Maximum Case Length
 

I have put 100 factory rounds or so through my .45 andam starting to load my own .45s for my Sig. I am using a Used Lee Loading Die for a .45 Auto. It did not come with any directions. Anyhow, I only loaded 20 rounds just in case I did something wrong. I had two out of the 20 not chamber all the way. I pushed the slide forward to seat the bullet and it shot fine. I noticed that when I de-prime &sized the cases, they were nice and round. After I put them through the other sizing die, therewas a little flare onthe edge of the neckto make the bullet seat easier I guess. After I seated the bullet into the case, the flarewas still there. Is this what may have caused my rounds not to chamber or could it be due to the case being too long? All the factory rounds had no problem.Didthe caseflare in the die because the case was too long? I know, I know, I should havemeasured the cases but they were only shot once factory cases and I didnt think they would stretch being only shot once. I will measure every case from here on out.But what may have caused the problem? Any answeres? The round nose factory bullets are longer than the hollow points that I reloaded. So, the overall size, if I seated the hollowpoints all the way to the shoulder would have been shorter overall compaired to the factory round nose FMJ. So I did not seat them all the way. I left them so they would be the same length. Was that my problem? Does it matter if they ar shorter overall as long as the case is the right length? I am all messed up.

RE: Maximum Case Length
 

After discussing this with some of my friends, all beginner re-loaders, I should have trimmed my cases even after one round. That may be what caused the cases to (flare) as I sized them. The flare may have inhibited the bullet from seating 100%. Well, back to the bench.

RE: Maximum Case Length
 

Wrong, the three die set has a depriming/sizing die, a charging die that bells the case mouth to make it easier to seat the bullet and the bullet seating die. There are two things that are probably going on here...
1. ) The charging die is set too deep producing a pronounced bell, and
2. ) You don't have the seating die set for any crimp.

What you want to do is back that charging die out until it just barely bells the mouth, you should just barely be able to set a bullet in the case mouth and it will hold it.
You also will need to adjust your seating die by using a factory loaded round that you know will feed in your gun. To do this back the seating plug out and back the die out of the press several threads, then insert the loaded round and lift the ram to the highest position and screw the die in until you feel it touching the case mouth and tighten down the lock nut. Then screw the seating plug in until it touches the bullet. From there you can screw the die in 1/4 turn at a time until you get the desired amount of crimp to allow reliable feeding.

For 45 auto I like to use a light to moderate crimp, for 38 and 357 they get a fairly heavy crimp.

RE: Maximum Case Length
 

No that is not the case. After one firing, your 45 ACP cases are not too long. I've loaded straight walled pistol cases many times and they never needed trimming. They ususally split at the case mouth and need to be discarded.
Trimming is usually necessary for bottle necked cartridges.
I don't know what brand dies you have but I will assume they are RCBS.
The first die is a sizing/decapping die which brings the die back to spec and removes the primer.
The second die is adjusted so that the expander plug flares the case mouth just enough so that the bullet will be easily started without crushing the case.
The bullet seating die is adjusted so that the it removes this flare and seats the bullet to the proper depth.
My guess is that you do not have the seating die down far enough. So you will have to back out the bullet seating plug a bit and srew the die in farther. I suggest you read the directions that came with the die or go to the RCBS site and print them out.

RE: Maximum Case Length
 

You can also download a copy of the instructions from www.leeprecision.com

RE: Maximum Case Length
 

Thanks for the info. I have a Lee .45 Auto Die. Three dies in a red round plastic case. I got it used with no instructions. I have been to the Lee website and I guess im not too bright because I can not find instructions for the .45 Auto Die. It has instructions for thefollowing:




