RCBS hates me

[Action_Can_Do]

Either that or I have the worst luck with reloading equipment. When I bought a set of RCBS dies for my 45-70, I quickle discovered that the seating die didn't work. It wouldn't crimp. You could push the cartridge up into the die until the rim was almost touching the lip of the die and nothing would happen. I called RCBS and got a replacement die. Guess what. Exact same problem with the new die! What are the odds?

 

[ArchAngelCD]

The odds of 2 new dies being defective are very low. Are you sure you have the die adjusted correctly?

 

[ReloaderFred]

Is the brass trimmed to the proper length?

Hope this helps.

Fred

 

[Sunray]

"...the seating die didn't work..." The bullet get seated? I'd bet the die isn't set up properly.
Mind you, like ReloaderFred says, the case length might not be correct. Max is 2.105". Trim-to is 2.100".

 

[James2]

This page may be of some assistance.

 

[oldreloader]

I'd bet it's an ajustment problem. CAREFULLY go through the link from James2

 

[snuffy]

Are you trying to RE-load some of the Hornady flex tip empties? It's been reported that they are way shorter than normal 45-70 brass. As such, you may not be able to crimp those, without shortening the crimp die. That could/would need to be done on a lathe to get the bottom of the die square.

You said;"You could push the cartridge up into the die until the rim was almost touching the lip of the die and nothing would happen." So what happened when you DID push it all-the-way-to-the-bottom-of-the-die?

What will these be shot in? If a lever gun, then they DO need to be crimped. If in a single shot, then no need to crimp. Of course it's a good idea to remove the flare.

 

[Buzzard]

Hornady Lever Evolution brass can run a tick short depending on caliber. Says so right here in my Complete Guide to Hornady published last year (pp 95). The .444 runs 2.07" instead of 2.22" and the 45-70 cases run 2.03" instead of a proper 2.10". This is because of bullet length in relation to chamber length: flex-tips are longer than a flat-nose, so they shorten the case to make sure the case is holding the bullet on the full diameter shank instead of out on the ogive. Thus maintaining the same over-all length without shoving the bullet into the rifling when it gets chambered. The .35 Rem and 30-30 Win are both normal length.

 

[Action_Can_Do]

Snuffy
You guessed it. The brass is Hornady Lever evolution and it is indeed short by my measurements. The pieces average about 2.03" with some of them a bit shorter than that. To those that suggested it was an adjustment problem, no the die was screwed down as far as it could go. I screwed it down so far that eventually the arm of the press couldn't do a complete pass because the die was stopping the cartridge dead. I didn't realize the die wouldn't be able to crimp with such a small difference in case length and my 45-70 is a lever action so I do need the crimp. I don't know what to do other than buy new brass.

Buzzard
This really makes me wonder. How is a person supposed to crimp their cartridge if they're using the flex-tip bullets? Can the flex-tips be used with standard length brass?

 

[R.Clem]

I would suggest anyone using Hornady brass invest in a Lee or Redding crimp die.

Ray

 

[Buzzard]

Standard-length brass would either hold the bullet out on the ogive (to keep proper over-all length) or the bullet would get shoved hard into the rifling when chambered (if the case is holding the bullet on the shank where it should be). In short: nope. You need to use shorter brass if you want to load FTX bullets.

http://www.hornady.com/support/downloads/load-data

Even Hornady says so.

Sounds to me like you don't have the seater plug screwed down far enough. Not the die, just the seating stem (little black knob, top of the die? its adjustable; read the manual). If you adjust the seater plug down and it still won't go, call RCBS and ask 'em how to get the thing adjusted for FTX bullets.

 

[snuffy]

I would suggest anyone using Hornady brass invest in a Lee or Redding crimp die.

Ray

The Lee FCD wouldn't work either. I doubt any crimp die would work. They're made to crimp just short of full length of the die.

 

[Action_Can_Do]

Buzzard
The seating plug has nothing to do with crimping. In fact, I usually remove it completely when I crimp to guarantee the plug won't push the bullet into the case too far.

 

[GW Staar]

Snuffy
You guessed it. The brass is Hornady Lever evolution and it is indeed short by my measurements. The pieces average about 2.03" with some of them a bit shorter than that. To those that suggested it was an adjustment problem, no the die was screwed down as far as it could go. I screwed it down so far that eventually the arm of the press couldn't do a complete pass because the die was stopping the cartridge dead. I didn't realize the die wouldn't be able to crimp with such a small difference in case length and my 45-70 is a lever action so I do need the crimp. I don't know what to do other than buy new brass.

Buzzard
This really makes me wonder. How is a person supposed to crimp their cartridge if they're using the flex-tip bullets? Can the flex-tips be used with standard length brass?

Send both dies back to RCBS with a few cases and bullets and an explanation of where the brass came from, and see if they don't like you more than you think! You might just begin a new product for them.

 

[CraigC]

Or ask for a .45-60 seat/crimp die.

 

[nicholst55]

As you've probably figured out by now, .45-70 brass varies in length - a lot! This is something that BPCR shooters and those who paper patch their bullets figured out a long time ago. It sucks, but that's life.

You can buy a device to 'stretch' the brass to optimum length, or you can have a bit taken off the bottom of your seating die to achieve the same thing, for your purposes, anyway. Or, as someone suggested, buy a 45-60 seating die.

FWIW, Starline .45-70 brass is normally very close to SAAMI specs in length.

 

[Hey_Allen]

I see that Nicholst55 suggested it, but I was going to point out something that I've seen others do, and likely Hornady already does to their dies.

Make the crimp die shorter.

If you take a few thousandths off of the bottom of the crimp/seating die, and then rebevel the entrance, you should be able to crimp those cases.
Admittedly, this usually requires a metal lathe, or a friend with one!

The alternatives that I can see would be to either use "standard" length brass if any can be found, or to buy dies that are shorter. As Hornady makes that ammunition, as well as selling those bullets, I wouldn't be overly surprised to find that their dies might have a shorter nose. (As well as that their dies are often a bit shorter, due to allowing clearance on the LnL press.)

 

[surbat6]

You might consider asking a machinist to mill about 0.1 inch off the base of the seating/crimp die. Don't forget to bevel the edge! Then you could crimp the Hornady brass, and with a 0.1 inch-thick washer between the lock ring and the press, you wouldn't have to re-adjust the die for everybody else's brass.

 

[Victor1Echo]

RCBS might hate you, but THR loves you!!