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Thread: Press not seating consistantly

  1. #21
    Boolit Grand Master
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    Interesting thread. I hate to admit this, but I have never measured OAL on reloads produced on a progressive press. But until recently, I have only used Dillon’s and Star’s.

    I need to keep this in mind when evaluating the new Lee 6000.
    Don Verna


  2. #22
    Boolit Grand Master


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    There are only two possible reasons I can think of for such a discrepancy on 9mm.

    #1 you are not pulling the handle all the way. Maybe you have a die turned in farther than you think. Maybe you have something physically stopping your press handle from moving.

    #2 There is so much slop in the shell plate it is causing these issues. Obviously make sure you have the shell plate is screwed on tight. I would give everything a wiggle. There should be very little movement in the shell plate, most other parts should be tight.

    It is normal to see some change in OAL with a fully loaded press, but if I saw over a .005" change I would be alarmed. Normally it's more like .001" to .003" as the slop in the parts in threads are taken up. It's also normal to see some variation case to case, but again, more than .005" would be a little concerning. I normally see about .004" or .005" from handgun dies simply because you can't screw them in all the way like rifle dies. They also often have seating plugs that are less than ideal with a lot of bullets. It would be nice if Lee started making dead-length bullet seaters for handguns.

    Edit: One other thought that crossed my mind. Make sure the screw that holds your carrier assembly onto the ram is tight. I've seen those come loose, and it would be no surprise that could cause seating depth issues.

  3. #23
    Boolit Buddy 414gates's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by BK7saum View Post
    Not using a lee, but one thing that helped on my progressive with 9mm was using just a little lube on the cases. It really evened out the process and pressure on the shell plate. The OAL and uniformity got a lot better.
    +1

    For pistol brass, you can use any spray on lube. I prefer to line the brass on a loading block, and spray twice, each time from the opposite direction.

    Makes a big difference for progressive reloading.

    Also, if the longest reloads pass the plunk test, there is no problem that needs fixing.

  4. #24
    Boolit Grand Master Char-Gar's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Chief TC View Post
    I have the 4 hole turret press and I am getting seating variation up to .025, which is frustrating. I was wondering if I needed to get a single stage press for my precise 30-06 loads.
    I was loading 30-06 with my trot line Lee turrent and the difference in over all length was visible. If a person is into precision rifle shooting a .025 dif will show up on the target. I purchased a RCBS Rockchucker and the problem went away.
    Disclaimer: The above is not holy writ. It is just my opinion based on my experience and knowledge. Your mileage may vary.

  5. #25
    Boolit Master
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    Quote Originally Posted by 1hole View Post
    If you want better handgun accuracy I suggest you spend more time at your favorite range with the ammo you have, not in your reloading room worrying about trivial OAL variations and die brands.
    Point taken.
    One of the reason's is one gun that I feed these reloads to can be picky about max OAL. So when I set the seating die to something that gun can handle then notice that the OAL of subsequent rounds don't "plunk" it is annoying.

    The issue seems to be resolved by putting an empty case in each station when I set the seating die (on a charged case of course). In the past when a case would fail to insert into the first station I would just keep going with an empty spot. But I just have to take the time to manually replace that case.

  6. #26
    Boolit Master Half Dog's Avatar
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    I’ve seated bullets on my Rockchucker and measured the ogive using calipers. There is slop in the bearings on this single stage press. Any other movement, in a different style press, will stack the total reflective movement. My progressive press needs to have each station filled to give consistent measurements.
    I hope this helps.
    The sooner I fall behind...the more time I have to catch up with

  7. #27
    Boolit Buddy Sam Sackett's Avatar
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    My progressive press needs to have each station filled to give consistent measurements.


    I agree. When setting dies in a progressive press, ALL STATIONS SHOULD BE FILLED. I learned this with my Lee Loadmaster.

    Sam Sackett

  8. #28
    Boolit Master
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    Quote Originally Posted by Sam Sackett View Post

    My progressive press needs to have each station filled to give consistent measurements.


    I agree. When setting dies in a progressive press, ALL STATIONS SHOULD BE FILLED. I learned this with my Lee Loadmaster.

    Sam Sackett
    I see. I think it will make sense then, to buy a seating die for every bullet that I cast. It would be easier to just swap out a die than to re-adjust the die when I switch bullets, since it is a pain to make this adjusment with a full plate.
    I see Lee sells just the seating dies (I must not be the first to run into this). But I can't find a retailer that carries them. I can't find them on Titan Reloading's website (they usually carry all sorts of Lee)

  9. #29
    Boolit Master deces's Avatar
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    I have a feeling that the issue might be with how your first die station is set, normally that is the sizing die, but necessarily always the case. For example with the decapping die in station 1, the die must be set tight enough against the ram to (reduce) deflection on the other 3 stations. Don't quote me, but I believe Lee calls for the ram all the way up and the die ran tight and another 1/3 turn. Then you would have to adjust every other die off the case from there as normal.

    This press is not a cam-over press and the dies must be set with that in account.
    These men and their hypnotized followers call this a new order. It is not new. It is not order.

  10. #30
    Boolit Master
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    Quote Originally Posted by 45workhorse View Post
    Lubed or powder coated? Maybe lube build up in seater die.
    Just tossing ideas out, goodluck.
    I've had that happen with lubed boolits.
    Warning: I know Judo. If you force me to prove it I'll shoot you.

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Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check