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d3ydx3

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Everything posted by d3ydx3

  1. In case anyone finds this useful. Use at your own risk.
  2. In case anyone finds this helpful. Use at your own risk.
  3. Pretty sure that I just answered my own question... managed to find a member that had a some B and D flags spread throughout their current 6 averaged classifications, and it appears B and D flags do not count towards the 8 most recent.
  4. That's how I feel shooting classifiers sometimes!
  5. Edit: Pretty sure that I just answered my own question... managed to find a member that had a some B and D flags spread throughout their current 6 averaged classifications, and it appears B and D flags do not count towards the 8 most recent. I show two classifiers today and I'm working to get to B in Open. One classifier was a 59.01% and I intentionally zeroed the other one after taking a follow-up shot on a Virginia count classifier. I also did a reshoot of that 59.01% and had a malfunction, so that will get a D flag. Here's what my classification record looks like as of today. My question is whether or not the 66% will fall off at the bottom in addition to the 48% or just the 48% with the pending B flag, D flag, and 59.01% today? Assuming I don't end up losing the 66%, then I should up with a 60.43% after the classifiers are uploaded and the program is run.
  6. Totally sure it is the 9mm side. I've tried the 38 Super side before and because the sleeve ridge that crimps is not as far down you end up having to screw the microcrimp down all the way before it even starts touching a 9mm case. Apparently, this is a known issue with the Redding microadjustable crimp dies based on the previous post that @HOGRIDERwas nice enough to provide from Redding. I just find it interesting it happens on the 9mm die and not my 40 S&W adjustable crimp die.
  7. For sure the crimp die and it is only the 9mm Redding microcrimp. No issues with the 40 Redding microcrimp. I also have no sticking with the 9mm Dillon & Redding taper crimp dies (the one without the micrometer).
  8. Good to have the validation. Thank you! Funny that it only happens on the 9mm microcrimp and not the 40 one. My 40 is as smooth as can be. To your point the regular Dillon and Redding taper crimp dies to not have the thump.
  9. I've had some of the T brass and I usually chuck it. From memory I recall the flash hole being very small to the point where it would pull a decapping rod out my die. Norma brass is very good. Don't throw that away.
  10. I love the Redding dies. I use the Competition set for 9mm, 40, and 357. I use the microcrimp for 40 and it is very smooth to crimp with. How smooth is your 9mm microcrimp? For some reason, mine jerks when removing the case from the die. It is very noticeable and has made me revert back to using the Redding taper crimp die for 9mm, which is also excellent.
  11. The Everglades MRH is a phenomenal holster that has fit every 2011/1911 that I've used it with. Very smooth draw compared to the DA Alpha-X. You can get an Alpha-X running somewhat smoothly with some filing here and there on the block, but from my experience it is always hit or miss and really benefits when you use the muzzle support. Not that the Alpha-X is bad, but the MRH is just a different level.
  12. Pretty common issues with the Dillon seating plugs for 40 and 9mm and truncated cone bullets. I'm not familiar with the Blue Bullets profile, but if they are remotely round nosed, I would suggest you seat with the round nose side of the plug. There are certain dies like the Redding Competition Seating die that ONLY seat using the ogive. The issue with the Dillon flat nose side of the seating plug is run out and it is very easy to seat a bullet that isn't straight. Does it matter in the long run? According to some articles like this one (https://americanhandgunner.com/gear/crooked-seated-bullets-and-accuracy/), it does not.
  13. I don't think they are different from any other press. When I received my XL750 last year, I fought with primers being crushed and not seated deep enough for months. Turns out the primer punch was just very slightly off from the shell plate. All it required was turning the primer slide screw a bit more so the primer slide went further and aligned with the shell plate. As everyone knows shell plate tension on the XL750/650 is very important. If not tight enough then you end up with all kinds of weird issues. My point being that every press has its own complexities and tuning required that requires a shakedown before you're running optimally. Taking apart a press (at least the shell plate, priming, etc.) to get more confident with how it operates has helped me and getting my Apex 10 stood up and finely tuned. Some of it has been Mark7 being newer to the game than Dillon, where the core of the 650/1050 design hasn't changed significantly in years, but from what I have seen Mark7 has been good at addressing those issues when they arise and sending customers new parts (like the primer disk for the Apex10).
  14. Do you have a primer pocket gauge? If not I recommend that you get one. I’ve also found out that I shouldn’t confuse brass with small/tight primer pockets with brass that is crimped. The swager will fix the latter but not the former. I received my Apex 10 a couple of weeks ago and it took awhile to get swaging working reliably. The shell plate should only flex minimally (1/16th of an inch). When you first set it up, you will probably see the swage rod lift the case and shell plate if you don’t have the hold down die setup aggressively enough. I had to add more hold down to the point where I see the hold down touch the shell plate spring without a case. Probably over 1-1.5 turns after I felt resistance from the case web. I also had issues seating primers early on. I can only recommend that you keep the disk as clean as possible and have the primer punch flush against the bushing when it is in the rest position. You should also check your shell plate tightness and index. You should not be able to rotate the shell plate with one hand. If you can then the nut needs to be tighter. The shell plate should have zero to very little flex (press down with your fingers at Station 10). If you see your shell plate move AT ALL to the left or right when the toolhead lowers then your index needs to be fixed per the directions in the manual.
