Do I really need a 4 hole die setup?

[gsc3zny]

I just bought the Lee pro1000 press and it is 3 hole. I understated this is really all you need to produce rounds. is a 4 hole factory crimp really needed? What would be the advantage? The 3 hole dies are a little easier to find

[alfred1222]

I run a progressive, but I guess if you consolidate properly, you can reload pistol and rifle off of a 3 station. For pistol id do 1) size/deprime 2)charge/expand, 3)seat/crimp

For rifle, 1)size/deprime, 2) charge, 3)seat

[gsc3zny]

I run a progressive, but I guess if you consolidate properly, you can reload pistol and rifle off of a 3 station. For pistol id do 1) size/deprime 2)charge/expand, 3)seat/crimp

For rifle, 1)size/deprime, 2) charge, 3)seat

This is a progressive

[alfred1222]

I apologize, I thought this was a turret for some reason. It doesn't really matter because we are discussing die stations, not whether your press can auto-index or not.

[ar15barrels]

Seating and crimping in separate stations leads to more consistent ammo.
When you seat and crimp in the same die, the action of the crimp directly fights the seating action.
Your case trim length will change your seating length.

When you crimp in a separate station, the bullet seating is not impeded by the crimping operation.
As a result, your seating lengths are much more consistent.
Then, your crimp is also more consistent as the crimp will be straight into the side of the bullet without the bullet still trying to move down while it is being crimped.

[alfred1222]

Seating and crimping in separate stations leads to more consistent ammo.
When you seat and crimp in the same die, the action of the crimp directly fights the seating action.
Your case trim length will change your seating length.

When you crimp in a separate station, the bullet seating is not impeded by the crimping operation.
As a result, your seating lengths are much more consistent.
Then, your crimp is also more consistent as the crimp will be straight into the side of the bullet without the bullet still trying to move down while it is being crimped.

AR15 barrels has so much more experience than me in reloading, no his advice is golden. I only said that seating and crimping in the same die works because in the hornady 45 dies that I use, I seat and crimp in one operation and get final rounds that are consistantly identical. However, this might not hold true all of the time

[stilly]

Seating and crimping in separate stations leads to more consistent ammo.
When you seat and crimp in the same die, the action of the crimp directly fights the seating action.
Your case trim length will change your seating length.

When you crimp in a separate station, the bullet seating is not impeded by the crimping operation.
As a result, your seating lengths are much more consistent.
Then, your crimp is also more consistent as the crimp will be straight into the side of the bullet without the bullet still trying to move down while it is being crimped.

This.

I have noticed this, but my .45 still loads very well. Only one issue so far and that MUST have been because I short stroked the .45 shell because the bottom did not get resized enough to fit into the chamber. MAYBE I should get my .45 fcd and let it run on my lee classic turret...

[Whiterabbit]

ONE hole is all you need. If 3 holes is not enough to perform all the operations you want, you jut get to assemble a new toolhead.

If you are trying to do EVERYTHING at once, from powder check, to trim, to seat and crimp separate, even a 6 station (if exists) press may not be enough.

What is enough depends on what operations you want to bang out at once.

[ar15barrels]

If you are trying to do EVERYTHING at once, from powder check, to trim, to seat and crimp separate, even a 6 station (if exists) press may not be enough.

My dillon 1050 has 8 stations.
The stations get used as follows:
1 case insertion
2 size/decap
3 primer pocket swage
4 primer insertion
5 belling and powder fill
6 powder charge check
7 bullet seating
8 crimping and ejection

[Nirrad]

Congrats on your new purchase!

You're fine with the 3 holes/dies. A 4 hole turret wouldn't line up on a 3 hole shellplate. And I don't think you can use the 4 hole turret on the Pro 1000 without changing a bunch of parts.

If you require the factory crimp for your application, then you could get another 3 hole turret and put that die in there and just swap turrets.

I make 380/357/9/45 (and soon 223) plinking rounds on the Pro 1000 and don't feel I need the factory crimp for any of them. But, I load target rounds.
And while I shoot the 357 in a lever gun, I haven't noticed any bullet setback due to not having that super tight crimp.

I suppose if you're loading some super hot full house rounds, the factory crimp might be needed - I just think it's not necessary for most applications. YMMV

[ExtremeX]

is a 4 hole factory crimp really needed? What would be the advantage? The 3 hole dies are a little easier to find

[Whiterabbit]

My dillon 1050 has 8 stations.
The stations get used as follows:
1 case insertion
2 size/decap
3 primer pocket swage
4 primer insertion
5 belling and powder fill
6 powder charge check
7 bullet seating
8 crimping and ejection

Golly, just imagine if you wanted to add a trim die in there! you'd NEED 9 stations!

[ar15barrels]

Golly, just imagine if you wanted to add a trim die in there! you'd NEED 9 stations!

I decap, size, trim and neck expand all my rifle brass on a 650 and then tumble it clean before it goes into the 1050.
Then the 1050 just knocks the media out in station 2 and finishes loading.

Trust me in that you do NOT want to run a case trimmer on a 1050.
The trimmings get all down in the nooks and crannies and are a pain to clean out.

[CEDaytonaRydr]

Seating and crimping in separate stations leads to more consistent ammo.

^^This...

...especially if you use mixed brass. You'll get all kinds of variance in OAL if you aren't using the same brand of cases; somtimes it will be a few tenths, sometimes a few hundredths, sometimes only a few thousandths but you will see variances that you might not have seen if you used a Factory Crimp Die. That might not matter a whole lot to you, depending on your own personal wants/needs but if precision is what you're after, it's worth it to use the FCD.

It can also keep you from making unsafe ammo, once a PMC case hits your seating die in a progressive. You might also see loose projectiles, which can also be dangerous, if they fall down enough to compress the charge. It's cheap insurance that, at best, will give you better accuracy and, at worst, might save your life/limb.