Robert King Posted March 4, 2011 Share Posted March 4, 2011 I am fairly new to reloading, only been doing it a year or so. I am setting up my Dillon 550 for .40 today and not sure about the crimp station. I am comfortable adjusting all the other stations, but can't really eye-ball the crimp well. What is the best way to adjust the crimp setting? I have a caliper that I use to check the bell and length, etc. Can I use that to check crimp? I am using mixed brass and both Berry's & Rainer plated bullets. The dillon manual says to put a empty brass in station four then raise the shell plate. Screw down the die until it touches the shell rim, then lower the plate and turn an additional quarter turn and agjust as needed. Are they saying to lower the die until the shell just goes into it and then another 1/4 or are they saying to lower the die until it touches something? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gng4life Posted March 4, 2011 Share Posted March 4, 2011 Lower the die until it touches, then lower the shell plate, turn the die another 1/4 turn down (right), then raise the plate/round up again to crimp. Take the round out and measure, keep doing this until you get the desired crimp... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert King Posted March 4, 2011 Author Share Posted March 4, 2011 Lower the die until it touches, then lower the shell plate, turn the die another 1/4 turn down (right), then raise the plate/round up again to crimp. Take the round out and measure, keep doing this until you get the desired crimp... When I lower the die with the sell plate up, amd I lowering the die until it touches the tip of the shell or until it touches some point inside the die? Sorry, not really good at explaining this one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gng4life Posted March 4, 2011 Share Posted March 4, 2011 Yes, turn the die to the right until it touches the round, you will feel the pressure of the case neck, then stop, lower the shellplate, turn the die some more, raise the shellplate to crimp the case mouth, then take it out and measure... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert King Posted March 4, 2011 Author Share Posted March 4, 2011 Yes, turn the die to the right until it touches the round, you will feel the pressure of the case neck, then stop, lower the shellplate, turn the die some more, raise the shellplate to crimp the case mouth, then take it out and measure... Cool, I understand now. Thanks. How/where do I measure and where do I find the measurement I am looking for? I looked in my reloading manual and did not see a measurement. Also, how important is a perfect crimp? Is it a safety issue, accuracy issue or ??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrumpyOne Posted March 4, 2011 Share Posted March 4, 2011 (edited) Take the diameter of your bullet + the case wall thickness (x2) and then a little bit..... .400 + .010 =.420 at the case mouth. Really, it's not a crimp, but removing the bell/flair put into the case at the powder drop station. Another thing to consider: Don't adjust your shell plate for any station unless it has all the stations filled with empty cases. This will make for a more consistent round (I.E., smaller fluctuations in OAL.) Edited March 4, 2011 by GrumpyOne Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bcbulldog78 Posted March 4, 2011 Share Posted March 4, 2011 truthfully it is both a safety issue and an accuracy issue. it is a safety issue from the standpoint that without the proper crimp it can lead to bullet setback which in a high pressure round such as 40s&w can be really bad, really fast - basically the amount of space in the cartridge is reduced if the bullet is pushed back into the case and by reducing the space the pressure necessarily increases. From an accuracy standpoint it is on the other end of the crimp spectrum. If you crimp a round too much it can cause key-holing and other similar accuracy issues. As far as the measurement that you are looking for: bullet diameter + about 0.019 or 0.020. The actual measurement will depend on the thickness of the brass (some manufacturers are slightly different). since you mentioned 40s&w - I will use it as an example. Jacketed bullets for 40S&W are 0.400 in diameter. Lead Bullets in 40S&W are generally 0.401. Your crimp for 40S&W should be approximately 0.420-0.422. Hope this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert King Posted March 4, 2011 Author Share Posted March 4, 2011 Just so I am sure. I am going to take the measurement as high up the brass (close to the bullet) as possible? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gng4life Posted March 4, 2011 Share Posted March 4, 2011 Just so I am sure. I am going to take the measurement as high up the brass (close to the bullet) as possible? Sure, that is fine. It's a straight wall case so no problem there... