Lee Factory Crimper

Bushmaster · Posted: Fri Oct 31, 2008 6:54 am Post subject: Re: Lee Factory Crimper

Real quick question...What advantage is there to just neck sizing over full length sizing. Please don't get into a long disatation. I understand both principles and am aware that neck sizing is supposed to make the ammunition more accurate, but to what extent. Remember. I have two rifles that shoot 3 rounds with a spread of 1 5/8" at 100 and 200 yards now. (.30 WCF and .30-06). I also know that I won't be just neck sizing the .30-30.

Vince · Posted: Fri Oct 31, 2008 6:58 am Post subject: Re: Lee Factory Crimper

Bushy, I think the original intention was to eliminate the majority of problems caused by excessive working of the brass. I believe that increased accuracy was simply a by-product of this innovation by Lee.

Cheers, Vince

WileyWapiti · Posted: Fri Oct 31, 2008 8:19 am Post subject: Re: Lee Factory Crimper

Sorry guys - Punkin, Vince and Denis - I have not been watching the site as closely as I do during the hunting "off" season. I appreciate your responses - yeah the Collet die is definately on my list of things to get tackled and you all have given me a good direction and I wll see where it goes. For me, if I cannot fix it I might try and do some trading with a buddy who is a little more savvy with all things mechanical and he loves a challenge - besides, he has been eying the die for a while and I would get a standard die out of the deal. I know, wrong attitude to have, but it really has got my goat - if I am to pick my battles, I will pass on this one and wait for my town to get overran with bikini clad swedish mud wrestlers - that is a battle more to my liking (and for the ladies out there, maybe your town could get overran by chipendale dancers - man I hope they don't get their battle maps mixed up......)

PaulS · Posted: Fri Oct 31, 2008 6:06 pm Post subject: Re: Lee Factory Crimper

Bushmaster wrote:

Real quick question...What advantage is there to just neck sizing over full length sizing. Please don't get into a long disatation. I understand both principles and am aware that neck sizing is supposed to make the ammunition more accurate, but to what extent. Remember. I have two rifles that shoot 3 rounds with a spread of 1 5/8" at 100 and 200 yards now. (.30 WCF and .30-06). I also know that I won't be just neck sizing the .30-30.

Bushy,
The advantages to neck sizing is that your brass lasts longer, the ammo you make is more centered in the chamber (if you only size half the neck it is even better) and it saves a step or two in the loading process if you use a cabide neck sizing die and boat tail bullets.
The draw back is that if you have two guns of the same caliber you have to keep the ronds separate or they may not fit in the other's chamber.
My '06 (springfield 03A3) shoots 1/2" to 3/4" groups with the norm at about 5/8".

woods · Member Joined: Oct 15, 2005 Posts: 89

The 2 immediate beneficial effects of sizing with the Lee Collet are that you do not have to lube inside the neck and runout is greatly reduced. Runout is reduced because you do not have to jerk the expander ball back through the neck and because the mandrel that you squeeze the collets onto to size the neck is free floating. It does not push the neck but lets it stay in a centered position that it achieved when fire formed by the more perfect rifle chamber.

If you wish to leave part of the neck chamber sized just size with a washer on top of the shell holder

then if you need to size the case body or push the shoulder back use the Redding Body Die

denis · Posted: Wed Nov 19, 2008 10:12 am Post subject: Re: Lee Factory Crimper

denis wrote:

I loaded up a batch of 30-06 for testing, using once-fired cases, neck-sizing, and a minimal factory crimp application (the collet petals closed about halfway). Half the cartridges were crimped, and the other half had the bullets seated without the crimp step.

Now I need to work in the time to do a good test firing, which may be a week or two as the waterfowl opener is this weekend.

Well, I finally ran the test, and did not see a difference between crimped and uncrimped in group size. It is entirely possible that had I (1) been far better a shot or (2) remembered to bring my lead sled that I might have seen a difference.

So at this point in my shooting and reloading, I'd have to conclude that the factory crimper neither helps nor hurts my accuracy.

Bushmaster · Posted: Wed Nov 19, 2008 11:33 am Post subject: Re: Lee Factory Crimper

Denis

That's pretty much the conclusion I came up with on the Winchester .30 WCF mod 94. At present I don't crimp my .30-06 rounds.

I would find it hard to believe that using the Lee Collet die would improve that rifle much better then it's shooting now (3 round group of 1 5/8" at 100 yards). It might, however, improve the .30-06's 1 5/8" three shot group at 200 yards though and I might just try that.