Recommendations on 327 Fed Mag dies

[nutsforsmiths]

I own a Dillon 550 progressive press and am interested in purchasing some dies to start reloading 327 Federal Magnum.

Dillon says that they sell their carbide dies for 32 H&R Magnum and make a point to say that it is not for 327. Can someone tell me why it would this statement would be made? I am guessing they would not be long enough?

I guess I could try Hornady 327 dies. I have never used Hornady dies. I would think the quality would be good. Anyone use these dies for their 327 reloading?

Thanks

[M29since14]

I don't know a thing about .327 dimensions so I would ask them why the dies won't work and what they suggest. Dillon dies work great on their machines in my opinion. I would want to use them if I could. If not, any good quality commercial set should work ok. I like having the extra large flared opening on their size die, but can get along without it. I'd want separate seating die and then a taper crimp. I have used RCBS .32 magnum dies on my 550 and been happy with them. Let us know what you find out when you talk to them.

[Squarebutt]

If I couldn't use Dillon dies in my 550, Redding would be the next place I'd look. They make a 4-die series for progressive presses, hopefully including a .327 Magnum set.

[smike308]

I'm currently using the Dillon .32 H&R dies to load .327 Fed. Dillon told me that they wouldn't work also. I have had no problem using them. I use them with my Dillon 550 to load both H&R and Fed. rounds.

[nutsforsmiths]

smike308, so why did Dillon tell you their 32 H&R dies would not work for the 327? Can you remember what they had to say?

Similar story; my uncle gave me a set of Dillon dies in 38 Super many years ago. I was going to buy a set of dies for reloading 38 S&W and was looking around. All the major reloading companies made separate dies for these two calibers, except for RCBS. Their die set said 38 S&W/38 Super. I called Midway and asked a sales rep why RCBS was the only company that combined the two calibers into one die set. After a long time on hold he came back and said all the other companies had separate dies so they could make more money. Ever since then I have been successfully reloading 38 S&W on a set of Dillon 38 Super dies.

Obviously smike308 is not having any problems using the 32 H&R dies for his 327.

Interesting.....

[at_liberty]

A .125" (1/8) die spacer washer would bring any .311-12 expander and seat/crimp up to 327 Federal Magnum levels.

[Bruce51]

I just started loading the .327 Federal.

Now I have RCBS dies for the .32SWL & .32H&R magnum.

So I used that die set to load the .327 rounds.

What happens is the .327 cases are thicker that .32SWL.

When belling the .327 I have had cases stick on the bell die so hard I had to peel them off of the stem.

To make the bell stem work I will need to reduce the diameter by .001" or more so they do not get stuck.

The rims are so small that even the slightest sticking causes the rim to pull off.

This may be the reason that .32SWL dies are not recommended for the .327.

BLM



Cases are Starline. They vary in thickness. Two out of two hundred noticably bulged on one side only. Cases were thinner on one side.
I lost about six to the bell stem despite using motor mica inside the necks.
Time to fix the stem or order another from RCBS.

[smike308]

Nutsforsmiths- I'm sorry, I don't remember what the Dillon rep said, just that they wouldn't work. I already had the die set for my 32 H&Rs so I figured the worst that could happen was that I wood goof up a case or two. Since then, I've loaded 750+ rounds of .327. I haven't experienced any difficulties with these dies. Hope that helps!

[at_liberty]

Originally Posted by Bruce Lee M

When belling the .327 I have had cases stick on the bell die so hard I had to peel them off of the stem.

My RCBS die set (Cowboy) included a shorter expander plug. I removed the long one that came in the die and see the shorter option as expanding only the area actually occupied by the bullet. No problems with sticking.

I would supply a part number, but the package was not marked with any.

[M29since14]

Originally Posted by at_liberty

My RCBS die set (Cowboy) included a shorter expander plug. I removed the long one that came in the die and see the shorter option as expanding only the area actually occupied by the bullet. No problems with sticking...

