It does sound like you have SWC (semi-wadcutter) bullets. They are what is called a "truncated cone" shape--that is, a cone projecting from an obvious shoulder, with the tip cut off to leave a flat nose.
The setup of the die will vary with the exact style of SWC you have; that is, there is no single OAL (overall length) for all weights and shape variations of the SWC bullet. This is because the length of the cone projecting beyond the shoulder can vary considerably. With the regular lead ones I use, for instance, the difference between a 185 gr. and 200 gr. is almost entirely achieved by reducing the cone--the bullet remains the same from shoulder to base. Once you have an OAL for a given style of bullet, then you want it consistent for that style.
While theoretically a .45ACP bullet headspaces on the shoulder of the cartridge case, in my experience this is seldom the situation with the reloads of SWC's that I use. The cases shorten with firing, first of all, and more significantly there is a tendency for the gun to headspace on the shoulder of the bullet--rather than the case--anyway.
The goal is to leave just enough of the shoulder of the bullet projecting from the case to get a good fit in the chamber. I like to have the bullet just engaging the lands, but not sticking out so far that the cartridge does not seat fully into the chamber. Usually it's about a sixteenth of an inch or less, but that's for my gun.
Your die should be a taper crimp, not a roll crimp, if it's new. Look for "TC" on the box. You are NOT trying to crimp into a cannelure on the bullet. The die will simply crimp lightly into the side of the bullet. Follow the directions that came with the die to set up the crimp. You may have to adjust the crimp slightly after some test shooting. Many forumites recommend getting a fourth die called a "factory crimp die" which is preset for a perfect crimp. This will be a worthwhile investment in the future.
Once the crimp is set, and with the seating plug for SWC (not roundnose; you should have two) installed in the die, tighten down the seating plug partway and see how far it seats a bullet into the case. You can always adjust it down further and reseat the same test bullet, but if you seat the bullet too deeply, you have to start over. Get it to the point where about an eighth of an inch of bullet shoulder sticks out beyond the case.
Remove the barrel from the gun. To get a feel for how a case fits in the chamber, resize a fired case with the first die and drop it into the chamber. The case will headspace on the mouth, as it's supposed to. Your reload doesn't have to go that far into the chamber, but it shouldn't be dramatically different. In fact, with the extractor gripping the base of the case, the cartridge is often held away from the bottom of the chamber a bit anyway.
With regular lead bullets, you can apply ink from a marker to the shoulder area of the bullet before putting it in the chamber to see where it engages the lands and grooves of the barrel, and then adjust the depth of the bullet seating until it just barely touches them. With your black moly bullets, I dunno.
Some more pointers: the finished cartridge should drop cleanly into the chamber. If the fit is too snug, you may not have enough crimp or may have belled the case mouth too much with the expander die. If lead is shaved off of the bullet as it seats, you need to expand the mouth of the case more with the expander die. Excessive leading is usually a sign of too hot a load for the hardness of the lead bullet and/or the bullet jumping into the lands and grooves as it starts from the case.
Whew! That's enough from me. Have fun with it, don't be frustrated or afraid to experiment within reason. There's few things more satisfying than shooting X's with your own reloads!
The setup of the die will vary with the exact style of SWC you have; that is, there is no single OAL (overall length) for all weights and shape variations of the SWC bullet. This is because the length of the cone projecting beyond the shoulder can vary considerably. With the regular lead ones I use, for instance, the difference between a 185 gr. and 200 gr. is almost entirely achieved by reducing the cone--the bullet remains the same from shoulder to base. Once you have an OAL for a given style of bullet, then you want it consistent for that style.
While theoretically a .45ACP bullet headspaces on the shoulder of the cartridge case, in my experience this is seldom the situation with the reloads of SWC's that I use. The cases shorten with firing, first of all, and more significantly there is a tendency for the gun to headspace on the shoulder of the bullet--rather than the case--anyway.
The goal is to leave just enough of the shoulder of the bullet projecting from the case to get a good fit in the chamber. I like to have the bullet just engaging the lands, but not sticking out so far that the cartridge does not seat fully into the chamber. Usually it's about a sixteenth of an inch or less, but that's for my gun.
Your die should be a taper crimp, not a roll crimp, if it's new. Look for "TC" on the box. You are NOT trying to crimp into a cannelure on the bullet. The die will simply crimp lightly into the side of the bullet. Follow the directions that came with the die to set up the crimp. You may have to adjust the crimp slightly after some test shooting. Many forumites recommend getting a fourth die called a "factory crimp die" which is preset for a perfect crimp. This will be a worthwhile investment in the future.
Once the crimp is set, and with the seating plug for SWC (not roundnose; you should have two) installed in the die, tighten down the seating plug partway and see how far it seats a bullet into the case. You can always adjust it down further and reseat the same test bullet, but if you seat the bullet too deeply, you have to start over. Get it to the point where about an eighth of an inch of bullet shoulder sticks out beyond the case.
Remove the barrel from the gun. To get a feel for how a case fits in the chamber, resize a fired case with the first die and drop it into the chamber. The case will headspace on the mouth, as it's supposed to. Your reload doesn't have to go that far into the chamber, but it shouldn't be dramatically different. In fact, with the extractor gripping the base of the case, the cartridge is often held away from the bottom of the chamber a bit anyway.
With regular lead bullets, you can apply ink from a marker to the shoulder area of the bullet before putting it in the chamber to see where it engages the lands and grooves of the barrel, and then adjust the depth of the bullet seating until it just barely touches them. With your black moly bullets, I dunno.
Some more pointers: the finished cartridge should drop cleanly into the chamber. If the fit is too snug, you may not have enough crimp or may have belled the case mouth too much with the expander die. If lead is shaved off of the bullet as it seats, you need to expand the mouth of the case more with the expander die. Excessive leading is usually a sign of too hot a load for the hardness of the lead bullet and/or the bullet jumping into the lands and grooves as it starts from the case.
Whew! That's enough from me. Have fun with it, don't be frustrated or afraid to experiment within reason. There's few things more satisfying than shooting X's with your own reloads!
