Hey Bashby, I think you'll have great results with the Lee set. I have a bunch of 9mm dies... two sets of Dillon (used in my 550 and 1050), a set of RCBS (used them in my old Rockchucker), and a full set of Lee that I use in my Lee Classic Turret press.
I just wanted to make sure that you knew there is a difference in the expanding dies that guys have been recommending.... You DO NOT want the expander die from 38 Special/357 Magnum, you want the expander die from 38 S&W. This part right here:
http://fsreloading.com/lee-precision...8-s-and-w.html That's the exact die I ordered from the exact place I ordered it from.
It'll expand your case more than the expander die included with your Lee 9mm set, and also a bit more than 38 Special. The part number that I linked you to is a powder through expander, so you can use it either in a stand-alone expander die, or you can use it with your powder-through die... you can take out the powder through expander plug in your new set of Lee 9mm dies, and just drop the 38 S&W one in.
IMO, it's pretty important to use the 38 S&W expander,
especially since your barrel slugs out at .356. That expander will prevent the cartridge walls from swaging down your boolit to less than the desired .358 diameter you'll be wanting for that barrel.
When you're getting all set up, load up a test round, then pull the boolit. Measure the base of it and make sure it's not getting swaged down below .358. If it is, increase the depth of the expander.
If you have some military brass, you'll want to make sure to do the above test with it, as military brass typically has thicker case walls and has a tendency to swage boolits down more than typical 9mm brass does.
As to the Lee FCD, you'll hear guys here swear
by it, and others swear
at it. IME, the only time I have ever had a problem using the FCD is with military brass. Occasionally, the FCD with military brass will swage the boolit down below the desired diameter. But IME, it only happens with the military brass, and only occasionally. Other guys will say that it happens all the time, while another group of guys say they never have any problems with the FCD at all.
I *do* use the FCD for cast boolits, and have never had any problems with it, except for military brass. But I don't have much of that anyway, so it's really not a problem.
Give it a try, and see how it works for you.
Edit: Oh, forgot to mention.... not only do you want to pull a boolit and measure the base of it, but you'll also want to verify that you have enough neck tension, too. Take a finished round and measure the OAL. Then press the tip of the boolit into something like the edge of your reloading bench, and push pretty hard. Then measure the OAL again. It should be the same. If it is shorter, you'll need to make adjustments so that you're getting better neck tension. There's a window you're shooting for here... you don't want the case so small that it swages down the boolit diameter, but you don't want the case so large that you're not getting adequate neck tension.