What would I need to...

[Bisley]

Awright,

I am consolidating into new tooling since learning what the gunsmith had to say about my King Cobra. Most important number is .359, the chamber mouth diameter, according to his pin gauge. Since I only have RCBS factory-dimension carbide dies, I get hour-glass ammo, size-on-seating, leading and accelerated wear on cases. The LEE universal expander only puts a flare on the case mouths. They'll fit, feed, fire and function, but that's about it.

Lyman Cast Bullet Handbook describes slightly larger inside dimensions on a .38 Super sizing die. Has anyone tried that to size .38/357 for cast lead?

I recall that someone makes custom-diameter inside neck expander plugs, compatible with the Lee Universal neck expander dies. If so, who?
Any suggestions on expander diameter, to secure the bullet without size-on-seating?

Would the suggested bullet diameter be .359 or .360?

Bisley

 

[Gary]

N.O.E. they have what you're looking for. What does the barrel slug? Go one or two thousandths over barrel diameter.

 

[fiver]

what's your barrel diameter?
just curious but if it's 357 or 355 [yeah not unheard of]
your gonna approach the sizing just a bit different though.

as far as the dies.
a lot of guy's are still using the steel size dies and backing off on the full length sizing.
they are some tapered giving you options as far as diameter by employing partial length sizing.

another option is some are using the oversized carbide rings in the LEE FDC's FCD's whatever to size with.
they are nothing more than oversized screwup's from the sizing bin anyway.

a third is talking to RCBS about their cowboy die sets, they have a bit more generous diameters.
a phone call to them might be worth your time if you have some die measurements in hand and can do a little quick math while on the phone.

or you could expand the cases back up after squeezing them down too far.

 

[Cherokee]

I use an old Lyman carbide sizer for 38/357. Tried the Lyman Super 38 sizer and it yielded about the same sized measurement. For CB, I use a Lyman M die with 38P expander button that I modified to add a flare to the case mouth. NOE now makes several expanders for the 'Universal" that should work for you with CB's.

 

[RicinYakima]

RCBS Cowboy dies solved my 25/20 and 32/40 cast bullet issues, FWIW.

 

[Rick]

If your throats are .359" your bullets should be sized to a mild snug fit in the throats. Only one reason to slug a revolver barrel and that is to determine it at or a tad under throat diameters, in your case .359". The advice to call RCBS is good or just buy the RCBS cowboy dies, they were designed for the larger cast bullet diameters. I also recommend partial sizing over full length sizing.

 

[Brad]

I only partial length size. I size just past the base of the bullet. The rear of the case stays unsized and helps center the case in the chamber.
As long as the loaded ammo chambers all is good.

 

[Bisley]

Fiver,

You mention guys using steel dies and backing them off. I see old Pacific dies on EvilBay and remember Dad having a set that worked very well sizing wide for cast lead in .38 Special / 357 Magnum. I did not get lead cutting at the cylinder, and lead in the chamber mouths and barrel, until I used the nifty RCBS carbide dies. .38 Officer's Model Target, or King Cobra, either one. Just had to clean the cases (Lube every third one, I recall) and dies. Are all Pacific dies (everything is "Vintage" on EvilBay) old enough to have wide-diameter case resizing, or does anyone know?. The RCBS Cowboy dies are three times the Pacific in price.

As a rule, is there a general oversize dimension for the Lee FCD? I mean, is there a consistent x-thousandths of an inch oversize to predict what the die will do for me?

Bisley

 

[fiver]

I'm not positive on a consistent diameter on the LEE's.
all I know about them is they needed a way to use all the carbide size rings they screwed up and the FCD was born.

steel sets are all tapered.
if they weren't you'd be using a 3' long press handle.

 

[RBHarter]

I used a set of carbide 9mm dies early on for 38 Special . I've had several sets of 38/357 dies . I loaded lots of both several years ago then I got into a 45 Colts and haven't shot any I don't think in 5-6 yr . I think I have 2 carbide sets and a steel set .

For a 45 Colts that's especially large , I used a Lee 45 ACP FCD for a sizer with it's crimping parts and cap removed I expect that a 9mm , 38 Super would do .
Have we tried a 223 or 222 Mag sizer ? Just as a band-aid in lieu of a correct die for the application .

 

[CWLONGSHOT]

I like the Lyman M-Die my self. I tried the lee universal case expander. It just flaired. Powder drop was nice tho. Then I found Lyman also has a powder drop flair tool. Its Pilots are simular to the M-Die And they work great for me.

As for proper dia. Revolvers bullets need to be sized to the barrel as Rick outlined to ya. Colts 357 barrels usually run small .355 small.

My King shoots .360's best .359's fairly. Smaller than that are not great at all. My throats are .359 as well. Mine is a very early 4 digit gun. I had a 8" Whitetailer barrel installed on mine way back. Its a awesome shooter.

CW

 

[DHD]

I've recently started using NOE's expanders and will say they open up the case to my Goldilocks size. You can buy a lot of larger than standard sizes if it suits you.

The expander doesn't address oversizing the case by the sizer though. Like many have already mentioned, I'll partial size some calibers cases. In a caliber that I have multiple revolvers, I tend to full length size to preclude chambering issues.

 

[CWLONGSHOT]

I would like to try the NOE. Maybe someone has a utube video showing the product & its use...

 

[DHD]

I would like to try the NOE. Maybe someone has a utube video showing the product & its use...

I don't, but they are similar to the Lyman M Die in use (just correctly sized). You'll need to get the Lee Universal Expander and what ever size "button" you want. I find that the small Lee expander works best for me to fill the extra space inside of the die. The large Lee expander makes the adjustment cap sit up too high.

In case you don't have the NOE expander system, you remove the Lee expander button from the Lee die, install the NOE button, drop the Lee expander button back in upside down, and then screw down the cap. I'd buy the Lee die from NOE as their price is real close to Midway's price anyway. I only bought one die and find it's a PITA to continuously swap out the NOE buttons. I'll just buy a couple more Lee dies whenever I order from Midway or NOE again.

If you figure the NOE expander cost, it's real close to what an M Die costs anyway per die. If you only plan to buy one Lee die and many expander buttons, it's much cheaper to get the NOE set up. I read about the NOE expanders before, but bought M Dies for each caliber. Then, and only then did I actually measure the M Dies. YMMV, but I prefer to expand my cases so those bullets I spent a lot of time trying to fit exactly for my revolvers aren't crammed into a case .003" or more smaller than the bullet (and that's not figuring any case springback).

This is just my opinion and worth what you paid for it......

 

[Gary]

Here's a good explanation of the Cowboy Dies.