45acp carbide die life

DresserDan

Had some trouble sizing S&B 45 acp.I think my Lee carbide die might be worn out.Can this happen?It is very old. three die set.

charliemeyer007

You would be the first person I ever heard of wearing out a carbide die. Ask Lee I'd bet they would love to see a worn out die, how many 1000's do you think it's sized?

DresserDan

I have had it for 20+ years.Maybe the brass was the proablem.i couldnt get it sized down enough.The brass came out of a mac subgun.Maybe blown out of spec to far??

243winxb

I think Lee's dies are tungsten carbide. The should never wear out. What is the problem? Not chamber in firearm? Or not hold a bullet??

DresserDan

Wont hold bullet.Used the lee crimp seater and a rcbs taper crimp both.Neither would hold.You could see the crimp in the bullet but it was still loose.I ran all the brass thru a 243 sizer and the the bullets would crimp tight then.

Rocky Raab

MUCH more likely to be an undersized bullet or an oversized expander, in that order.

perry shooter

My Star carbide die has loaded over 350,000 rounds never a problem. are you cleaning your cases first in a case cleaner[?][?][?]

DresserDan

All cleaned.I measure some.Inside show 448-449 I tried two different manufactures fmj bullets and both seem to just slip in the case.Cast is ok.

perry shooter

Be aware that case wall thickness can vary a great deal in 45ACP brass .I have never used S&B brass but some Remington and TZZ brass is very thin walled . Look at the sticky post on top of this forum on crimping Semi Auto pistol rounds. Make very sure that the seated bullets are not loose in the case or when the bullet hits the feed ramp it COULD push the bullet further down in the case. This could result in less air space and then higher pressures result. KABOOMblows the magazine out and grips off. .I have also seen many 45acp jacketed bullets as small as .450 . small bullets and thin walled cases RECIPE for problems. Change to WW or WCC match brass and see if trouble goes away . I have 3 different Sizing dies.you could order them in .0005 increments from Star years ago. I don't know who makes this different sizing available today.

243winxb

This has been my experence also with Rem brass. > quote:case wall thickness can vary a great deal in 45ACP brass

5mmgunguy

You will wear out before your carbide die.

dcs shooters

My Dillon has about 25,000 rounds through it. Still sizing good.
That S&B brass out of a Mac is blown out from the big chamber.

CapnMidnight

My thinking is, if Karl can't wear a carbide 45 acp die out, it can't be done.[:D]
W.D.

Hawk Carse

The original Lifetyme carbide die advertised a million rounds service life.

Rocky Raab

Dan, your die is fine. It's the brass that's crappy. S&B ought to stand for Scrap and Buy (better stuff).

Oh, and if you've never heard this, the merest whisper of lube on about every 20th case will make even a carbide die work about ten times slicker. You won't even have to wipe it off if you use it sparingly enough.

DresserDan

Yes I think that brass is junk.I know a lot of rifle reloaders dont like it either.

jonk

I know a commercial reloader who wore out a carbide 9mm after a few million rounds. So it can happen, but I don't see you doing it anytime soon.

I agree, check brass thickness, etc. Maybe measure OD vs. a known good round and compare from there.

shoff14

I throw out all S & B brass, 45 and 9mm.

gunnut505

Where?

nemesisenforcer

I've never had a problem with any S&B brass that I've used, but it sounds like the MAC chamber might be the culprit.

bpost

A friend, Sparky Fulmer now dead, owner of Buffalo Rock Shooters Supply in Ottawa Ill loaded ammo by the millions, He would replace a carbide sizing die on the 38 Spl line after about 3-5 million rounds due to its getting out of round.

You or I will never wear a carbide die out in a lifetime.