[Magnum88C]

Useful/not useful?
Worth the $11?
What does it do that a standard seater/crimper doesn't do (I seat and crimp as separate steps anyway)?

 

[Garand]

Generally I think that most Lee dies are cheap and fine adjustment to a Lee dies is done with a pipe wrench. In the same vain I own or have owned Lee Crimp dies in .38-55, 6.5x55, .30-06, .308, .223 & .44. They give a consistant crimp and I have found that my overall groups have shrunk by at least 20%. Crimp dies are worth the money, the rest of their stuff isn't.

 

[.45 COLT]

I have to disagree with Garand's opinion of LEE dies. I've got an awful lot of sets and LEEs are better than Hornady & RCBS and pretty near as good as Redding.

The pistol factory crimp dies resize the case again after loading. Might make a difference in feeding in autoloaders, iron out ayy wrinkles or bulges. The rifle factory crimp dies put a uniform crimp on the case, work particularly well on bullets with no cannelure.

DC

 

[andy]

how can you crimp with no cannelure, hmm? Bound to damage the bullet at least a little bit.

 

[Garand]

I have to disagree with .45 Colt, but then with the exception of the the Lee dies that I mentioned above, everything I own says RCBS!

 

[.45 COLT]

how can you crimp with no cannelure, hmm? Bound to damage the bullet at least a little bit.

Common sense says you're right, but in the places whee I use the "factory crimp", it works real well, better loads than uncrimped. Until I started using it with 8MM, couldn't get good heavy loads. Evidently the slow powder wasn't building pressure properly before the bullet started moving. Factory crimp, problem solved.

DC

 

[SatCong]

I recommend the LEE Factory crimp die. I load a lot of 45 ACP. With the crimp, the rounds will not only feed through my milspec 45 but also, flawlessly, thru my very "tight" Kimber Ultra II. Before the crimp only one in three would feed into the Kimber. The minimal expense resulted in a very satisfying solution.
SatCong

 

[andy]

taper crimp die takes care of that in .45 ACP. The factory crimp Lee is of interest only for loading 223 fighting ammo, really. I prefer to just use the C and H canneluring tool to so-modify a sp bullet first, tho, so that the case mouth has a place to GO when you crimp it.

 

[Garand]

Since you don't reload in the first place, it really doesn't matter. Too much extra work to achieve minimal gain. By the way, give us some details about your escape!

 

[SatCong]

Magnum,
The bottom-line for me on the die was that it solved a problem for me cheaply and continues to do so after literally thoousands of uses.
SatCong