  15. Thanks for the feedback from everyone. I ended up going the Mark 7 route. DAA had them in stock at the end of last week, and I pulled the trigger. Placed the order on Wednesday and received it Saturday. Went Apex 10 for a number of reasons: Recent price increases from Dillon - by the time you factor in the upgrades for the 1100 like a CNC toolhead and some other parts, you're approaching Apex 10 territory. Separate stations for expansion and swaging on the Apex 10 - as I'll describe below this is my 1st time setting up swaging and hold down on a press (coming from an XL750). Would be a lot more difficult to deal with expansion and swaging on the same station with an 1100/1050. 9 real stations on the Apex 10 vs 6 on the 1100 (or 7 with the CNC toolhead) - if I want to put a bullet feeder and a powder check on the Apex 10 down the road, no problem. On the RL1100 I would have to give up a powder check or move seating and crimping to the same station. My only concern going with the Apex 10 was support and ease of setup compared to Dillon. I'll say the press came 99% tuned from the factory. Had it setup in a few hours and took another day of playing around, setting up dies, and fine tuning. @SSGJohnV and others on the FB Mark7 reloading group have been very helpful, as well as the videos that Mark7 has on YouTube. The only things that I've had to adjust were swaging (which comes completely turned off) and primer depth. I had a couple of crushed primers, but it was tied to me adjusting the swaging more aggressively or me seating too deep. I did have some binding on the primer disk, but that quickly cleared up after cycling the press a few times. The case feeder also feels a lot more solid than the Dillon. The only things that I've come across on the Mark7 that I'm not a fan of: The powder measure is a lot more complicated that the Dillon in good and bad ways. It is very smooth, but you really have to lock down the nut otherwise you will get drifts in your drops after 10-20 rounds. Adjustability is not as quick as the Dillon because of this. The baffle design also feels cheap. Basically, just a piece of metal that floats. Anytime you dump the measure you have to reset the baffle. It is also not as intuitive as the Dillon to setup, but that's me being new to the platform. Another place to hang a bin would be nice for bullets.
  16. Tried the walnut as well. That and polishing the funnel helped with the sticking. Biggest problem that I still have is the popping of the sizing die causing powder to eject from station 3 on my 750. The consensus seems to be separating sizing and flaring into 2 separate toolhead but that is a PITA. May just end up going the 1100 or Apex10 route.
  17. @zztI've seen conflicting burn charts on whether AA7 is slower than 3N38 or vice versa. Few examples... https://imrpowder.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/2020-burn-rate-chart.pdf https://www.accuratepowder.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/burn_rates.pdf https://www.lhs-germany.de/fileadmin/media/Mediathek/Pulver/Relative_Abbrenngeschwindigkeit_Export_Feb._2018.pdf
  18. @Sigarmsp226 Good info on the RL1100 and Evolution. Confirms my concerns about the RL1100 and the real lack of additional stations compared to my XL750. Swaging would be a plus, but the real problem I'm trying to solve is separating expanding/flaring from powder drop. Seems the Mark 7's are the only way to go. @cooldid you have to fix the priming system yourself? What was the fix?
  19. I’ve loaded both for my major loads. 9.6gr of AA7 and 8.6-8.8gr of 3n38 with a 124 JHP @ 1.160”. I’ve shot more AA7 and I prefer it to 3n38 mostly because it is cheaper and a lot easier to load. 3n38 is cleaner but AA7 has not caused any issues with my gun. As far as feel goes between the 2 loads I would say it is dependent on the gun and comp for me. I have 2 BULs - a Bullesteros with a steel grip and 2 popple holes and a SAS 2 UR with a polymer grip and no holes. AA7 feels the same out of both of them, but I will say 3n38 runs the Bullesteros a little flatter from some video I have reviewed of shooting both. On the other hand, 3n38 feels like it does not run the comp very well on the SAS2 UR. Feels like there is a lot more "push" then there should be. I am guessing it has something to do with the amount of gas that is being produced and the different comps. Is it to the point where I would change my load from AA7 to 3n38? Nope. 3n38 also seems to heat the gun up more than AA7 does.
