so i got my lee challenger press and set everything up (im reloading 9mm) i resized and deprimed a bunch of cases and cleaned and reprimed them with the hand tool everything went well...i set up the bullet seating die and decided to try to seat a few bullets in some unprimes cased (have lots of brass and bullets) first one didnt even go in turned die down alot....2nd one crumpled the case thrid one looked right measured it and it was very close to OAL...so is there anyway proper way to set the seating depth or is it just a trial and error proces??
got my lee loading kit!!! best way to set bullet seating depth?
- Thread starter .Ben
- Start date
You should read the instructions on the die set. But the bulk of the adjusting is done with the knob on top of the die rather then turning the die itself. You will adjust how much of crimp it puts on it by how far the die is turned in.
Determine correct overall length for your chamber, for jacketed bullets it's usually 10 thou. off the lands. Set die up to seat bullet far out, keep adjusting seating depth down until the length is correct, you will have to keep checking as you go with a vernier.
Adjust the die body to give a light crimp, so you take off the bell mouth. Set the lock screw on the die.
I use a black felt marker to make four vertical stripes down the side of the seating stem sticking out the top of the die. This makes it easy to see how much the stem is turned. I think I recall a quarter turn (one mark to the next) is 10 thou. Seat a bullet and measure. Then adjust up or down from there.
The "correct" length is short enough to not bind in the magazine and not engrave the rifling.
here is a picture of a Lee seating die. You can see the balck reference mark on the die body and one of the 4 black marks on the stem.
I use a black felt marker to make four vertical stripes down the side of the seating stem sticking out the top of the die. This makes it easy to see how much the stem is turned. I think I recall a quarter turn (one mark to the next) is 10 thou. Seat a bullet and measure. Then adjust up or down from there.
The "correct" length is short enough to not bind in the magazine and not engrave the rifling.
here is a picture of a Lee seating die. You can see the balck reference mark on the die body and one of the 4 black marks on the stem.
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cdnredneck_t3
Regular
Once you get you die set to do the proper crimp load a shell and measure the oal. If the bullet is for arguments sake 90 thou to long take a stand off measurement from the top of the seating stem to the top of the die. subtract 90 thou from that and turn your stem in until u get that measurement. should be close.
In your post you make no mention of belling the cases.
You should have 3 dies in that set, one die sizes and decaps, a second die flares or bells the case mouth and the 3rd die seats the bullet. If you do not have enough bell on a case you will get bullets that do not seat and crushed cases.
You should have 3 dies in that set, one die sizes and decaps, a second die flares or bells the case mouth and the 3rd die seats the bullet. If you do not have enough bell on a case you will get bullets that do not seat and crushed cases.
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To try and give you a bit more of a simplified answer, yes you seat the bullet by trial and error.
(bear in mind i work with rifle dies only, thus i do not know how to set the belling die) I screw the bullet seating die in just enough to touch the shell holder and then screw in or out as per the instructions and lock into place. I then back the seating knob adjuster out and attempt to seat a bullet. I would screw the adjuster in slowly, no more then 1/4 turn at a time, until the bullet seats into the case. I would then measure the Overal Length (OAL or COL, different manuals call this measurment different things).
I would then adjust the seating knob in 1/4 turn at a time until 10 thou from my OAL. Then I would turn the knob only a fraction in until I hit my OAL, measuring every time I turn that knob.
This process is to set up the die. When done seating bullets I back the adjuster knob out about 2 full turns. Because I use a Lee press, i then just do the 1/3 of a turn and remove the die and bushing.
Then when i go back to the die, the max I usually have to turn the adjuster knob is 2 turns give or take.
Hope that helps mate. You'll get this
(bear in mind i work with rifle dies only, thus i do not know how to set the belling die) I screw the bullet seating die in just enough to touch the shell holder and then screw in or out as per the instructions and lock into place. I then back the seating knob adjuster out and attempt to seat a bullet. I would screw the adjuster in slowly, no more then 1/4 turn at a time, until the bullet seats into the case. I would then measure the Overal Length (OAL or COL, different manuals call this measurment different things).
I would then adjust the seating knob in 1/4 turn at a time until 10 thou from my OAL. Then I would turn the knob only a fraction in until I hit my OAL, measuring every time I turn that knob.
This process is to set up the die. When done seating bullets I back the adjuster knob out about 2 full turns. Because I use a Lee press, i then just do the 1/3 of a turn and remove the die and bushing.
Then when i go back to the die, the max I usually have to turn the adjuster knob is 2 turns give or take.
Hope that helps mate. You'll get this
I start out with the bullet press part of the die backed out and do the trial and error method. Take your barrel out of the gun and use it to check the seating, also check it will fit your mag, I have found that some of the Lee OAL lengths are to long to fit into the mag. Also keep one sample bullet from your batch, when you get a new batch or a different brand, check the OAL of the new bullet against the one you set up on to see if you need to adjust the die again. Going from 124 gr to 147 will mean adjusting the die.
Just a quick note to all the other good ones here. If you are making test cartridges use UNPRIMED brass so that there is no chance of mixing a test case in with live ammo. The way I set up is to set bullet seater way too deep and seat the bullet to correct length then back out the seater and adjust the crimp to what I want, then with the cartridge in the die at the crimped position, adjust the bullet seater to touch the top of the bullet and you are ready to go. Make one more test bullet test in gun for feed and chambering and away you go.
Mount Sweetness
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Southern Ontario
Trial and error. Start out seating bullet much too long. Slowly keep adjusting dial down and repeating seating the am bullet until proper OAL. Keep measuring OAL as the Lee die may need to be tweaked every few rounds.
create a dummy round (unprimed, uncharged) and play with the the die until you got a desired OAL. Lable the dummy round and keep it in the die box so that you'll always have a OAL to go back too, if you play with the OAL down the road.
Not sure you understand what OAL is all about. Manuals give rough guidelines, usually a minimum value, for pressure reasons. The max limit is established when the cartridge is so long that the bullet hits the rifling, or cant fit into the mag, if you intend to feed from a mag.
The max value is specific to a given chamber, and the ogive profile of a particular manufacture of bullet. So, different makes of 150 gr bullets would have different max OAL's in a particular rifle. There are many posts here that describe how to establish the OAL for your rifle, and a given bullet.
If you dont want to get into finding the max OAL, use the manual value, assuming it is a minimum value. If you go 10 - 20 thou over, its not a big deal, as long as all your loads are the same legth.
Alternatively, you can use a bullet with a cannelure. Setting the OAL to this mark ensures that the bullet will fit into the vast majority of makes of rifles for a given calibre.
The max value is specific to a given chamber, and the ogive profile of a particular manufacture of bullet. So, different makes of 150 gr bullets would have different max OAL's in a particular rifle. There are many posts here that describe how to establish the OAL for your rifle, and a given bullet.
If you dont want to get into finding the max OAL, use the manual value, assuming it is a minimum value. If you go 10 - 20 thou over, its not a big deal, as long as all your loads are the same legth.
Alternatively, you can use a bullet with a cannelure. Setting the OAL to this mark ensures that the bullet will fit into the vast majority of makes of rifles for a given calibre.
joseaventurero
Regular
- Location
- now in pickering ontario
hello
I have the same problem, and the easy way go to www.leeprecisioninc.com., you will find lots of videos about lee press very helpfull, and every press its there.
I have the same problem, and the easy way go to www.leeprecisioninc.com., you will find lots of videos about lee press very helpfull, and every press its there.
