9mm cases splitting

[gwpercle]

I have good luck using the Noe expanders inside the Lee universal expander die. Not a powder through set up but you can pick the size you want to one one thousandth of an inch. Gp

I Agree 100% , Noe expanders plug + Lee Expander Die = a perfectly done job .
Powder through expander seems to be the problem...
Hope all your modifications make it work...
Gary

[toallmy]

That's a lot of brass shavings , something was definitely not right .
When I started using the lee S&W plug in my 9 mm lee powder through expander die it was sorta sticking when I lowered the shellplate occasional throwing powder out of the case so I chucked it in the drill press and polished it up a bit , it was even worse with squeaky clean brass - so I started lightly spraying my 9 brass with a homemade case lube
Before reloading them = silky smooth progressive reloading now . That 38 S&W plug in the lee 9mm die made my 9's cast friendly . Your getting it sorted out .

[Walks]

If you're loading on a Lee Progressive, then I don't see an answer to your problem other then a good polishing of the expander.

I've never had a problem like this. I do own a pair of Lee die sets. Gifted by a friend, a .38S&W & .44Russ. The .38S&W needed extensive polishing of the .365 expander "ball" and the inside of the bullet seating die. The .44Russ set, I just threw away the shellholder.
If We shot more then 200-300rds of each a year, I would buy a Quality Die set.

The Lee decap die does work OK.

You get what you pay for.

Sorry to be so negative. My experience with Lee has been very spotty.

[fredj338]

I use a MBF funnel in my Dillon, never seen a split case like that in 10s of 1000s loaded.

[Conditor22]

I had a member on CB fabricate some NOE type expander dies with a hole in them to fit in a lee powder through die. Saves having 2 dies on the press

[John McCorkle]

Mostly the powder through was an expedient way to go...I think I paid 6 bucks for 2 plugs and shipping (first one as with most of their spare parts was free) I have a Lee pro 1000 press so only working with 3 stations means I need to expand and drop powder together

Was testing the new expander on the single stage to see how it was when I ran into the issue...glad I did.

**Update**

Have run through several hundred cases now that it's all polished up with zero split cases. Will do prob a thousand more just to make sure bit looks like the polish has done the trick

Sent from my moto g(7) power using Tapatalk

[gpidaho]

Glad to hear the problem is solved John. Gp

[John McCorkle]

Glad to hear the problem is solved John. Gp

Thanks and thanks to everyone else here too....I can't tell you how much I enjoy this forum and it's members... awesome group of guys man

Sent from my moto g(7) power using Tapatalk

[tazman]

Now I have another solution to a problem to add to my list.

[jimlj]

I may be wrong on this, but it seems I read to use the powder through expander from a 38 Super die set, not 38 S&W. I believe the 38 super expands further into the case than the 9mm expander does.

[onelight]

I may be wrong on this, but it seems I read to use the powder through expander from a 38 Super die set, not 38 S&W. I believe the 38 super expands further into the case than the 9mm expander does.

I would have thought the same thing and it might work but some of the guys here have had good success with the 38 S&W and know it is available so they recommend what worked for them.

[fcvan]

it was sorta sticking when I lowered the shellplate occasional throwing powder out of the case ... so I started lightly spraying my 9 brass with a homemade case lube
Before reloading them

I am not using the S&W expander and never polished the original 9mm expander. I did adjust to where a .358 sized boolit easily fit in the case mouth. The lead I was casting was originally from a ranger where swaged hollow base wad cutters were fired, very soft stuff. I did not experience boolits being swaged too small causing leading or poor accuracy in many 9mm firearms, pistol and carbine. Lucky? Nope. I did try sizing to .357 and they keyholed at 15 feet, not very lucky, in fact the opposite!

