problems with 45acp and hornady 185 xp

[savage308]

i have 500 hornady 185g xp bullets and after loading to proper oal. then when i chamber to check and make sure they will function the bullets get pushed back into the brass.this has never happened when i load 230g lead round nose. how much crimp is too much?
 

[Bigeasy]

It is possible your OAL is to long, allowing the bullets to hit the rifling, driving the bullet back.  Check the nose on a few this has happened to to see if there are any rifling marks.
 
I assume you are using a taper crimp, as a roll crimp is not suitable for use in a semi-auto cartridge that headspaces on the case mouth.  It is possible that your resizing die or crimp die is a little on the loose side, allowing the bullet to be pushed back into the case - something you might not experience with the heavier lead bullet do to increased surface area and possibly a .001 larger diameter with the cast slug.  Try applying a firm taper crimp, then push the tip of a loaded round against a hard object.  If it resists going deeper into the case with hand pressure, then the crimp / bullet pull should be OK.
 
Larry

[shot1]

Get you a Lee Factory Crimp Die and it will solve a world of troubles.

[savage308]

i didnt know lee sold a F.C.D. for pistols so i will check that out.i have several rifle F.C.D. and use them alot. thanks for the info

[irold]

Savage , just for the record.......I use the Lee , carbide , 45 acp , 4 die set....that includes the FCD.  None of my 45 acp loads will chamber without running them through the FCD.  I'm probably doing something wrong that they won't chamber....what ever it is , the FCD fixes it.  Its well worth it to me.
 
regards, irold

[shot1]

The Lee Factory Crimp Die for pistols is made different thatnthe ones for rifles. The pistol die is made like a sizing die with the SAAMI tightest if not a little tighter chamber with a taper crimp in it.  I makes the case just like a factory round. I use one for every semi auto caliber I load because it makes them run with NO PROBLEMS. 

[Siskiyou]

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/716704/lee-carbide-factory-crimp-die-45-acp-45-auto-rim
 

[cybin]

I had a problem with 185 grain wad cutters in my ruger .45--solved it by seating the bullets deeper in the case --closer to the low end instead of in the middle range of tolerance, and using the Lee FCD.
 
cybin

[tacklebury]

Savage , just for the record.......I use the Lee , carbide , 45 acp , 4 die set....that includes the FCD.  None of my 45 acp loads will chamber without running them through the FCD.  I'm probably doing something wrong that they won't chamber....what ever it is , the FCD fixes it.  Its well worth it to me.
 
regards, irold

+1 same here

[geezerbiker]

It could be a feed ramp problem in your gun.  My Springfield Armory M1911 was doing that but only on the top round in the mag.  To figure it out, I stripped the slide and and hand cycled rounds through it with no barrel or firing pin in the gun.  That way I could see the top round was tipping down when the slide stripped it out of the mag.  The slide would pound it into the feed ramp and seat the bullet deeper before cambering the round.

The root of the problem was the 8 round shooting star mag the gun came with.   The shell follower was reshaped to get 8 rounds in the space designed for seven.   Back then my M1911 was my concealed carry piece and I put one round in the chamber and carried a full mag.  The top round in the mag and the one in the chamber got really beat up until I figured it all out...  Polishing the feed ramp and switching to a 7 round Colt mag was the solution I ended up with even though I ended up with one less round...

Tony

[savage308]

geezerbiker i have the same set up as you had . an 8 round mag and it really bangs the top
round hard. guess i will save the 8 round mag for my 230g round ball loads and use a 7 round for thr 185g hornady becouse they really are accurate.