M die to big--what to do?

[gray wolf]

I have come across a Lyman M die for 45 A C P
The Problem is the main body part of the die is
.450, this makes my bullet fit for a J-word .451 bullet to loose.

Can I get ( or have made ) an M-die that is .448 or .449 so the J-word bullets will have a better hold in the case.

I tried to sand it down some but it's crazy hard metal.
Any ideas or suggestions.

[Whitespider]

I've altered them easily enough.
Chuck it in a drill, or drill press (my preference) and use emery cloth (or emery paper) with oil to keep the cutting abrasive from clogging. I like the stuff that comes in rolls about an inch wide so I can hold each end of a piece a few inches long and move the abrasive surface back and forth (which also keeps it from clogging).
Emery comes in nearly any grit that sandpaper does, but it cuts metal much faster... don't go to far with the courser stuff, because by the time you polish it down smooth with finer grit you'll lose another .001-.003 inch.
Don't be afraid of using enough oil (I use cutting oil, but light weight oil like gun oil will work)... it all cleans up in the end.
You should be able to reduce the diameter by .002-.003 inch in 5-10 minutes without even hurrying.
*

[Whitespider]

Oh... I forgot...
Buffalo Arms makes just about any size expander plug you could ever want... for most any popular die sets. The problem is the odd sizes ain't always "in stock"... I'd give them a call and ask about what you need.

https://www.buffaloarms.com/reloading-supplies?category=154&dir=desc&order=name&mode=grid&___SID=U

*

[ascast]

Whitespider is dead on. Just don't go too far with the coarse as he says.

[Shiloh]

NOE makes expanders that fir in a LEE universal expanding die. Works great.

Shiloh

[OptimusPanda]

What Shiloh said. The NOE expanding plugs work really well. Here's one that should work for ya.
http://noebulletmolds.com/NV/product_info.php?cPath=89&products_id=1611&osCsid=llhqsul00tmebphmkivuqdb1f1

[gray wolf]

OK great .452X.448 so the part that goes into to case would be .448
and the little ridge at the top that allows the bullet to seat is .452
That should allow plenty of bullet grab, is the .452 enough to place the .451
bullet on top ?
What do I do, just get the lee die and drop in N O E,s plug

Also BTW I did try the oil and Emory cloth and it does work.

Thank you for the help

Sam

[runfiverun]

http://noebulletmolds.com/NV/images/90798.jpg
right from NOE
http://noebulletmolds.com/NV/images/45AP-EXP%20001.JPG

[reddog81]

What expander die came with your 45 die set? If you resize the Lyman die then it won't be the correct size for lead.

[gray wolf]

I have an extra for lead

[BK7saum]

Why would a 0.450" be too loose with a j-word? Have you experienced it bein too loose and being able to push the bullet deeper in the case or is it thoretically too loose? A 0.450 expander should leave the case neck 0.449-0.4495 inside for 0.001-0.0015" neck tension, which is about the max you can get from brass. Once you hit the 0.002" mark you are expanding the brass beyond elastic limit and and actually using the bullet as a second expander.

How are you crimping? Is the bullet too loose after seating or after an additional crimp?

[Bent Ramrod]

The "M" die is an auxiliary die that ensures that a cast boolit will not be shaved or otherwise deformed when seated in the shell. It is meant to open the case mouth slightly oversize, since cast boolits are generally sized a thousandth or two larger than jacketed.

The standard expander on your expander/decapper on your die set should be set up already for jacketed bullets. The one in my .45 ACP set does fine with .452" Hornady or Berry's plated bullets. I only use the "M" die for cast.