Yes, that's correct, just as in the case for using a different length expanding plug when changing from full wadcutters to SWCs in .32 SWL or H&R Mag. Tinkering with diameter would seem to be doing the wrong thing since diameter of the expander relates to diameter of the bullet being used, not to the construction of the case.

Length is what matters here - and finish. Get the correct length for the bullet being loaded and polish it. That is what will reduce the sticking problem, not messing around with diameter.

I had to teach myself this (I am a slow-learner ) when I started loading .32 SWL full wadcutters on the 550. The expander/powder drop tube Dillon supplied (and insisted was correct) was a nightmare, but - when I shortened it appropriately for the length of the bullet being used - the problems disappeared. The expander should expand the case to the depth of the bullet being seated - but no more. Diameter of the expander should be a couple thousandths less than diameter of the bullet. In the case of a full wadcutter, one thousandth less is enough, IMO.

That comment about case construction seems to indicate that the .327 cases may have some limitations about which bullets can be used. If the case is designed to only allow bullets to extend into them to a certain depth, then no amount of tinkering is liable to get around that. For example, a full wadcutter might be out of the question in .327 brass ... ?

[at_liberty]

Originally Posted by M29since14

<snip> Get the correct length for the bullet being loaded and polish it. That is what will reduce the sticking problem, not messing around with diameter.

Sticking can also be caused by a mismatch between the sizer diameter yield and the expander plug diameter. That was the case in my Hornady Cowboy set (in 44). They only provided a larger expander die, with nothing different in the others from standard dies. The answer to that is purchase of a RCBS Cowboy or Lyman sizing die, either of which will yield sizes suitable for lead bullets.

[Bruce51]

Originally Posted by at_liberty

My RCBS die set (Cowboy) included a shorter expander plug. I removed the long one that came in the die and see the shorter option as expanding only the area actually occupied by the bullet. No problems with sticking.

I would supply a part number, but the package was not marked with any.

Thank you for that information. A call to RCBS is in order to see if they will send a shorter stem.

I posted my experience so others would be aware that there was a problem with the long stem. In fact it is about 1/8" longer than it needs to be.

Its diameter is .310" which should be correct. The extra length may be entering a thicker part of the case causing the problem.

BLM

[Green Frog]

Originally Posted by Bruce Lee M

I just started loading the .327 Federal.

Now I have RCBS dies for the .32SWL & .32H&R magnum.

So I used that die set to load the .327 rounds.

What happens is the .327 cases are thicker that .32SWL.

When belling the .327 I have had cases stick on the bell die so hard I had to peel them off of the stem.

To make the bell stem work I will need to reduce the diameter by .001" or more so they do not get stuck.

The rims are so small that even the slightest sticking causes the rim to pull off.

This may be the reason that .32SWL dies are not recommended for the .327.

BLM

Cases are Starline. They vary in thickness. Two out of two hundred noticably bulged on one side only. Cases were thinner on one side.
I lost about six to the bell stem despite using motor mica inside the necks.
Time to fix the stem or order another from RCBS.

That explains the problems I had... loading new Starline 327 FM brass, I had several stick to the expander stem of my Lyman through the expander powder drop. I had to be very careful as I too ruined several pieces of brass and even one of the expander noses as I was trying to expand those cases, and yes I ripped a couple of rims right out of the shell holders. I wonder whether it would be worthwhile to inside ream some of the brass to thin it down and even it up(?)

Froggie

[Bruce51]

From the length of the bell stem it would seem to me that it is made for wadcutters.

It is way to long for jacketed bullets or normal lead round nose loads.

It is not a problem with the thin .32SWL cases.

Until I tried to load .327 cases I have never removed the stem to see how long it was.

Lesson learned and a few cases lost in the process.

Edit 11-16

After checking all my dies I have decided to just use my .32 WSP decapping die to bell the .327 cases.

The neck expander ball is nicely tapered and puts a nice bell on the mouth.

Of course YMMV

BLM