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Posted: 4/4/2010 9:08:25 AM EDT
| Once my full-length size die is properly set to fit the cases in the case gage/ chamber it doesn't need to be adjusted anymore, does it? I can be free to "lock down" the lock rings somehow to ensure there is no movement? I mean, it almost never needs adjusting, unlike say, a bullet seater or crimp die? |
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You are correct that once you find the "right" depth setting for a sizing die, the die itself doesn't need further adjustment. The only problem is that most presses simply give you a threaded hole to put the die in-which makes it hard to swap the die out so you can do something other than just size with that press.
Hornady's "Lock -n- Load" and Lee's "Breech Lock" systems use adapters that you set the dies into. This lets you do exactly what you want - set the sizer once and never have to mess with it again - while still giving you the flexibility to move dies around. |
| Your sizing die, although "perfectly adjusted" at the moment, may need a little tweaking later. If you resize different brands of brass, especially foreign manufactured, you will notice the die won't get the same results. This can happpen with good ole' USA branded brass as well. Thin walled brass resizes easily, thick hard brass does not. This is why we use gages, to check the end product for surprises. |
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Quoted:
Once my full-length size die is properly set to fit the cases in the case gage/ chamber it doesn't need to be adjusted anymore, does it? I can be free to "lock down" the lock rings somehow to ensure there is no movement? I mean, it almost never needs adjusting, unlike say, a bullet seater or crimp die? Yes, kinda, maybe, well no. With every firing and resizing the brass becomes harder and harder. This is called "work hardened". Work hardened brass will resize fine in the die, but it will spring back more than softer (new) brass. Two ways to deal with work hardened brass, adjust the die deeper to allow for this unwanted "spring back" or anneal the brass to put it back to nice soft like new brass. http://accurateshooter.wordpress.com/2007/04/07/annealing-restoring-life-to-your-brass/ |
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I almost never re-adjust my sizing dies. Just screw them in and out as I need them.
If you have a proper lock ring, the die can go in and out and stay in adjustment. Lee dies do not have a proper lock ring and will have to be adjusted every time. All other brands come with proper lock rings. That's why people buy turret presses. They don't have to adjust the die because the die doesn't have a proper locking. 
My Hornady 223 dies with a Lee FCD. (factory crimp die). I use Lee dies, but I modify the o ring and nut so It is a "lock ring". I drill and tap for a 10/32 set screw which is the same size as all other dies. (Uses same allen wrench to tighten.) You can also buy just lock rings if you don't want to modify the Lee rings. Put a flattened #6 shot between the set screw and the die thread then install set screw. The shot will keep the set screw from marring the die threads. This is for all dies and lock rings. When I start sizing a new batch of cases. I size 3 or 4, wipe off the lube, and check them with a case gauge. I also check the last couple of sized cases of the batch, just to be sure. Bullet seater or crimp die, the lock ring should not have to be adjusted after initial setup. It's the adjustments on the top of the die that get adjusted as you change loads. |
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