Thread: Do expensive dies make better ammunition?

You don’t have to remove the expander ball forever , just change the way you use it

The Redding expander is tapered incorrectly to be pulled out through the brass neck, do this and you distort the brass and it will be measured as runout at the neck

Full length resize with the expander removed, size all your brass, then install the expander and push it DOWN into and through the neck thus sizing it, Redding expanders are tapered correctly to expand when pushed INTO the neck

The necks won’t distort as much this way and your brass stays concentric/straight and true

It’s also true that you can just use a bush on already concentric fired brass without an expander and it will neck size and stay concentric

It’s rare for fired brass to have more that two thou of runout

And don’t forget to record runout the same way each time
Ie are you measuring the extreme movement of the needle left and right (let’s say 6 thou) and recording it as 6 thou

Or are you recording actual runout from the projectile/neck centreline which in that case (no pun intended) would be 3 thou

Runout is the amount of offset from the projectiles centreline, not the total distance a needle moves on a dial

Many many people get that wrong

When you get it wrong you will write down a runout value that’s double what you actually have


Many people have got rid of brass or dies because of that mistake

Originally Posted by woods223

I just use Lee gear for my reloading. Measured runout a couple of times compared to mates ammo done on all the flash gear. All near as dam all the same as in frig all. When my eye plays ball I hold my own at NZNRA shooting out to 900 yards and animals don’t give a toss. Loads ammo good enough for me but I don’t get too serious about it.
Yesterday @ 600 yds in pouring rain holding off for wind.
Attachment 273122

Last week @ 900 yds rear fishtail winds. Again no dialing between shots, just holding off for wind.
Attachment 273123

I think I need some lessons...

Originally Posted by Branxhunter

I started reloading using very simple Super Simplex 5/8” dies and press. They neck size only. Accuracy for hunting was fine.

As opportunity arose I got a 7/8” press and started to collect 7/8” dies sets. Still use the Super Simolex gear for priming and for some seating jobs.

As I started to move into the .222 based wildcats I went the Redding S type bushing die route - with a .222 S type die and four bushings I can resize 250 Myra (25-222), 222, 20-222 and 17-222.

Attachment 273173

I have also picked up some second hand Forster micrometer seating dies. The combination of a bushing die and micrometer seater made a noticeable improvement in accuracy for my .243, less so for others.

I too use plain old Lee collet dies for making up F class round for my Omark .308.

For the majority of hunting using factory rifles a basic die set will do the job. Expensive die sets won’t make up for untuned loads, poor bedding, poor rifling/crown or poor shooting technique.

Marcus

Tidy rounds.*Nice.

Originally Posted by 7mmsaum

You don’t have to remove the expander ball forever , just change the way you use it

The Redding expander is tapered incorrectly to be pulled out through the brass neck, do this and you distort the brass and it will be measured as runout at the neck

Full length resize with the expander removed, size all your brass, then install the expander and push it DOWN into and through the neck thus sizing it, Redding expanders are tapered correctly to expand when pushed INTO the neck

The necks won’t distort as much this way and your brass stays concentric/straight and true

It’s also true that you can just use a bush on already concentric fired brass without an expander and it will neck size and stay concentric

It’s rare for fired brass to have more that two thou of runout

And don’t forget to record runout the same way each time
Ie are you measuring the extreme movement of the needle left and right (let’s say 6 thou) and recording it as 6 thou

Or are you recording actual runout from the projectile/neck centreline which in that case (no pun intended) would be 3 thou

Runout is the amount of offset from the projectiles centreline, not the total distance a needle moves on a dial

Many many people get that wrong

When you get it wrong you will write down a runout value that’s double what you actually have


Many people have got rid of brass or dies because of that mistake

I might be overthinking that statement on the Redding expander ball taper direction - the one in my Type S FL bushing die is def not set up to go down, the taper is in the top with the thread to hang it inside the die and the fat bit at the bottom has a skinny hole for the primer decapping pin. Can you take a pic of what your setup looks like?