Lee .223 FL resize die not resizing on LNL AP

[unclesam099]

Does anybody else use Lee dies on the Hornady LNL AP press?

It seems that the .223 Full Length sizing die isn't bumping the shoulder back at all. I placed the brass above a candle to blacken the shoulder/neck area. I then resized it. The black is gone from the side of the case, but remains on the shoulder and neck without any signs of touching the inside of the die.

The die is screwed in so that it contacts the shellplate. I cannot turn the die in any further.

The empty casings seem to chamber in the AR just fine.

Should I be concerned? Grind down the die? Order a Hornady die set?

 

[Walkalong]

If the die is touching the shell holder, it should be bumping the shoulder a little. Do you have a case gauge to check the brass after sizing? Strange that the black is still on the neck.

 

[Shoney]

You should call or e-mail Lee and discuss it with their people. If there is a problem with the die, they will make it right.

 

[JimKirk]

Is it sizing the neck at all? It should be rubbing off the black at least on part of the neck. Sounds like it is sizing the body and not the neck.

You should be able to to see by trying to seat a bullet with your fingers.

If the bullet will slide in even with a lot of hand pressure, the die is not sizing the case neck enough.


Jimmy K

 

[unclesam099]

It isn't rubbing the black off of the neck except for a tiny ring around the top, almost looks like a crimp. Just did another one to verify on the LNL.

I then set the Lee single stage back up and it rubs the black off of the neck completely when the die is turned in to contact the shellholder.

Next thing to do was to stop and take a REALLY close look at it. The bottom of the die fits into the shellplate. I put it back on the LNL and watched everything very closely. Lo and behold, the problem.

I disregarded the fact that the LNL base plate doesn't have a hole in the center (I'm used to the Lee with the shellholder with a hole in it). I had only adjusted the die in as far as the decapping pin would allow. So I backed off the decapping pin a bit and now the die fits into the shellplate.

DUH!!! The learning stage of this new press continues!

 

[Walkalong]

The LNL is meant for the sizer to be in station one. It has a hole there for the primers to fall through. If you put the sizer in a different station, you will run into the problem of the decapper hitting the sub plate and stopping you from screwing the die in further. It also tells me when it stopped you assumed it was all the way down on the plate instead of actually seeing it there.

 

[unclesam099]

Yep, I put a universal decapper in station one which worked just fine... And yes, I didn't check. Lesson learned, nothing harmed.

Next up - Lee resizing die barely has enough threads on it to hold onto the LNL bushing. But it works, so I can hold off on buying a Hornady die set (for now).

 

[JimKirk]

Walkalong has a photo on here somewhere showing how he locks the die with the lock ring completely off the threads, maybe he'll post it for you.

Jimmy K

 

[mongoose33]

The other advantage to the Hornady dies (other than not being short like the Lee dies) is that the seating die has a sleeve that guides the bullet as it enters the die, helping to keep it straight.

The LNLAP is designed for decapping in station one; the only reason I can think to put a decapping die in station one--instead of a normal resizing die--is if you're using an RCBS X-Die in station 2 and you want to use the RCBS Lube Die (which has a decapping pin as part of the die) in station 1. Otherwise I can think of no reason to not put the sizing die in station 1.

 

[unclesam099]

The reason I do it is that it's just a little more force on the Lee resizing die that ends up pushing the "unbreakable" decapper upwards so it doesn't "break".

It's almost like the failsafe is too safe. So I pop the primer first due to the design of the die.

mongoose, I've seen the Hornady dies working and that bullet guide looks nice. The same is happening with the Lee seater die, there isn't enough adjustment. Looks like I might buy some Hornady dies (and get some free bullets in the process).

 

[Walkalong]

Yep, I put a universal decapper in station one which worked just fine... And yes, I didn't check. Lesson learned, nothing harmed.

No reason in the world you can't do it that way and use the sizer in station two. You will just have to run the decapper in the sizer up farther or remove the pin.

Next up - Lee resizing die barely has enough threads on it to hold onto the LNL bushing. But it works, so I can hold off on buying a Hornady die set (for now).

I have more than one brand of die where the lock ring is barely catching threads. (Hornady or Bonanza/Forster lock rings will work) I have one where the lock ring is off the threads and is bbasically a spacer and the LNL bushing locks it in place.

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