Better Carbide Die

[ggibson511960]

I have been using the same .38 Special/.357 Magnum carbide sizing die for several decades. I bought it when carbide dies were somewhat less common. Some maschocists like me used to lube straight walled pistol cases. I won't mention the brand so as not to malign a reputable company, but I wish for a better die that sizes farther down the case wall. The retaining shoulder that holds in the carbide insert is so thick that a fair bit of the case wall is not re-sized and a shoulder is left on the case wall above the web. Who knows the best brand of carbide die that re-sizes all the way down to the shell holder?

 

[Nemo288]

Most carbide ring inserts are tapered so as to smooth out and center the case as it goes up into the die.
Consequently they never go all the way to the bottom.

My favorite carbide dies are now the Redding dual carbide dies.
They fully size only the area where the bullet resides.
The bottom ring partially sizes the case only enough to re-enter the chamber easily.
There is no need to size the whole case smaller than the diameter of the web.
The case ends up slightly bottle necked until you push the bullet in.
The rest of the case is nice and smooth and sized to the diameter of the web.
The bottom die ring is quite close to the shell holder.
They are expensive but worth it IMHO.

I don't know if this answers your question but it has worked well for me while sizing thousands of various 44 caliber cases.
I also don't like that ring around the web that the older cheaper dies leave (like my first one).
Redding and RCBS dies are the ones I use most.
They are well made.
Notice all the green die boxes above my modest bench.
They are all 44 related (Special to Marlin) except the old Bonanza 6mm one.
I also use a Lyman M die for expanding and lightly belling some cases depending on the load.

 

[6string]

I will also give top marks to Redding. They really put a lot of effort into very close tolerances, more so than any other brand, excepting some specialized benchrest competition dies.
If you use cast/swaged bullets, you'll get a better fit without squeezing the bullet base using Redding dies.
I agree with the first response that the dual carbide ring dies are excellent. So are the Pro Series, if you use a progressive press, like Dillon. (Incidentally, Redding are the only other dies recommended by name by Dillon besides their own dies.)

Best Regards,
Jim

 

[Engineer1911]

I have a 1979 set of RCBS carbide 357 mag and 44 mag dies that have not been a problem for me. Back in my youthful, pre-arthritis days some of my magnum loads gave optimum performance -- easy to load, took some effort to eject.

 

[m657]

after trying a host of others, I settled on using Dillons on my blue press, as they proved to work the best for my needs.

I used a jumble of 'the Duke's mixture' for 20 years on my 550 before changing dies & going to a 650.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

I'm not totally sure if any die with an insert will size all the way down to the shell holder. The carbide ring is very brittle so if it were to extend below the die mouth it would easily hit the shell holder and probably crack in short order.

Since you are using a very old die you might want to take a look at the Hornady handgun sizing dies. They use a Titanium Nitride sizing ring which makes sizing without lube almost effortless.

Midway USA has the 38/357 full length sizing die on sale right now.
Hornady Custom Grade New Dimension Nitride Full Length - MPN: 046528

The full set is also on sale and probably a better value.
Hornady Custom Grade New Dimension Nitride 3-Die Set 38 - MPN: 546527

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

My oldest set of 38/357 carbide dies are Hornady. They reduce the cases so small they look like 32-20's with a 38 bullet on the end. My RCBS dies size really close to the die mouth, they are old enough they do not have the radius for "progressive loading", but I must make sure they line up with the case mouth or I crush the mouth on one edge (I have no idea of the current design). The Dillon dies seem to size low on the case and allow easy alignment.

Ivan

 

[Tom S.]

Carbide is not a replacement for lubing. Yes, you can resize without lube, but it requires more effort. You don't need to get carried away with the lube, I like the aerosol lubes, putting the cases in a plastic bag, spraying in a few shots and shaking the bag up to disperse the lube.

The reason carbide is used for resizing is to avoid damaging the resizing die with dirt not cleaned off the old case. Before carbide was used, you needed to be careful in cleaning and lubing your cases or the sizing die could (did) get scratches, which would then transfer on to subsequent cases. Extreme instances required removal of the die and polishing, but you can only do that so many times before the dies becomes out of spec.

 

[Rule3]

I give all my brass a LIGHT spritz of diluted water based lube. Makes life much easier. Don't even wipe it off.

 

[dave201]

Carbide is not a replacement for lubing. Yes, you can resize without lube, but it requires more effort. You don't need to get carried away with the lube, I like the aerosol lubes, putting the cases in a plastic bag, spraying in a few shots and shaking the bag up to disperse the lube.

The reason carbide is used for resizing is to avoid damaging the resizing die with dirt not cleaned off the old case. Before carbide was used, you needed to be careful in cleaning and lubing your cases or the sizing die could (did) get scratches, which would then transfer on to subsequent cases. Extreme instances required removal of the die and polishing, but you can only do that so many times before the dies becomes out of spec.

