Will Lee Hand / 'Whack'em' Sizers Crimp Gaschecks?

[Landy88]

Maybe I should have asked this question before I bought two of these sets for my portable kit.

[GrayTech]

Mine works just fine to crimp checks.

[Landy88]

Mine works just fine to crimp checks.

Thanks, that is what I wanted read.

Nose first like the directions or is check first better?

[bedbugbilly]

you're doing the same process - just using "hand power" (whack 'em power) instead of "loading press power".

I have a number of the older Lee whack 'em sizers for the calibers I load and keep them with my Lyman 310 die and tong sets - sometimes it's just relaxing to do things by hand once in a while

[barrabruce]

Too right they do.
Perfect thing to go with the lee load all.
Mine gets plenty of use ..mostly for just sizing thou.

You can use lee push through dies the same way if you like.

Ohh nose first

[W.R.Buchanan]

I would highly recommend a small arbor press to run these dies as well as regular Lee Classic Loader tools.

These dies were originally called "Hand Dies" and were never intended to be powered by a mallet. The use of a plastic mallet was introduced by Lee and has proven to be a viable way to operate the tools. After 60 years of doing it,,, it still works, in fact I just bought a new plastic mallet a few weeks ago.

By far the best way to get into reloading IMHO.

There is an article by Michael Petrov about the .400 Whelan and he actually got ahold of Whelan's original Hand Dies for the cartridge. http://www.finegunmaking.com/page33/page33.html

Also there's this article,,, http://www.shooters-supply.com/using_wilson_dies.html which gives the procedure which isn't all that complicated.

The kicker is you need a small Arbor Press to do it. I use one of my drill presses which is nothing more than an Arbor Press with a Spindle in the Ram which then becomes known as a "Quill."

I use my Drill Press to push the pins thru the top and bottom plates of my Hand Reloading Presses at assembly. It takes little effort and is very controllable.

This will also make sizing boolits and installing gas checks much easier.

I would caution that the Sinclair Arbor Press is not tall enough to run Lee Classic Reloading Dies. It will do the sizer dies. But the column can be easily replaced with a longer one.

Randy

[Landy88]

I would highly recommend a small arbor press to run these dies as well as regular Lee Classic Loader tools.

While fully I agree; all of my presses reloading, arbor, and drill are mounted at home, except a Lee Hand Press, and I'm at my parent's house due to an ill Mom -- exacerbated by a medical system that has likely dropout clerks, government and insurance, telling educated and experienced MDs and RNs how they must or must NOT care for patients.

Maybe I should have got the current sizer dies to use with the hand press; but I wanted the cake cutters. too.

As a happy coincidence of molds, sizers, and alloy the two batches thru them so far have sized nicely with a firm hand squeeze, alone. No checks to try, yet.

[.455 Webley]

When working with checks and hand sizing tools i take the extra step to anneal my checks. When your checks are softer then you wont have to work so hard. I put my checks on the coil of my hot plate. When they glow i take them off with a needle nose and drop them in cold water. You could clean them up in your tumbler after if you feel like doing the extra step.

[Landy88]

When working with checks and hand sizing tools i take the extra step to anneal my checks.

Thanks for the tip. I'll use it when they get here.

[Mk42gunner]

I anneal all my gas checks. I figure it can't hurt, and may just help.

My procedure is to put a few dozen in the table spoon I use for fluxing and skimming, then float them on the alloy while I am casting. Once the get red hot, I dump them out to cool and start another spoonful. They do look ugly, but no one is going to see them.

Robert

[gpidaho]

I have several Lee Loaders and rarely "Whack" the cases. I use a cheap Harbor Freight one ton arbor press and use the loaders as the poor mans Wilson hand dies. Makes for very concentric brass. Some times it's fun just to size differently. Gp

[psweigle]

Got to love the old lee loaders.

[Green Frog]

Whoever asked about pushing the bullet through the die nose first... all the gas checks I've ever seen crimp onto the base of the bullet. Pushing the bullet through nose first would peel the GPC open rather than crimping it on. Admittedly I've only applied gc's with a Lyman 450 and gone through base first, but I can't visualize any scenario where a nose first trip through the sizer would properly seat and crimp a gas check.

Froggie

[GooseGestapo]

Around 1975, I started out bullet casting in my college apartment on a hot plate with Lee mold and hand sizer die. Yeah, I used a plastic headed mallet and seated the gaschecks (Lyman slip on) and punched the bullets nose first as that lightly swages the checks on the bullet base.
I then pan lubed the bullets with the 50/50 Alox-beeswax lube that Lee included with the kit.

Over 16.0gr of Unique (probably closer to 15.0) using a Lee #108 dipper that came with my 20ga Lee Loader circa 1970, I loaded them for my .30/06. By then I'd gotten a used RCBS JR press and dies. I used pickup tire weights from walking to class everyday. I used a pair of needle nose pliers to flare the case necks.

After finding out that they grouped 6" low at 50yds, I was astonished at the tiny groups I shot (~1.5" @50yds)
I still have all the equipment! It was on permanent loan to my older brother till he passed away I '12.

There is something to be said for the minimalist approach.

Added; the Lee sizer is designed to use the punch to push the bullet through base first. Nose first will deform a spitzer or round nose with the flat tip punch.

[35remington]

The Lee sizers crimp gaschecks well. Think about how it pushes the bullet through. Said by a guy who actually has used them for the task thousands of times.

[Wayne Smith]

Froggie, as long as the opening at the base of the die is larger than the open gas check it will work, as many have done. Easier when the GC is annealed when doing by hand.

[W.R.Buchanan]

Yes you can indeed seat and crimp gas checks when using a push thru die with the boolit going thru nose first.

The boolit is being moved thru the die by pressure on the base, and the gas check is in between the base and the ram so it has to seat before the boolit can move. As the sizer closes around the boolit the check is crimped on.

Simple as that.

I am only using push thru dies now as I am powder coating everything, but I still use gas checks and they get seated and crimped when they are pushed thru the die. Works just fine.

Randy