90064
ClassicTurret Press
90064.pdf

90495
2008 Catalog
90495.pdf

AD2302
Auto Disk
AD2302.pdf

AP1704
Perfect Powder Measure
1280 KB

BF3498
Bullet Feed Kit
924 KB

BM1206
Bullet Mold
1188 KB

BS2003
Lube and Sizing Kit
212 KB

CF1391
Lee Reloader Press
2764 KB

Dippers
Lee Dippers
13 KB

EL3469
PRO 20 Melter
807 KB

EM1142
Electric Melter
1118 KB

HP2520
Hand Press
2772 KB

LA1070
12 Gauge Charge Table
283 KB

LA1071
20 and 16 gauge Charge table
289 KB

LA1088
Load-All
2311 KB

LM3231
Load-Master
3673 KB

Load-Fast
Load-Fast
2908 KB

Mold Design
Mold Design Pg 1
383 KB

Mold Design 2
Mold Design Pg 2
250 KB

OF1219
Challenger O Press
2982 KB

PP2165
Auto Prime II
664 KB

PT1023
Auto-Prime
578 KB

RE1422
Rifle Lee Loader
1071 KB

SA2056
Safety Scale
1183 KB

SC1334
6 Cavity Bullet Mold
1598 KB

SM3529
Slug Mold
1174 KB

TP2131
Turret Press
2261 KB

TR2441
Pro 1000 Instructions
2682 KB

VMD'S
POWDER VMD'S
VMD'S.pdf

I cant find instructions for a .45 Auto Reloading Die at all. I will follow the above mentioned advise and see what happens. It seems like just a few simple adjustments and I will be OK. Thanks again.

RE: Maximum Case Length
 

I had the same problem. The above advise is correct.

Set your expander die to expand just enough. It doesn't take much, as long as the bullets seat you are good to go. On my .44 mag I quit using the expander with jacketed bullets because I can seat bullets without it.

RE: Maximum Case Length
 

You can give them a call, their customer service from my experience has been very good. I'm sure that they have copies that they can either send you or email. The # is 262-673-3075

RE: Maximum Case Length
 

Good idea. I have spoke to them about other topics and they were always professional and answered my questions. Thanks.

RE: Maximum Case Length
 

Get a good reloading manual that explains the process and gives the dimensions for loading for a .45. The previous advise about belling the mouth and then crimping is correct. Now for lead bullets the bell is important as otherwise the brass will shave the bullet base when you try to seat it. With jacketed bullets, I often do not set the die to bell the case at all and I can seat them just fine while working the brass less so it will last longer.

The other thing that is important is overall loaded case length. There is a max length for the .45 and it does not sound like you are actually measuring yours with a caliper. Make sure you do this, you are affecting the chamber pressure if you are seating the bullets too deep.

RE: Maximum Case Length
 

I do have calipers. I will admit I did skipthe case measuringstep when I loaded the .45s. As I mentioned above, they were once shot factory loads so I skipped a step I will never skip again. I did measure them after I loaded them to make sure they were not longer than the factory FMJs. I seated them to be the same length and I noticed that the bullet was not seated all the way to the shoulder/taper of the JHP. If I would have seated them all the way to the shoulder/taper of the JHP, they would have been shorter than the FMJs. I just picked up the latest version of the Lyman Reloading Manual. I have asked Lee for directions and they are on the way. Some bullets are longer than others like FMJs or JHPs. It seems like if I seat the JHPs to the shoulder/taper of the bullet,thebullet length isgoing to be shorter than the FMJ. So, is their a minimum overall bullet length? Or, as long as the case length measures out,will I be OK? I found the maximum bullet length specs but nothing about a minimum overall length. Is there one?

RE: Maximum Case Length
 

the SAAMI minimum for 45 ACP is 1.190”, the max is 1.275"

Got this elsewhere, I don't vouch for its accuracy and would double-check.

RE: Maximum Case Length
 

Powerfisher - Here's what to do. Take a case that you sized and deprimed.
Now run it into your flaring die. You want the case mouth flared just enough to start a bullet (this is so it doesn't catch on the sides and crush the case)
Run the press ram to its highest point with the empty, flared case in the shell holder.
Next, put in your bullet seating die and back out the seating plug. Screw the die down until you feel it come in contact with the case mouth.
Lower the ram and put a bullet into the case mouth and raise the ram again into the die.
Screw the seating plug down until you feel it contact the bullet. Lower the ram a bit and screw the seating plug down about 2 turns. Now it will seat the bullet enough to hold it in the case.
Now, lower the ram a bit again and screw the die in a little at a time (about 1/4 turn) and run the case up into the die. Keep doing this until the flare is no longer on the case mouth. Your die is now set to the proper depth, lock it in.
Now, do the same with the seating plug. Screwing it down a little at a time until you get the desired bullet seating depth. Then lock it in.
Your die should now be set properly.