45 acp taper

[Cowcatcher]

I believe your stickiness issue is in your seat/taper crimp Die. I've belled cases way too far with Lee expander but you'd never know or feel it once it comes out of that Die and goes through the lee seat or especially by the time it gets to the Lee FCD.

 

[Shadowrider]

I have several sets of the Hornady dies in pistol calibers. The sleeve setup in the seating die is great for seating bullets. Not so much for crimping. They don't use a taper crimp. It's basically an abrupt angle. It's not a roll crimp either but it's closer to a roll than taper. They don't crimp worth a damn IMO. Also if you flare too much it'll be sticky going into the sleeve in the seating die. It's definitely best to buy a seperate taper crimp die and do that operation last as a stand alone die. I like Redding myself.

Like you I got them for the free bullets. They aren't bad dies at all except for the crimping.

 

[tkdgeek]

Took me a couple days to get one shipped in from the tall people who protect that river...
Didn't get out to our farm to check on things until Saturday and took a box with me I'd already made trying out a few loads for the new 230gr I'm switching to. Loading fresh, using Hornady only for seating and then grabbing the new Lee Carbide Factory Crimp on them was really nice and well worth the few dollars. Did a nice job on the 185g XTP's as well.
Thank you much.

 

[Good Cheer]

Being a cast shooter, belling and then straightening out is what I do. RCBS dies working without problem. The mold is adjusted to make the front band engrave, centering on the rifling. Straightening out takes the case mouth right to the bullet. Bullets don't move in the cases when being driven into the lands. That's what works for my cardboard killers (not saying for anybody else and absolutely not the way you make jacketed loads).