I watched MJ's videos (ammo channel) a few years ago when I first started reloading about making 45 ACP Shotshells from .308 brass, and both methods he used.
He had a set of rcbs dies (56552), and the case form/trim die (58378) that he custom ordered from RCBS.
He also detailed a method of using the Lyman 41 mag die set to make 45 Shotshells that are every bit as good as the rcbs method.
I got interested in this process again after a few years of reloading and after diving into casting. I wanted to give it a try.
I called an online rcbs dealer to order a set of dies ($169 for the three die set and $96 for the form die and shell holder) and I was told rcbs does not make custom dies anymore. I called rcbs and this was confirmed. No luck. This was going to take some effort. And probably be expensive.
So I went to the auction site and searched for a set. Nothing was to be found. Even looking at old previous sales there was nothing recent. It's been a few years since a set has sold on there. It looks like the guys who had the foresight to buy them tend to hold on to them.
I did some deep web searching, and still could not find any for sale. Just cached listings of items sold long ago. I saved a search for 45 Shotshell dies on the bay to see what popped up.
The next logical step was to use the other proven method and get some 41 mag dies. Found some on the bay and placed the minium bid plus a few bucks. I won the dies and paid for them.
Shipping was going to take a few days. Two days after buying the 41 mag dies, a member posted a set of Rcbs Shotshell dies in swapping and selling. I jumped on them as soon as I read the ad. Later that day I was a little confused because the part number was different (55000), but after a little research I found that these were the correct dies, just an old part number.
This was only the three die set, not the case form/trim die. I was assured by the seller that these dies will still produce good Shotshells without the initial case form die. I tried them out and had success. Made good Shotshells from both .308 brass and .45 Magnum brass. I was still on the lookout for a case form die and extended shell holder.
If Shotshells can be produced with the three die set, and without the use of the case form die, what are the odds that someone will have a case form die for sale, without the three die set? Not very likely at all. If I see one I will have to make sure I get it.
A few months later, after playing with the Shotshells for a while, that saved search from the bay came through for me. Someone had an auction for a case form die and no 3 die set. These things aren't made anymore, and I need it, so I made my top bid very high. Insanely high. I landed the case form and Tim die with the extended shell holder.
It showed up last night. Tried it out and it works great. It starts the forming process and the sizing die finishes it. It should prolong the life of the brass forming in two steps instead of one. I feel fitter, happier, more complete. But at the same time, I feel guilty because I can only imagine I was bidding against a few of my fellow forum members. If you guys were bidding, and I beat you out, I apologise. I will get some good use out of them.
I have not tried the Lyman 41 mag dies yet. The rcbs dies shipped flat rate and arrived the same day as the Lyman dies. I still need to try them out.
I am wondering if they would benefit from using the case form die first, and then the sizing die to form. I will report back later.
I tried out the Shotshells on a pumpkin on Thanksgiving. They shot great, but stopped short of completely cycling the action on my sig p220. I used the starting charge of 700x and will have to bump it up a bit. They were also a hair too long to feed reliably every round from the sig mag. Trimming a little shorter should solve this. I am going to buy a 1911 just to have fun with these.
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Originally Posted by JimB..
