I've been loading for 10 years. All I've ever done is straightwall pistol (.45, .44, .357). Ever since I shot my first .357 sig round, I knew that it was a fun round to have and I wanted to make it, but there is so much bad that is said about its difficulty to reload. I finally decided to try it. Here's what I've done with no success (failure in that I had bullet setback every time).
Press: Dillon 550B
Dies: Dillon carbide .357 Sig
Bullet: Hornady 115 gr HAP JHP
Lube cases with One Shot (including the mouth)
Full length resize (nominal O.D on mouth is .373
Bell case mouth .005 over resized case mouth size (nominal bell size is .378)
Seated bullet to 1.145" (factory is 1.140, but this puts bullet shoulder at or below case mouth)
Crimp: I crept up on crimp in 1/4 turns, I chambered each round and checked for setback, all rounds displayed set back until crimp was so hard it collapsed the shoulder of the cartridge.
There is one step I neglected. In all of the above, I did not use any powder. I decided not to set up my dies and have to deal with powder, too.
The only two things that I can think of is:
1. Should I select a powder with a high volume so as to fill the case and minimize or eliminate setback due to a compressed load (I'm not a fan of compressed loads).
2. Should lube and size, then clean the lube and reload (is it possible that since lube is inside the case that is contributing to setback?)
I have ruined 50 bullets and cases with no success. I need to stop and ask questions.
Thanks,
CH
Press: Dillon 550B
Dies: Dillon carbide .357 Sig
Bullet: Hornady 115 gr HAP JHP
Lube cases with One Shot (including the mouth)
Full length resize (nominal O.D on mouth is .373
Bell case mouth .005 over resized case mouth size (nominal bell size is .378)
Seated bullet to 1.145" (factory is 1.140, but this puts bullet shoulder at or below case mouth)
Crimp: I crept up on crimp in 1/4 turns, I chambered each round and checked for setback, all rounds displayed set back until crimp was so hard it collapsed the shoulder of the cartridge.
There is one step I neglected. In all of the above, I did not use any powder. I decided not to set up my dies and have to deal with powder, too.
The only two things that I can think of is:
1. Should I select a powder with a high volume so as to fill the case and minimize or eliminate setback due to a compressed load (I'm not a fan of compressed loads).
2. Should lube and size, then clean the lube and reload (is it possible that since lube is inside the case that is contributing to setback?)
I have ruined 50 bullets and cases with no success. I need to stop and ask questions.
Thanks,
CH
Last edited by a moderator: