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Lee Factory Crimp Die for .45 ACP?

22K views 29 replies 22 participants last post by  Calif. Hunter 
#1 ·
Seems like a lot of folks here really like this die.

I'm thinking of getting one to shore up my confidence in my reloads.

Is it a waste of money or does it really work?
 
#3 ·
Initially, my loads used to get "stuck" in the chamber. 100K later haven't had a prob since. If I loaded anything other than 45acp, I'd get one for each caliber. Tracy
 
#7 ·
If you are not having any problems with your reloads, the Lee Carbide FCD won't do a thing for you that any other crimping die won't do. I it is a combination of crimp die and a post-sizing die in one that, if the case buckles due to a problem crimping, the post sizing ring will iron it back out as the case is pulled out of the crimp die.

I've not used one for a taper crimped cartridge, but the one I have for 45 colt (roll crimp) isn't any good. The crimp ring is oversized and very roughly finished. It lets the case mouth slip under/past the crimp ring and scrapes up the outside of the brass badly. If I adjust it where it does not slip past, it does not roll the case mouth in far enough for a decent crimp. I get much better results crimping while seating with a Hornady seating die. However, this is roll crimping, which may be easier to do while seating than taper crimping, or so I've heard (I have no direct experience with taper crimped cartridges, yet...)

Andy
 
#12 ·
Andy, My 45 Colt FCD hasn't got the problems yours has. Call or send it back to Lee with a note explaining the problem. I had to send a new 45acp sizing die back about 25 years ago as it was not sizing small enough to hold a bullet. They were very prompt about replacing it(free) and I've never had a problem with it since. Lee's customer service has always been good to me on the couple of occasions I've needed to contact them.

As to the original post: I love the FCD from Lee in other applications but I'm not sure I see a need for a factory crimp die in 45acp. You only want a light taper crimp on straight wall auto pistol as they headspace on the mouth of the case. The bullets are held more by case tension than crimp. If the bullets are moving, there's something wrong with your sizing die, you're belling the case too much or you have a problem with the bullet size itself.
 
#9 ·
My biggest issue is that I use pickup range brass. Since I don't know what firearm shot my brass before I load it, I use the Lee FCD after every loaded round.

My neighbor picks up brass at the same range I do and he does not use a FCD. Neither one of us has problems. It's just extra insurance for me. I've got 4 die stations in my press, so why not use that last die?
 
#10 ·
I have a LFCD for ever thing I reload... I find it especialy great with rifle ammo.
 
#13 ·
Thanks for all who have replied to my original post.

Buffboy, one reason I thought I could benefit from this die is that sometimes the cast bullets that I purchase for my .45's will mic at .453" diameter.....not often, but sometimes. Specifically, a recent box of the 200 grain cast semi wadcutters (i.e. H&G 68) manufactured by Laser-Cast mic at .453."

So, when I load these up, even though I taper crimp to .470", I may end up with a cartridge that hesitates to freely seat in the chamber when I have removed the barrel to check for this.

My reasoning, then, was that if the Lee Factory Crimp die fully resizes the loaded round to factory specs., maybe then I would have a fully loaded cartridge that I will be certain is going to fully seat in the chamber with no hesitation.

Will the Lee FC do what I'm thinking, or do I need to approach this problem another way?
 
#15 ·
I see your point but I see a potential problem with FCD sizing the bullet in the case making it actually more likely to move. There isn't as much spring in a lead/jacketed bullet as a brass case.

I had a problem years ago with a set of RCBS 45colt dies that after sizing wouldn't grip the bullet well enough. I was trying to load for my new 454 and I kept getting bullet jump. If there was a set of 454 dies in SD, I couldn't find them but a couple places had brass. I tried to run them partially into the sizing die to correct it. This actually caused the bullet to become looser in the case.

Oddly enough, my problem was eventually solved by getting a set of Lee 45colt dies that sized the case smaller. That set came with the FCD and I've used it in both 45 colt and 454 since with great success but I've never noticed any drag(sizing) after crimping either.

Maybe I'm all wet here as I've never had a problem with FCD but then I've never used them with auto pistols. With those large bullets you may hit the same problem I had or you may not. Others here seem to like them, it is just a solution to a problem I've never had.
 