Your comment about lubing cases (secret recipe? ) got me thinking. Many years ago I changed my case cleaning regimen. Basically 1) cases are de-capped and rinsed in hot soapy water. I don't double rinse them with, often just strain. 2) cases are resized and rinsed in soapy water with lemon juice and let stand for about 5 minutes as it really takes care of the oxidized zinc in the brass. 3) brass is strained and goes wet into the tumbler with ground walnut. The moisture from the brass dampens the walnut enough to cause it to swell and scrub better. 4) my ground walnut in the tumbler gets a table spoon of Turtle Zip Wash every once in a while. TZW has a slight amount of wax in with the soap and so while polishing and as the walnut dries, it leaves a slight coat of the wax. The walnut media is generally dry withing the hour, and the brass shines like new.

The slight wax coating seals the pores of the brass so that finished cartridges stay shiny like new longer than factory boxed cartridges. The brass is not so slippery that it caused concerns about the brass not adhering enough to the chamber walls during firing. My 9mm AR 15s are blow-back and that would be a concern.

Until I read your comment about 'case lube' I totally forgot about how the brass stuck less during the down stroke of expansion/charging of the case. The reduction of force was noticeable enough, but I had forgotten that due to many years and many 10s of thousands of rounds loaded since I started the TZW clean/polish routine.

As an added plus, I haven't bought new walnut media in 10 years. I have enough to fill the tumbler twice and 2 zippered burlap bags for washing the walnut. The walnut is getting a lot of soap residue between the soapy water and the TZW that I can put the burlap bag under running water until the water runs clean and the set in the sun to dry which takes 4 to 5 hours, less if I just put it back in the tumbler and run it. The walnut is stained black from the zinc oxide but coarse feeling as if new. All good in my book, even though new ground walnut is quite cheap from the pet store as lizard bedding.

But, I forgot about the 'lube action' of the TZW until I read your comment.

[Burnt Fingers]

1. I, and many others, always use Hornady One Shot on straight wall pistol brass AND 9mm. It makes life a LOT easier. The difference is amazing.

2. Those brass hairs....I can load 1000 rounds at a setting on my Dillon and not see any, and I don't, and never have, chamfered any 9mm brass. I've got 10 gallons of the stuff and I just scoop it out of the bucket, hit it with the One Shot, let it dry for a couple of minutes and drop it in the collator.

3. I'm using a custom powder funnel on my Dillon. The factory funnel is great for jacketed bullets. It sucks for .357-.358 cast bullets.

[onelight]

The main place I see them is when using the Lee expanders they are rough , chamfering will stop it with them and it is worst with the first loading , polishing the expander will also stop it. I use ArmourAll ultra shine (a recommendation from here) in my last rinse when cleaning brass and the wax is all the lube mine seem to need with carbide dies makes a noticeable difference .

[JeffG]

I would agree with you if not for tons of guys here using this exact setup with none of the issues I am seeing... I wouldn't have thought to use the 38sw expander from Lee if not for others using it with great success, which is why I'm curious what could be causing it

Sent from my moto g(7) power using Tapatalk

I agree with DonMountain on this. I believe most people using a non standard oversize expander for 9mm are using 38 Special expander because it is only .001 - .002 bigger in diameter and goes deeper, to help stop sizing down the base. 38 S&W is in the .361 .362 range, which is a big jump. I’m shooting at least 6 different brands of 9mm guns, with .357 cast in all. Using a standard 9mm Lyman M die allows the bullet to just sit inside the neck without any trouble while loading.

[jimlj]

I would have thought the same thing and it might work but some of the guys here have had good success with the 38 S&W and know it is available so they recommend what worked for them.

I just read several old threads. Turns out the one I thought said to use a 38 Super expander was using 38 S&W like the OP, my bad.

[Conditor22]

FYI Many European 9MM's run several thou bigger than the American 9MM.

Always slug your barrel or do a chamber cast before buying a sizing die.

[RydForLyf]

Is there a drop-in replacement expander for the Dillon 9mm? So many have been mentioned, I’m not sure which would fit.

[Burnt Fingers]

Is there a drop-in replacement expander for the Dillon 9mm? So many have been mentioned, I’m not sure which would fit.

LatheSmith makes them, I've never used one of his but they are supposed to be great. I got mine from Uniquetek.