Lyman M die

[henry-ctc]

Just a simple question.
Can the 38/357 Lyman M expanding die be used to expand 9mm Luger cases?.
I´d like to save some money as I already have the 38/357. And I´m very pleased with it, much more than with the Lee expander.

 

[GooseGestapo]

"MAYBE"
I've got both short and long body's and .30cal and .22cal expanders. Neither would work without shortening the expander stem.

I "made" a .35cal expander for the .35Rem from a decapper/expander stem from an RCBS .38spl/.357mag die, but it has a too-long of shank for the 9mm case which has less than 1/2" inside depth. You might can grind/cut down the stem to fit..... Stem's aren't that expensive if you "botch" it...

I have used the Lee "Universal" expander and it works well, but I can understand why you may want to use an "M" die.

I suspect that Lyman may make you one if you contact them.

Many expanders don't precisely center the expander which results in the case being flared off center and bullets being seated slightly off center with a "coke bottle" buldge to one side. (ever look at some Remington factory 9mm 115gr JHP ammo ??? It's BAD !!! ).

I found I could correct this by using a Lee "Oversize" sizer and "polishing" a Lee "Powder-through expander" die to correct the off center tendency.
I was/do load "match" grade 9mm of competiton and this is what drove my search. I also use an over-sized 9mm "factory crimp" die which tends to iron out some of the worse off centered seated bullets.... But not completely. (Remember the 9mm case is "tapered" and the f-c die works a little differently than one for a "straight walled" case such as .38spl).

Good luck !!! Do contact Lyman and let us know what you find out...

 

[henry-ctc]

Great reply. Thank you.