#14 ·
My reasoning, then, was that if the Lee Factory Crimp die fully resizes the loaded round to factory specs., maybe then I would have a fully loaded cartridge that I will be certain is going to fully seat in the chamber with no hesitation.

Will the Lee FC do what I'm thinking, or do I need to approach this problem another way?
The FCD doesn't resize the loaded round to factory specs; it resizes to maximum SAAMI specs. It doesn't size as much as a regular sizing die does.
 
#16 ·
I use a FCD for every caliber I load but only because I like to seat and crimp in separate steps. In thousands of round I have only felt the sizing ring in the FCD come into play twice. If you are having a lot of problems then I would suggest setting up your dies again. It's not a bad thing to rely on the FCD to fix a round once in a while but to count on it to fix most of what you are loading isn't a good thing.
Rusty
 
#19 ·
Buffboy,

I've since removed the crimp ring from the CFCD, and use it to post size anything I have a problem with crimping while seating. In thousands of rounds crimped while seated, that has happened two or three times. Since I load single stage, I prefer crimping while seating because it saves a trip through the press.

What I really wish is that Lee would produce collet style FCDs for straight wall pistol cartridges, like they have for rifle and bottleneck pistol cartridges. Those things work really well.

Andy
 
#20 ·
They do make the collet style FCD for just about anything, it's a custom order but I had one made for a 40-60WCF. I sent a dummy round (normally crimped) and IIRC $25. There is a size limit, I don't think they can make 500S&W for example, again, IIRC their upper limit was the 480Ruger in a collet style. I've been tempted to order one for 454.
 
#21 ·
I've never really cared for the FCD (pistol 45ACP) as I exclusively load lead. I don't believe Lee ever intended for the FCD to be a cure all. Their instructions elude to that: "for the occasional round........." Most failure to feeds I've seen were fixed by just a tad more crimp. Having said that, I DO like the the way it crimps. I bought one without the carbide sizing ring to do that. It allows me to easily set the crimp I want "on the fly".
Bronson7
 
#23 ·
almost always

I use and recommend the LEE for 45 ACP; it cannot 'hurt', and it often 'helps'.

I use them almost always in 9x19, 9x21 (less so), 40 S&W, 10mm, and 45 ACP.
For revolver cartridges I use and recommend most highly the Redding Profile Crimp Die.
 
#27 ·
Lee FCD die

I use one for reloading 9mm, and it probably provides some benefit. Even so, I always check my rounds using the barrel if I want 100% reliability such as shooting in competition. I don't necessarily check each round for practice ammo, and the Lee FCD die probably helps in this regard. Although I also have a Dillon case gauge. I have had rounds that properly fit the case gauge, but won't seat properly in my barrel. For 100% reliability from the ammo, I built a small barrel stand using a 5/16" dowel rod with a spring. The dowel rod is cut to length so when the barrel is placed on the upright dowel rod, the rod is just short of a fully seated FMJ round. I drop the round in the barrel, and as long as the bullet seats flush with the hood, I then push down on the barrel and it pushes the round out. The spring is a cut down light recoil spring. This is just as fast as the Dillon case guage, but I also have a chance to visually check each round better when using the barrel. Also, when I use the case guage, I may sometimes have a slightly oversized rim, and the round won't seat flush in the case guage. When I try it in the barrel, it usually fits the barrel fine, even after I try it several times from several different positions. Since the barrel is the final answer on whether the ammo will seat correctly, I just use the barrel. I have had one minor jam shooting in competition in the last 6 months.....the slide caught a case. It was easily cleared.
 
#29 ·
Lee FCD

At the private club range where I shoot, we have guys that shoot IPSC in 9mm major. Once in a while, after I have been practicing with my 9mm IDPA gun, I will pick up someone elses 9mm brass that is slightly bulged. The Lee FCD sometimes will help remedy a bulged case, but not always. If the bulge is near the extractor groove of the case, it often won't fit the chamber of my gun and gets stuck.

After I reload, drop checking the rounds in my barrel has been the best solution to make 100% reliable ammo.
 
#30 ·
I would occasionally have a round fail to seat fully in the chamber, sometimes really jamming up the gun so badly it was very hard to get the slide back. This was a custom Commander, so maybe it had a tight or "match" chamber. In any case, once I started runnning my handloads through the FCD, I have never had another problem with oversized cases, and it has been about 5 years with a minimum of one match a month.
 
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