Success with Lee universal neck expander for cast boolits?

[Big Boomer]

Anyone have a success story using Lee's universal neck expander for cast boolits? I just purchased one and think I may have wasted the money. Big Boomer

[jmort]

It is a very useful universal flairing tool but is not an "expander" if you are using lead bullets an expander is better choice.

[Mohavedog]

OK Lee causes a lot of problems by calling this universal tool an "expander". It is not a good expander because it doesn't expand the neck all the way down to the full boolit depth. It does work well to open the neck slightly (flair) to start a boolit without shaving lead. I felt the same way you do that I wasted my money but I found a way to use the die body to good advantage. I machine my own plugs that do expand and it works well this way. Mohavedog

[1Shirt]

I use one for every thing but 22's, and have no problem. Agree, it is a flare tool, you just need to be careful not to flare to much.
1Shirt!

[pworley1]

I use one for all my cast bullets loading. I flare the case mouth just enough to start a bullet without shaving any lead off and set the crimp die just enough to remove the flare.

[BruceB]

My Lee expander works fine for its purpose.

Strangely enough, for several decades I used an RCBS flaring die for >.30 CARBINE< for exactly the same purpose, because it worked just as well for cases from .30-caliber up to and including the .50-Sharps'.

So... why did I switch to the Lee die? Danged if I know! It must have seemed like a good idea at the time.

[HABCAN]

I use mine for all reloads. ALL case mouths are trimmed true and chamfered, even new factory. For Pb/Gc I set it to just 'sink' the GC before seating. And yes, the seating or crimp die removes the FLARE.

[ShooterAZ]

It works fine for me in rifle loads using gas checked boolits. I load most of these on a RCBS Rockchucker single stage press, not that it matters. For all of my pistol loads I use a Dillon 550, and Dillon's expander plugs work just fine for that purpose.

[petroid]

I use it with rifle cases for jacketed bullets even. My trimmer leaves no burr but if use the expander (flaring) die I don't have to inside chamfer. Just put this die in the first station of my four hole turret. The cases are already sized so I have an empty station anyway

[462]

It seems, regarding this particular tool, far too many casters/reloaders have fallen victim to Lee's misleading and inaccurate marketing verbiage.
As a flaring tool, is works well enough, however it is not a neck expanding tool.

[62chevy]

It works fine as a flaring tool, and with GC boolits should be fine. With plain base you'll need a better expander.

Please explain why a plane base boolit can't be used. I use the powder through pistol die to expand 45 acp and shove PB boolits in 'em all the time. Sooo why won't it work for rifle?

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

It becomes an expander die, when you replace the flaring plug with a Neck expander plug. A machinist could make one for you
OR
http://www.trackofthewolf.com/list/Item.aspx/1221/1
I have bought several, only $2.99 each and modified them for specific calibers.

[gpidaho]

Lee tools, some are ingenious, some are junk. I use the little flare tool frequently and one of the great things about Lee tools is that if they don't work out for you, your only out about the price of a case of beer. Ive bought a lot of reloading tools from other companies that cost allot and were just plain worthless junk. GP

[62chevy]

I didn't type that it can't be used, but you'll have better control of neck tension with an expander within .002" of your plain base rifle boolit. It you have a too undersize neck for the boolit, you run the risk of sizing the boolit while seating it. Search some of Ben's threads for his plain base rifle boolits/groups, and you'll see what is possible.

Thanks for the reply, I hadn't thought about the boolit getting swagged down.

[aspangler]

It becomes an expander die, when you replace the flaring plug with a Neck expander plug. A machinist could make one for you
OR
http://www.trackofthewolf.com/list/Item.aspx/1221/1
I have bought several, only $2.99 each and modified them for specific calibers.
HUUUM! I should have patented the idea. Been doing this for years. Works really well and cheaper than another well known brand.

[MtGun44]

I use mine for a number of different cartridges, works great - and as stated above, it
is a flaring tool to avoid shaving boolits, not a real expander.

Bill

[Big Boomer]

Thanks for the input. Now I'll have to get some of those neck expander plugs to make this thing properly work.
Big Boomer

[waco]

It's all I use. I've never had a problem.

[jonk]

Mmm, depends. I DO use a hornady M die for 30 and 8mms, the ones I use the most for rifle, but I have no issue with the lee flare tool either. If swaging down bullets is an issue, just use a bullet slightly larger than you need.

[longbow]

I guess my comment is that if you need to expand your case necks after sizing then you are sizing too small... in my opinion anyway.

I was having some trouble with case necks sizing down some .303 boolits with relatively narrow driving bands so made a larger neck expander for my RCBS sizing die and that solved the problem ~ Lee Universal Expander is used to flare the case mouth after sizing. However, sizing brass down to about 0.310" inside then expanding to 0.313" is just silly because it works the brass a lot which is hard on brass and I didn't want to hone the neck out larger in mt RCBS die.

So, I bought a Lee Collet sizer and made a 0.313" mandrel for it to suit my need for 0.315" boolits. Problem solved. Apparently the Lee Collet sizer can be used quite successfully without a mandrel as well simply by adjusting the collet to squeeze the brass as much or as little as you want.

It worked for me anyway.

Longbow

[stu1ritter]

When sizing for lead, usually .001 over jacketed, it really helps if the expander is made for that purpose. I use RCBS Cowboy dies which are made specifically for lead and get no swagging at all. I've pulled enough of them apart and measured to be sure.
Stu

[Alferd Packer]

I always figured the plug die helped keep bullet runout to a minimum
Most important in a rifle so the bullet is seated squarely and then meets the rifling when fired in alignment, in stead of being slightly tipped.
A LEE flare is ok in a pistol, but a no-no in a rifle. Only do this if you want more accuracy.
Check the bullet run out.
A Runout check proved it to me. The expander plug body should be .002 larger than the bullet dia. and the 2nd step neck flare should be .003 larger than the bullet base, both for cast bullets only.
Its all there in the reading-in the reloading manuals.
IMHO .

[MT Chambers]

2-die sets for rifle cals. will expand necks but the Lee Universal will flare them for you, a very useful tool, it does not however work on the .50 cals.

[blikseme300]

This Lee tool is good for flaring the case mouth and as an economical starting point for custom expander dies. I have a number of these tools with self-made expanders to suit my needs. That Lee probably misnamed this tool is debatable but so are many other item and tools around us.

[BCB]

I use mine for my 6.8mm SPC…

It seems the expander plug with the sizing die opens the neck too much to get a good grip on some of my cast boolits. Or possibly the sizing die does not size the entire neck down. Maybe a bit of a taper in that part of the sizing die—although I don’t know why that would be…

So, I used a universal decapping die and then neck size with the Hornady sizing die with the decapping pin and expanding ball removed.

I then use the Lee Universal Expanding die to just put a bit of a flare on the case mouth. This allows me to seat a cast boolit with better tension as the neck remains sized as small as the sizing die will do…

Good-luck…BCB

[cdngunner]

Made a world of difference in my .38 S&W

[nylocmik]

Use it for rifle and pistol brass, small and large, with great success. Like others say, don't expand (bell) the case mouth too much or you will have problems getting bullet depth right. Bullets will want to drop into case neck too far.

[BCB]

Use it for rifle and pistol brass, small and large, with great success. Like others say, don't expand (bell) the case mouth too much or you will have problems getting bullet depth right. Bullets will want to drop into case neck too far.

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