Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters lee collet dies

Steve,

You’re right. Mathman shows how to do just that without carnage.

At least I didn’t go thru too many aluminum caps.

Even slow learners catch on eventually. Blind hog sometimes finds an acorn.

It ain’t rocket surgery.

DF

I haven’t popped a cap yet, but in process of learning how to use the LCD I’m pretty sure I came close….

🙂. Glad to hear it.

The short of it is, don’t fight the press. Be gentle. Your equipment and loads will appreciate it!

You just not ham handed enough. I’m not saying you a wuss…., not a man’s man….!

Just saying you have too much finesse to blow an aluminum cap.

Ha!

DF

FL dies don’t have mandrels, they have an expander, sometimes referred to as an expander ball.

The LCD has a mandrel.

Mandrels and expander balls size the neck using different methods, but obviously the result is the same.

No, not exactly.....

Not exactly the same result?

Not exactly.

A LCD mandrel sized case is likely to be more concentric. The down side with that die, you occasionally need a body die which is an extra step.

The expander pulled thru a case neck can pull the case sorta crooked, if one side of the case is a bit thinner than the other. Cases aren't always perfect.

The LCD with mandrel doesn't pull anything thru the neck, but compresses the neck from all sides, not disturbing the concentricity of the case.

DF

It is both gratifying and amazing that this thread has gotten this far without anyone piously checking in to inform us that Lee makes some cheap stuff that, while serviceable, does not meet the quality of equipment from superior manufacturers that is favored by truly discerning handloaders.

Yep, a LCD has a better chance of making straight necks of even cantankerous brass. But, I have a few FL and NK dies that can make necks as straight as my LCD’s. Although the advantage to the LCD is it doesn’t stretch the brass.

What die works best is often dependent on the chamber and the particular brand/lot of brass I’m using. Which is why I have learned not to sell my dies.

As an added note, I have good success making straight necks with conventional dies by judiciously sanding and polishing the expander ball, paying special attention to the transition from the taper to the full diameter.

Lee:
-Brilliant engineering
-Adequate quality control
-Suspect materials

Sorry, I just could not resist!
😊

Gee!

I have heard of some other folks who do the same things. But in general PUSHING the expander ball (if it's straight) into the neck results in straighter necks. This is because the bottom of the case is supported by the bottom of the shell-holder.

All of which is why I test every new set of "conventional" sizing dies (whether neck or full-length) to see how they do before loading any batch of ammo.

Sometimes they make straight cases right out of the box. If not, I use various techniques to fix 'em.

Must also note that have encountered more than one sizing die over the decades that was defective, due to the neck portion being out-of-line with the body....

I know this.

But that’s not what I posted.

I’ve been using LCD’s for a number of years now. I use FL, Body, NK, and LCD dies, depending on what works best.

I’ve been measuring runout ever since I bought my Sinclair concentricity gauge 35 years ago.

If I’m at the point where I have to push the expander instead of pull to make straight necks, I resort to a body die and LCD.

Sanding/ polishing the expander has often made a suspect die into an excellent one for me.

An out of alignment body and neck may well explain why I have some dies that have been hopeless!

The beauty of the Lee Collet system is the cost factor. For nominal cost one can make ammo about as concentric as a near $300 competition die set with neck sizing bushings, no need for an expander.

With those dies the sizer sizes the case body, the neck sizing bushing can be changed to get the perfect neck sizing without needing an expander.

The seaters are precise with micrometers. Now, as noted earlier, I’m not overly impressed with Lee seaters. They’re hit and miss. With some rounds I use a better seater, some with floating bullet guides.

And I do check concentricity with a Sinclair, correct run out with a TruAngle tool.

DF

When using a standard expander style full length or neck sizing die, one thing that helps is to not excessively reduce the neck diameter to start with. Acro Lap tools are a great way to lap the I.D. of the neck portion of a die.
https://www.penntoolco.com/acro-laps-for-high-speed-lapping-polishing-deburring/

I have been looking for such a tool for a long time.......thanks Al

You’d have to be careful to keep it concentric, not remove too much material, you can’t put it back.

But that would be cheaper than buying a fancy set of competition dies with neck bushings. At least with those, you can swap out different bushings to tweak neck pressure with different neck thickness.

Lapping, you get one shot at getting it right. And better use brass with consistent neck thickness or turn the necks.

I’ll stick with LCD’s and a body die. I like to make body dies from Lee FL dies. Cheaper than a Redding body die.

Sometimes a body die can be adapted, removing decapping/expander from a larger caliber, same case body. Ex. .308 body die for 7-08, etc.

Lee Collet sizer is the least expensive way to get there. Especially if you buy their 4 die set and make your body die from the included FL die. To me that the best use of a Lee Fl sizer.

DF

Have happily used the LCD for several calibers along with a Redding body die. I usually end up lightly sanding them to get the desired neck tension. I like a bit more for my hunting rounds. Great combo! I will say I used to buy a set of Redding dies as a default. Recently had a set of 30-06 dies that pretty much leaves zero neck tension. I have pretty for the most part moved over to Forster sets and am very happy.