One ring to rule them all.......

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HowieG

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Just a quick review on these plastic lock rings for dies.

I needed a die ring to replace one on a Lee die. I don't care for Lee rings, especially on sizing dies. I usually use Hornady rings as replacements, but I couldn't find any the other day. So, I took a shot at these plastic locking rings. Nice looking and come in colors. Seem to work well as long as you don't go crazy and strip out the screw. The price is definitely right.

The one big problem, at least for me, is that Lee dies with these rings installed won't fit in the any of the Lee boxes/cases that I have. That's a bummer. I guess I will go back to Hornady rings for Lee dies when I find some.

These plastic rings will fit in RCBS and Lyman boxes. And Hornady boxes too, but you would never change out a Hornady ring.

View attachment 979663
 
berettaprofessor said:
Just for interest's sake, what is wrong with the Lee rings?
Click to expand...

Lee rings don't have a positive lock... just the O-ring. Most other rings are either a split-ring design, that can be clamped to the die, or a standard ring with a set screw to provide a positive lock. The Hornady die rings, in addition to being a split ring design, also have flats milled into them... for the Hornady die wrench. I've retrofitted all my dies with the Hornady rings.
 
HowieG said:
I don't care for Lee rings, especially on sizing dies.
Click to expand...
Me too, so I have spares. . .

If you use two, with no o-ring in the lower one, and tighten them against each other, they work quite well, and every bit as positive a stop as the clamp-ring design.

mdi said:
Many people don't know how "o-ring" locking nuts work, and many reloaders think lock rings need to be tightened down with enough force to move a '49 Chevy garbage truck...
Click to expand...
Tightening torque is barely relevant. Positive and unambiguous return to a set position is extremely relevant, especially for sizing dies to set headspace. The o-ring isn't positive or unambiguous.
 
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The Lee oring rings work great for putting dies in a bushing or a tool head and leaving them, but I don't care for them otherwise, it's too easy to let the die move in the ring. I like the Hornady rings, snug them up and the die stays put no matter how many times to screw/unscrew it from a press etc, even if you're careless.
 
Charlie98 said:
The Hornady die rings, in addition to being a split ring design, also have flats milled into them... for the Hornady die wrench. I've retrofitted all my dies with the Hornady rings.
Click to expand...

I also retrofitted all my RCBS dies with the Hornady rings. Just got sick of digging holes in the threads of good dies.. Tried the "lead in the hole" and it worked better. I also added the Hornady lock and load system and it made my single stage Rockchucker infinitively more flexible with die changes without recalibration.
 
Lee lock ring o-rings lock as well as any one would EVER need. Never had one loosen on me, though I never assumed it would remain set when die was removed. That o-rings has more than enough friction to prevent any loosening
Removing the o-rings and flipping the lock nut gives all the thread you will ever need. Like this, it is a lock nut just like Dillon, which is very thin and only has a turn or two.
Remember, all the lock ring does is keep the die from moving. It takes no load, so even a quarter turn in threads is enough.
Never liked lock rings with lock bolts.
1) there is no force on the ring that requires a lock bolt
2) I simply would not remove a die with lock ring still locked, as that seemed to put a lot of shear on the die and press threads and could gall/damsge--so I always loosened the ring any way.
Only time I use split lock rings is on my co-ax press where that is how the co-ax works.
 
edwardware said:
Positive and unambiguous return to a set position is extremely relevant, especially for sizing dies to set headspace. The o-ring isn't positive or unambiguous.
Click to expand...

That.

Everyone has their notion... realistic or not... about die settings... much like bullet crimp. What works for you might not work for me, and vice versa. I think Lee rings are fine... under certain circumstances, but I find Hornady lock rings perfect for EVERY circumstance... so I paid The Man. For that matter, I found the tolerances of my Hornady LNL single-stage press unacceptable... I don't think the tolerances of the LNL system are adequate... so I sold my LNL press, and bought another RockChucker.
 
"Tightening torque is barely relevant. Positive and unambiguous return to a set position is extremely relevant, especially for sizing dies to set headspace. The o-ring isn't positive or unambiguous.".

FWIW (not much); The threaded nuts, hex or round, that use a set screw are not really "lock nuts", they are stop clamps. They are often "locked" onto a die in a position and clamped tight so the die can be returned to a specific setting, a stop ring. I have been a machinist/mechanic all my working life and have used "o-ring" lock nuts many times in many applications, and the Lee nuts are not unique, but a proven perhaps older technology method of keeping a threaded part from turning. I have used Lee dies with Lee nuts on single stage presses where a die is installed and used for a batch (I batch load so one die works on perhaps a hundred rounds/steps). None have ever moved. I have installed Lee dies on turrets, snugging the nuts down (mostly finger tight), and some have stayed in place for years, none moving. I could explain how an o-ring lock nut works but this rant is winding down. Lee rings work well when the user knows how they are designed to work...
 
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I just turn the Lee ring upside down and after adjusting put a witness mark on both nut and die. Positive stop with adjustment if needed. Just use a wrench to start the die loose and then spin the die by hand. Never had one move and a positive stop that is repeatable.
 
The longer I work at this hobby (Hobby??? Really??? Needs its own thread), the more I learn.

I have only been at this for 11 or so years.

In the beginning, I pulled all of the Lee Rings and replaced them with the Hornady.
I wanted repeatable positive stops for everything I screwed into the old Rock Chucker.

I still think this is a solid plan for the sizing die and any application where you know there will not be a future need for adjustment.

Now that I am loading 45-70 Gov't (Two different Case Lengths due to my bullet choices)
And
Adding a .357 Mag on top of my .38 Spl routine (Two different Case Lengths again)

I have discovered the beauty of the Lee Rings for making fast, easy & solid changes & adjustments.
I don't have to loosen, adjust, tighten, check results - loosen, adjust, tighten, check results like I do with the Hornady rings.

I also discovered that the low profile lock nuts provided by Dillon are what works best on their tool heads.
The Hornady's aren't as compatible.
 
MI2600 said:
Isn't that just like an RBCS ring?
Click to expand...
yes, but a lot less expensive. Actually, it's a lot like the lock rings you can buy at Lowes, too.

FWIW, I've used Lee dies and the rings that come with them since I began reloading and have not had a single issue with them shifting on me.
 
Really confused here as to what we're all talking about. There are Lee O-ring nuts and there are Lee split lock ring nuts (see link below) and then there are Lee Breech split ring lock nuts (second link). I'm not crazy about the newer Lee split ring lock nuts or Lee Breech lock nuts because it's easy to break the screw off; the screw seems weak. Luckily, it's a 3/8" 6-32 thread standard screw; I buy steel screws to replace them all.

https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1022927572?pid=132820

https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1012825974


PS: Lee: please dump the new proprietary wrench and rings and go back to the old style that we all just had wrenches for. New ones are not as good as the old ones.
 
I kinda like rings w set screws. I can put them away & put them back on w out adjustment. Lee rings can too, but I like the locking rings.
 
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