Are you resizing .40 s&w

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Resizing pistol cases

I will be sitting down to reload around 3000 .40 S&W from range pickup brass. I have a new-to-me pistol in .40 s&w that I am trying to get more comfortable with. Although I have reloaded about 300 rounds to find load data that I like the best, I have not fully resized the brass. Only as far as the size die allows me to in my press. None of the reloads caused me any problem so far.

I certainly can't afford a roller sizer, no matter how much I want one. The method I would use is to push the brass through a gutted Factory Crimp Die.

Are you pushing your .40 s&w brass through a factory crimp die prior to reloading?

What about pushing 9mm Luger through a 9mm makarov FCD?
 
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I've been shooting and reloading .40 S&W for a decade and a half. I have always used an EGW Undersize Sizing Die. I don't think I've had one problem sliding the resulting loaded rounds into a case checker and then running them through my Para (and now my 2011).
 
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OK, so I'm confused. Why are you putting the brass through a crimp die BEFORE you size it and then flare it to let you fit in the bullet?????? You're just working the brass needlessly and adding an extra step that serves no purpose. Or are you simply bad at posting the steps in the right order?
 
I never take a chance with range brass, I run them through a lee carbide seizer, clean, cut to min trim length, and turn down the bullet seating die as to get a bit of crimp. With the 3 die lee set I have, the bullet, factory crimp die is not needed, seating die gives plenty.
 
BCRider said:
OK, so I'm confused. Why are you putting the brass through a crimp die BEFORE you size it and then flare it to let you fit in the bullet?????? You're just working the brass needlessly and adding an extra step that serves no purpose. Or are you simply bad at posting the steps in the right order?
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The Lee factory Crimp Die has a carbide ring in its base, its normal purpose is to size the case on the down stroke of the ram "IF NEEDED". Meaning if the case is over crimped and causes a bulge at the base of the crimp the lower carbide ring in the crimp die will remove the bulge. Also if you read about about cast bullet shooters they do not use the Lee FCD because it will actually size the larger cast bullets smaller in diameter.

When the Lee FCD die is used with the bulge buster kit the case is pushed entirely through the carbide ring and it sizes the base of the case to minimum case dimensions. Meaning if your cases have the Glock bulge in the base it will remove the bulge.

If your cases fit in a case gauge you do not have a bulge problem, the problem is if you use range pickup brass or buy once fired brass you "may" need the bulge buster kit. I bought 500 once fired .40 cases and just ran them through the bulge buster to be on the safe side.

I have a newer Glock .40 and do not have a bulge problem but using once fired brass "MAY" cause problems if they were fired in the older type barrels.

Below the changes to the Glock barrels and fixing the Glock bulge problem which included the ammunition manufactures making the cases thicker. Many competitive shooters use the Lee bulge buster kit because they use range pickup brass and have no problems with the brass they use.

CaseSupport2-1_zpsb7ee6216.jpg


The EGW Undersize Base Sizing Die is nothing more than a Lee carbide die that sizes the case .001 smaller in diameter and also sizes further down the case. And the Lee FCD/Bulge buster kit pushes the case completely through a carbide ring and sizes the entire base of the case.

BULGE BUSTER KIT
http://leeprecision.com/bulge-buster-kit.html
 
That's a new one on me. Thanks for the explanation in so much detail. It's folks like you here at CGN that make it a great place to hang out.

There's so much .40 available for the effort of bending over and cleaning the range that I keep thinking about a 1911 in .40S&W and run heavier bullets to make it feel more like a ".45acp Lite" with the push instead of the snap in the recoil. If I ever get around to that idea I'll keep all this in mind.
 
I FL size and then after bullet is seated, they go through the LEE Factory crimp. Work well is several different models of pistols
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^X2
Last stage on my 650 is a Lee Carbide Factory Crimp Die. Only prob I've ever had is me swapping and tinkering with recoil springs.
Otherwise, they generally feed no issues.
 
How do you not resize range brass? The expansion in miscellaneous firearms is reason enough. or its just me, when I have Match Grade barrels with tighter tolerances.

I do a FL resize on my first stage that de-primes at the same time, then the final stage is a taper crimp.
 
