.45 ACP crimp and a Lee Pro 1000 press

max it · February 2, 2010, 12:19 AM

Hi Guys,

I am having failure to load problems. With one round sticking every mag.There is Lots of Alox on my home cast 200gr SWCutters. We figured that was the area to address. So I tumbled them, and cleaned the chamber. And still have the stovepipe prob.
Next I will try some bought bullets. After that some factory ball ammo. But the guys at the range keep telling me to switch to a taper crimp die too. I am using my Lee Pro 1000 which has three stations only. So the last one has to be the seat/crimp. Where do I find a taper crimp and seater die?

Much obliged,

Max

McClintock · February 2, 2010, 01:12 AM

Hey, Max.

Your third station should be your seater/taper crimp die. You may have to fiddle with the adjustment of the crimp, by raising or lowering the height of the die, and then adjusting your seater plug depth to your desired OAL after that. The Lee website has some good instructional videos on how to adjust it.

Alternatively, you could use your third station as a seat-only station, and then use a Lee Factory Crimp Die (FCD) to apply your crimp in a separate process. Takes more time, for sure, but may be worth it. I'd try fiddling with option #1 first.

Hope that helps!

Cheers!
McClintock

steve1147 · February 2, 2010, 08:57 AM

Had exactly that problem a month or two ago. On advice here, bought the Lee Factory crimp die (FCD) and a separate $20 single stage press as step 4, it not only crimps, but most importantly it has a carbide sizing ring which resizes any bulge of misconformity on the outside of the case.
That completely cured my feeding problem, then I had an ejection problem, which was cured by finding the right COL for my home cast bullets and adjusting the crimp so the outgoing fired case slides easily over the incoming, which was my problem.
Have now fired over 350 in my new XD with No problems whatever. It was just tedious getting everything right.
I set the seat/crimp die to just take the flare off, then apply the actual final crimp with the FCD.
Steve W.

max it · February 2, 2010, 01:00 PM

I called Lee, and they said it isnt the die, it's the powder. I am going to try more powder first. But your suggestions are sound and I will go there second.

Much obliged,

Max

steelman762 · February 4, 2010, 07:03 PM

The 45acp was designed for a ball type ammo. Yes the SWC will work but sometimes it will be finiky. Yes it does sound like a load problem with the cycling. I don`t crimp my loads. I only roll them enough to remove the seating flare. The 45acp cartridge is held in the chamber with the case mouth square against the front of the chamber shoulder. If you distort the case mouth by crimping the cartridge may not sit square in the chamber canting the bullet causing loss in accuracy. The press fit created by the seating die should be enough to hold the bullet in place.

February 2, 2010, 12:19 AM	#1
max it Senior Member Join Date: June 15, 2008 Location: near Disneyland Posts: 283	.45 ACP crimp and a Lee Pro 1000 press Hi Guys, I am having failure to load problems. With one round sticking every mag.There is Lots of Alox on my home cast 200gr SWCutters. We figured that was the area to address. So I tumbled them, and cleaned the chamber. And still have the stovepipe prob. Next I will try some bought bullets. After that some factory ball ammo. But the guys at the range keep telling me to switch to a taper crimp die too. I am using my Lee Pro 1000 which has three stations only. So the last one has to be the seat/crimp. Where do I find a taper crimp and seater die? Much obliged, Max

February 2, 2010, 01:12 AM	#2
McClintock Senior Member Join Date: December 5, 2008 Location: The Bald Prairie of Southern Saskatchewan, Canada Posts: 305	Hey, Max. Your third station should be your seater/taper crimp die. You may have to fiddle with the adjustment of the crimp, by raising or lowering the height of the die, and then adjusting your seater plug depth to your desired OAL after that. The Lee website has some good instructional videos on how to adjust it. Alternatively, you could use your third station as a seat-only station, and then use a Lee Factory Crimp Die (FCD) to apply your crimp in a separate process. Takes more time, for sure, but may be worth it. I'd try fiddling with option #1 first. Hope that helps! Cheers! McClintock

February 2, 2010, 08:57 AM	#3
steve1147 Senior Member Join Date: December 5, 2009 Location: Valles Mines, Missouri Posts: 142	Had exactly that problem a month or two ago. On advice here, bought the Lee Factory crimp die (FCD) and a separate $20 single stage press as step 4, it not only crimps, but most importantly it has a carbide sizing ring which resizes any bulge of misconformity on the outside of the case. That completely cured my feeding problem, then I had an ejection problem, which was cured by finding the right COL for my home cast bullets and adjusting the crimp so the outgoing fired case slides easily over the incoming, which was my problem. Have now fired over 350 in my new XD with No problems whatever. It was just tedious getting everything right. I set the seat/crimp die to just take the flare off, then apply the actual final crimp with the FCD. Steve W.

February 2, 2010, 01:00 PM	#4
max it Senior Member Join Date: June 15, 2008 Location: near Disneyland Posts: 283	I called Lee, and they said it isnt the die, it's the powder. I am going to try more powder first. But your suggestions are sound and I will go there second. Much obliged, Max

February 4, 2010, 07:03 PM	#5
steelman762 Member Join Date: January 18, 2010 Posts: 61	The 45acp was designed for a ball type ammo. Yes the SWC will work but sometimes it will be finiky. Yes it does sound like a load problem with the cycling. I don`t crimp my loads. I only roll them enough to remove the seating flare. The 45acp cartridge is held in the chamber with the case mouth square against the front of the chamber shoulder. If you distort the case mouth by crimping the cartridge may not sit square in the chamber canting the bullet causing loss in accuracy. The press fit created by the seating die should be enough to hold the bullet in place.