[72V]

Is anybody aware of a RCBS two die (full length size/seating die) set that is equipped to crimp? I'm pretty sure my#14601 is not.

[mainebear]

Not sure. I've tried to crimp 30-30 with my RCBS dies but found that doing the crimping with the Lee FCD (factory crimp die) works much better. It's very easy to ruin the shoulders on 30-30s while trying to crimp them. (and no it's not always an overlubing problem) I gave up and used the FCD. Problem solved, great cartridges, Oal, Etc. every time. FCDs are not very expensive either. Hope this will clear this up for you.

[jr_roosa]

That die set crimps and mine does a decent job, it's just a little bit of a pain to adjust the first time.

Because some of my bullets are smooth-sided (no crimp) and others have a cannelure (crimp) I have to re-adjust the whole die every time I switch bullets. If you do a lot of back-and-forth, it might be best to get a dedicated crimping die. Hard to imagine getting enough volume through my Model 94 to need that, though.

Remember that you can't crimp if you're using a bullet without a groove of some sort to accept the crimp.

-J.

[The Bushmaster]

Lee FCD is the only way to go when loading .30-30...

[SASS#23149]

your die should apply a crimp if set down far enough.
life is easier if you buy another crimp die,then crimp in a seperate step...much easier to adjust 2 dies than the 1.
I shoot cast bullets with a roll crimp groove,and bought a roll-crimp die,I believe it was from rcbs,but I don't believe it's listed on their websit..have to ask for it.
look inside your die,if there is a 'step' or shoulder in there,it should apply a crimp.

[rcmodel]

Put an empty case in the ram, raise it to the top, and screw the seating die down until it stops against the case mouth.

Another 1/8 to 1/4 turn should crimp the case.

Now adjust the seating stem to get the bullet cannelure where it goes and you should be in business.

Be aware that 30-30 cases vary in length more then anything else I have ever reloaded.

They must be sized & trimmed to the same length in order to get consistent crimps.

rcmodel

[72V]

Thanks for the info. I'll give it another try and see if I can get it to crimp. I crumpled a couple of case necks before and thought I was barking up the wrong tree.

[jr_roosa]

Make sure you're setting the die up per the RCBS instructions.

I don't have them handy right now, but the general idea is that you screw down the die body until the crimping ridge contacts the case mouth and then back it off a half turn or so. Lock the body in place with the lock ring and then adjust the seater to seat the bullet just right. Then back out the seater and screw down the die a little at a time until it crimps just right. Lock the lock ring, screw down the seater until it contacts the bullet, and then seat/crimp a new bullet and see if the length and crimp are what you want.

If you're crushing shoulders it's probably because you've got the die too low (too much crimp) and it's crimping the case mouth while you're still pushing the bullet in.

Also, consistent crimp is hard to achieve if your cases aren't trimmed after sizing. The long cases crimp more and the short cases crimp less.

Mine end up with the case mouth just barely rolled into the cannelure, and that's fine with me.

You'll never get the same results that you see on factory rounds where the brass is really smooshed into the cannelure without a separate die. If you try for that in one step with a crimp/seating die, you'll crunch the shoulder because the crimping starts too early.

-J.

[moooose102]

years ago, i had rcbs dies for the 30-30 and loaded with them. they would crimp, but i never did get them to do it at the same time as bullet seating. i remember ruining several shells before giving up. i settled for seating the bullets, then backing the seater way off and adjusting the die to crimp. rc is right about the cases needing to be the same length. but it is not so critical with the lee factory crimp die (which i have now).

[Eagle103]

Another endorsement for the Lee FCD. The thin walls of the old 30-30 make it very difficult to pull off a crimp without ruining the brass a good share of the time without one.

[72V]

I tried it again tonight, all cases trimmed to 2.029", etc, etc. It would make an uneven "crimp" that was just barely visible. If I tried to turn the die down a little more, it would start shaving brass. I think the Lee FCD is in order, since it's only ten bucks.

[Birdhunter1]

Another vote for the LEE fcd, I love it. Add another step to the process but by the time you've full ength sized, trimmed, cleaned, charged, loaded and then crimping what really does another step matter!
Plus the whoel time I'm on a bar stool in my shop, have a movie going on the laptop and a drink on the bech so it's not like I'm slaving hard or nothing!

[ants]

Did you trim the cases evenly? Go back to Post #6 above. That's something I learned 35 years ago when I started loading .30-30 before they had an FCD.

The dies can be adjusted to crimp evenly, but you must prep the cases identically. The value of the FCD is that you don't have to prep cases carefully any more.

[Cosmoline]

I also really like the lee factory crimp die for my .30-30 handloads.

[Birdhunter1]

Ants if you were asking me that question yes I do trim all my cases evenly. I have a Forster case trimmer and it doesn't take long to trim 100 cases, my normal reloading routine is either rainy days or I'll take a few days to get all my reloading, gun cleaning and shop cleaning done in those days. I work evening so I have alot of daytime hours to be doing things.

[ranger335v]

"I crumpled a couple of case necks before and thought I was barking up the wrong tree."

You hit the crimping ring. Too hard!

Since "normal" crimping with seating dies is so critically dependant on case length, I long ago gave up with them and just use the Lee FCD. Have one for everything I load.

[shinz]

Another vote for the Lee FCD though if you do want to use the factory seater crimp die with uncannelured bullets you can always just slip a large thin washer under the die ring as you screw it in to save readjusting your crimp depth, I used to do this before there ever were FCDs. The advantage with a FCD is that you can use them to put a crimp into uncannelured bullets or crimp were the cannelure isn't. Contrary to what people like to say this will have absolutely negligible effect on accuracy, especially at 30-30 rages.
Steve