Reloading tapered handgun cases

[dickttx]

Just trying to ease back into reloading after several years of not.
Looking at my old manuals I notice (and seem to remember) comments that the 9mm is a tapered case and must be sized on a full length die and not a carbide die.
I purchased the Lee 4 die carbide set and have loaded a few rounds to see that the load I selected would function my autoloader. 
I see in the catalogs that all companies are offering carbide dies now, and only Redding had a full length die (it was on closeout at Midway).
Have the die designs changed over the years, or is the tapered case of no consequence?

[stimpylu32]

dick

Ya the 9mm does taper some from case mouth to base , just under .011 to be exact , however it is not a real issue , and as for the Carbide in the die , its a small ring at the base of the die that just sizes the last few tho. of the case .

To be honest , I'm not real sure what they are trying to gain with it ( Carbide ) in a tapered case .     

The only thing I can think of is that some guns , like the Glock , do not totaly support the base of the cartridge and allow it to expand more and the Carbide may be a way to work it back to spec. without having to lube those case's .

stimpy 

[HAMMERHEAD]

I think the problem used to be the difficulty of machining a tapered carbide insert in the die. They did exist, but were well over $100 just for the sizer. Modern 9mm carbide dies have a long tapered carbide section and are affordable now.
My .357 die has a very short carbide ring, maybe 1/4", my 9mm die has a much longer carbide insert, looks to be well over a half inch, can't really see the end of it without taking the decapper stem out.
I use a Lee carbide sizer for my 9mm loads for my Glock and it works well. You have to make sure it gets as close as possible to the shell holder, but they chamber fine in my 9mm and fit in my 9mm cartridge gauge no problem. They also work well in a friend's 9mm T/C carbine with a tight chamber.

[dickttx]

Hammerhead,
That sounds reasonable.  Have not taken the sizer apart and looked.
The few I have reloaded fed and chambered OK and did not have any case problems after firing.
Technology!
It seems I remember paying about $20 for the carbide neck expander for a 25-06 back in the late 60s.
Thanks