Convert expander die to seater?

[eldon519]

Hello,

I'm using a Dillon 550B in which the powder funnel does the neck expanding for pistol cartridges. Since I am not using my expander die, can I replace the plug with a seating plug from a crimp/seating die? I'd like to seat and crimp in different steps. Most of my pistol dies are Redding and RCBS and it would be about 1/3 the cost to buy seating plugs vs. buying a whole new crimp/seat die.

 

[rcmodel]

The best bet would be to take the seating stem out of the seating / crimp die and see if it will screw in the expander die.

I have no idea if it will or not, but you have the dies, so try it.

rc

 

[fguffey]

I made a seater, no die body, I used an aluminum can crusher, worked. Seater plugs, I have the green sorter box with a lid from from RCBS, I purchases a RCBS 44 Remington Mag die set with the 'Skip,s type spacer only it is about .071" thick, complete with 2 seater plugs for $5.00, the sizer die was carbide with a 1981 date, more expensive?

I have RCBS expander dies with primer punches, I have RCBS expander dies that only expand, not a problem for me but finding parts that are interchangeable between the seating die and the expander die would be difficult, most of my seating dies have a plug that screws through the top of the die from the bottom and are held in with a small lock nut. I could cut a bushing that matches the expander die threads and the seating plug, The expander die has a lot of room inside of it.

Then there is the tipping bullet, with a lot of room there is a big chance the bullet will not always align, and that is the reason I like the Gold Medal and Precision/competition dies with guides and the window on the side.

F. Guffey