9mm on a single stage press

[Stephen7942]

Hey guys,

I am new to reloading and was gifted a RCBS master reloading kit. I bought a 3-die set of the 9mm RCBS dies. I have been told I need to buy an additional crimp die. I am not familiar with the dies and have not been very successful on finding any info online with an answer.. Thanks in advance for your help.

From what I have found so far the first die sizes and deprimes the case.. the next one flares the case to accept the bullet. and the third one seats the bullet..

Thanks Again,

SS

[Alan550]

The third die will also crimp for you. You can do it in a separate procedure or seat/crimp at the same time. To seat only, set the die a bit high in the press and run down your seating stem to the correct setting. Then when all are seated, run the seating stem back up, lower the die to get the correct crimp and run 'em through again.

To do both at once, set your seating depth first, then raise the seating stem out of the way and lower the die to the correct height for your crimp. Then with a loaded round in the press, raise the ram and bring the seating stem down 'til it makes firm contact with the bullet. You're set up to seat & crimp at the same time.

Hope this isn't too confusing.......

Alan~^~

[Hi-Power Jack]

If you're new to reloading, totally, some ideas that might save you some aggravation:

1. don't reload too many cartridges at one time, without trying them first.

2. be very careful of your load - important to note whether bullet is lead or

jacketed - that affects powder requirement; the OAL can be critical for

both pressure (safety) and consistent feeding through your gun; important

to learn how to throw a consistent charge of powder - select the powder which

will affect your reload.

3. crimping is critical - too much crimp can affect pressure and accuracy; too little

and the cartridge won't fit into your barrel

Helpful note: spend 15 minutes one day reading the old posts under "Reloading -

9mm" on this forum - read all about powder, bullets, OAL and crimp. That will

save you a LOT of aggravation.

Great idea to spend $70 on a Chrony so you know how fast the bullets are going

(for safety's sake).

Good luck.

[CoachLongShot]

If you're new to reloading, totally, some ideas that might save you some aggravation:

1. don't reload too many cartridges at one time, without trying them first.

2. be very careful of your load - important to note whether bullet is lead or

jacketed - that affects powder requirement; the OAL can be critical for

both pressure (safety) and consistent feeding through your gun; important

to learn how to throw a consistent charge of powder - select the powder which

will affect your reload.

3. crimping is critical - too much crimp can affect pressure and accuracy; too little

and the cartridge won't fit into your barrel

Helpful note: spend 15 minutes one day reading the old posts under "Reloading -

9mm" on this forum - read all about powder, bullets, OAL and crimp. That will

save you a LOT of aggravation.

Great idea to spend $70 on a Chrony so you know how fast the bullets are going

(for safety's sake).

Good luck.

Second that. Get a reloading book and read it several times over. It will save you a HUGE amount of aggravation.

Coach.

[Steve RA]

For slightly better results, get a crimp die and seat and crimp in two seperate operations. Remember, the crimp is merely to take the bell - so the bullet will start in the case - away. You should end up with the sides of the case parallel when finished. Then, after you fully enjoy changing dies and running the same case/cartridge thru 3 or 4 seperate operations enough, buy a Dillon press.

[Stephen7942]

Thanks for all the replies. I was gifted the RCBS so I will be using it for a few months then I plan on getting the blue fever and buying a Dillon.

[Graham Smith]

When reading about reloading, you need to take some time to understand the difference between a roll crimp and a taper crimp.

Cartridges like the .38 Special have a cannelure (groove) in the bullet and you want to roll crimp the case into that cannelure.

Cartridges like the 9mm don't have a cannelure and aren't strictly speaking crimped at all. What is done is referred to as a taper crimp and the only thing it does is take any left over belling out of the case. Many 9mm seating dies can be set to both seat and crimp, but it's fairly common on a progressive press to do this as two separate steps.

If you are using a single stage press, you can do it either way, but doing it as a separate step can also be a chance to do a final inspection of the completed round to make sure everything looks good.

A single stage press is more work, but when you are first starting out, it's a good way to learn the details of each step. You do one thing at a time. You do that one thing right, then you move on to the next thing. It's very methodical and builds good habits.

Edited January 25, 2013 by Graham Smith

[Kfrog]

Thanks for the information and suggestions guys. New at reloading and am going to start reloading 9mm in a few weeks.

[ignantmike]

i seat and crimp in one step......i have a single stage as well....

[z40acp]

I always liked to crimp separately. When I only had one die I set the crimp and used the lock-ring. When I bullet seated I used one of the spacers they give you with .357 and .44 die sets. That way I did not lose the crimp setting because that is harder to measure than OAL. Plus if you use different bullets the seating depth is different but the crimp is usually the same.

[Stephen7942]

Does it make a difference if I am using cast or plated bullets? I will be loading 147g extreme plated bullets...

[LikesToShoot]

Does it make a difference if I am using cast or plated bullets? I will be loading 147g extreme plated bullets...

Just use lead data and don't over crimp or the bullets may tumble when fired. As mentioned, just crimp to remove the bell.

On my Rockchucker I removed the large bushing and installed the Hornady Lock n Load kit, it awesome.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Hornady-Lock-N-Load-Press-Conversion-Kit-Converts-RCBS-044099-/190786396440?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2c6bc16118

Set your dies once then just twist to remove / reinstall the next stage for reloading.