Dillon 9mm resize die diameter seems too small

[TimV]

Just bought my first Dillon dies. I usually buy RCBS or Lee but neither were in stock at the time and I'd heard good things about Dillon dies so I sprung for the more expensive (almost 2x the price) Dillon dies.

 

I ran 15 rounds through my 550B and I noticed that the case has an almost "wasp waist" shape when it gets to the output bin, almost like an hourglass shape. I ran it past a friend of mine who teaches reloading and he said that he had to get rid of his 9mm Dillon resize die and replace it with an RCBS die as it was causing issues on his 650 because it was way undersizing the brass. I read somewhere that Dillon makes their 9mm dies diameters at the lower end of minimum SAAMI specs so they will fit in all chambers. I'm  not sure if this is true or not.

 

I am loading these with .356 Berry's flat nose hollow base thick plated bullets: https://www.berrysmfg.com/item/bp-9mm-356-124gr-hbfp-tp

 

Any ideas what could be up with this die? I am headed to Phoenix in a couple of weeks and am planning on dropping by Dillon to visit them and get a tour through the place. Maybe I'll bring the die along with me and see if they can shed some light on things.

[al503]

There's nothing wrong with the die.  The hourglass or coke bottle shape is actually a good thing.  People are using undersize dies (smaller diameter than the dillon) without issue.  

The taper will help with case tension and help prevent set back.

[TimV]

Yes, thanks for the quick answer. I didn't see this the first time I searched on the issue here

Glad it's normal. I was a bit surprised at first though at the force it took to resize the brass. It's been a while since I have reloaded 45acp on the Dillon but I don't remember that needing as much force as the 9mm did. I know that 45acp is a straight walled case where the 9mm has a slight taper to it so that might have something to do with it.

[muncie21]

Do a search for 'wasp waist' or 'coke bottle' and you'll find plenty of reading. In short, they look different than factory, but function just the same.

 

P.S. I had the very same question a few months back.  Decided to use a Lee sizing die with the Dillon seat and crimp dies on 1 tool head, the other is all Lee

[cecil]

are you using case lube to resize your brass... ?   .. If not... use some.. it will make resizing  ...  MUCH ....  easier..

[MAC702]

Resizing pistol brass through a carbide sizing die is about the only thing Hornady One-Shot lube is good for.

 

The stuff that actually NEEDS lube gets the Dillon formula.

[TimV]

2 hours ago, cecil said:

are you using case lube to resize your brass... ?   .. If not... use some.. it will make resizing  ...  MUCH ....  easier..

Interesting...I've been handloading for almost 25 years and I have never needed to lube pistol brass when using carbide dies. I load .380, 38sp/357, 45acp & 9x18 Mak using RCBS or Lee dies and have never needed lube...is this a Dillon thing or a 9mm thing? I have plenty of Dillon lube so will try that. It just seems strange that this is the first time I've heard of using lube on pistol brass using carbide dies.

Edited April 9, 2017 by TimV

[MAC702]

You don't need to lube pistol brass in a carbide die, no, but it just makes the process so much smoother, especially on a progressive press.  That's why I use Hornady One-Shot for this.  Since the lube isn't needed anyway, you can use a problematic, but extremely convenient, lube like One-Shot instead of a good lube like Dillon.

Edited April 9, 2017 by MAC702

[rustybayonet]

18 hours ago, muncie21 said:

In short, they look different than factory, but function just the same.

 

I find they actually function better than factory in some finiky firearms.

[texasref]

Quote

 

9mm is a tapered round. So the force needed to resize will be more than a straight walled round. Make sure the brass is clean and the press will run fine. To eliminate the "coke bottle" look try same bullets swaged to 0.355". A 0.356" bullet will work well and most mfg. use that diameter.

I have always loaded on a Dillon 550B and Dillon dies with no problems.

[Steve RA]

I'd concentrate on matching bullet diameter to your barrel requirements and not worry about case appearance, as long as the gun functions reliably.  I use .358 bullets in 9mm, because they are the most accurate in my barrel/gun.  Yes, the cases look 'wasp waisted" but the ammunition runs perfectly and I certainly don't have to worry about bullet setback.

[Want2BS8ed]

You don't need to lube pistol brass in a carbide die, no, but it just makes the process so much smoother, especially on a progressive press.  That's why I use Hornady One-Shot for this.  Since the lube isn't needed anyway, you can use a problematic, but extremely convenient, lube like One-Shot instead of a good lube like Dillon.

Late to the party, but this ^^^^

Will add that just a wisp smooths everything out. I'll put 3 handfuls of 9mm brass in a 1 gallon zip-lock bag, 2 light spritzes of One-Shot, roll the bag around a little, dump it in the case feeder and you are good to go!

Even when loading on a single stage with carbide dies it's my preferred method, simply because it's not as messy.

M


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[gmantwo]

I switched my Dillon 9mm sizing die out for a Lee. Too many cases fail to chamber from the Dillon die. Even after checking them with a Dillon case guage. Zero failures from the Lee die. 

And if you ever compare the Lee opening to the Dillon  you'll see why. The Dillon has a HUGE opening at the bottom, the Lee is way way tighter. Gets bulged brass resized down much further. And yes, the Dillon was set properly. You will occasionally have a piece of brass not line up completely with the sizing die opening, but rather that stoppage come at the reloading bench than at a Nationals stage?