OK My .257 roberts die number on it says:LEE-257 ROB-B5 on my decapper... I took it apart and it has a needle thing inside and I CANNOT get my pictures on here. It is basically this die except mine IS shorter. Not sure if that is because it is a .257 or the die type.



I took out the needle and resized the neck and THE BULLET WAS FINALLY TIGHT!!! But now I just need it to decap and resize in one motion :I

I believe this is my set:

Hmm Max, it sounds like you have removed your expander (and decapping assembly) from a FL sizing die. It is not too much of a worry that you are unable to size and decap in a single operation. If needed, you can decap with a socalled "Universal Decapping Die" - albeit in a separate operation.

The missing expander MIGHT be more problematic. To understand that, you have to understand how a regular sizing die works. To overcome issues with varying brass hardness, dies using an expander first size down the size of the neck a whole bunch - more than the final size to be obtained. Returning the press handle to its' upper position, will then wrest the expander through the now undersized neck - this is how the final case neck diameter is controlled. In this system, it is largely the diameter of the expander, which determines the final neck diameter - and thus the amount of neck tension you get on the bullets.

If you remove the expander, and simply use the die as it is, you will likely get a WHOLE BUNCH of neck tension. Problem is, seating your bullets, you now ask your bullet to perform the work of the expander. This could well cause the bullets to be damaged at the heel, and that is the worst place you can damage a bullet for accuracy. I can't tell you whether your current setup (wiithout the expander assembly in place) will work well or not, you'll have to try this out.

You sound like you have not been reloading for that long, at least you need to get your vocabulary right. Is that correct?? Have you adjusted the die according to the instructions which came with it?? If yes, now take the expander and measure the diameter - normally a ball or oval shaped body on the decapping assembly. This size needs to be about .003 -.005" smaller than the bullet diameter of the bullets you are using (note: some bullets are undersized, so make sure you measure the bullets as well). If the expander happens to be too large, polish it down to the correct size.

- mike

Max, I used the same die system and press for quite a while. It was difficult to get set up in that press. The first good thing I did was to toss the Lee lock rings with the rubber in them and get split rings that lock to the die body with screws. It greatly helps repeatability on setup. Secondly, make sure the depriming pin just barely pushes the primer out. Lee seems to have a long expander ball, you may be bottoming out on the case web and you may only be sizing a small portion of the neck. Use the collet die, it is your friend...Make sure it is clean. When using that press I had to give it 1 and 1/4 turns in after it touched the shell holder to achieve the correct tension. I also chucked the expander ball unit up in a drill and got after it with 320 wet/dry sandpaper and flitz as a lube. It polished up beautifully.

Max now that you`ve found the die is sizeing the case neck try reinstalling the expander a little at a time until it just pops the primer out of the case and see if the bullet fit is still tight. I think you had the decapper too deep in the die and it wasn`t letting the case fully enter it.

Let us know how you are doing with this......

quote:

I think you had the decapper too deep in the die and it wasn`t letting the case fully enter it.

That was my thinking as well.

Let us know what you find next.

-Steve