I reloaded my first 45acp round last night. everything went smoothly, set up my dies etc. I am using a lee turret press with lee carbide dies. I am using hornady bullets 230 gr fmj. After I loaded the 3 rounds, I dropped them into my Lyman case gauge and they sat perfectly flush. I also dropped them into my 4506 barrel and my glock lone wolf barrel. All 3 rounds passed the plunk test. All 3 rounds are within specs for overall length. After further inspection this morning it looks like there is a slight bulge where the bottom of the bullet is seated. Its pretty faint, but I can see it. Also, there is not a bulge on the opposite side of the case, only on one side. Is this a concern? Is my crimp too severe? I followed the instructions for the lee factory crimp die, maybe I missed something?

thanks in advance for the replies

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Normal.. they plunk.. go shoot 'em.

Be sure you are using the bullet seating plug for RN and not wadcutters it will hold the bullet straight while entering the case.

Heee is one of my 45's , notice the shadow that's a sight bulge like yours.

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I didn't know there was a specific plug in the bullet seating die. I am using whatever came with my lee carbide pistol dies.
If the go plunk, and aren't too long or short, they should be fine. Right?

If the bulge is on one side, that means the bullets are going in slightly crooked. If it looks like that all the way around, that is normal. Unfortunately, it is pretty difficult to get 45 ACP bullets perfectly straight since they are as wide as they are long. 380 AUTO have a similar challenge. As said, a properly shaped seating plug will help. I personally have both RCBS and Hornady seating dies for 45 ACP and neither have a plug that is designed just for round nose. I have thought about having one custom made.

Mike

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NRA Certified Pistol Inst.

Those marks just indicate that your sizing die sizes the cases j-u-s-t a hair smaller than the bullet diameter or it is from your expansion die's plug. Almost all if not all of my handgun dies do that so it's pretty much normal.

Ed

The LEE die should be fine for round nose. My .45 SWC's also have a rounded nose and seat fine using the LEE die.

The sizing die is probably sizing the brass down a little too much and when you seat the bullet the brass has to go somewhere. I wouldn't worry about it assuming everything functions.

The Round nose plug will help. Holding the bullet square as long as you can as it enters the die helps and just the right bell to get it started helps.

as you see it all adds up.

Carbide sizing dies utilize a carbide ring that resizes fired cases in a cylindrical form. The .45ACP (and 9X19, and several other calibers) actually have a slight taper in case shape, with the base a bit larger diameter than the mouth and tapered in between. Firing expands the case to seal the chamber, with some reduction in diameter after the bullet has left the muzzle (amount depends on load pressures, brass composition, etc). Resizing in the carbide sizer die produces a case that is reduced in diameter sufficiently to grip the bullet firmly, with the resized area of the case of the same diameter as the mouth. Seating a new bullet requires some stretching of the case mouth and body to the depth of bullet seating.

What you are seeing is entirely normal, especially with carbide sizing dies. Steel sizer dies (depending on manufacturer) may reproduce the original tapered shape, in which case the cases may not show the same swelling after new bullets are seated. Of course, steel dies would require lubrication, adding to the time and work required for reloading.

thanks for all the replies, there is a lot of people on here willing to share good helpful information. Ill shoot em and see what happens. If they fit in my chamber and shoot without any malfunctions, then no worries.
LoboGunLeather had some real good information, easy to understand for a newbie reloader.
bigggbbruce, what comes with the lee bullet seating die? isn't it the round nose plug? ill be loading some hp round soon, so do I need a different plug for my bullet seating die? or will the seating die that came in the 4 die carbide set work fine?

That's a good sign, shows you have enough neck tension to keep the bullet in place when it takes that rough trip from clip , up , then hitting the feed ramp, then top of chamber and finally into chamber. That bullet needs a tight grip on it and that slight bulge shows you got it.
Let me warn you if you reload some cast lead bullets they will be sized slightly larger than jacketed so the bulge will be slightly more pronounced...it's OK , that's the way they should look.
You're doing fine....load safe.
Gary

I use RCBS so I'm not sure what comes with Lee. I have 2 sets of 45 dies and I acquired them in my wheelin' and dealin' and the plug pack was in the box. The flat plug can allow the RN bullet to turn a little pushing it in a little off square.

The plug for RN may also NOT fit the profile of your bullet and create an even more severe tilting problem.. 9mm is an issue at times for me. I pull out the plug and check how the bullet will fit when using a different manufacturers bullets. When I load up my HP bullets I use a SWC plug to push as the RN plug will distort the nose.

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The slight bulge is very normal. I have been loading .45acp for maybe 40 years using the same set of RCBS carbide dies I started with. The taper crimp die causes the bulge in my opinion, not the seater plug.

your issue is a non issue.

Go forth and spread some metal.

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it just needs more voltage

As already mentioned the slight bulge is a good sign that you have
good case neck tension on the base of the bullet. And as to being
concerned about the bulge not being uniform all around the case, look
at factory ammo and you will see the same thing. Nothing to worry
about.

Most brass isn't uniform all around, so as noted, not a big deal. Pay attention to which side they are "bulging". If it is uniform, you may have an issue with the seating die being a tiny bit out of spec. Not uncommon for Lee.

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NRA Cert. Inst. IDPA CSO

Like others have said, nothing at all to worry about. My .357 reloads look a bit funny like that. I only size half the body of the brass I'm currently using, so it goes from the bullet, dips in a little, then back out at the place I stopped sizing. After shooting, it fills the chamber and looks "normal again".

If you look very closely, you'll probably see that the bulge is really an indentation. Not only normal, very desirable.

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USAF, 69-92
Vietnam, 72-73

I noticed the same thing, sometimes on 1 side and sometimes all the way around. Using a dial caliper, the case measures .465" at the crimp and .460 at the middle and at the base just above the rim. Mine also pass the plunk test and I have not experienced any oroblems.