Reloaded 45 wont fit in the cylinder w/pics now

[Retired in 2001]

Reloaded 80 45s for the first time.About 8 of them would not fully seat in the cylinder of my 625.They stuck out about 1/4 of a inch

Put those same 8 in to my Kimber they ran fine.I was using the RCBS taper crimp.



What did I do that was wrong.

 

[nicky4968]

After crimping, run them back through the sizing die.

Or use the Lee Factory Crimp Die.

 

[john traveler]

You did not necessarily do anything wrong. Sometimes the combination of bullet, seater plug, or seating die dimensions causes the slug to seat canted, bulging the side of the case. Other times, irregularities in the brass or the bullet is the culprit. Combine this with a gun with minimum chamber dimensions, and you get the failure to chamber you described.

Running a loaded round into a sizing die as a final operation is one solution, but it may cause the seated bullet to be loose. Check your taper crimp die setting. Over-crimping can slightly buckle the case mouth, giving the same difficult chambering. You can play with the crimp setting and use the pistol barrel or the cylinder chamber as a gage to see if the loaded rounds chamber easily.

 

[oldRoger]

Wilson and others make a gauge for loaded cartridges. I use both the .45 acp and the 10 mm, I check the set-up and then a QC check of the loaded rounds. For all of the reasons above some may slip through. You can stick an oversize round in your 1911 and it is a PIA to get out.
I have a Lee carbide factory crimp die for the 10 mm and have zero rejects. I am using another brand of taper crimp die for the .45, several problems.
I have a Lee on order for the .45.

 

[fredj338]

It helps when asking such questions to provide your load specs. It could be not enough taper crimp or OAL too long for that bullet style, or wrong dia. bullet (ie, .454").

 

[Alk8944]

You really didn't give enough information. Did you full-length resize (until the shellholder bumped the die base)? Was the brass fired in your gun previously, or fired in another gun, or range pick-ups?

You didn't even indicate if you used a press and dies or a Lee Classic Loader.

If you are using a press just buy a Lee Carbide Factory Crimp die, follow the instructions, and the problem will be solved regardless of what the root cause was. If you weren't then buy one if only the Lee Hand Press and a Lee 4 die set.

The only thing that definitely can be said from the limited description you gave is the cases were not adequately sized and the base was still too large.

 

[Rule3]

That happened to me once when loading 357 mags. I was using 158gr lswc. I was seating the bullet to the correct length BUT then when I turned the die in some more to crimp it, the bullets went to deep and caused a slight bulge and would not go in the 686 cylinders. I just backed out the seating die a bit to leave a a few thousands gap, then when crimped it moved to the correct length.

Soooo, pictures always help and as mentioned, what bullets are you using etc.

 

[Retired in 2001]

Reloaded 45 wont fir into cylinder

My first try at posting pics Thanks for the comments. Started loading after a 35 year vacation I am using a RCBS carbide die full resized all of my all ready 1 shot brass.With a RCBS taper crimp.I am looking at the Lee factory die ? Awaiting your replies I think this forum and its peoples are the best I might add. So

 

[Steve C]

Looks like you got some case bulge from the bullet when seating. This is more common with lead bullets in my experience as they run .001" larger in diameter than jacketed.

This is one case where a Lee Factory crimp die will fix your problem. It has a post sizing ring that irons out any bulges in the case so that it is no greater than the maximum SAAMI case diameter as well as crimping in a separate step.

The typical sizing die will reduce the case diameter even more than the maximum allowable.

 

[Retired in 2001]

Checking with the lee site that the bullets need a crimp groove.My bullets didnt have a groove.This was my first attempt,with your guys help here is hoping I will learn from this experience

 

[BruceM]

The solution to all problems is not to run out & buy more equipment. Before you do that, find out what's going on. The loaded rounds should have a diameter of .473" at the mouth and .476" at the case head. Your bullets should not be greater than .4525" diameter. It seems odd that these rounds will chamber in a bottom feeder but not your revolver. Be sure of no buildup of crud the the chambers of your 625.

I agree that it's likely that the cases are bulged but measure first to see what's up. If 72 are ok, maybe something in your loading technique needs to be tweaked. Also, remember that the taper crimp is used mostly to reduce the case neck diameter after expanding. If the expander ball is the correct diameter, the crimp is not needed to hold the bullet in place. I've loaded thousands of .45 acp rounds and you should not need special dies to make them run in your gun or need to size them twice.

Bruce

 

[epj]

First of all, "bullets with a crimping groove" does NOT apply to the .45 ACP. Off hand, I can't think of any auto pistol cartridge it would apply to, other than some bottleneck rounds that don't headspace on the rim.

