Martinibelgian
Ah... I DO seat my boolits out such that they touch the rifling, but only just. If that aligns them automatically, it would explain the good results. Mystery solved.
Larry
I have expanded my cases both ways over the years: With two separate expander plugs, one for expanding the necks, and another to flair the mouths; and with a stepped expander that expands and flairs in a single stroke. So it would not seem to me like too much of an inconvenience, probably. However, Martinibelgian's information about the (heretofore unknown to me) effect of seating the boolits into the rifling makes neck sizing seem like much less of a necessity than I thought it was.
Hiram
So I would have been using the neck sizer in a different way than you. Informative. Thanks for responding.
Lead Pot
I feel your pain about searching for boolits that have fallen out. One of the few good things about those loose babies was I could show them to the curious by pulling one out. Until the day I reached for a cartridge and knocked another one over, sending the boolit onto the concrete slab, and denting the nose. Gah!
Thanks again to everyone. Like Tom Cruise in "Interview with a Vampire": I feel better!
Chuck