crimping

I crimp for my semi auto guns (.223 and all my pistols), but not for my bolt action guns.

When it comes to making rounds that can go in any gun, then yes, I will always crimp.

Mike
 
Ok now with that said,

have any of you had a problem with crimping?,
I just did a few today and after the crimp the bullet was loose. I could wiggle and turn it very slightly. if i turned it hard enough it would tighten up so i couldnt move it anymore. Should i be worried about this? or is it nothing?
 
madluk18 said:
Ok now with that said,

have any of you had a problem with crimping?,
I just did a few today and after the crimp the bullet was loose. I could wiggle and turn it very slightly. if i turned it hard enough it would tighten up so i couldnt move it anymore. Should i be worried about this? or is it nothing?
Click to expand...

You definatly have something wrong there. How it affects shooting I can't say but loose bullets can't be a good thing IMO. Maybe overcrimped?
 
a good general rule of thumb is-no cannelure,no crimp.
if the bullet doesn't have a ring(cannelure) around it,where does the crimp go?
usually into a collapsed shoulder...

but-

I have put an ultra light crimp on non-cannelured bullets just to close the case mouth bevel against the bullet.

I'm no expert tho so take it fwiw ;)
 
I crimp for magnum pistol and also tried crimping the 7.62x54R. I was surprised that the 7.62x54R actually shot better.

Don't over crimp.
 
madluk18 said:
OK, Now I think I already know the answer to this but would it be safe to shoot the round even though its loose?
Click to expand...

If it's just loose, and has not been pushed back into the case further.. then sure. If it has been pushed into the case, NO. :)
How can you tell? Crimp it and you will not have to worry about blowing up a gun.

Personally, I would not shoot it, just in case. I would pull the bullets, and reload the ammo, making sure of a secure bullet.

One thing I should mention, I also, generally, only crimp bullets with a cannelure. My pistol bullets just get the "bell" removed from the case mouth, and that holds the bullet nicely. I refer to it as a crimp, but it really is not crimp.

Mike
 
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You should not be able to move the seated bullet with your fingers, I think your sizing die is not properly adjusted....what is the overall measurement of your loaded round ?

Personally I wont' bother firing until having proper neck tension.
 
If you shoot a cartridge with a loose bullet, it will likely lodge the bullet in the throat and not ignite the powder. It won't hurt anything, but you will have a bullet stuck in the bore.
 
OK thanks guys

I'll put the bullets aside and pull them and re do them,

The thing is it only does it for certain ones. Its a random thing. I load my sierras at a 3.050 overall length.

one more thing, If i turn the loose bullet enough so it tightens and i still have my proper length would it be ok to shoot then?
 
madluk18 said:
Ok now with that said,

have any of you had a problem with crimping?,
I just did a few today and after the crimp the bullet was loose. I could wiggle and turn it very slightly. if i turned it hard enough it would tighten up so i couldnt move it anymore. Should i be worried about this? or is it nothing?
Click to expand...

That bullet should be unmovable after a resizing-seating combo... crimping shouldn't make a difference in "feel" by hand. Definitely something wrong; if you can turn the bullet by hand, something has gone 'south' with your resizing process I'd bet.

EDIT: What cartridge are you loading for, what brass, and what bullet?

-M
 
Hasn't happened to me with rifle cases but I've loaded some .38spl who'd lost some of their elasticity, preventing the bullets from being held in place by neck tension alone.

Could be some of your brass has been overworked.
 
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