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im loading for a single shot 38-55 and looking for a way to remove bell and perhaps crimp if needed.im considering the lee Factory crimp die but dont want to swag down my cast bullet any.Im not all that familiar with this die.can it be adjusted to only remove the bell when using short brass?
Why crimp if your loading for a single shot?
It helps if all your brass is the same length. For a single shot rifle, I've never found a reason to crimp at all. You don't need a Lee factory crimp die. Just adjust your seating die to remove the bell completely but stop short of crimping. Make sure the cartridge is within spec and chambers with no more than very slight resistance, if any.
You can use the standard roll crimp that came with your die set just to remove the flare by adjusting to deflare and not crimp. And/or experiment with a crimp/no crimp to determine what works in your gun, no need for an FCD...
Your set of dies has a seating and crimping die ... adjust it to apply the type and amount of crimp you want / need .
You don't have to buy a Lee Factoru Crimp Die ... use the one you have ... read die instructions on how to adjust the crimp ... it's not hard .
Gary
I have a Lee factory crimp die for the .38-55. Not because I think it is needed, but because I bought all my .38-55 dies as a lot (long term project). I made one dummy round with WW brass, put the die back in the box and haven't even opened it for years.
Based on that one use, it will work for short brass; but its not quite right if you use full length .38-55 brass.
I just crimp with the seating and crimping die in the set of RCBS Cowboy dies. Works fine with the long Starline brass.
Robert