BCRider said:
That's a new one on me. Thanks for the explanation in so much detail. It's folks like you here at CGN that make it a great place to hang out.

There's so much .40 available for the effort of bending over and cleaning the range that I keep thinking about a 1911 in .40S&W and run heavier bullets to make it feel more like a ".45acp Lite" with the push instead of the snap in the recoil. If I ever get around to that idea I'll keep all this in mind.
Click to expand...

This is what happens when you retire and have nothing to do and all day to do it. If I wasn't answering questions in forums or researching reloading topics I would be watching episodes of "Law and Order" again for the third time.

Besides I'm also a cheap bastard and enjoy scrounging up brass at the range and pretending its Christmas. And any range pickup brass I pickup is wet tumbled and inspected closely for defects. And the bulge buster kit makes all the range pickup brass all the same size in base diameter. ;)

All the information in the world is written in books and all you have to do is read.
 
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madcow said:
How do you not resize range brass? The expansion in miscellaneous firearms is reason enough. or its just me, when I have Match Grade barrels with tighter tolerances.

I do a FL resize on my first stage that de-primes at the same time, then the final stage is a taper crimp.
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I think you're on the same page as I was. The "problem" is that with the flare at the end of the resizing die along with the portion of the rim buried in the shell plate that a bulge at the base right next to the more solid head does not fit up into the die far enough to fully remove the bulge. These guys are pushing the cases THROUGH a bulge buster or a modified factory crimp die to fix that last little bit of the case.

I'm guessing that the need for this is at least partially due to Glock's use of a semi supporting chamber which results in a bulge at the base of the brass. And there may be something going on with .40S&W where the head is thinner? Either way apparently the regular sizing dies don't quite catch the bulge right by the head of the case.

Did I get that right? And if I did then would grinding away a bit of the rim on the sizing die to shorten up the flare also do the job? It would make starting the brass into the die a bit more fussy but it would save the extra operation of pushing the brass through a bulge buster or FCD. Yes? No?
 
So Lee is selling a Bulge Buster Kit, and they don't recommend using it :)
Have you had any rupture issues with "fixed" cases?

"Glock Cases: We do not recommend "fixing" cases fired in pistols with unsupported chambers, because there is no way to make them safe once they have bulged. The case wall is thinned where it bulges, and resizing the outside of the case back down to the correct diameter does not restore the case back to its original thickness. If this case is fired in a pistol with an unsupported chamber again, and this thinned section of brass happens to line up with the unsupported part of the chamber, there is a high probability that the case will rupture."
 
Gilbear said:
So Lee is selling a Bulge Buster Kit, and they don't recommend using it :)
Have you had any rupture issues with "fixed" cases?

"Glock Cases: We do not recommend "fixing" cases fired in pistols with unsupported chambers, because there is no way to make them safe once they have bulged. The case wall is thinned where it bulges, and resizing the outside of the case back down to the correct diameter does not restore the case back to its original thickness. If this case is fired in a pistol with an unsupported chamber again, and this thinned section of brass happens to line up with the unsupported part of the chamber, there is a high probability that the case will rupture."
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I use range pickup brass and since I'm the one pulling the trigger "SAFETY" is paramount and I would "NEVER" reload a case like below. And since I have been shooting my Glock .40 I have only seen two cases with excessive bulge at the range.

glock-brass_zps1in2work.jpg


And below is "WHY" Lee printed the warning to help prevent lawsuits from brain dead reloaders.

bulge%20section_zpsagynschq.jpg


Below is a case fired in a generous size chamber and is not a "Glock bulge".

GenerousChamberBulge_zpsxorvuvkk.jpg


When picking up range fired brass it is up to "YOU" to decide what cases to keep for reloading. And any experienced reloader who inspects his cases for defects knows what is worth keeping and what to throw away. The main reason for using the EGW Undersize Base Sizing Die or the Lee bulge buster is to reduce the case diameter of all the brass to the same size as unfired factory cases. Meaning your picking up brass fired in another pistols chamber that may be bigger in diameter than your chamber.

Bottom line, if your resized range pickup case does not fit in a pistol case gauge after sizing you need a bulge buster kit. (Because your case has a fat ass)
So think of the bulge buster kit as a small base die for pistols.
 
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