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You can also control bullet grip by the size of your expander, Whidden custom dies sells expander kits with 5 expanders from bullet diameter to .004 under bullet diameter.
Below is a .223 Lyman type "M" expander with the expander .003 smaller than bullet diameter. It is used by many AR15 reloaders with jacketed bullets and provides more bullet grip. The case mouth is just slightly bumped on to the .226 section of the expander, this allows the bullet to start straight into the case neck without tilting.
Below the RCBS AR Series dies have a taper crimp to slightly close up the case mouth .001 to .002 for positive feeding.
With a bolt action anneal your brass, turn your necks and size the neck to your chamber makes for more consistent release of the bullet, if your after consistency, I have never tried a crimp for bolt action but after having this discussion I might try a FCD in the future and see if SD numbers drop.
A bullet crimp is designed to prevent bullet movement during feeding or under recoil.
I bought a carbide expander for my .243 die and its diameter is only .0001 smaller than bullet diameter. And I would never trust this expander for enough bullet grip in my .243.
With light loads in my .44 Magnum and plated bullets I use a light taper crimp. BUT with full power loads I give the case a good roll crimp to prevent bullet setback under recoil.
So crimping depends on the type firearm and the possibility of the bullet moving during feeding or under recoil.
Below is a 9mm cartridge and the case is wasp waisted showing the case has plenty of bullet grip and the taper crimp is for smooth feeding and not meant to increase bullet grip.
Bottom line you can polish your dies expander to a smaller diameter and increase bullet grip without the need for any crimp. But if I was hunting a Polar bear that has had his balls in cold water all day and in a bad mood I would use crimped ammo. (and have a .454 Cosull minimum as a backup)
I would agree. It hasn't hurt results for me either. When I first started into reloading, and more specifically, handgun ammo, after trimming all brass to length, applying at least a slight crimp was the order of the day. A slight variation of crimping, I still use a taper crimp die when loading 45ACP target ammo. And, even on rifle ammo. Again after trimming to length, and if there's an appropriately located groove on the bullet to match up with my determined C.O.A.L., I'll also apply at least a light crimp there also.
