I've always used Lee FCD for all my pistol rounds. I also use a Wilson Case Gauge to quality check each round to ensure smooth chambering. The gauge is dimensioned to min SAAMI specs so if your round passes your gauge it will chamber in your weapon. Thanks for all the great videos!
I buy lee 4 die sets exclusively. The fcd is such a simple idea, one wonders why people have struggled for years, worked every round through the gun, etc. to insure reliability.
I had the 3 die Lee die set for .45 auto, and had a lot of issues with feeding in my Glock. I got the additional factory crimp die and that took care of the problem.
One additional note would be that I noticed that the varying case diameter was always a result of particular brands of brass. On the brands that are notoriously thin brass, the crimp die wouldn't even come in contact with them, and they would feed fine in the gun. On the thick brass brands, there was significant tug, and a very noticeable sheen to the area the crimp die tapered. So the issue with feeding became obvious as to the reason why.
Great video! I'll be posting one soon about the FCD from a bullet casters perspective. I absolutely loved the "tack driving accuracy evaluation"! You got a sub from me.
Six months after watching this video, it is time to reply. I bought the Lee FCD for my semi-auto pistols and ran a select few of handloads through it, and yes, it does improve reliability dramatically. I was having trouble with .40 S&W, which is new to me, the Lee FCD ended all reliability problems. I bought FCD dies for all my pistol calibers, and spent some time this winter running handloads through them. All function perfectly now. Weather here in NE Ohio is finally beginning to turn milder, we feel like getting to the club to shoot. I also bought more Lee 3-hole turrets, rather than a new 4-hole press, and dedicated those to the FCD dies. It takes me about 2.5 minutes to run 50 rds. through the FCD die, and check about 20% of those with the Wilson Pistol Gauge die. I timed myself against songs originally released on vinyl, like Beatles, Beach Boys and other classic oldies from from the 60's which typically run no more than 2.5 mins. I now play those on CD which show time elapsed. The Lee FCD die really works for me.
That's the same thing I've experienced with my .40 S&W loads. I'm not sure why they don't want to feed reliably without the FCD, but it definitely fixed the problem. I now use one for my .45 ACP, 9mm, and .38 Super loads.
Good information, HR. I just finished loading a test batch of .40 SW with Berry's Bullets and new Lee dies. My new Wilson Max Cartridge Gauge would not accept any of them. II will reply here again after testing is complete.
There will also be a bulge at the bottom of the case after it is fired. Buy Lee Bulge Buster Kit which contains a pusher and catch bottle. It uses your Lee Factory Crimp Die with the crimp ring removed.You push the entire case all the way thru the die and it removes the bulge left from firing. Then you F/L size and load normally but the F/L die will not get all the way to the bottom of the case due to the rim held in the case holder, but is still necessary to get proper bullet fit.If you do this first it will accomplish a little more than using the FCD after the fact. You will still do the final operation of Crimping the bullet in with the FCD but the Sizing Ring will probably not contact the sides of the case as much as before.I have loaded 1000's of .40 S&W cases and all mine are fired in Glocks. Removing the bulge is a "Case Preparation" operation not a loading operation, but it adds reliability to your ammo.Welcome to CastBoolits HR !!! We like Marines !!!Randy
I'd like to say I love your videos very informative second thank you for your service both in the marines and as a police officer thirdly I'm wanting to buy a m&p pistol duty size of coarse my question most of the places that carry magazines for the m&p are off brand primary and other companies like that are those mags ok to use on the m&p or am I better of ordering the actual mags online
I'll admit to having a certain prejudice against the die. It appears, at least to me that I see most using it to compensate for a deficiency somewhere in their reloading process or as a solution to a problem that doesn't exist. However, I can appreciate its use in certain applications such as yours. I have a Colt 1911 and it has been a pita to load for since day one, 20 years ago. It does not want to freely chamber even factory ball and have come to the conclusion its throat needs to be reamed. What has gotten me by all these years has been the Lee FCD. Out of everything else I load, there are zero needs for this die.
I actually like them as a final step after the cartridge is finished. Just in case something about seating the bullet caused a bulge in the case, the LFD irons it out. It certainly did the trick for my 40's with plated bullets. I got that particular stoppage in multiple pistols that never malfunctioned with anything else. Maybe there is some odd incompatibility between my dies and the plated bullets. In any case, it's nice to have that problem solved!
