LEE 45 ACP Dies

[David Bachelder]

I don't normally buy LEE Dies. However I was in a pinch and needed a set of 45 ACP dies. Since I do own a set of LEE dies and I never had any problem with them I decided, what the hey, I'll give it a spin. LEE was the only brand I could find, so ..... LEE it is.

Here is the problem.
The de-capping/resizing die works great.
The bullet seating die works great.

My problem is with the flaring die. I have never seen one set up the way LEE does it. There is this floating piece inside the die that actually applies the flare. If you shake the die you can hear it rattling around. I reload with a Hornady LNL. When the brass goes up into the die all works as any other die would. Its the down stroke that gives me a fit, pulling the brass back out of the die. It hangs up and it takes a little force to pull the now flared shell back out.

The flare is perfect, I have adjusted and cleaned the die several times. It continues to hang up.

Is this common? Am I doing something wrong?

[MEATSAW]

That is how it is designed to work. I believe that little bump is for when it is being used with the auto-disk powder measure it jars any stuck powder into the case.

[jaguarxk120]

From the drawing on the lee web site, the case mouth expanding die will work the brass case two times.

Once to expand the case and a second time when the case is withdrawn from the die. The Lyman "M" die will expand a case just enough for the bullet and provide clearance to start he bullet seating.

[jag2]

Thats just the way the Lee die works. It's hollow so you can drop the powder thru it, right? I don't like it either. I will replace it as soon as the craziness settles down, probably get a Redding. I think I bought it (38 special) because that was the only brand available at a gun show and I was anxious to get started. You can give the brass a shot of spray lube if you use it, make sure to get the inside. Helps a little but then you need to retumble the brass to get rid of the lube. I guess you don't have to, but I do.

[Mike38]

I may be wrong here, and no offence intended, but did you get the carbide die or steel? The carbide does not require lube, I think the steel does. I have the carbide Lee .45 acp die and it works great.

[Gster]

MEATSAW nailed it.

[Real Gun]

I think you are feeling the expansion plug withdrawing from the case. Be sure to clean all the parts. You can also polish the plug but the one I checked here is very smooth. It has never been used in that caliber set so it's still a little sticky. Use a degreaser and then spray with one shot.

[steve4102]

Yes, Meatsaw nailed it.

[alageezer]

Another thread concerning the same subject, ie sticking flair die.

http://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=533580

[David Bachelder]

These are carbide. 3 Piece die set. 45 ACP

I took a piece of 1200 sandpaper and gave the expander a quick shine. I also used just a smidge of RCBS lube inside the neck. Problem gone. No more sticking.

When the market turns around I'll e-bay these and get a set of RCBS. Until that time I'll survive.

When things get stiff on a LNL it usually means something is broken or is about to break. Difficulty in operating the press throws a red flag up. It's usually pretty smooth.

[Jim243]

Is this common? Am I doing something wrong?

Yes it is the powder through die not the flairing die. It will flair the case as the powder is dropped. There is a universal flaring die that they make.

If you are not using it as intended then don't blame the equipment, it activates the Auto Disk powder measure. If you are unhappy with the Lee dies then knock yourself out and spend 2 times the money for less quality. And I have 13 sets that have no problem. I also have RCBS that I very seldom use.

Jim

[WhyteP38]

I took a piece of 1200 sandpaper and gave the expander a quick shine. I also used just a smidge of RCBS lube inside the neck. Problem gone. No more sticking.

When the market turns around I'll e-bay these and get a set of RCBS.

When you do, please note that you have altered how the die is supposed to work. I think it would be very unfair for someone to buy it without knowing it won't work as designed.

[David Bachelder]

This is not a LEE bashing thread and I am using them as designed. Unless they are designed to operate only on LEE equipment.

Boy ..... you LEE fans sure are sensitive. FYI, RCBS and almost all others make a better die. There are no aluminum or plastic parts, and yes I have a set of LEE dies with plastic parts. I'd venture to guess that steel will outlast and out perform aluminum and plastic any day of the week.

I have three sets of LEE dies:
.38 Special - My opinion is that they are trash, I don't even use them. I listed them on e-bay and didn't even get a bid.
.38 S&W - Pretty good and I use them frequently
.45 ACP -They are working better now than they did out of the box.

I have never had to break an out of the box set of RCBS dies down to polish, sand or alter in any way. They worked as expected, no fine tuning needed. My new .45 ACP dies had trash left in the threads, I had to use a wire brush to remove the metal chips left over from machining. These are things I don't expect to be needed on a brand new piece of equipment.

[David Bachelder]

"When you do, please note that you have altered how the die is supposed to work. I think it would be very unfair for someone to buy it without knowing it won't work as designed"

For crying out loud ..... give me a break. Ill be sure to run the ad contents by you for approval when I decide to sell them.

