Keeps setting on dies

[timelinex]

Ok so everywhere I always read how people just set their dies and 'forget it' . Or how they know how much to move the die for each bullet, from their standard starting point.

Am I missing something? I have redding and Forster dies and using it with a rock chucker . Everytime I have to use a different die , I have to reset everything up. How are you guys able to not have to reset all the dies Everytime they are taken off?

For example, Everytime I need to seat bullets I take out my competition Forster seater and have to unscrew the mic and find the correct setting all over again with one or two rounds.

 

[insight3b]

Re: Keeps setting on dies

I use lock rings on the dies and set the dies up by resting some small washers on top of the shell holder and raise the ram. I screw the dies in until they contact the washers atop the shell holder then continue tightening until the dies are locked down. The washers take up that little bit of slack tht lays in the threads...that little bit of wobble you feel when you are turning your dies. Hope this helps

 

[timelinex]

Re: Keeps setting on dies

Thanks for the idea. I have tried using the long ring... However, whenever I lock it down tight, I can no longer unscrew the die. I think tightening the lock ring squeezes the die up ever so slightly so the force prevents it from being unscrewed.

Do you think the washer method will help this? I'll try it later myself.

 

[FamilyMan]

Re: Keeps setting on dies

What I would do when I was setting up dies on the rock chucker is back the ring off just a little tighten the set screw and then tighten the die down again then check my measurements. it takes a few times to get it just right but once you do your good . tge key to it though is when you go to put it in again you have to make sure to tighten it dian with the same force or it will throw it out of wack.

 

[RyanMcIntyre]

Re: Keeps setting on dies

Lock N Load bushings. I haven't adjusted a die in two years.

 

[insight3b]

Re: Keeps setting on dies

Timeline,
My dies get real tight with the washer method. I use a Rock Chucker Supreme press and the nut in the press that the dies screw into has loosened a few times when I remove a die. I just grab a crescent wrench and tighten it back down. It is the only method I have found so far that takes all the wobble out of he die threads and restores previous settings. I haven't tried the LNL bushings or anything along those lines

 

[Deadshot2]

Re: Keeps setting on dies

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: RyanMcIntyre</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Lock N Load bushings. I haven't adjusted a die in two years. </div></div>

Ditto. Haven't had to adjust since I put the LNL conversion in my Rock Chucker.

For some bullets I use a dedicated Lee Dead Length Seating Die that I never adjust. Others I use a micrometer seating die.

For sizing dies they've been locked in place since I first set them up in the LNL bushings.

 

[Innovative]

Re: Keeps setting on dies

timelinex ....

I use the Digital Headspace Gauge to accurately set die height for FL resizing and bullet seating. This tool makes it easy to set your dies within a thousandth of an inch.

Once the lock ring is secured, you're all ready for the next time you start reloading. However, it's a very good idea to verify that your die setting is still good.

 

[pshell]

Re: Keeps setting on dies

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: RyanMcIntyre</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Lock N Load bushings. I haven't adjusted a die in two years.</div></div>

This is what I planned to do with my Redding Big Boss, but once I got the conversion I realized the threads are machined into the casting. I just decided to buy a Co-Ax instead.

The lock and load system on my progressive press is awesome. I love never touching the adjustments on the dies.

 

[Fuzzball]

Re: Keeps setting on dies

We can 'set and forget' with anything,..if we're willing to live with the variation that produces!

Fact is, brass work hardens as we use it. The spring back changes a little each time it's cycled so the result changes too. The difference isn't great so a lot of us can do quite well with set and forget but we shouldn't be kidding ourselves that nothing is changing each time. Only way to make each case the same every time is to adjust the sizer as needed to make it that way.

 

[okiefired]

Re: Keeps setting on dies

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Fuzzball</div><div class="ubbcode-body">We can 'set and forget' with anything,..if we're willing to live with the variation that produces! </div></div>

Amen.

okie