Vikesh

rhyrlik The bulges in question is formed on the 40S&W case when I load max loads using a medium burn rate powder called MP200 manufactured by Somchem [Here in South Africa]. I only use 180gr FP heads and seat to 28.8mm I have a Hornady 5 stage press and the 1st 3 stages are fitted with Hornady Nitride dies. The Lee FCD is on the 5th stage and crimps \ re-sizes the entire bullet. I have 3 tyre marks on every bullet, where you can see the FCD goto work on the brass. So my only conclusion is that the decap\sizing die in stage 1 does not re-form the case into the same diameter spec as what the Lee FCD does. That said, I love the Hornady dies, and would not change them for a Lee set. The nitride dies are more caring on the brass etc... this solution seems to work for me, I dont suffer from stove-pipes, mis-feeds, etc... and have never had a case ruptured. That said, my 40S&W gun is a HK USP 40 Expert... with a 133mm barrel and match sights and trigger.

Lee FCD gives you the peace of mind, knowing that your reload is as reliable as ever, out of your reloading press anyway. The Lee FCD tend to work more on my 9mm and 40S&W brass than the 45 ACP. try the test, take you barrel out of the slide and drop a reloaded round that has not been thru the FCD and drop another round that went thru the FCD.... Notice any difference. ""Clean the chamber first"" then test.

I recommend using the Lee factory crimp die, the re-sizer does not always touch every brass, but does resize potential bulges which might not be clear to the naked eye. I use the Lee factory crimp die when loading 40S&W, 9mm & 45ACP. The 40S&W LFC die does the most work, but then again the load is high pressured so a bulge can be expected.