[possum]

i do, however i was wondering if anyone else does here, and how necessary it really is?

[ny32182]

I make sure the taper crimp ring in the seater die is contacting the case mouth, yes...

[parisite]

You bet I put a heavy crimp on my 44 Magnum cast lead reloads.

And yes I think it's necessary.

[Walkalong]

I use some sort of crimp on almost all loads.

[Ret.CWO]

Yes all my .357 and 44Mag. loads.

[Iron Sight]

Have roll crimped for my S&W 625 revolver. Obtained a Cannalure tool to do the job on FMJ .45 projectiles.

[hogshead]

Yes I used to have a Charter Arms Bulldog Pug[name is bigger than gun was]. Anyhow it was a .44 spc and it would back the bullets out of factory ammo. Royal pain to get the cyl unlocked so now I crimp all my reloads.

[JDGray]

All my handguns loads get the Lee Factory Crimp treatment. All you need is a light touch;)

[Stinger]

Only for revolvers...auto-loading cartridges don't need one unless you have over expanded, IMO. Others disagree, but I'm pretty sure NOBODY crimped auto cartridges 20+ years ago and they seemed to work fine then, too.

[jr_roosa]

You at least have to take the bell out of the case mouth on an auto round or they will hang up in the chamber.

I have to taper crimp my .45ACP to .471 or less or the slide won't reliably come to battery.

My .357 die is just a shade too big, so if I don't roll crimp the bullets would come out without much effort with recoil, or get pushed in in storage.

-J.

[jeepmor]

I crimp all my rounds back to specified diameter at the mouth. I only have semi autos, so no roll crimp experience here.

jeepmor

[PO2Hammer]

Revolver yes, auto no.

With my auto rounds I don't flare the cases when using jacketed bullets, just resize/reprime, charge and seat the bullet. Better bullet tension than flaring and crimping.

[Noveldoc]

I use lead bullets in my 45 ACP loads so do a bit of a taper crimp. Really improves seating and feeding. Note I do need some case mouth flare to avoid shaving bullets.

Could be I am mainly reversing the flare. Don't know. Does anyone else?

Tom

Tom

[Friendly, Don't Fire!]

I use lead bullets in my 45 ACP loads so do a bit of a taper crimp. Really improves seating and feeding. Note I do need some case mouth flare to avoid shaving bullets.

Could be I am mainly reversing the flare. Don't know. Does anyone else?

Tom

Tom
I do exactly as you do for 380 Auto, 38 Special and 500 Magnum.

The more the recoil, the more you want to crimp, preferably in a cannelure. For the semi-auto bullets, I make sure the Taper-Crimp is just enough to be barely noticeable, as any more and you start to press the brass case edge into the lead pill, which is a bit too much crimp.

I remove my gun barrel and test any questionable loads by dropping them into the chamber and they should end up perfectly flush (or pretty darned close to flush) with the back end of the chamber. This shows that the cardridge both fits the chamber, but also that the cartridge is headspacing at the end of the cartridge (the top edge of cartridge against the ridge at the beginning of the barrel throat). This is precisely why trimming the brass to within specs is so vitally important!

If, for some reason the cartridge JAMS, that is not a good sign, especially if the jam is caused by there being too much TAPER crimp, causing the end of the cartridge to slip past the ridge at the barrel throat (upon which it should be resting). If this happens and you fire the cartridge, instead of headspacing happening, you end up with a wedge effect which makes pressure spike as the bullet cannot easily come out of the end of the cartridge.

[Friendly, Don't Fire!]

Have roll crimped for my S&W 625 revolver. Obtained a Cannalure tool to do the job on FMJ .45 projectiles.
Which cannelure tool did you get?
I was thinking of one, but didn't have the money to shell out which I remember to be right around $100 to $150.

For that much money, I figured I would go without, however I like that cannelure in your picture!

[possum]

wow lots of replys and fast. thanks guys.

All my handguns loads get the Lee Factory Crimp treatment. All you need is a light touch
i do and use the same. i have a lee turret press, and love it. 4 hole with factory crimp die.

[HK G3]

I taper crimp my 45 Auto reloads, but very lightly. Just enough crimp to remove the belling essentially, nothing too extensive.

[Iron Sight]

"Which cannelure tool did you get?"


http://www.corbins.com/hct-1.htm

[chris in va]

I use the FCD on my 9mm loads. My CZ75 gets grouchy if the case rim is exposed too much.

[ROGER4314]

I avoid crimping pistol rounds as it is too easy to overcrimp and cause a bulge that will keep the round from chambering. I usually lower the crimp die so it removes any case bell mouth and maybe only a slight inward bend on high recoiling rounds. Been doing that for decades and the worst I've seen is a slug that backs out of the case a bit.

A good way to test your crimp or lack of it is with an inertial bullet puller. Insert a round in the puller and if you need to beat the daylights out of the puller to make the slug move, it has plenty of crimp.

