help with lee FCD

[Hardatwork]

I an loading 40 S&W I have loaded about 2000 rounds with this lee die set and today I was loading some 165 Gr. jhp and when I press on a loaded round down on my bench with my thumb I can press the bullet in to the case. I have tightened the FCD all the way down and still cant get the case to hold the bullet. do these FCD ware out that fast or what am I doing wrong can someone help me? Thanks

 

[NuJudge]

I have had this kind of problem with .45 acp

When this happened to me with the .45 acp the cause was a very old and thin lot of Remington brass. For that, a size die that reduced cases more than usual was the cure:
http://egw-guns.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=40

I worry that you were expanding brass too much also. Try flaring the case mouth without expanding the inside of the case at all, as is possible with the Lee cast bullet expander.

Can I suggest you try loading without the FCD and see if you have the problem. The FCD sizes down the cartridge and the bullet inside it. The cartridge case will bounce back some (Brass has a good bit of elasticity), but the bullet does not bounce back much at all (Lead has all the elasticity of cookie dough).

CDD

 

[Stinger]

Neck tension should be more than sufficient to hold a bullet in the case. You are more than likely 1) over-expanding, 2) overcrimping, 3) both.

The FCD is unnecessary. If you like it, good. If you NEED it, you have a problem somewhere in your process.

 

[FieroCDSP]

I started out crimping with my FCD in the 40cal, and I still had some slippage. After a while, I noticed that even a slight crimp on the seating die was superior to the FCD. I keep in in there because it occasionally catches a large lead-loaded case. BTW, I use Rainier plated. Just use 1/8 of a turn on the seating die to crimp and you'll probably see a better result.

 

[Hardatwork]

Thanks for your help I will try just using the seating die hope it works. Thanks you vary much !!

 

[Bullet]

Hardatwork
when I press on a loaded round down on my bench with my thumb I can press the bullet in to the case.

Taper crimp as used on your 40 S&W has nothing to do with holding the bullet. A taper crimp is only used to remove the flare on the case from expanding. As stated above the case or neck tension is what holds the bullet from being setback. I use and recommend the Undersize Reloading Die that NuJudge provided the link to.

I also crimp using the Lee FCD. A tip for adjusting the FCD – I took a nail and placed it in the center of the die adjustment knob and scratched a mark from the center out. Kind of like a hand on a clock. This makes telling how far you’ve turned it easier.

 

[nelson133]

Depending on how much the brass has been reloaded and/or how hot the loads, you may have brass that isn't "springy" enough to hold the bullet, anealling the bras or discarding may be the only answer.

 

[batoy1911]

"... when I press on a loaded round down on my bench with my thumb I can press the bullet in to the case."

Happened to me today, I was also having a tough time making the bullet seat die be consistent (some are seated shorter than the other)... bullets are also getting stuck in the bullet seat die with some case and if I used another case, out comes the bullet seated in the case… weird . Turned out I flared the cases more than necessary. Passed all of them again thru the sizing die (just the case mouth part will do), adjusted the powder through expanding die to give a minimum flare. All problems went away. User error, not equipment failure...