The one possible area of imperfection I would think would be over expanding the neck. On a 4-hole turret press, it's easy enough to control. Set mine at the point where the bullet is just tottering......teetering and on the next station drive it home to OCL. It somehow even with minimal flaring doesn't look right on a .357 without a good crimp on the cannelure. lh3.googleusercontent.com/wEfQdAW9i3-mFmwhuDJ_v3yOz3IJgBPozqiKUj97GZXXpD9HbKrJV28WOjAp4Mv6FNuT55ARM7elSbJGs5INbFHvOP_PNk9j33_PA_EVHY9imwNX7Ox_yvKnO9USxoX5dL9tsA_cYDiZhLpcn-gXYEfhm0By2QMZ5YW1FxhppqIN-PTQqb-juTLoSLugvjGIuUDb8WtRoJ-wtcFzQB_AfP9aucHvLXSdy0jKlT4rGY-Kq9mXuWbft_Cuz2IwfuuQgaeNO_tzOLjEqCP2gH1fnNuj9VhswbG_eWg9z12-7-gvrzNBvtexKVnHHgbCORnaKVJEFON0Q-1TGsOWFwODPkr2qUuSSToNTB274KPdC99KD7VlS9LcMwLDAxsemfUPU2pZsCUvRcB42B2ttKhOYK-7MJZE6ZVb7w6DlsGn1FuZduG3oUnQPf0PvQd1fOHoiOHq5G_meBGfHnxB0GaljkQli_EWHmngnz4970BzJMoUlfcETxidm0dy7HmMgQHM5ZZUHb9O8QCbJvmSXPtgsCEOoMf00yGRGJFC3xLC74qvXtWxUzOT3TU6zip8vSYvyDreJ-by9BhaPb8f2LCJTYMj6p5vLxDknTbRVFec09F_0xy1TpvQNtW--rFbFEbS58dAox6FKfh-LLZd2g6-E2qnxGzgeSuq=w370-h657-no The one towards the front left being perfect. Gonna start knocking out a bunch starting Friday night.
Besides rifle like 223/556 i've never used a FCD and never had a issue in tens of thousands of rounds! Seat and crimp in one with TC seating dies like RCBS! Lee got everyone thinking they need a FCD for everything! Pistol brass has nearly zero case length variation! Atleast not enough to matter with plated, lead, jacketed or any type of projectile
Just want to make sure Mr. Funk: The we factory crimp die and what we call a taper crimp die or the same thing right? I ask because from day one 30 years ago, I was told to taper crimp all my rounds for auto pistols. I just assumed everyone else did too...
John Smith Good question. This is probably a source of some confusion because Lee designates these dies as “Factory Crimp” regardless of what kind of crimp they apply. For semi-autos, they do in fact apply a taper crimp. For revolvers, they apply a roll crimp.
@@hrfunk I use a Go-NoGo gauge for my last step but some times the shell will go in the NoGo but not the barrel of one of my newer pistols, food for thought.
@@marklamay4757 Right. I had bullets that went flush on case gauge but wouldn’t seat in my chamber. Kinda made me mad as that’s why I bought it. To make sure rounds would chamber without any issues.
Maybe so, but the tens of thousands of other cartridges I've loaded over the years have worked fine. Only my .40 S&W's persistently failed to feed. The FCD cured that problem.
Cool, You answered a problem I was having with both the 40 & a few 223's. Thanks I'll give it a try when I get home tonight.
Good! I hope it helps.
I've always used Lee FCD for all my pistol rounds. I also use a Wilson Case Gauge to quality check each round to ensure smooth chambering. The gauge is dimensioned to min SAAMI specs so if your round passes your gauge it will chamber in your weapon. Thanks for all the great videos!
James Sampson Thank you! I’m glad you liked it!
A friend that used to reload to sell at shows claimed his reject rate in the gage went from 6% without the LFCD to 3% with it. It's worth using.
I buy lee 4 die sets exclusively. The fcd is such a simple idea, one wonders why people have struggled for years, worked every round through the gun, etc. to insure reliability.
HR, thanks for the insight on the Lee FCD. I have ordered one for my .380 ACP set.
I hope it works well for you. Thanks for watching!
I use the FCD for all my reloads, never had a problem.
I had the 3 die Lee die set for .45 auto, and had a lot of issues with feeding in my Glock. I got the additional factory crimp die and that took care of the problem.
One additional note would be that I noticed that the varying case diameter was always a result of particular brands of brass. On the brands that are notoriously thin brass, the crimp die wouldn't even come in contact with them, and they would feed fine in the gun. On the thick brass brands, there was significant tug, and a very noticeable sheen to the area the crimp die tapered. So the issue with feeding became obvious as to the reason why.
