kmitchl

If you call Dillon they will send you a free alignment tool, although when I talked with one of the Dillon techs he said when he was assembling presses he eyeballed the setting.

I had a similar problem when I started using a Lone Wolf barrel in my G34. When i was using a Glock barrel I never had a problem so I never case gaged. When I started using the LW barrel I started having problems getting rounds to chamber. I was using a Dillon sizing die, Dillon seater and Lee FCD. I talked with Lone Wolf about the problem. They confirmed their chambers are on the small side. Suggested I try it with factory ammo which chambered with no problem. They said if I would make up some dummy rounds using my normal sizing die and send them and the barrel they would open the chamber to acommodate them. With the Dillon sizing die rounds that would pass a Dillon case gage would not chamber. I was getting about a 20% reject rate when I chamber checked with the barrel. I went to a Lee sizing die set as close as I dared to the shell plate and got the reject rate down to 2-3/100. The Lee sizing die does not have the large radius at the entry like a Dillon die. So it sizes closer to the base. The down side of the Lee sixing die is case alignment is critical. I was having to manually align about every fifth case which slowed down the loading process cosiderably. I started using the shell plate for 40 S&W and the alignment issues all but disappeared. I loaded 200 rounds tonight and had four that would not gage. I break them down, save the bullets and toss the cases.

I used to shoot 9mm 147 gr Berrys exclusively until I got a batch that tumble out of every 9mm I own. I spent a lot of time trying to get them to shoot but was never sucessful. Now I use either jacketed or lead. As others have said, why take a chance when they are not attractively priced against jacketed.

Best way to find out is to give them a call. When I've talked to them they are very open and very helpful.

I have one of the B&J Machine tools from Brownells. http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/pid=9776/Pr..._for_GLOCK_reg_ The specs say it does not work with the long slide Glocks buy I've used it on G34 and G35 slides. A 1/4" socket head cap screw has a 3/16" socket. If you cut down the OD of the head to clear it makes an acceptable tool.

I have a G34 and a G35. The grip on the 35 has been modified so it is no longer legal for production or IDPA SSP. For the last four years I have continually swapped the slides between the two lowers depending on what ammo I have loaded and what I want to shoot. I've had no problems.

I had several less than satisfactory customer service experiences with Midway so I no longer do business with them. Grafs and Brownells meet all of my needs and have excellent customer service.

I've never had much sucess with the STI followers in magazines that need to lock back. For magazines that lock back I like the Grams followers and springs. They will generally require fitting to get them to lock back consistently. Without fitting they will lock back with one round left. They are easy to fit but you must go slowly.

Below are photos of my version. This was originally built to test Glock striker springs but works for 1911 mainsprings also. In use I place a scale on the table of my drill press. The aluminum base with the guide rod is placed on the platform of the scale. The spring slides over the guide rod with the brass follower on top. I set the stop of the drill press to compress the spring at the correct length for the spring application I am testing. Read the spring weight off the scale.

Give the standard Lee sizing die a try. I put a LW barrel in a G34 and started having problems with rounds that passed the Dillon case gage that would not chamber. I started using the Lee sizing die and the problem went away.

How about some details.

The best way is to build a spring tester as has been described here in multiple threads. A less certain method is to measure the diameter of the spring wire and compare it to a known spring weight from the same manufacturer.

I found some brass plated .223 cases today. Steel .223 is common but these were the first brass plated I've seen. Could not identify the headstamp. They have 223 REM plus some illegible symbol. I didn't check to see if they are Berdan or boxer primers befor I trashed them.

I bought the Redding dies for 7-08 and have no regrets. My Remington 700 with a sporter barrel shoots to less than 1" at 200 yds with my handloads. When I check the bullet runout of ammo out of the Redding dies it is usually less than 0.002".

The Dillon alignment tool is pretty simple. If you have a lathe or know someone who does you can make one in less than 30 minutes. The Dillon tool is a short piece of rod with the OD turned to be a close fit with the opening in the shell plate. One end of the rod is drilled to be a close fit with the rod for a large primer punch and the other is drilled to fit a small primer punch. The Dillon tool is steel but aluminum would work as well. To use the tool insert it through the shell plate and adjust until the primer punch enters the tool without interference.

I think you diagnosed the problem. I got a Brass Wizard several months ago so I'm probably not as selective in what I pick up now. I looked at the cases again and although tumbled to polish all appeared have been left out in the weather for an extended period. The water and powder residue promote corrosion of the primer cup. The decapping process causes the cup to fail at the thinnest part.

Out of the last 100 .45 rounds I loaded there were three Winchester, one Speer and one Starline case, none with a crimp. To KurtM - Reshaping the decapping pin has already been done. It's not resetting the whole primer, it's shearing the cap of the primer (the part the firing pin impacts) and leaving the cylindrical part of the primer in the primer pocket.

I load on a 650 and am seeing a few cases of every 100 where during sizing and de-priming the cylindrical part of the primer stays in the primer pocket and the top of the spent primer gets pushed off. When the case goes to the next station for priming and powder the primer will start but will not fully seat. This happens with both Dillon and Lee sizing dies and with different headstamp brass. Any suggestions for a a cure.

Going from a Dillon sizing die to a standard Lee sizing die in 9mm and 40 resulted in a lot fewer rounds that fail the case gage. I have a few guns that are picky about case sizing.

I use a Lone Wolf barrel in a G34 and was having the same problem. Although loaded rounds would pass a Dillon case gage about 20 out of 100 would not chamber. I started using the standard Lee sizing die (not the EGW U die) and case gaging using the barrel and the problem went away. The Lee die does not have as large an entry radius as the Dillon die so sizes closer to the shell plate. The smaller entry radius requires that the case be better aligned to the die. Using the 9mm shellplate I was having to reach in and manually align about one of 10 cases which slowed the loading process. I now use the 40S&W shellplate when loading 9mm and the press runs smoothly. Now out of 100 rounds I get maybe one or two that will not gage.

I solved the problem with 9mm and Lee sizing dies by loading 9's with the 40 shellplate. Can't explain exactly why it works but it does for me. I have an EGW U die for 40 but as long as the standard Lee die works I see no need to use it.

To get a better idea of what's happening remove the slide, reinstall the slide stop and insert a mag. Then you can see the relation between the slide stop and the ledge on the mag follower. I got mine to lock back reliably with Grams followers and springs. Out of the box my Grams locked back with one round left so I had to trim all of mine. Go REALLY SLOW with the trimming unless you need some Grams that don't lock back. I used a file and tried to keep the follower ledge flat. I cut one too far and made a repair with JB Weld that seems to work now but I need more rounds through that mag to ensure it will work long term. Getting the 126mm mags to run reliably was far more challenging than getting the 140mm mags to work.

This is something that might work for me. I load .40 with a Lee sizing die as they size further down the case than the Dillon dies. I get a much better percentage to pass the case gage. The down side is the Lee dies require much more accurate alignment of the case to die so about every 10th case I have to reach around to align the case with the die. From the picture the floating stations are in the sizing and bullet seating stations but you can't tell much about the design. Would this help with case alignment with the sizing die?

I use a 12 cc syringe for vacinating livestock with a 16 ga needle. Cut the pointy part of the needle off with a Dremel so you don't stab yourself. Load up with Slide Glide and you can apply small amounts where they are needed. Keep the cap from the needle for storage.

Mine went stupid several weeks ago. Changed the batteries and everything is now OK. I always have mine plugged in so had forgotten it even has batteries.