Hi guys what set of dies would be the best for loading a 44 magnum?? Redding carbide or Dillon carbide??? THX They are for the hunter I just bought.

Carbide, makes no difference what brand if quality dies are used, although I have had issues with Lee carbide dies.

I have had good results with rcbs carbide dies.

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Bobby SWCA #4067
SWHF #1144

My favorite are RCBS but like others have said, any good carbide set will do well for you. I also like Redding and Lyman.

The Reddings are my personal preference - after 40+ years of reloading I have sold or traded most of my dies for Reddings. They work well and to my view are better machined and finished than most. Not that others won't work fine...

For me neither because they cost too much without a sufficient increase in quality to institute additional cost.

RCBS makes excellent dies at a fair price and they customer support is unrivalled. I also have had good success with Lee handgun dies and the cost is low.

For handguns I like the Hornady Nitride sizing dies, the Lee seating dies and the Lee powder-through dies for use on my turret press. For rifles I mostly use RCBS dies. I do have a set of Hornady dies for loading the 45-70 and they work very well for me.

Price isn't the only consideration but it is consideration. I see no reason to spend more for no discernible reason. (all IMO of course)

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Freedom is never free!!
SWCA #3437

I have the Redding .44 magnum dies and their new pistol dies use a type "M" expander. The patent expired on the Lyman type "M" expander and Redding now uses the same type expander.

Below Redding dies and the center expander die has the type "M" expander. This type expander ensures straight inline bullet seating and keeps the bullet from tipping when seated.Cartridge Pressure Standards



Below a Lyman type "M" .223 expander, and you can see the larger .226 step on the expander. You just bump the case mouth on to the larger step and the bullet can be started into the case mouth with just your fingers. With brass spring back the case mouth is only .001 larger than bullet diameter. And crimping the bullet reduces this case mouth diameter.

Like others here I have and use RCBS dies. I've loaded everything from light 44 spl to 310 grain arm breakers without any problems.

I have Dillon Dies for everything but .44 magnum, for those I bought the Hornady dies, I like the follower that keeps the bullet straight during seating. They are good quality and were a reasonable price.

Used dies. I have an old set of Lyman carbide dies I bought off eBay many years ago. They work fine for .44 Mag and .44 Special.

I started with Lee, because they were cheap, then tried Lyman and RCBS. I retired my Lee dies as I found their dimensional tolerances often left much to be desired. They may have improved since the 1980's, but I'm not going to buy new ones to find out.

My experience with Lyman and RCBS has been really good, but the big, round locking rings on the Lyman dies had to be replaced with RCBS rings in order to get them to fit my old 1990 vintage RCBS AmmoMaster progressive press.

Been using a set of RCBS carbide dies to load thousands of 44’s since the mid 70’s. They have served me well.

I use RCBS dies they work just fine. If you don't weight your bullets or each powder charge I really don't think dies matter that much. I have different die sets and different manufactuers and really can't tell much difference.

Lee is all I use and have ever used . They work just fine for me and will continue to use only Lee .

RCBS now also uses the M die profile for their expander dies. One thing, you'll need roll crimp dies for the hunting bullets with cannelures or crimping grooves. A separate taper crimp dies for less enthusiastic loads with plated/swaged bullets would be a good idea, but you can seat those bullets deeper and roll crimp over the leading edge if necessary.

FWIW, I've been using Lyman .44 & .38 dies for decades with no issues. Unless you have a Dillon (or someone else's) progressive press, you'll still have to buy a separate neck expanding die if you buy Dillon pistol dies. Dillon rifle dies are the way to go if you're loading rifle on even a single stage press. But you'll need different locking rings if you're using Dillon dies on any press where you're changing dies to change calibers/operation.

S with most things it is pretty much personal preference and how much you want to spend.

They ALL work. 44 Mag is not like a precision 6mmBR

Some think that the more money they spend, the better their ammo and shooting will be.

Show me a 44 Mag loaded with XYZ dies vs one loaded with 123 dies and what's the difference?

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Still Running Against the Wind

As to which quality brand of dies to use. I would also look at 2 more considerations; 1) Customer service. Everybody except Lyman it treating their unspoken warranty as a lifetime/forever warranty. That means if it isn't abused and it wears out or breaks, they take very good care of you. Lyman is a One year that they have been very flakey about!
2) Commonality. If you already have a brand you have been using and are happy with it, stick with it! When you have an event (target shoot, match or hunting trip) tomorrow and a part breaks, you can often rob parts off of another die set of the same brand and finish your batch of ammo.