[Real Gun]

I have never had to break an out of the box set of RCBS dies down to polish, sand or alter in any way. They worked as expected, no fine tuning needed. My new .45 ACP dies had trash left in the threads, I had to use a wire brush to remove the metal chips left over from machining. These are things I don't expect to be needed on a brand new piece of equipment.

I recall the directions calling for disassembling and cleaning dies before use. I couldn't locate that mention in the Lee documentation I found, but it was in the first paragraph of the Hornady die instructions.

I wouldn't care to pay 2-3 times more just for degreased and waxed dies that work about the same. Cleaning I can do.

[WhyteP38]

For crying out loud ..... give me a break. Ill be sure to run the ad contents by you for approval when I decide to sell them.

It has nothing to do with getting my approval or anyone else's approval. I'd just hate to be a newbie who buys some reloading dies that have been altered and doesn't know it.

When I buy used stuff - of any kind - I expect reasonable wear and tear. It's used, after all. But I typically don't expect alterations.

I've always thought reloaders, as a community, are considerate of each other, and especially of newbies.

[David Bachelder]

WhyteP38

I polished the expander with 1200 Emory paper. This would hardly qualify as a modification. The abrasive is about as rough as toothpaste, they wet sand cars with it.

I guess cleaning it would have been modifying it as well.

Lets drop this thread. Its getting annoying.

[jcwit]

So don't return to this thread.

Simple solution!

[steve4102]

Originally Posted by David Bachelder

There are no aluminum or plastic parts, and yes I have a set of LEE dies with plastic parts.

Just out of curiosity, what Lee dies do you own that have plastic parts and what parts are plastic?

Originally Posted by David Bachelder

I have never had to break an out of the box set of RCBS dies down to polish, sand or alter in any way. They worked as expected, no fine tuning needed. My new .45 ACP dies had trash left in the threads, I had to use a wire brush to remove the metal chips left over from machining. These are things I don't expect to be needed on a brand new piece of equipment.

Yupper, Lee dies come with all kinds of crap and junk left over from the machining process. A good cleaning is in order. That said, my RCBS, Redding and Forster dies come with a nice rust preventative layer of grease on them, no metal shavings, but the Same good cleaning process is in order. It's in the instructions for all my dies, Clean first, then use.

I have a lot of different dies, RCBS, Redding, Forster, Lee and even Neil Jones. At some point in my reloading career I have had to send dies back to the manufacturer for each and ever one of these brands. So, if you have never had a issue with any other die besides Lee, you are blessed.

Good Luck and Carry On.

[lee n. field]

Is this common? Am I doing something wrong?

Mine do that.

You might try polishing the little floating expander. Or you can live with the annoyance, like I do

I may be wrong here, and no offence intended, but did you get the carbide die or steel? The carbide does not require lube, I think the steel does. I have the carbide Lee .45 acp die and it works great.

Carbide only applies to the sizing die. For straight walled pistol cases, Lee only makes carbide sizing dies.

When the market turns around I'll e-bay these and get a set of RCBS. Until that time I'll survive.

He he. Then get used to the Lee.

BTW, noone says you can't mix and match dies from different makers. The Lee expander actuates the autodisk powder measure in the Lee progressive and turret presses. That's the only circumstance where you're stuck with using it.

[Old 454]

One thing to remember about Lee equipment, its price pointed for people with out a lot of cash to spend on reloading equipment.

With that saidI use Lee Loadmaster and there dies. I dont have a lot of cash with two kids in collage.

I do agree that some of there dies and other stuff I have gotten from them have come in less then desirable condition right from the factory.

I have .38 sp. bullet seat die that won't let the shell into the seater if just the smallest amont of bell on the case.

I have die lock rings that look like a lawn mower hit them with gouges in them.

I have a universal decapping die that the coulet was cross threaded.

I have a 6 bullet .357 bullet mold thats supposed to drop a .358 diameter bullet but drops .362 diameter and you have to use a punch to pounded it out of the Lee sizer. This is using Lyman #2 alloy

My personal opinion is that Lee has increased there foreign distribution to the point that alot of stuff that normally didn't make past QC is now going out.

But I aslo have 10 sets of lee dies that run as advertized with out problem.

I have 4 diffrent Lee sizers that also work as advertized.

I have a Loadmaster press that is quirky and at time tedious with all the monkeying around with it. But I have Modifications that arrived from Magic Mike from www.mikesreloadingbench.com that cost me $60.00 to have the carrier,primer arm, primer troughs, Primer pins and sliders to be modified. and I will be working on installing them tonight and look forward to a good working Loadmaster.
Lee can make a good product, they just need to really take a look at what there sending out.