Glad you figured out the problem! We enjoyed the video as always. We'll see you on the next one...
Thank you! I'm glad you liked it!
Great video! I'll be posting one soon about the FCD from a bullet casters perspective. I absolutely loved the "tack driving accuracy evaluation"! You got a sub from me.
Thanks for the sub and welcome aboard!
Six months after watching this video, it is time to reply. I bought the Lee FCD for my semi-auto pistols and ran a select few of handloads through it, and yes, it does improve reliability dramatically. I was having trouble with .40 S&W, which is new to me, the Lee FCD ended all reliability problems. I bought FCD dies for all my pistol calibers, and spent some time this winter running handloads through them. All function perfectly now. Weather here in NE Ohio is finally beginning to turn milder, we feel like getting to the club to shoot. I also bought more Lee 3-hole turrets, rather than a new 4-hole press, and dedicated those to the FCD dies. It takes me about 2.5 minutes to run 50 rds. through the FCD die, and check about 20% of those with the Wilson Pistol Gauge die. I timed myself against songs originally released on vinyl, like Beatles, Beach Boys and other classic oldies from from the 60's which typically run no more than 2.5 mins. I now play those on CD which show time elapsed. The Lee FCD die really works for me.
That's the same thing I've experienced with my .40 S&W loads. I'm not sure why they don't want to feed reliably without the FCD, but it definitely fixed the problem. I now use one for my .45 ACP, 9mm, and .38 Super loads.
had same problem on 9mm. Thank you for sharing. Greetings from Brazil!
You're welcome Arthur. Thanks for watching!
Thank you for the information, good video
Reloading from the hot pot Thank you! I hope it was helpful.
Good information, HR. I just finished loading a test batch of .40 SW with Berry's Bullets and new Lee dies. My new Wilson Max Cartridge Gauge would not accept any of them. II will reply here again after testing is complete.
The FCD may well solve that problem for you.
There will also be a bulge at the bottom of the case after it is fired. Buy Lee Bulge Buster Kit which contains a pusher and catch bottle. It uses your Lee Factory Crimp Die with the crimp ring removed.You push the entire case all the way thru the die and it removes the bulge left from firing. Then you F/L size and load normally but the F/L die will not get all the way to the bottom of the case due to the rim held in the case holder, but is still necessary to get proper bullet fit.If you do this first it will accomplish a little more than using the FCD after the fact. You will still do the final operation of Crimping the bullet in with the FCD but the Sizing Ring will probably not contact the sides of the case as much as before.I have loaded 1000's of .40 S&W cases and all mine are fired in Glocks. Removing the bulge is a "Case Preparation" operation not a loading operation, but it adds reliability to your ammo.Welcome to CastBoolits HR !!! We like Marines !!!Randy
Buchanan Precision Machine Thanks for the tip Randy! I’ll look into that.
Nice Nice Nice I Like Lee Products You Loadings are Indeed Tack Drivers Have a Happy Thanksgiving Can’t Wait Till the Next Video 😎👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼
Chris Chiampo Thanks! Happy thanksgiving to you and yours as well!
I'd like to say I love your videos very informative second thank you for your service both in the marines and as a police officer thirdly I'm wanting to buy a m&p pistol duty size of coarse my question most of the places that carry magazines for the m&p are off brand primary and other companies like that are those mags ok to use on the m&p or am I better of ordering the actual mags online
The m&p will be my truck gun so to speak thanks again for your service and the videos
Andrew Peterman I always feel better using S&W factory magazines. They are more expensive, but I know they work.
Great video 👍👍
Thank you!
Good job
I'll admit to having a certain prejudice against the die. It appears, at least to me that I see most using it to compensate for a deficiency somewhere in their reloading process or as a solution to a problem that doesn't exist. However, I can appreciate its use in certain applications such as yours. I have a Colt 1911 and it has been a pita to load for since day one, 20 years ago. It does not want to freely chamber even factory ball and have come to the conclusion its throat needs to be reamed. What has gotten me by all these years has been the Lee FCD. Out of everything else I load, there are zero needs for this die.
I actually like them as a final step after the cartridge is finished. Just in case something about seating the bullet caused a bulge in the case, the LFD irons it out. It certainly did the trick for my 40's with plated bullets. I got that particular stoppage in multiple pistols that never malfunctioned with anything else. Maybe there is some odd incompatibility between my dies and the plated bullets. In any case, it's nice to have that problem solved!
