Lee universal caseneck bellmouthing die?

[HammerMTB]

How many of you have or use this die? Most all of my loading has been for pistol, so bellmouthing is part of the ops, and handled automatically once the die is adjusted.
I'm loading for rifle now and need the caseneck belled just a bit. This seems a way to have 1 die do a lot of calibers..... :cbpour:
What do those of you who use it think of it?

[helg]

I use the Lee universal expander die when loading casts for rifle. No complains, the design is straightforward, an I can not imagine what could go wrong with the die in other calibers.

I do not use the die for loading pistol calibers, as Lee die sets for the calibers include expanding/charging die.

[MtGun44]

I use it and like it very much. I recommend it. Rifle die sets are normally designed
for jacketed and do not flare the case mouth, which ruins lead boolits if you try to
seat them. Lyman makes their "M" die which both opens up the neck diameter and
also expands the top of the neck to larger than boolit diameter. Unfortunately, these
are caliber specific and kinda expensive. You can have a lot of $$ invested if you shoot
a bunch of rifle calibers with cast. So - I use the Lee Universal die, but others here
do report that they have had very good results with the Lyman "M" dies.

Bill

[XWrench3]

yep, i bought one for just that purpose (cast boolits/rifle cases) it works very well. just be sure to flare just enough to get the boolit in without shaving it. any more will shorten the case life more than necessary.

[bruce drake]

I second everyone else's opinion on this. It's a good piece of kit. I just hate having to adjust for all my different case lengths! Oh well, that happens when you reload for 15 different calibers!

Bruce

[timkelley]

helg +1

[MT Gianni]

I use it occasionally for the calibers I don't have an M die in. I found it to be worthless for 22 & 6mm and good in the 7mm and up ranges. The worst part for me is the repeatability. I don't have a sure stop of "x" degrees of flare other than my hands memory of where I put the handle last time.

[44wcf]

I have been using it for several yaers. No complants.
44wcf

[DLCTEX]

I use it sucessfully on the smaller calibers as well as larger ones to 45-70. Repeatability is good if cases are trimmed to uniform lengths. Most pistol rounds are loaded on progressive presses using the Lee powder through dies in conjunction with the powder measure to flare the case.

[462]

I, too, use it for rifle calibers for which I don't have an M die, and find no problem with repeatability as all the brass gets trimmed.

That said, I prefer the M die because it installs the "step" that provides for better boolit alignment, as it and the case enter the seating die.

[405]

In a pinch, just to blow some lead out the muzzle.... they work. The Lyman M or other similar varieties of neck expanders are far superior! Seems everyone gets wrapped around the axle about the exact, best over-sized cast bullet to shoot thru a specific bore/throat. Then push that fine-tuned cast bullet into an undersized case neck (bell or no bell) and loose all the effort in the original and best sizing for the bullet :roll:

Just belling the mouth can work out OK if loading hard, gas-checked cast or Jbullets. If loading soft, non gas-checked bullets the undersized neck can resize the bullet to a smaller diameter during the seating process.

[skeet1]

I use one for .303 Brithish and .30-06. At one time I had the same concern as 405. I use .311 diameter bullets in my 06 and so I assembled some using the universal expander and standard loading dies. Afer asembleing the cartridges I then pulled the bullets and measured them, there was no change in diameter. The Lee Universal expander works great and you don't have to have a defferant one for a differant caliber.

Skeet1

[Shiloh]

What a bargain for a one-size-fits-all tool. If you keep records, it is easy to re-zero for each caliber you are using it for. I love mine!!

Shiloh

[jlchucker]

I use it, and use the Lyman M die as well. The Lee is what I keep on hand for loading calibers that I don't use that much. They both work pretty well. You can load lots of different calibers with one Lee expanding die.

[philthephlier]

I load on the Lee Classic Turret with their pro auto disc powder thrower. It would not cycle the disc all the way with the powder through expanding die adjusted to bell the case mouth properly. So I removed the belling section of the insert and use the universal expander on the next hole of the turret. Works well. Just another tweak necessary with Lee Precision Products. I am overall a very satisfied customer with Lee. If you are willing to read this forum extensively and follow others advice re: "improving" the out of the box Lee product, it is very hard to beat their designs for the money spent. Like most others I want to put money into bullet metal, powder, and primers, not reloading equipment.

[EMC45]

I use the Lee as well! I don't adjust for every different caliber. What I do is run the case up to upper stroke and run the die down. Back off the handle a bit and give it a quarter turn or so and bell all the cases. It may not be Micrometer precise, but it works in a quick If I don't want to re-adjust. I used to use a pair of needle nose pliers and jam them in and twist. The Lee is quite a bit better!

[TAWILDCATT]

there are two M dies long and short. you can buy the stem separate.
I use the 310 dies as I have many sets and 5 truline jr presses.I am set up to
change press by pulling out a pin.