I did a search on it but found everything but exactly what I was looking for. If one is to use the FCD, it seems most people put a light crimp on the bullet. The manual says 1/2 turn for a light crimp. I tried the heavy 1 turn crimp and when I pulled the bullet to look at it it had a squished ring that measured .353", which is bad as I understand? Should I light crimp just enough so that if I pull the bullet and find no squished ring or a .355" bullet?
Lee FCD for 9mm guidance
- Thread starter Lead hammer
- Start date
Thank you, I will pull my dummy round with the 1/2 turn "light crimp" in the morning and see if it shows marks on it.
- Location
- Just West of the GTA
I use a half turn for 9MM and it works great. I would not want any more and I am not sure why you would. I actually started using that die to remove the bulge at the base of some cases. The dillon die I use doesn't resize all the way to the rim like the Lee FCD does.
What your forgetting is that you always load FOR YOUR GUN. The instructions are just a general guide. You always load for what your particular firearm likes.
Having said that in a semi auto in 9mm bullet setback can be a very dangerous problem since the 9mm will build pressure very quickly.
When starting off loading with a new firearm I always do the following.
Load up a dummy round (no powder no primer) start with a light crimp. Measure and log your OAL. Load into your mag and rack your firearm to strip the round from the mag and load into the chamber. Eject and re-measure. Compare to our original OAL adjust your crimp until your OAL doesn't move more than your comfortable with.
That's how you gauge how much crimp you need.
Here's an example from my own.
Norinco NP28 9mm 3/4 turn to keep OAL stable.
S&W 4506 45acp (sadly I sold it) barely 1/8 turn.
Springfield Arms XDM 5.25 40 s/w 1/2 turn.
These are my results. You need to find what works with your bullet and firearm.
Having said that in a semi auto in 9mm bullet setback can be a very dangerous problem since the 9mm will build pressure very quickly.
When starting off loading with a new firearm I always do the following.
Load up a dummy round (no powder no primer) start with a light crimp. Measure and log your OAL. Load into your mag and rack your firearm to strip the round from the mag and load into the chamber. Eject and re-measure. Compare to our original OAL adjust your crimp until your OAL doesn't move more than your comfortable with.
That's how you gauge how much crimp you need.
Here's an example from my own.
Norinco NP28 9mm 3/4 turn to keep OAL stable.
S&W 4506 45acp (sadly I sold it) barely 1/8 turn.
Springfield Arms XDM 5.25 40 s/w 1/2 turn.
These are my results. You need to find what works with your bullet and firearm.
Sounds like a plan, I did do the manual cycling thing a dozen times and even before the crimp their was no change in OAL, so then I would need a slight crimp, but I wonder what occurs in the magazine during shooting.