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveU Posted March 5, 2011 Share Posted March 5, 2011 You may see a little mark right on the edge where the die passes over the case mouth. Measure there. Make small adjustments. It's harder to go from too tight than to work slowly with the same round to the right #. Then make sure the round drops freely in your barrel. Mine likes 419-420 which some might say is too tight ( but .001 is very small ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RH45 Posted March 5, 2011 Share Posted March 5, 2011 truthfully it is both a safety issue and an accuracy issue. it is a safety issue from the standpoint that without the proper crimp it can lead to bullet setback which in a high pressure round such as 40s&w can be really bad, really fast - basically the amount of space in the cartridge is reduced if the bullet is pushed back into the case and by reducing the space the pressure necessarily increases. From an accuracy standpoint it is on the other end of the crimp spectrum. If you crimp a round too much it can cause key-holing and other similar accuracy issues. As far as the measurement that you are looking for: bullet diameter + about 0.019 or 0.020. The actual measurement will depend on the thickness of the brass (some manufacturers are slightly different). since you mentioned 40s&w - I will use it as an example. Jacketed bullets for 40S&W are 0.400 in diameter. Lead Bullets in 40S&W are generally 0.401. Your crimp for 40S&W should be approximately 0.420-0.422. Hope this helps. You can crimp as tight as you want, and you can still have bullet set back. Neck tension is what holds the bullet, you only need to remove the "bell". As stated overcrimping, especially with plated, or, lead bullets can cause all kinds of havoc. If you didn't measure the length of your cases, before loading, and they vary in length, your crimp will vary too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JayJayJay Posted April 30, 2011 Share Posted April 30, 2011 I am worried about Berrys' bullets. Will I crimp them the same way as any other bullet? I am worried about lead in my glock 35 also from these lead plated bullets. I want to shoot lead plated Berrys bullets because they are cheap but a bit worried about them. i read the FAQ section on the Berrys web site and it said I can shoot these bullets in a Glock. Any help would be great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrumpyOne Posted April 30, 2011 Share Posted April 30, 2011 They aren't lead plated..they are copper plated...And it depends on how fast you are gonna be pushing them, as far as how good they perform and if they lead the barrel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JayJayJay Posted April 30, 2011 Share Posted April 30, 2011 (edited) They aren't lead plated..they are copper plated...And it depends on how fast you are gonna be pushing them, as far as how good they perform and if they lead the barrel. Light loads for some range work only. I plan on buying store ammo to make major in any matches untill I get better at reloading. If I do use these bullets I plan on running a brush down the barrel after each stage at a match in the safety area. Edited April 30, 2011 by JayJayJay Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrumpyOne Posted April 30, 2011 Share Posted April 30, 2011 They aren't lead plated..they are copper plated...And it depends on how fast you are gonna be pushing them, as far as how good they perform and if they lead the barrel. Light loads for some range work only. I plan on buying store ammo to make major in any matches untill I get better at reloading. If I do use these bullets I plan on running a brush down the barrel after each stage at a match in the safety area. Probably not necessary....Besides, if the do lead the barrel, it'll a little more than just running a brush through it once or twice to get the lead out...More likely of an issue is the plating peeling off and getting stuck in the barrel, but that usually only happens at higher velocities....1,200 FPS + Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JayJayJay Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 They aren't lead plated..they are copper plated...And it depends on how fast you are gonna be pushing them, as far as how good they perform and if they lead the barrel. Light loads for some range work only. I plan on buying store ammo to make major in any matches untill I get better at reloading. If I do use these bullets I plan on running a brush down the barrel after each stage at a match in the safety area. Probably not necessary....Besides, if the do lead the barrel, it'll a little more than just running a brush through it once or twice to get the lead out...More likely of an issue is the plating peeling off and getting stuck in the barrel, but that usually only happens at higher velocities....1,200 FPS + So if I load minor and make sure the crimp is not to tight I should be ok? I ordered 250 rounds of Berrys plated bullets and cant send them back. They were only 40 bucks delivered so I guess I will use them and not buy them again. Thanks for your help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrumpyOne Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 They aren't lead plated..they are copper plated...And it depends on how fast you are gonna be pushing them, as far as how good they perform and if they lead the barrel. Light loads for some range work only. I plan on buying store ammo to make major in any matches untill I get better at reloading. If I do use these bullets I plan on running a brush down the barrel after each stage at a match in the safety area. Probably not necessary....Besides, if the do lead the barrel, it'll a little more than just running a brush through it once or twice to get the lead out...More likely of an issue is the plating peeling off and getting stuck in the barrel, but that usually only happens at higher velocities....1,200 FPS + So if I load minor and make sure the crimp is not to tight I should be ok? I ordered 250 rounds of Berrys plated bullets and cant send them back. They were only 40 bucks delivered so I guess I will use them and not buy them again. Thanks for your help. Should be no issues....