  20. Since the Apex 10 has come out, I've seen some issues posted on here. Seems most of it is around priming. Have most of the issues been resolved/shaken out or are there still some problems with the Apex 10? I'm considering replacing my Dillon XL750 w/ a new press that has more stations than what I have now, so that I can separate flaring and powder drop into two separate stations. Being able to also swage is another want. The other issue that I have with the XL750 is the springy shell plate that has caused me issues with the S3 dies to reload NAS3 cases. Ultimate goal would be dedicated stations for flaring, powder drop, seating, and crimping with options down to the road to add a bullet feeder. The only caliber that I plan to reload on it would be 9 major/minor and maybe some 40 S&W. I'm torn between the RL1100 and the new Apex 10. The RL1100 is obviously cheaper by a wide margin. I don't like the fact that the RL1100 has fewer stations, but I also like Dillon as a company and I've always had positive customer support experiences w/ my XL750. Automation isn't really a goal right now, but the fact that I could do it with the Apex 10 and incremental investment is a plus vs rip and replace.
  21. Latest update.. Still having some issues w/ the Shell Shock NAS3 & cases & S3 dies on my Dillon XL750. Most of the sticking when expanding has been eliminated w/ polishing the funnel and expanding deeper into the case. The latest problem is the sizing die, which has a spring in it to remove the case from the die vs having the shell plate pull the case and potentially separate the two parts of the case beyond SAAMI specs. The spring occasionally and unpredictably pops - popping the case against the shell plate in Station 1 causing powder to be thrown out of the case in Station 3. I'm loading for 9 major w/ AA7, so it is a lot of powder that spills onto the shell plate. Spoke with another shooter that loads the NAS3 cases on a 650/750, and he had a similar issue. His fix was to size and expand on a separate toolhead to remove any potential for powder spillage (spillage being an understatement). Not sure what I'll do at this point. For 9 major there are a lot of advantages to the NAS3 cases. The problem is I don't think the dies are designed for the 650/750 and a shell plate with a spring. I may look at an RL1100 or a Mark 7 - not specifically for this issue, but a few other needs/wants & issues that I have with the 750.
  22. Quick update for everyone... Looks like I might've solved my own issue. Decided to polish the powder funnel aggressively, which helped a bit. Still had some case sticking. The big breakthrough was looking at the funnel and seeing that it is slightly wider at the bottom, thins, and then gets thicker again towards where the case would start belling. As an experiment I decided to add more flare... taking it up to .382-385. No case sticking! I'm assuming the thicker bottom of the funnel is to counteract the natural taper of the cases and by not flaring enough the thinnest part of the case was only riding against the powder funnel vs going through it.
  23. Looking for some advice from those of you that have figured out how to flare the NAS3 cases. Got my hands on some of the NAS3 cases to give them a try. I'm running into some challenges flaring the cases without them sticking on my XL750. I do have the S3 Dillon die set, which includes the Lee sizing die & the "improved" powder funnel for Dillon presses. I am lubing the cases generously with Dillon Case Lube and the sizing die seems to work OK. Spring pressure is set appropriately and I am getting minimum to zero separation between the two parts of the case when sizing. When I start flaring with the powder drop, the case will stick on the powder funnel beyond any small amount of flare. The case mouth sizes to around to .373-374", and I can flare with no sticking up to .375-3755". I would like to flare to at least .377" and preferably .378" since I have some coated and jacketed .356" bullets that I use. Because of the sticking on the powder funnel, the two parts of the case separate way beyond the manufacturer & SAMMI specs for overall case length usually to around .760-765". I'm convinced at this point that NAS3 cases on a 5 station press are a NO GO because of the inability to use the dedicated spring loaded flaring die that S3 has for non-Dillon presses. All of the shooters that I've seen seem to have 1050/1100s or Mark 7's and use the dedicated flaring die. Also, I am using new cases, which I know do not have to be sized and flared. I did load up 100 last night without any sizing or flaring to test. Fortunately, the small amount of flare the cases come with new (around .375-376") allowed me to seat some JHPs for my open gun. I have not had a chance to shoot any yet, but I'm expecting the same problems when it comes time to reload them. Maybe @SSGJohnV is out there somewhere.
  24. I had some muddy range pickup brass that sat in a container for a few weeks waiting to be cleaned. Made the mistake of putting the lid on, which sealed in the moisture. Took the lid off a couple of days ago and there appeared to be a thickish black substance on the majority of the cases, which I'm assuming is corrosion. Here's what a case looks like after 5-6 hours of dry tumbling. The black spots are smooth with the rest of the brass. Send or no?
  25. Recently took a Travis Tomasie training class with someone that had a CZ A01 LDC with newer manufactured 150gr Syntech. He had a couple of issues with the ammo throughout the class and had one round that had to be removed via a squib rod that had been chambered. 99% of the Syntech ammo he brought ran fine, but there were definitely issues with a few rounds and his CZ. He wasn't able to do a plunk test on it during the class, but our assumption is that it was out of spec in some way.
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