One typically gets better results by seating and crimping in two separate stages. The Lee Factory Crimp Die will solve a lot of problems. Set it to crimp to about .471. .473 is probably the official spec, but too loose for some chambers. I load .45 ACP for several different pistols and revolvers and never have a problem using .471.

 

[HAWKEYE10]

I am a firm believer in a Lee Factory crimp die

 

[Skip Sackett]

Just a couple of questions

Retired,
I've got a couple of questions to ask before I give any advice.
First, do you have a picture of the rounds outside of the chamber?
Second, what kind of brass is it? Are they all the same kind, the ones that chambered and the ones that wouldn't?

I have had this problem several times with my M625JM and there are several reasons for it. Casting my own bullets and wanting them to be the correct diameter for MY firearm and wanting to eliminate a step in the casting process, I tried to shoot unsized bullets. Not going to happen with a mold that throws a slightly larger bullet. The chambers on the M625 are right on size and tolerances, at least in my experience. Couple that with brass that is a little thick, Fiochhi for one, and you have a serious problem.

Crud in the chambers as has been stated already was the other main factor. Take a "BoreSnake" and run it through the chambers and see if things don't change dramatically, I bet they do.


If you could, would you mind taking some pictures of your loaded rounds and let us know the particulars on components and charge weight.

Armed with more information we will be doing much more than just "shooting off our mouth!"

 

[Amici]

Remember that an auto pistol has a spring-loaded slide to push the cartridge into the chamber. The revolver uses little more than gravity and if you need to force it into a chamber, that indicates a problem.

 

[john traveler]

The .45 ACP is nominally taper crimped since the cartridge headspaces on the case mouth.

If you are loading 185-200 grain lead SWC bullets, the shoulder of the bullet should be flush with the case mouth, or just slightly out of the mouth. Excessive crimp can bulge the bullet lead out at this point, and it binds on the chamber mouth where it joins the throat.

If you are loading 230 grain RN lean bullets, there should be no bullet lead at the case mouth taper crimp to cause chambering problems.

 

[Alk8944]

My first try at posting pics Thanks for the comments. Started loading after a 35 year vacation I am using a RCBS carbide die full resized all of my all ready 1 shot brass.With a RCBS taper crimp.I am looking at the Lee factory die ? Awaiting your replies I think this forum and its peoples are the best I might add. So

In spite of what others are telling you about a bulge from oversize and deep seated bullets, if they go in as far as your photo shows then that isn't the problem, it is the base that isn't adequately sized.

Did you set the die to just touch the shellholder, or was there a gap?

The reason they will work in the 1911 is the automatics, even match guns, typically have slightly larger chambers than revolvers to facilitate feeding. Even .0005" (1/2 of 1/1000") in diameter would make the difference between chambering in one gun and not another. I will venture a guess the brass you loaded had been shot in the Kimber and not the 625, am I correct?

 

[BruceM]

RCBS among most others recommends that the sizing die be run down to touch the shell holder at it's highest point and then back off about 1/4 turn so that you can just bearly see light between the shellholder and the bottom of the die. This is so the carbide insert will not be cracked. The sizing die would have to be backed out quit a bit for the cases not to be sized that far ahead of the case head.

If the sizing die was not properly adjusted, I'd think that the problem would appear with most cases just because of how the sizing operation works.

The best thing to do is start measuring instead of just speculating.

Bruce

 

[shovelwrench]

In spite of what others are telling you about a bulge from oversize and deep seated bullets, if they go in as far as your photo shows then that isn't the problem, it is the base that isn't adequately sized.

Did you set the die to just touch the shellholder, or was there a gap?

The reason they will work in the 1911 is the automatics, even match guns, typically have slightly larger chambers than revolvers to facilitate feeding. Even .0005" (1/2 of 1/1000") in diameter would make the difference between chambering in one gun and not another. I will venture a guess the brass you loaded had been shot in the Kimber and not the 625, am I correct?

Might be true, BUT, the .45 chamber is tapered. SO, unless the brass is bulged near the base, and his sizing die did'nt remove. The problem is closer to the casemouth.

Retired in 2001,
Does resized, unloaded, brass drop in freely?

If it does, it means its not a sizing/bulged base issue. Its a problem after seating the bullet. Like Smith crazy said, brass thickness, bullet diameter. Or if your seating and crimping in one step, and the crimp is'nt just right (too much), it can bulge the brass (crush it kinda).

 

[epj]

The fact that only some cases are affected leads me to believe that this is a crimping issue rather than sizing. Slight variation in case length is likely the actual culprit. The longer cases are probably getting a bit of roll crimp or a bit of bulge. The FCD would take care of this problem if this is indeed the case.