What am I doing wrong with my OAL?

[KevinA.]

[ireload]

When you pull down on the handle are pulling down all the way till it stops? If not then your “short stroking” it. Meaning the bullet being seat is not completely seated thus the variance you’ve mentioned.

[Mayor McRifle]

What you’re describing is fairly normal. As long as you have the right seating die insert in place and you’re holding the bullet in place vertically on the downstroke, you’re probably not doing anything wrong. Your OAL range is short enough to feed properly, and with that very light load, as long as your powder charges are consistent, I doubt you’ll notice any difference between rounds.

[waveslayer]

Are you seating the primers all the way in? That will throw off your OAL with the Dillon. Make sure you press in all the way when seating the primers...

Also, there is a kit out that you can turn the 2 pins holding the die block into screws. It removes all the play in the die block by securing it down. Makes for better consistancy and more precision ammo

My wife thinks I only have 3 guns

[mmlook]

on all progressives, you need to set your OAL with a fully loaded shell plate

the other thing you can check is the actual profile of the seating die.

Almost all seating dies are setup for round nose bullets.
when loading flat points, you'll be indexing off the ogive instead of the tip.
So to get a consistent OAL, you need to flip the seating die or fill it in with epoxy to make it flat.

not sure if Dillion seating dies have 2 seating profile inserts

[tanks]

...

the other thing you can check is the actual profile of the seating die.

Almost all seating dies are setup for round nose bullets.
when loading flat points, you'll be indexing off the ogive instead of the tip.
So to get a consistent OAL, you need to flip the seating die or fill it in with epoxy to make it flat.

not sure if Dillion seating dies have 2 seating profile inserts

On Dillon one can flip the insert in the die for flat vs round nose bullets. It is in the die instructions.

[at_liberty]

on all progressives, you need to set your OAL with a fully loaded shell plate

the other thing you can check is the actual profile of the seating die.

Almost all seating dies are setup for round nose bullets.
when loading flat points, you'll be indexing off the ogive instead of the tip.
So to get a consistent OAL, you need to flip the seating die or fill it in with epoxy to make it flat.

not sure if Dillion seating dies have 2 seating profile inserts

During seating the shell plate can rock a fraction, unless there is an unsized case being sized at the station opposite the seating. I don't know that every station must be processing. That would ne too tricky to coordinate more than once. The expander force can be an issue, but I think just using the sizer at the same time would be enough for setup. It kind of depends if the sizer and seater are exactly opposite on the shell plate.

[KevinA.]

Yes, I’m making sure to pull the handle completely down and then press all the way forward to seat the primer. I have checked and all primers seat flush. I have also confirmed that I am using the flat nose seating insert. I may try to recalibrate with a full shell plate and see if that changes anything.

['09CTS-V&'87Turbo-T]

On a progressive press such as the Dillon 550B you do not have to load all stations to get consistent OALS/COALS. You will generally get more consistent OALS reloading single stage (1 bullet at a time), I do this all of the time. it is difficult to get all of the play out of a Dillon 550 but it can be done by removing the hold down bolt, sprocket, & shell plate. Thoroughly clean everything, very lightly oil between the shell plate & plate below it.
On bullets having a ogive with the seater die might vary a tad. Seating on a flat surface or a shoulder generally givesw more consistent results on the OAL. If you use lubed lead bullets it pays to clean the seater and maybe the crimp die occasionally.

['09CTS-V&'87Turbo-T]

Also, you will get more consistent reloading results if you set up the press in the manner in which you are going to use the press. If you are going to use the press as a progressive press, then yes, load all stations when setting the press. If you are going to use the press single stage, then set up each die and/or station individually as you will use it.

[LynnJr]

When you set up your seating die use a empty case that has the spent primer in it and see what you get.

[checkenbach]

Also too, think about the brand of brass you’re using, CBC is thicker than others, and the bullets seat and crimp with more difficulty than other brands.
S&B brass had tight primer pockets, military brass too.
Many competitive shooters sort brass and standardize, it depends on what you want to do with them.
You could use your inconsistent rounds for hoser use...

[tonyjr]

Where the cases / bullets are kept before reloading can change OAL .
I have a Lee loadmaster and load the bullets and cases in tubes and
stand beside press .
I just check dump and seating until the shell plate is full . Shell plate
rocks when only one case is in it .
I get different OAL's when hand placing bullets [ 41 , 44 and 50 are
just to heavy and the 50's won't even fit in tubes . ]
I have a 1 inch steel plate take is for hand placed bullets and cases
to cut down on temp variances .
If you want a plate , an old flywheel from junk yard works .

[mjmagee67]

Pistol round.....+/-.005 is more than acceptable...especially when using mixed brass.

As others have said adjust COL with a full turret and all stations doing what they are suppose to do.

Take a caliper and measure out .016 and you will see it it really not much variation.

[KevinA.]

Now when adjusting with a full baseplate does each station need to have new brass? What I mean by this is say for example the resizing die, do I have to load an unsized case each time I pull the handle and check OAL? Or can I use the same piece of brass in that station for every pull as long as there is a case loaded?