Reloading Oops

[Snapshot]

So I decided that I would start reloading. Having never done so before, I have no reference point for what is “normal” in the process. So I’m never really sure if I’m doing something wrong.

The good news is that I’m one of those “doesn’t take a dump without an owners manual” type of guys. I’ve had my reloading equipment for weeks now but haven’t attempted to use it because I wanted to make extra sure I knew what I was doing. I followed the instructions that came with the kit to the letter. I read the second edition “Modern Reloading” book front to back several times. I was going to make damn sure I did this right.

The first round through the bullet seating die resulted in the bullet being seated too far in. (Recommended OAL was 1.140, mine was 1.1) I backed off the screw on the top of the die and tried again. The second attempt resulted in the bullet not seating much at all. I figured I had backed off the screw too far. Then I realized that the lever hadn’t gone all the way down. I could still move it another 10 degrees or so (which equates to probably a ¼ inch of travel at the business end) So I pushed the lever down all the way…..

….and proceeded to pull out my nice new brass accordion!!! Lucky for me, I decided that my first few rounds should probably go without the powder charge.

I don’t suppose anybody can tell me what I did wrong. The instructions said to screw in the die until it hit the shell holder then back it out one full turn….which I did. As should be obvious by the first round, I made sure that the case mouth was flared enough to accept a bullet.

Incase it matters, I’m using once-fired brass (from factory made Speer Lawman RHT rounds) with .355 Speer gold dot 125gr hollow point bullets. The cal is 357Sig. All dies and equipment are Lee.

 

[Bugs100]

I see a lot of guys complaning that 357sig are hard to load.

You might want to lube them since it's a bottle neck cartridge. The neck on bottle neck cartridges are thin and easy to crumble.

I would back off the die so it barely seated the bullet and slowly increase screwing the die in. About a 1/8 of a turn each time.

It sounds like the crushed one was given to much pressure. When you say you still had a 1/4 inch travel, you might have been forcing it. You shouldn't have to give an extra effort to go a 1/4 inch that would be over travel. The handle knows better than you do when to stop.

When I first started I was surprised by what little pressure the handle needed.

 

[adweisbe]

Seating is going to be the hardest part with .357 Sig. Not as much bearing surface so the projectiles have to be perfectly sized to get consistent seating without setback. You are using good bullets so that isn't an issue but it something to keep in mind if you are having trouble later on. The 357 SIG requires a bullet with a fairly short ogive. The case neck must engage the bullet at a point where the bullet is straight and .356 in diameter. If you use a bullet with a long nose it ends up with the mouth of the case above the point where the bullet starts tapering down. Most roundnose bullets won't work, especially any with the NATO design, which has a long ogive. There are some other gotchas with inidividual bullet designs that don't line up the bearing surfaces when seated to the correct OAL.

There is some extra flexibility if your gun will let you load to an OAL greater then 1.140.

Seating should be adjusted using the adjustment screw and not by screwing the die in and out according to the directions for the Lee dies that I have. Screw the die in according to the directions and then back the adjustment screw all the way out.

Put a belled case with a bullet on the ram and lower the handle all the way. Now screw the seating adjustment in until you can't screw it in any farther because the case/bullet is in the way. Lower the ram and case/bullet and begin screwing the adjustment in bit by bit until you get in the ball park of the OAL you want, you can test by reseatting the case/bullet on the ram. Now you need to start with a fresh case/bullet to see what it seats to when done as a single fresh operation.

How much belling are you using? You need just enough belling such that you can insert the bullet into the mouth of the case and center it so that it can be pushed straight down into the case by the seating plug. If it is not centered you can get the accordion. The less belling the better especially in .357 Sig as it means you lose valuable case neck tension.

I see a lot of guys complaning that 357sig are hard to load

Unpossible!

.357 Sig is easy with the right bullets. With the wrong bullets you will find them dropping right into the case no matter what you do.

Where do you get your brass?

 

[jhrosier]

Here's whatcha do:

Sizing die:

Screw it in util it just touches the shellholder (carbide pistol dies).
For steel rifle dies you can add 1/8 turn or so for heavy contact, if needed.
Carbide dies can have the insert cracked by heavy contact.

When the die is in place and with no shell and the ram all the way up, look into the slot in the shellholder and make sure that the decapping pin is below the face that supports the shell head.

Expander die (straight wall cases only):

Put a fired but unsized shell in the shellholder. With the ram up, screw the die in until it just makes contact with the mouth of the shell, then turn it in another 1/8 turn or so. This will give you a very slight bell that you may have to increase later. You want just enough bell to allow the bullets to start into the case mouth and seat without shaving. Excessive belling will greatly shorten case life.

Seater die:

Some brands of pistol dies will come with one or two extra seating stems.
If so, pick the one that best matches the profile of your bullet.

Put a fired case in the shellholder and raise the ram. Screw the die in until it contacts the case mouth and them back it off a full turn. Back off the seater as far as it will go.
When you put a sized, belled and charged case in the press to seat the bullet, turn the seating stem in a little at a time, while working the ram until the desired overall length is established. If you are seating bullets with cannelures, stop about 1/64" short of the end of the cannelure. Now back the seater stem off a long ways and adjust the die for the desired amout of crimp. When the crimp is right, turn the seater down until it makes firm contact with the bullet.

For a bullet without a cannelure, the crimp should be just enough to remove the bell. To get consistent crimps the cases must all be the same length. Crimping of revolver ammo will give better powder burning and better accuracy. Crimping of pistol cartridges will also keep the bullets from moving during recoil. Rimless pistol cartridges should be crimped only enough to remove the bell. They headspace on the end of the case and a heavy crimp will cause excess headspace and poor ignition.
A "factory crimp" die can be used to put a very slight crimp on autoloader cartridges. Don't try this with a standard crimp die, it won't work and you will ruin cases trying.

While this procedure sounds complicated, it will become second nature after a few setups and really only takes a couple of minutes.

Remember that the goal of handloading is to produce one perfect cartridge, and then repeat the process many times.

 

[Dick]

While this procedure sounds complicated, it will become second nature after a few setups and really only takes a couple of minutes.

+1. That's exactly the way I've always done it, and it's a very rare event when I produce a final product that I can't use.

 

[vellnueve]

To set your seating die you should always have a couple spare bullets and unprimed casings just get yourself in the ballpark. I turned my first .38 158 gr SWC into a full WC with my first attempt, but because I had already decided to use the first few to adjust the dies, it wasn't a problem.

 

[jhrosier]

To set your seating die you should always have a couple spare bullets and unprimed casings just get yourself in the ballpark. I turned my first .38 158 gr SWC into a full WC with my first attempt, but because I had already decided to use the first few to adjust the dies, it wasn't a problem.

If you follow the procedure that I gave in a previous post, your very first cartridge will be perfect, with no need for spares of anything.

It really does work and that's the way I have done it for the last 40 years.

 

[vellnueve]

Well, whatever works. I don't mind wasting a few bullets and casings screwing around before starting the meat of the reload process.

 

[JimB]

videos or call Lee

You could veiw the vids on the Lee website, or you could call Lee.

The descriptions given here are excellent, but at times a phone call
will help out as well.

Its also a good idea to sit in front of the press and then make you call.

I have loaded 9mm and 45acp and the adjustments have not been difficult.

JimB