More crimping Questions

Discussion on reloading the 9x18 and any other cartridge
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Cyndicalist
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More crimping Questions

Post by Cyndicalist »

I'm having trouble figuring out the best light taper crimp for my 9x18 loads.

I'm just starting, have a single Stage press, andvam using Lee's 3 die set for 9x18.

I feel like my crimping ends up being nothing or too much.

Any advice in light taper crimps with berrys 95 grain plated, or hornady 95 grain xtp?


Thanks.
"Under no pretext should arms and ammunition be surrendered; any attempt to disarm the workers must be frustrated, by force if necessary." - Karl Marx
GuitarmanNick
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Re: More crimping Questions

Post by GuitarmanNick »

First, if you do not have a case gauge, I suggest you get one to check every round that you handload to avoid chambering and feeding issues.

To use the Lee die first, seat the bullet to the desired depth.

Second, make sure you back out the bullet seating portion of the die before setting up the crimp. You do not want to push the bullet deeper into the case when crimping and if you forget this step when setting up your die the first time, your seating depth will be too low resulting in higher pressure. Follow the instructions and back out the die before inserting your un-crimped round and running the ram up. Now turn the crimping portion or the die down until it just contacts your round. Lower the ram and adjust to crimp. Make small adjustments!

When you have crimped the first round, pull it out and look at it near the case mouth. You should be able to see a slight taper. If not, turn it down a little more and re-crimp repeating this process until to can just see the taper. You do not want much. Just enough to hold the bullet in place but not enough to distort it's shape. It only needs to keep the bullet from setting back in the case when chambered and when in the gun's magazine during firing. A set of calipers may be helpful to confirm the taper is there. I keep a magnifying glass handy when setting up my dies. If you have the breech lock quick change press, get some of the quick change bushings for your dies so that you can lock them down in the bushings and they will not need to be reset each time you want to load 9x18 Makarov.

Once you have the crimp set the way you want it, then reset the bullet seating portion of the die and when you do the next round, it should seat the bullet to the correct depth and crimp in the same step. Check the round using your case gauge. If it drops in all of the way and drops out freely, it should chamber. Double check overall length, too.

I have had some minor case lip damage cause them to hang up in the gauge but that is easily fixed with a small file. My P-64 extractor has been tough on brass. I took a stone to the corners on it the last time I took it apart and the brass fared a little better on my last range outing.

When I first started reloading, I did not check every round. After a few failures to feed on my handloads, and tracing the problems to things that checking every round would have caught, my procedure now includes both OAL and case gauge checks on every handloaded round. I have not had an issue since with any of my handloads.

Don't get frustrated. Take your time and follow the instructions that came with your dies. Adjust a little at a time until you find the sweet spot. Double check everything and lock it down. The second time you use them, the prep will not be needed and the process will be more relaxing and therapeutic. All of my dies are set up in the quick change bushings for all of the calibers I load. It makes things much easier and insures that rounds I did last year will perform the same as those I may do today.

Hope this has been helpful and gets you up and running.
Cyndicalist
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Re: More crimping Questions

Post by Cyndicalist »

Thanks!

Loaded 50+ rounds and your help is very appreciated.

I did a mix of 3.2, 3.6, and 4.0 grains of w231 with my berrys and Red Army brass. They all worked great. The 4.0 was a bit hotter than my factory Geco.
"Under no pretext should arms and ammunition be surrendered; any attempt to disarm the workers must be frustrated, by force if necessary." - Karl Marx
GuitarmanNick
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Joined: March 19th, 2017, 10:04 am
Location: Marylandistan

Re: More crimping Questions

Post by GuitarmanNick »

Glad you got it set up and working.
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