I have been buying RCBS dies since 1979 for routine loading of rifle and pistol cartridges. When I started to load ammo for 1000 yard shooting, I wet to the Redding Competition Die Sets and have been very very happy with quality and the results. They also make some special seating dies for revolver cartridges, but for plinking, they aren't necessary. Have fun making small groups of big holes!

Ivan

All brand name dies are good. I've used Lee, Lyman and RCBS without incident. However, if you're using a Dillon press, Lee dies tend to be a bit short and you're far better off using Dillon dies.

RCBS is outstanding because if you do have an issue, they will fix it no matter how long you've owned the dies. And, carbide is carbide. Doesn't matter who makes it.

I luv my dillon 550b progressive. However, their dies are poorly made and their lock rings get frozen on the poorly made threads. It requires two wrenches; one to hold first lock, and the second wrench to turn. I've talked to them about it, but they say it is what it is. I could never recommend the Dillon dies. If you don't adjust or tune your dies to different bullets, then having them frozen in place is no big deal.

I spent some serious cash and got the Redding Competition dies and they are worth every penny. I adjust for new bullets constantly and these dies have saved me days of frustration and time on the dillon with their top adjustment knob.

I got the RCBS M die for 45 colt in my sw25-5 with big cylinder holes. RCBS is the only company I found that would send me a new stem for the seater which was a perfect .454" . All the other stems are .450 and swage down my special .454 bullets during seating. NO CHARGE !

Prescut
I've got the Ruger Bisley Hunter in 45 colt with Leupold scope and absolutely luv it !!!

It all depends on the user. I made some very accurate handloads with a Lee Loader and some so-so handloads with my RCBS dies. If the most expensive dies work better, in your mind, they are the ones to get (not a condemnation, just one does better with tools they like and are comfortable using). Today I use a Lee size/decap die, an RCBS seating die and a Redding profile crimp die and for my 44 Magnum rifle I use a Lee Collet Crimp die. I started with a Lee set and gradually worked my way into the "kit" I mentioned. The only change I thought really necessary was the desire for a better crimp die (and I had a 44 Magnum RCBS seating die laying around, tried it and was too lazy to take it out of the turret ).

A sloppy reloader can't make good ammo even with the most expensive dies and a conscientious reloader will make good, accurate ammo on the cheapest dies available...

I have never seen any significant differences among dies regardless of the maker. I have something like 25 sets from about everyone who ever made dies (I even have a couple of sets which came from Herter's), and never had a complaint about any of them. If I were forced to decide which I liked best, I'd say Lyman but that would be subjective. I did buy a Lee die set once which had a burr inside the FL sizing die which scratched the cases, but Lee replaced it immediately without question. I'd say at least half my die sets I have bought used, and most of those looked like new when I got them.

Mine are RCBS. I have no complaints. Never tried others.

Although not a fan of many Lee products, I have had excellent results with Lee Carbide Die sets, including the .44 SPL / Mag. Which you can buy brand new for what most people want for used other brands.

Bob

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Sag Harbor & Manhattan, N.Y.

I've had one set of RCBS carbide dies since the late 1970s. The sized brass easily entered the chambers on my Model 29, but the bullets tended to pull in recoil. I suspect the carbide ring was on the large end of spec.

I polished down the expander in stages and finally ended up small enough that it literally did not make contact with the case. With a hard crimp, the bullets still tended to pull. I finally ended up with a Redding Profile Crimp die that solved the problem.

I have RCBS (22 Jet) dies, Redding (460 S&W) and Dillon (41 Mag and others) I like the Redding and Dillon dies better than the RCBS one. I found the Redding and Dillon dies easier to set up.

The RCBS dies for the Jet didn't come with a separate crimp die, while the other two brands did. I think the separate crimp dies work better than the combo seating/crimping die.

Just my thought.

I agree on the separate crimp die. After trying both the crimping while seating and separate crimping, I bought crimp dies for all of my reloading calibers. My reloads seemed to be more consistent in regards to OAL and the amount of crimp on the case mouth.

Been an avid handloader for 30 years. I'm a RCBS fan.

Redding makes a quality die , every bit as good as the much ballyhooed RCBS .
I've never used Dillon's so I can't speak first hand but many use them with complete satisfaction . They sell a lot and have 5 star customer service.
Its a Ford-Chevy decision. I have several Redding sets and they are all top shelf. Might want to go with the best deal...that influences a lot of my buying decisions .
Gary

I have used a set of Lee dies for the 44 Magnum for years and they work fine. The only thing I did was buy a set of Hornady lock rings for them.

