, the deciding factor, for me, is the CRIMP DIE

Crimping rifle cartridges will just hurt accuracy, it should not be necessary.

 

[Steve M]

I've only got one Lyman die set (380 Auto) and won't be buying any more unless it is an older set (I hear that their quality of manufacturing used to be better). The design is sound, but fit and finish is worse than Harbor Freight standards. It took a lot of time to clean out the machining grit from the new set, one stem had to be polished to get it to slide in the die, and the threads are very roughly cut and so nothing adjusts smoothly. If you were to stay away from one die brand Lyman would be it, though I know many others have experiences contrary to mine.

One other brand I would approach with caution would be RCBS. My die set for 7x57 requires a flat blade screw driver and wrench to adjust bullet seating depth. This may have been design change or apply to only certain die types, but it is worth looking at before purchasing if you plan to seat more than one bullet type.

Steel rifle dies are pretty affordable so hence forth I'll be using Hornady and Redding for rifle dies except that I will be trying Forster for precision loading of my 6.5 CM. If you can afford them, Redding will put a smile on your face each time you pull them out of the box, but if you're pressed for cash then by all means get Lee. If you plan to crimp then get the Lee crimp die.

 

[Mikej]

Sir, enough with the 'plenty of lube'- therein is the road to dented cases and frustration. For the last forty-something years I've used Imperial Sizing wax. You wipe your finger on it, and then wipe your finger around the case, overlapping the open neck as you do so. The thinnest smear imaginable is enough. One little tin has lasted me about five years so far, and I reload maybe a couple of thousand rifle rounds a year.

Failing that, as I did one time - use palin old olive oil, again VERY sparingly.

tac

When I say plenty of lube I'm saying it in the context of reloading, not a gear box assembly in a piece of 100 year old farm equipment.

 

[Mikej]

Crimping rifle cartridges will just hurt accuracy, it should not be necessary.

This is what I've heard. I presume you get the feel of case neck tension as you seat the bullet. In any case if I were to need crimp it's good info that the very lightest touch would be all that's needed, if that.

 

[DirectDrive]

When I say plenty of lube I'm saying it in the context of reloading, not a gear box assembly in a piece of 100 year old farm equipment.

I'd bet that in a poll for favorite sizing lube, Imperial Sizing Wax and Hornady One Shot would be 1 and 2.

 

[jordanka16]

This is what I've heard. I presume you get the feel of case neck tension as you seat the bullet. In any case if I were to need crimp it's good info that the very lightest touch would be all that's needed, if that.

Yup, neck tension alone should hold it in place, even in a semi auto. If it doesn't, something is out of whack, expander ball too large, bullets too small, really bad concentricity, etc.

Edit: the only exception is a lever action, they do need to be crimped.

 

[thorborg]

I too have a hodge podge and no real noticeable functional difference except to add if you buy used, I would stay away from those with rust inside. Even slightly and removed can cause drag in spots so best to stay away from them. Keep them clean and they will last a long time.

 

[tac]

When I say plenty of lube I'm saying it in the context of reloading, not a gear box assembly in a piece of 100 year old farm equipment.

My comment about using the thinnest smear stands.

tac

 

[Alan12013]

The original question was to make sure that there weren't any of the die brands that were going to be a poor choice. Lord, I see die sets out there that are $150.00 +. That ain't going to happen! And I don't think a 116 year old Swedish Mauser is some precision rifle with tolerances into the .00010+/- ". Like Certaindeaf say, the $1.00 Lee's are fine! I'll keep an eye out for free shipping or some other deal on a set.

Using the lube concerns me a bit. The only case I've done that need it is the .30 carbine. That's a pretty small case and it doesn't take much. It's also a short case, but very near strait wall. I see the Swede cases have about a .0030" taper. I guess, use plenty of lube on the wall of the case a be more conservative with the neck.

Personally, if I were going to buy something other then Lee or RCBS dies it would be custom. I wouldn't even get those expensive dies. There are 2 top companies I can't think of att that you send them some fired brass out of your gun and they custom make dies for you. If I were to go hog wild, that's what I'd do. I only had 1 issue with my lee dies trying to seat a 110v-max in my 270win, turns out I needed a special part in the die, contacted lee and it was in the mail the next day. Other then that issue I had I've never heard anyone complaining that Lee is much worse then the forster micro adjusters with any good argument and I spent a lot of time researching dies before I pulled the trigger on some.

 

[Goosebrown]

My comment about using the thinnest smear stands.

tac

Absolutely correct. Just a touch. Took me a while to learn. Imperial is the brand.

 

[Mikej]

Personally, if I were going to buy something other then Lee or RCBS dies it would be custom. I wouldn't even get those expensive dies. There are 2 top companies I can't think of att that you send them some fired brass out of your gun and they custom make dies for you. If I were to go hog wild, that's what I'd do. I only had 1 issue with my lee dies trying to seat a 110v-max in my 270win, turns out I needed a special part in the die, contacted lee and it was in the mail the next day. Other then that issue I had I've never heard anyone complaining that Lee is much worse then the forster micro adjusters with any good argument and I spent a lot of time researching dies before I pulled the trigger on some.

I'm not good enough, and don't get to shoot enough to justify custom dies. I'll probably go Hornady because I like the locking ring. And the carbide/nitride what ever, is a bit more piece of mind over plain steel too. I'll keep my eye out for some kind of deal, maybe get free shipping if I'm lucky.

 

[P7M13]

Maybe Night moves?
"And points all her own sitting way up high
Way up firm and high"

Thanks, damn swiss cheese memory....

 

[RVTECH]

If you can find them in the caliber you need the 'old' Bonanza bench rest dies are excellent - some say maybe the best dies of all and I might have to agree. I have one set and am trying to find others in the calibers I have. The New Forster (post Bonanza) are as good as the earlier ones - but are spendy.

 

[Caveman Jim]

Thanks, damn swiss cheese memory....

My mind is like a steel trap inbetween the sometimers events...

 

[thorborg]

I'd bet that in a poll for favorite sizing lube, Imperial Sizing Wax and Hornady One Shot would be 1 and 2.

Sprays sound convenient but I'm with @DirectDrive 's first bet, A thin film of Imperial from my hot hands is my long time ritual but will admit to a little Imperial dry neck lube when the going gets real tough making your brass something other than is stamped on the head. Normally I just put a little on the expander ball once in a while.
Rolling pads may speed things up some but I always ended up with excess and for me a mess so went back to individual attention as needed and stuck there.

 

[jordanka16]

Sprays sound convenient but I'm with @DirectDrive 's first bet, A thin film of Imperial from my hot hands is my long time ritual but will admit to a little Imperial dry neck lube when the going gets real tough making your brass something other than is stamped on the head. Normally I just put a little on the expander ball once in a while.
Rolling pads may speed things up some but I always ended up with excess and for me a mess so went back to individual attention as needed and stuck there.

Pad lubing sucks, if you want to speed things up use a spray lube, dillon or hornady one shot.

 

[ageingstudent]

Thanks, damn swiss cheese memory....

Too much casting with your head over the melter will do that.

@Mikej, like @thorborg I have a hodgepodge of dies. I've purposly bought a few different brands to compare and I haven't noticed a great deal of difference in final product for the less than 300yd loading I do, but some difference in modus operandi. One thing I really like about the lee dies is the collet crimping rifle fcd. Like @jordanka16 says you often don't need a crimp, but I like the collet crimp if I want one. I do some cast loads in 22-250 and .300 savage and the collet crimp is nice to have to gently take the flare off the case. Much superior to a roll crimp to my thinking.