The one possible area of imperfection I would think would be over expanding the neck. On a 4-hole turret press, it's easy enough to control. Set mine at the point where the bullet is just tottering......teetering and on the next station drive it home to OCL. It somehow even with minimal flaring doesn't look right on a .357 without a good crimp on the cannelure. lh3.googleusercontent.com/wEfQdAW9i3-mFmwhuDJ_v3yOz3IJgBPozqiKUj97GZXXpD9HbKrJV28WOjAp4Mv6FNuT55ARM7elSbJGs5INbFHvOP_PNk9j33_PA_EVHY9imwNX7Ox_yvKnO9USxoX5dL9tsA_cYDiZhLpcn-gXYEfhm0By2QMZ5YW1FxhppqIN-PTQqb-juTLoSLugvjGIuUDb8WtRoJ-wtcFzQB_AfP9aucHvLXSdy0jKlT4rGY-Kq9mXuWbft_Cuz2IwfuuQgaeNO_tzOLjEqCP2gH1fnNuj9VhswbG_eWg9z12-7-gvrzNBvtexKVnHHgbCORnaKVJEFON0Q-1TGsOWFwODPkr2qUuSSToNTB274KPdC99KD7VlS9LcMwLDAxsemfUPU2pZsCUvRcB42B2ttKhOYK-7MJZE6ZVb7w6DlsGn1FuZduG3oUnQPf0PvQd1fOHoiOHq5G_meBGfHnxB0GaljkQli_EWHmngnz4970BzJMoUlfcETxidm0dy7HmMgQHM5ZZUHb9O8QCbJvmSXPtgsCEOoMf00yGRGJFC3xLC74qvXtWxUzOT3TU6zip8vSYvyDreJ-by9BhaPb8f2LCJTYMj6p5vLxDknTbRVFec09F_0xy1TpvQNtW--rFbFEbS58dAox6FKfh-LLZd2g6-E2qnxGzgeSuq=w370-h657-no
The one towards the front left being perfect. Gonna start knocking out a bunch starting Friday night.
Fun and informative. Where can I purchase the 3D blue tack targets? Thank you for the video.
You’re welcome. Thanks for watching!
Actually, I'm the world's only supplier of "authentic" 3D tack targets. Would you like to see a price list?
Besides rifle like 223/556 i've never used a FCD and never had a issue in tens of thousands of rounds! Seat and crimp in one with TC seating dies like RCBS! Lee got everyone thinking they need a FCD for everything! Pistol brass has nearly zero case length variation! Atleast not enough to matter with plated, lead, jacketed or any type of projectile
I just learned yesterday my FCD wasn't set right and wasn't actually crimping my 10mm reloads. I wonder if I will have better performance now.
Hopefully. Be sure to let me know.
I use the Lee FCD for every caliber I reload for. Rifle and pistol.
I use one for almost all my handgun cartridges.
Just want to make sure Mr. Funk: The we factory crimp die and what we call a taper crimp die or the same thing right? I ask because from day one 30 years ago, I was told to taper crimp all my rounds for auto pistols. I just assumed everyone else did too...
John Smith Good question. This is probably a source of some confusion because Lee designates these dies as “Factory Crimp” regardless of what kind of crimp they apply. For semi-autos, they do in fact apply a taper crimp. For revolvers, they apply a roll crimp.
Great video and Lee makes awesome dies. I'm just curious to know if you were using a chamber check tool?
I usually take a barrel out of one of my pistols and use that.
@@hrfunk I use a Go-NoGo gauge for my last step but some times the shell will go in the NoGo but not the barrel of one of my newer pistols, food for thought.
@@marklamay4757 Right. I had bullets that went flush on case gauge but wouldn’t seat in my chamber. Kinda made me mad as that’s why I bought it. To make sure rounds would chamber without any issues.
Lee FCD's always. All of my reloads see the Lee die.
no issue, but starting progressive soon, want to make sure everything runs properly.
I like the FCD. Sone folks think they are unnecessary, but I believe they help.
@@hrfunk Consistency is under rated.
Did you check your factory recoil spring
No, but it functioned perfectly with factory ammunition.
I just started using one. Is it normal for it to be kinda hard to get it into the die at first? Seems like it's a really tight fit.
What cartridge are you using it for?
FCD is totally unnecessary...if you can't assemble reliable ammo without it, then you must have flunked Reloading 101.
Maybe so, but the tens of thousands of other cartridges I've loaded over the years have worked fine. Only my .40 S&W's persistently failed to feed. The FCD cured that problem.