$40 for 250? That's damn near highway robbery! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JayJayJay Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 They aren't lead plated..they are copper plated...And it depends on how fast you are gonna be pushing them, as far as how good they perform and if they lead the barrel. Light loads for some range work only. I plan on buying store ammo to make major in any matches untill I get better at reloading. If I do use these bullets I plan on running a brush down the barrel after each stage at a match in the safety area. Probably not necessary....Besides, if the do lead the barrel, it'll a little more than just running a brush through it once or twice to get the lead out...More likely of an issue is the plating peeling off and getting stuck in the barrel, but that usually only happens at higher velocities....1,200 FPS + So if I load minor and make sure the crimp is not to tight I should be ok? I ordered 250 rounds of Berrys plated bullets and cant send them back. They were only 40 bucks delivered so I guess I will use them and not buy them again. Thanks for your help. Should be no issues....$40 for 250? That's damn near highway robbery! $32 BUT 8 BUCKS FOR SHIPPING. I just ordered some Montana Gold 1000 rounds so I should be set. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrumpyOne Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 (edited) They aren't lead plated..they are copper plated...And it depends on how fast you are gonna be pushing them, as far as how good they perform and if they lead the barrel. Light loads for some range work only. I plan on buying store ammo to make major in any matches untill I get better at reloading. If I do use these bullets I plan on running a brush down the barrel after each stage at a match in the safety area. Probably not necessary....Besides, if the do lead the barrel, it'll a little more than just running a brush through it once or twice to get the lead out...More likely of an issue is the plating peeling off and getting stuck in the barrel, but that usually only happens at higher velocities....1,200 FPS + So if I load minor and make sure the crimp is not to tight I should be ok? I ordered 250 rounds of Berrys plated bullets and cant send them back. They were only 40 bucks delivered so I guess I will use them and not buy them again. Thanks for your help. Should be no issues....$40 for 250? That's damn near highway robbery! $32 BUT 8 BUCKS FOR SHIPPING. I just ordered some Montana Gold 1000 rounds so I should be set. For a week or so....Order by the case, you'll save mucho money.... Even $32 per 250 is outrageous I think...especially for plated...Out of curiousity, how much did 1k of MG's set you back? I have no idea, cause I buy a case at a time... Edited May 2, 2011 by GrumpyOne Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JayJayJay Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 They aren't lead plated..they are copper plated...And it depends on how fast you are gonna be pushing them, as far as how good they perform and if they lead the barrel. Light loads for some range work only. I plan on buying store ammo to make major in any matches untill I get better at reloading. If I do use these bullets I plan on running a brush down the barrel after each stage at a match in the safety area. Probably not necessary....Besides, if the do lead the barrel, it'll a little more than just running a brush through it once or twice to get the lead out...More likely of an issue is the plating peeling off and getting stuck in the barrel, but that usually only happens at higher velocities....1,200 FPS + So if I load minor and make sure the crimp is not to tight I should be ok? I ordered 250 rounds of Berrys plated bullets and cant send them back. They were only 40 bucks delivered so I guess I will use them and not buy them again. Thanks for your help. Should be no issues....$40 for 250? That's damn near highway robbery! $32 BUT 8 BUCKS FOR SHIPPING. I just ordered some Montana Gold 1000 rounds so I should be set. For a week or so....Order by the case, you'll save mucho money.... Even $32 per 250 is outrageous I think...especially for plated...Out of curiousity, how much did 1k of MG's set you back? I have no idea, cause I buy a case at a time... I think I paid 115, I could of saved 50 bucks if I bought the case but didnt want to spend over 300 bucks right now. I only fire about 200 rounds a month. I will buy a case of Monatan Gold the next time around. As of right now I have 100 winchester JHP, 250 Berrys plated bullets and 1000 Montana Gold bullets on the way. I should be fine for awhile. One of these days I will start making bullets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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