I will be sending a box of this stuff to them for replacement.

[WhyteP38]

I polished the expander with 1200 Emory paper. This would hardly qualify as a modification. The abrasive is about as rough as toothpaste, they wet sand cars with it.

I guess cleaning it would have been modifying it as well.

First of all, I'm going by what you posted, so don't blame me if your post is inaccurate or incomplete.

You posted that you didn't like the sticking action, which as several others have stated is part of the design, which is to jar the auto-disk powder measure.

You don't like that part of the design, and you don't want it. Fine, I get that. We all get that. I don't see anyone saying you should like it or want it. I don't see anyone having any kind of problem with that.

Secondly, you said, "I have never had to break an out of the box set of RCBS dies down to polish, sand or alter in any way. They worked as expected, no fine tuning needed."

Apparently, the Lee die didn't work as you expected. However, based on your posts, it did work as you should have expected because it worked as it was designed, something that others have already pointed out.

Third, you said that you "took a piece of 1200 sandpaper and gave the expander a quick shine. I also used just a smidge of RCBS lube inside the neck. Problem gone. No more sticking."

Now the die works as you expected. Okay, that's fine too because it's your die. No big deal.

However, it now no longer works as designed nor as a potential buyer has a right to expect it to work. I have the Lee carbide die set for .45 ACP, I did my research before buying it, I knew about the sticking feature of the design, and I expected it to work that way when I used it. Anyone buying your die should have a reasonable expectation that it will at least work the way it was designed. Or if they know it's been modified and buy it, they should be willing to live with the modification.

Fourth, modification and cleaning are clearly different things, so to equate the two is simply nonsense. Modification means, at least in part, a change to the designed function. Cleaning doesn't do that.

Fifth, I don't doubt someone would buy it because, like you, they either don't care for the sticking feature either, or because they'll be using it with a non-Lee powder dispenser, so it's a non-issue if they know up front what they're getting.

Finally, why is it such a big deal to let a potential buyer know what you've done? What's there to be afraid of?

[spacecoast]

I have three sets of LEE dies:
.38 Special - My opinion is that they are trash, I don't even use them. I listed them on e-bay and didn't even get a bid.
.38 S&W - Pretty good and I use them frequently
.45 ACP -They are working better now than they did out of the box.

That's funny, I have 5 sets of Lee pistol dies that I've used to make 20,000 rounds with a hand press (and I always use the dreaded FCD, shame on me). They've all worked fine (well even) out of the box. I guess I was too stupid to know they are trash.

[WhyteP38]

That's funny, I have 5 sets of Lee pistol dies that I've used to make 20,000 rounds with a hand press (and I always use the dreaded FCD, shame on me). They've all worked fine (well even) out of the box. I guess I was too stupid to know they are trash.

Or perhaps you knew what to expect - how they're supposed to work - before you bought them.

[steve4102]

Originally Posted by WhyteP38

First of all, I'm going by what you posted, so don't blame me if your post is inaccurate or incomplete.

You posted that you didn't like the sticking action, which as several others have stated is part of the design, which is to jar the auto-disk powder measure.

You don't like that part of the design, and you don't want it. Fine, I get that. We all get that. I don't see anyone saying you should like it or want it. I don't see anyone having any kind of problem with that.

Secondly, you said, "I have never had to break an out of the box set of RCBS dies down to polish, sand or alter in any way. They worked as expected, no fine tuning needed."

Apparently, the Lee die didn't work as you expected. However, based on your posts, it did work as you should have expected because it worked as it was designed, something that others have already pointed out.

Third, you said that you "took a piece of 1200 sandpaper and gave the expander a quick shine. I also used just a smidge of RCBS lube inside the neck. Problem gone. No more sticking."

Now the die works as you expected. Okay, that's fine too because it's your die. No big deal.

However, it now no longer works as designed nor as a potential buyer has a right to expect it to work. I have the Lee carbide die set for .45 ACP, I did my research before buying it, I knew about the sticking feature of the design, and I expected it to work that way when I used it. Anyone buying your die should have a reasonable expectation that it will at least work the way it was designed. Or if they know it's been modified and buy it, they should be willing to live with the modification.

Fourth, modification and cleaning are clearly different things, so to equate the two is simply nonsense. Modification means, at least in part, a change to the designed function. Cleaning doesn't do that.

Fifth, I don't doubt someone would buy it because, like you, they either don't care for the sticking feature either, or because they'll be using it with a non-Lee powder dispenser, so it's a non-issue if they know up front what they're getting.

Finally, why is it such a big deal to let a potential buyer know what you've done? What's there to be afraid of?

Can't argue with that, well said and spot on.