About $140 from CH4D, and about $240 from Huntingtons. Are the ones from Huntingons worth the $100 price difference, or should I just go with CH4D?

Try Grafs - Redding 3 die set for about $80 if they have existing stocks left.

Now as it turns out, when I bought my .404 a 3-die set came with it. I hate to sound really stoooopid, but what's the third one for? I've loaded, shot, reloaded and had no problems using just the forming and setting die. What does the third one do?

It depends. If the 3rd die has a decapping pin, it is most likely a neck sizer. Others come with a crimp die or a trim die.

I placed an order with Grafs for the Redding dies, $120 out the door. I use a Lyman case trimmer, and I see that Lyman does not have a pilot specifically for the 404 Jeffery. Could one for a 44 magnum work? .423 diameter for the 404, .429 for the 44 magnum, is that too much of a difference?

I ordered mine directly form Redding, about $120.

Oldsarge,

The third die is for belling the case mouth before seating a cast bullet.

I've got a three die set from Ch2d, when ordering I asked about the third die, they said to bell the mouth. I'm of the opinion thats for lead bullets. After looking at it there is also an expander ring about a half inch before the mouth belling part. I'm not real crazy about 3 die sets and would have prefered 2 die. But I've never loaded a case with as long a neck as 404 that I can remember.

I will never own another set of CH 4d dies...I ordered a set for my .470 and they did not bring the neck down enough to fit any bullets with any of the available brass...

Dave argued that he was right and RCBS, Huntingtons, Butch Searcy, Norma, Bell and RWS else was wrong, Huntingtons told me he had no clue on how to make a set of dies, and it turns out they are right IMO. He insisted that he uses the proper specs and all the others do not, so its their fault and he wanted $50. from me to re-do them... Hell that may be, but I am the consumer and could care less who is right or wrong, if I buy dies I want them to work...He finally said well you can afford to go to Africa every year you can sure afford to pay me the $50. but I will replace them because I feel sorry for you, pretty sarcastic, so I told him that I was sending him his crap back and I expected a full refund..

I got a refund less a stocking charge? or something $15.00 less than what paid for them, I now have an expensive set of RCBS and they work with all the brass and bullets...A costly lesson well learned...Besides I was tired of listening to all his blabber and BS.....

In all fairness, I have used 4d in the past with std. calibers and other than they were kind of rough, they worked...I have also received some emails from folks who have had 4d problems also...

To each his own, but never again for me.

Well,

I just walked out to the old reloading bench and attempted to run some new 404 norma brass through my new 3 die set I got from Ch4d, best I can tell they will not work.

The expander is on the second die, the neck on the expander is to short, leaves a ridge about 3/4 way down, thats are far as it goes before it hits the bell.

Been stuffing bullets since I was skinny, this aint going to work.

Shell holder the sent did fit either, but I had one from my 300 ultramag.

I'll find out how good there return policy is tomorrow.

Like Ray, I also had problems with my CH4D .470 dies. I didn't have the same problem as Ray did but the dies just didn't seem right.



Here was my reply to Ray in the 470 Nitro - Chamfering helps !! thread concerning my experience with my CH4D 470 dies:

Quote:

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#712721 - 07/07/04 10:01 AM



Ray,



Thanks for passing along your experiences with the CH4D .470 dies. While I haven't had a problem with the sizing of the cases, for bullet seating, I do have to keep the seating die very high off the shell holder (compared to the RCBS dies I use for all my other cartridges) in order to avoid crimping the cases while seating bullets. I'm talking about the bottom of the die having to be an inch or so off the shell holder. (I prefer to seat and crimp in two operations.) That's always bugged me. It's made me be suspicious of the construction of the dies. I just think the crimping "edge" in the die is too far down the body of the die. It just seems weird to me. Also, like others here have reported, I find the threads on the dies to be rather rough.



I think I'm just going to have to purchase the RCBS dies. As you know, they're expensive but they're only a little more than the price of one box of Federal .470 ammo! I guess I can justify the expense that way.

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I did end up purchasing the RCBS dies. They work fine.



-Bob F.