380 Taper crimp question.

[PDshooter]

Just started loading 380s.Pick-up that RM380 afew months back.Great pocket gun. Bought the RCBS #20415 dies set with taper crimp,seater plug. I notice alot of bulge cases. I use the Lee taper crimp die for my 45ACP loading. That die set was bought back in 1986. I was thinking of just buying the 380 taper crimp die for the last step. I've been using my RCBS single stage press since 1986.... Thank god for "Youtube"

 

[kmw1954]

I'm going to guess that I got lucky. I've been loading 380acp plated with a set of Lee 3 die, no FCD that I bought used from a member on another forum. So far I haven't run into any problems with the reloads. Though this is the second topic on 380acp in the past couple weeks were someone is having a problem.

I will be watching to see if there is a solution in case I start to develop problems. Good luck to you.

 

[larryf1952]

Are you trying to seat the bullet and crimp in one step? By "bulged" cases, do you mean that the cases are "crushing", or that the bullet is bulging them?

Reloading for the .380 is just like reloading for the 9mm, the .40 or the .45ACP. I've been reloading the .380 since about 1989.

I gave up on 1-step seating/crimping a long, long time ago. Differences in case thickness caused that to be an exercise in frustration. Especially if you're reloading mixed brass, it's nigh impossible to seat and crimp at the same time.

I have a set of RCBS taper crimp .380 dies. When setting up the seating/crimp die to seat the bullet, I screw the die down to the point where it just contacts the case (ram fully in the UP position), then back it off a small fraction of a turn and tighten it down. Here, I set my bullet seating depth with the seater plug. After I've charged and seated all of the bullets, I back the seater plug out all the way and screw the die body down to set the crimp in a separate step.

I use this method for all of my reloads, and I've never had an issue with bulging cases. If the die is screwed down too far, it can "crush" the case with too much crimp. I don't think this is what you're talking about...

 

[PDshooter]

Are you trying to seat the bullet and crimp in one step....Yes I was doing that....

I will do your method this time. ! Thanks....

 

[T. O'Heir]

"...notice a lot of bulged cases..." Isn't about the crimp. Your dies aren't set up correctly. The bottom of the dies should just get kissed by the shell holder with the ram all the way up. Then you adjust the decapping pin rod so it just pops the old primer out.
Ditto for the seater die. Then adjust the seater plug to push the bullet in so you get .984" OAL. That's SAAMI max OAL for .380.
"...Differences in case thickness..." Makes no difference. The correct amount of taper crimp is 'enough to hold the bullet in place and remove the wee flare' and no more. Still the same process as any other pistol case.