BINGO!!! Give the man a cigar

 

[fredj338]

My oldest set of carbide dies are RCBS in 9mm, no taper at all at the insert. They work fine, even on my 550, I just can't go quite as fast. I would give any of the current manuf a try. Redding is top notch, but I have had good results with all of them, even Lee. BTW, you only need 0.002" clear on the carbide insert to keep from cracking it. I set up the 9mm with a sheet of paper as the shim to the shell holder.

 

[Greenjoytj]

1 + for the Redding Dual Ring carbide dies, my cartridges don’t have that wasp waist look to them like my Lyman single carbide ring sizing die.
I still lightly lube cases with Imperial Size Wax, it works great and is easy to wipe off.
I first bought the cartridge specific die for 357 Magnum and liked it so much I bought more for my 38 Special and 45 Colt.

 

[twodog max]

I have 38/357 and 44 magnum RCBS carbide dies that are well over 40 years old and have sized thousands of unlubed cases with no problems. If I wanted to lube I would never have bought carbide. Lube if you want but don't tell me it is necessary cause it is not. They will outlast me I am sure.

 

[DWalt]

I have 38/357 and 44 magnum RCBS carbide dies that are well over 40 years old and have sized thousands of unlubed cases with no problems. If I wanted to lube I would never have bought carbide. Lube if you want but don't tell me it is necessary cause it is not. They will outlast me I am sure.

I can make the exact same comment about my RCBS .38/.357 and .44 die sets of about the same age.

Lubing is not necessary, but it takes a little less force to resize if lube is used. Sometimes I do, sometimes not. I have Lee carbide dies in other calibers, and they also work fine.

 

[oneounceload]

I have a 1979 set of RCBS carbide 357 mag and 44 mag dies that have not been a problem for me. Back in my youthful, pre-arthritis days some of my magnum loads gave optimum performance -- easy to load, took some effort to eject.

My RCBS dies have been around since I started about 1980; I still use them without any issues. Since I only load 32SWL and 38/357 (with RCBS carbide dies), and use the same bullet for each caliber, I haven't had to change or adjust anything in all these years.

 

[Nemo288]

I have found that lubing nickel plated brass is almost a necessity to prevent galling of the nickel onto the carbide die.
Sizing plain brass you don't really need the lube if the brass is clean.
I started to get scratches in my nickel plated brass and looked at the dies.
They were not scratched but had nickel bumps on the inside I had to get off with JB compound,
KG-2, or lead cloth and a patch on a jag mounted in a bat-driver.
This PITA went away with the slightest amount of spray lube which wipes off easily.
I recommend lubing nickel cases just the smallest amount you can apply.
Plain brass it's optional.
I "polish" the carbide rings every once and awhile like this just to keep them clean now.

 

[twodog max]

Hmmm I have loaded many many nickle brass in my carbides and never had this occur. Guess I am just blind hog lucky.

 

[Tom S.]

I have 38/357 and 44 magnum RCBS carbide dies that are well over 40 years old and have sized thousands of unlubed cases with no problems. If I wanted to lube I would never have bought carbide. Lube if you want but don't tell me it is necessary cause it is not. They will outlast me I am sure.

The lubes used 40 years ago aren't the same as those used today. They are lighter, use better formulas and not nearly as messy. Even with the messier ones (Dillon Lube comes to mind, as well as the old sticky RCBS lube), 10 or 15 minutes in a vibratory tumbler removes all traces. Most of my reloading is done on a progressive press, any I run anywhere from 300 to 1200 rounds during a reloading session. As I stated, while lubing a requirement, it sure makes operating the press easier. On a progressive, you are sizing the case, expanding the case mouth, seating and crimping the bullet with each stoke of the handle. Lubing makes resizing and case mouth expansion much easier and is very noticeable in the amount of effort reduction. On a single stage press loading 20 or 50 or so rounds won't make a huge difference, but when you start doing bulk reloading, you'll want to lube.

 

[hdwhit]

ggibson511960 wrote:
Who knows the best brand of carbide die that re-sizes all the way down to the shell holder?

No such animal.

Even if a die had the carbide sizer ring held by something other than a mechanical connection at the bottom, the carbide ring is tapered at the opening so that brass doesn't get crushed when it is even slightly off-center in the shell holder.

All you are going to do is replace one set of perfectly serviceable dies with a newer set of perfectly serviceable dies and in all likelihood realize few if any benefits from the expenditure.

 

[Greenjoytj]

The instructions that came with my first carbide die set a Lyman 38spl/357mag, it mentions during sizing die set up to not like the cases solid head enter the the carbide ring or the ring could be cracked.
A old style steel sizing die would do the best job but you must lube the cases. Shouldn’t be a issue if your already lubing cases for sizing in a carbide die.