Bullet hold, I am the fan of bullet hold, I want all the bullet hold I can get.
Too much crimp? I can not get too much crimp. “PROBLEM!” Seating and crimping at the same time, a technique Dillon takes the time to explain why they think seating and crimping on the same station is a bad habit. I explained to them I was not starting over by purchasing all new dies and the 550B was one station short of 5, and again, I use the powder lock out die, then, we decided I could use my dies in their press and I could manage the crimp and seating of bullets and cases in the same manner that has always worked for me in the past.
Too much crimp loosens the bullet?? Crimping as described by Lyman in the old days instructed reloaders crimping bottle neck cases was a bad habit, even then cases length had to be the same length, there was no plus and or minus, the rational for not crimping had to do with the crimp of the case neck turned into the bullet when the crimp began, then they reminded the reloader the bullet was moving down as in being seated and that was a conflict, because? while the bullet was being seated and moving down the case neck was locking onto the bullet, Without case body/neck/shoulder support the locked down bullet bulged the neck below the crimp AND! if the reloader insisted on contusing to seat the bullet the ‘locked on bullet to the neck’ would crush the case and cause the shoulder to bulge etc., etc.. And that is the reason a reloader may not be betting the results they wanted.
Too much crimp, R. Lee’s book on modern reloading claims there is no such think as too much crimp, in the past bullets have been locked to the case with different methods, some were spiked, no one ever claimed the case had too much bullet hold, EXCEPT!!!!!!!! THOSE COLD WELD WELDED CASES TO THE BULLET in Aberdeen, MD, then we have to go back to the neck expanding before the bullet (lagging) gets started ‘time is a factor’. I will say WELDED BULLETS TO THE CASE could be a problem if the chamber had a tight neck.
Vtail, the OP, has decided the crimp was not necessary and uses “appears to...” several times. Fantastic, simply fantastic. ME? I crimp, I have 45 ACPs that like new ammo, off the shelf, new, factory never fired ammo. That is expensive and I am a reloader. To shoot reloads I am forced to make my 45 ACPs think they are getting new, factory over the counter ammo. After loading my 45 ACP ammo I make a second run through the press, I have found my 45s do not like cases that look like they swallowed a bullet so I use the carbide sizer die to remove the bulge, only the bulge, after removing the bulge my 45 ammo look factory loaded, enough so my pistols can not tell the difference.
In a conversation with a very disciplined reloader he suggested he could solve the problem, he loaded about 200 rounds and met me at the range, we started, same ol’ thing, my 45s did not like his ammo because his ammo looked like his cases swallowed the bullets, his cases had ‘bullet lines’ around the case. He had 5 other 45 shooters shooting/testing his ammo. I instructed him to ‘stay there’ while I returned home to remove the bulges (bullet lines). I returned to the range, loaded his ammo and without hesitation his ammo worked flawlessly.
And it was my fault, as in “Why don’t you fix it?” He looks at the targets and suggest applying the ‘LEAVER POLICY’ Leaver the way you founder.
F, Guffey
