Is a U-die necessary for 9mm?

[IMC87]

Havent received my pistol back from smith yet to chamber check my reloads yet, but will the 9mm be as picky as .40?

With my .40 barrel I had "more than I felt comfortable" with ammo that wasnt fully chambering (glocked brass using a dillon carbide die), so I ordered an EGW U-die and all problems went away. Will I need to do the same for my 9mm setup? Just asking now so I can place the order sooner than later. Thanks guys!

Note: my current reloading setup is all dillon at the moment. (dies, press, etc etc)

-Rich

Edited April 13, 2011 by IMC87

[Hi-Power Jack]

With my .40 barrel I had "more than I felt comfortable" with ammo that wasnt fully chambering (glocked brass using a dillon carbide die), so I ordered an EGW U-die and all problems went away. Will I need to do the same for my 9mm setup? -Rich

I've been reloading on a Square Deal for 15 years, so I can't use a U-die.

I've had 3 failures to feed out of 25,000 rounds I've loaded.

So, now I chamber check them for important matches. Still find

very few rounds that need to be put into the practice bin.

And, I'm using range brass in both a Browning Hi-Power and an

STI TruBor.

Jack

[Pro2AInPA]

While it may not be necessary, I can't think of any good reason NOT to use it.

[boz1911]

I always use the U die for my 9 major loads if for no other reason to help prevent bullet setback. There's already plenty of pressure with 9 major without risking more. Always, always chamber check afterwards though. 9 is a different animal than 40. You will have more case guage failures with 9.

[Seth]

My 9major gun ran fantastically with the U-die'd brass. I was lazy as all hell with sorting and the gun was completely reliable. A WELL tuned ejector and the Cheely mount made all the difference.

[Bob DuBois]

To me 9mm is one of the harder calibers to reload if your using range brass as the brass varies in rim size and volume. Might spend a little more time inspecting brass before reloading and trash the cheaper stuff.

Just last week I saw a 9mm 1911 that wouldn't run using the owners reloads, it ran on my ammo loaded using the U die.

I've seen the U die get a friends 9mm major open gun running. It just works!

I recommend you order one for your press.

[Foxbat]

Gee, I dunno... over the 30 year period I loaded... 200,000? 300,000 rounds? Something like that. Never used the U-Die, and never seen any need for it.

[David.Hylton]

Depends, what pistol are you shooting. My Glock 34 runs fine with brass reloaded in Lee dies. A pistol with tighter tolerances will be a different story.

[IMC87]

Ya this is going to be for a trubor barrel. I think I will order one for some of the reasons you guys stated. Less set-back probability, and a higher reliability percentage when compared to a standard die (no matter how minor the difference, id rather get the majority of reloaded rounds right). Thanks guys!

[TonyT]

I do not use a the undersize U die. Instead I gauge my reloaded rounds.

[Jaxshooter]

I use a U die on my 650 setup for 9mm. I load 9mm major and 9mm minor loads and have about 1 rejected round in 5000.

[sdm74]

Only because of the 9mm major cases that you find, do you need to use a U die or Lee FCD. I have a bag of 20 to 30 rounds out of 3500 that iv loaded this year that need to be pulled apart because there too fat at the bottom. I only have dillon dies at the moment

[Lebayer]

This thread is about a year old so I may get no readers but the issue is appropriate. I just switched to a Lee U die but it creates a ring about the bottom of the case that often catches in the gauge. I'm getting close to 30% failure rate when I check rounds. Have I run the die down too far. I take it right down to the shell plate on my 650, as I do with my .38 S but should I back it off 1/2 turn to avoid the ridge?

Thanks.

[wide45]

This thread is about a year old so I may get no readers but the issue is appropriate. I just switched to a Lee U die but it creates a ring about the bottom of the case that often catches in the gauge. I'm getting close to 30% failure rate when I check rounds. Have I run the die down too far. I take it right down to the shell plate on my 650, as I do with my .38 S but should I back it off 1/2 turn to avoid the ridge?

Thanks.

No, you have it set right.

You have a bunch of bad brass. It has been loaded to excessive pressure, and/or fired in an oversize chamber.

If the U die forms a ridge, the brass is scrap.

There are a lot of shooters out there doing foolish things with 9mm.

[Glk21C]

use a single stage press and a 9mm Makarov Lee carbide FCD with the crimping parts of the die removed. Essentially a push through set up. Works like a champ.

[Sarge]

This thread is about a year old so I may get no readers but the issue is appropriate. I just switched to a Lee U die but it creates a ring about the bottom of the case that often catches in the gauge. I'm getting close to 30% failure rate when I check rounds. Have I run the die down too far. I take it right down to the shell plate on my 650, as I do with my .38 S but should I back it off 1/2 turn to avoid the ridge?

Thanks.

No, you have it set right.

You have a bunch of bad brass. It has been loaded to excessive pressure, and/or fired in an oversize chamber.

If the U die forms a ridge, the brass is scrap.

There are a lot of shooters out there doing foolish things with 9mm.

Not always the only cause. I use the Udie exclusively in 9mm. If I don't lube cases it will crease a bunch of them as well.

OP, are you using lube?

[Lebayer]

Thanks for the help. I do use Dillon spray lube. I'll try loading with fresher brass and see if that fixes the problem. Normally, with .38 Super, I load until the case splits. With 9M, I may have to go back to tracking number of reloads. I use 7.4g of Longshot, at 1.145" or 7.8g of True Blue, at the same length, in an STI with standard chamber. No other signs of over-pressure.

[Lebayer]

Forgot to mention, that's with 124g MG JHP.

[Chris iliff]

Good advice is setting up a single stage press with the u die in it. This is how I ran my Supers and now my 9's. Makes actually loading on your 650 such a breeze.

In addition, I scraped all brass that had the ring around the bottom after the u die. IMHO it was shot through someone's loose chamber or a Glock. I also lubed all cases before u die sizing.

I don't think it is a "must" to undersized, but it is one less thing to worry about. In 8 years of under sizing I can honestly say I've had zero brass related failures. I count under sizing as the reason for this. Most of those years I shot exclusively with range pickup brass. You'll catch all the bad on the single stage set up and once it's in your 650's case feeder you'll just be pulling the handle.

I also had a couple shell holders milled down in order to get the case as far into the die as possible.

Edited April 8, 2012 by Chris iliff

[wide45]

Thanks for the help. I do use Dillon spray lube. I'll try loading with fresher brass and see if that fixes the problem. Normally, with .38 Super, I load until the case splits. With 9M, I may have to go back to tracking number of reloads. I use 7.4g of Longshot, at 1.145" or 7.8g of True Blue, at the same length, in an STI with standard chamber. No other signs of over-pressure.

Significantly expanded case heads is a clear sign of overpressure. Many choose to ignore it.

[MoNsTeR]

The short answer is no, you don't need one.