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USAF Retired/VN Vet

A Carbide 4 die set from Lee will cost you ~ $45
A Carbide 3 die set from Lee will cost you ~ $33

The Carbide 3 die set from RCBS runs ~ $55

The Carbide 3 die set from Redding costs ~$104
(All priced pulled from Midway USA)

If the Redding dies are only "just as good" as the RCBS dies and not superior why would anyone want to pay almost twice as much for the Redding dies. I'm not disputing they are very well made dies but just not that much better if better at all. They do make an excellent profile crimp die which is worth buying.

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Freedom is never free!!
SWCA #3437

About a year ago, I decided to go to a separate head and dies for .357 loads and bought a new set of Dillon dies. The sizing/decapping die, I discovered, is spring loaded and does this snap, snap sound every time a case is decapped. It drove me nuts!!!

So I spent some big money to buy a Redding dual ring carbide die for .357 and put in an old Dillon sizing die in the .38 head that does not go snap, snap, snap!!

I assume the other caliber sizing does does the same thing. I have used RCBS and other brands of dies for different calibers. But have Dillon dies for the 550B that I have used for years, but I will not be buying any more Dillon dies!!

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Richard Gillespie
FBINA 102

RCBS for my 44 mag, and 9mm, 38/357 mag, 45 acp and 45 colt.

Back in the days before the internet, there used to be some outfit in, I think, Iowa (not sure about that) which bought and sold used dies. You had to call them on the phone and they would tell you what they had in stock, then you sent them a check. They had lots of strange and obsolete calibers and prices were much lower than new. I bought several sets from them for some strange calibers like 7.5 Swiss and 7.7 and 6.5 Arisaka. I suppose they are long gone by now. But we still have eBay. I always look there first - and not just for reloading equipment.

I still use a set of Hollywood Gun Shop brand dies to load 44special. They aren't carbide,,so what, they work just fine for my needs.
I don't load 44Mag. Don't have one. But I do have a new looking set of LEE dies in that caliber in carbide on the shelf. Cheap gunshow buy at $10,,hey you never know. I could use the sizer I guess, but the Hollywood works fine.

The 44sp loads come out beautiful.
Some Herters, Pacific, CH(before 4D) and other old names on the shelf as well.
Still load 30-06 for multiple rifles with the Herters dies. They cost be $2.50 for the set at the time.

Got no problems with most any dies I've used. I did have one set of 303Brit (LEE) that the sizer was absolutely something else other than 303. But that was a complete mix up, not a simple spec difference.
They fixed that situation but I started using an old paper box set of Lyman 303 dies and still do.
I'm not too fussy.

Regardless of brand (and I own just about all of the major producers' products) I would never buy .44 magnum dies. I use .44 Special dies properly adjusted for the magnum case length (as I use .38 Special dies to load .357 magnum cases).

The .44 Special (and .38 Special) dies work just fine for loading the magnum rounds, but dedicated 'magnum' dies are not likely to be useful for loading the shorter cases, and I shoot a lot more 'special' than I will ever shoot magnums.

I always thought all .44 Mag dies worked just fine for reloading .44 Special. I have been using my Lyman .44 Mag dies to load .44 Special for many years without any problems. Just like the same die set works fine for loading both .38 Special and .357 Mag.

I've used Hornady New Dimension titanium dies for many years. As far as crimping with a separate die or step I haven't in the 45 years I've reloaded and my rounds are as accurate as I need them to be in the field plinking or hunting.

I use Redding dual-ring carbide dies for my .44s. They don’t size the base as small as the neck which they say helps brass last longer.

I did buy a set of Hornady set of dies for my .41 and liked the seating die so much I bought a separate one for my .44s and now I use Redding dies but Hornady seating dies for all my loading.

I also bought a universal depriming die that I run all my cases through before tumble polishing them to keep the grit out of my carbide dies. That one die deprimes all my .41, .44 and .270 brass. They are inexpensive.

I like the RCBS dies I have been useing as stated earlier good quality fair price and availability at least around here . As for Lee products I haven't tried their dies but I do most of my 44 mag loading on their hand press as I made up a kit that fits in a small tool bag including powder bullets primers and generaly about 50 preloaded rounds ,my gun that kit a a couple of PB&Js and couple of quarts of water make for a relaxing day at my range .

I own most of the major brands(mostly rcbs) and they all work. One thing I like about the Lyman is they are easier to clean since you can remove the decapping rod on the sizer from the top and have a big enough hole to run a patch all the way through the die. You can do it with the die still in the press.They also have the m type expander that some like for lead or cast bullets. Some also like the crimp profile Lyman has for cast bullets. I am not sure I can tell a difference on that.

Dogdoc