Flash

[Historian]

I shoot a .40 S&W and load with RCBS dies. I have set the seating die to put just enough crimp to eliminate the bell. This has worked well for me over a couple of thousand rounds through my M&P. If I were loading for a revolver, I would put more crimp on each round but for a semi just a slight touch seems to work fine.

Historian

[fprefect]

22 Rimfire ammo is crimped. Does that tell you anything? Be it a revolver or pistol, if one bullet moves within the case under recoil or any other forceful jolt, your pistol will likely cease firing. Not good. Always taper of roll crimp.

F. Prefect

[chris in va]

22 Rimfire ammo is crimped

I don't think that's quite the same thing. A 22 bullet isn't so much seated in the brass as it is held there and then crimped into the ring. A normal handgun bullet has pressure put on it by the brass, 22LR does not (at least all the ones I've used).

[Kraylon]

i use the Lee factory crimp die just enough to remove the bell since if i don't they won't fit in my sig p220 (.45) and sig p229 (.40)

[gearheadpyro]

I crimp all of my auto loader pistol rounds. I have just recently started crimping my .308's as well and have found it to improve accuracy.

[PO2Hammer]

22 Rimfire ammo is crimped. Does that tell you anything?

No, not really. .22 ammo isn't subjected to the same forces as centerfire ammo.

Yes you need to prevent bullets from moving under recoil in a revolver or when they slam into the feed ramp, but in an auto pistol round, bullet tension can be achieved without a crimp.

Just as an example, most factory .38 Super ammunition is not crimped at all. Some is. I don't use a crimp anymore with .38 Super because I have enough grip on the bullet by just seating it. I can chamber my dummy rounds over and over in my 1911 without any bullet set back at all.

I should mention that I don't flare the cases, so there's no need to use a crimp die at all. I use a competition seater die that will seat the bullets (jacketed or plated) straight without flaring. It has no crimping capability. I think not flaring, or using an absolute minimum of flare is the key to bullet tension, not taper crimping in the auto pistol.

Before I had the Comp. seater, I used the seater/crimper just enough to remove the flare and return the case mouths to straight.

If you use slow powders, a crimp might help with accuracy by building pressure more quickly, but it's not physically necessary in my experience with 9mm, .38 Super or .45acp.

[seeds76]

I do NOW after experiencing my first time reloading .45 ACP last week. I shot my first load and was wondering why I can see UNBURNED gun powder residue in the chamber after each shot. Some of it actually flew up in my face and got stuck on my safety glasses. Asked some of the experienced reloaders at the range and they said it's common if you don't crimp enough.

[millertyme]

I haven't gotten around to relaoding my 9mm just yet, but all the info being shared here has answered several questions. As for my 44Mag, I roll crimp everything I reload for it.

[TEDDY]

auto rds that have jacket bullets have the expander smaller than for lead bullets.so the case holds ticht not so for lead as that would squeeze the lead.
unbenown to some all pistol bullets except auto were crimped.for the most part no revolver bullet was jacketed.untill lately.not until after the 357 mag came out.target shooters roll crimped their loads. taper crimp is a relatively new tecnic.I put a heavy roll on my 45acp.as the loads are low and helps to build pressure.if you load properly you wont buckle the case.70 yrs of reloading taught me something.as I had to learn the hard way by myself.

[Iron Sight]

Taper Crimp vs Roll Crimp for a .45 revolver (625 S&W)

I have found very few projectiles that are cannelured to receive a roll crimp for .45 acp bullet weights? (one) Ended up buying a cannelure installing tool. My goal was to eliminate crimp jump on my 625 S&W REVOLVER. At this point not sure if its worth the trouble for a .010-.015 crimp jump?

[Riss]

I keep a taper crimp on everything in a pistol. Hot revolver loads get a hair more than 2 thousandths on the diameter, going less than actual case diameter. Everything else gets 1 or 2 thousandths reduction of the overall diameter. One way to think of it is to crimp 1/2 the thickness of the case wall into the bullet.

[nulfisin]

And it makes sense, for the reasons stated above. Obviously, you can't roll crimp if your bullet doesn't have a groove (cannelure). You still, however, need to do a taper crimp, especially with higher power rounds like .45 acp. It doesn't take much time to adjust the seating/crimping die properly.

Finally, if I don't have a proper crimp, some of my guns simply won't chamber the round on a consistent basis. So, the question is academic there.

[Walkalong]

Heavy Taper Crimp - Powerbond 125 Gr HP .357 Mag

http://www.thehighroad.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=106429&d=1254418794

Link to more crimp pics (http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=469815&page=2)

[Sunray]

A crimp for revolvers is only needed for hot loads. Target loads don't need it and a crimp is detrimental to accuracy. Pistol cartridges feed more reliably with a moderate taper crimp.
"...NOBODY crimped auto cartridges 20+ years ago..." Wrong. Been taper crimping longer than that myself. Anybody who wants reliable .45 ammo, uses a taper crimp. Just removing the flare doesn't do it.
"...for the most part no revolver bullet was jacketed..." .357" JHP's have been around for eons.