Anyone else hate RCBS DIES

RCBS roll crimp is sensitive to brass length. If your brass is too long you are going to ruin the case. I found out loading .41 Rem Mag. They needed a very good crimp. A mentor told me to set my calipers to a set length, and any brass that did not go trough needed to be trimmed. I trimmed all my brass once, and several years later am using the same dies, and brass. Have not buggered a case since. I also made a dummy round with every bullet I use for setting up the seating die. I have a FL set for 6.5 Creedmoor I do not crimp those. I will be getting a Lee Collet die for neck sizing as it works great without requiring lube, and case cleaning.
 
I have about 50 Rcbs die sets and a few others so I don't hate nor despise them. What's the problems with the roll crimp and adjustments? The only problem I had with one rifle set was that it didn't have a roll crimp feature. This was with some belted mag caliber so I just ordered another one.

One other thing, the decapping stem on the sizing die for a Savage 22 Hi-Power developed stripped threads and wouldn't hold the expander. I sent an email to Rcbs two days ago and my bet is they will replace the entire stem at no charge. I have never had to rely on their warranty before.
 
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So we have an excellent quality functional die at a great price that has been around for decades and here we have a "hate thread" ? Nope, not falling for it, haters will hate.

RCBS dies are excellent, as is their customer support. Come up with something more factual than "I hate their crimp"
 
Am I missing something here? RCBS dies set up just like most every other die out there.....They are definitely my preferred brand.....if they have them in the caliber that I'm loading.
 
WOW stirred it up some.
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Some folks like doing that.
Here is something to think about.
I started using RCBS dies late 60's,early 70's. I used them a long time. I know them well. I can count on them.Competency with RCBS dies was reloading core knowledge.

Your post comes along. We are just meeting. You might have fun stirring things up.

My opinion of RCBS has not been changed. Like an old loyal friend.

Think about how impressions get formed.Something about "the workman who blames his tools" Badmouthing RCBS dies ...makes YOU suspect.

Wrenches:These days,I don't know what is made where or what has changed.

But,Old School, sure,Snap -On is pro tools .Great stuff. As are/were Armstrong,MAC,Bonney,etc.

But a lot of good work has been done with Craftsman.

If I have to change a fan belt on the side of a road in a snow squall,I'm not going to tell you I hate the off shore knock-off SK Wayne combination wrenches in the tool roll in my pickup.
And likely,if they were Snap-Ons,they would not be in a tool roll in the truck.

If I can put a tool in my hand and get the job done without fighting the tool,I'm grateful I have the tool when I need it.

If I want to load some 40-70 Sharps Straight,my Lyman dies were a great deal!

If I'm sizing .458's down to .375 Taylor,the Lee .416 Taylor sizing die is a great intermediate step.

My 7mm Rem Mag,and 30-338 dies are Redding Competitions. The carbide RCBS .44 Mag dies have loaded a lot of good ammo.
IF my brass is all the same length,I can get dandy crimps in RCBS or just about any seater die. I do advocate learning to crimp by crimping in two operations,but once you have that down..doing it in one step is just a case of "leading the bird" a little. You set the die right,it works fine.

I used to have vehicles with solid lifters. Being able to adjust valves was a basic Man-Card core competency. You could not have a hot rod,a motorcycle,a sports car,or a tractor if you could not set valves.
If you can't adjust ANY brand of reloading die....your Old School Man Card should be suspended till further notice. You can't adjust mechanical lifter valves.You get the Velcro Tennis Shoe award.You can only carry nail clippers,not a pocket knife.:rolleyes:

The Lee factory crimp die and universal decapper...are standards! Good tools,great value.

Hornady??? Mixed reviews. I like some of their stuff. I WANT to like their stuff.I'm a fan..
Sometimes they let doing things different get in the way of doing things well.


They are all tools. I can use them. Or I replace them.
 
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The only things I like that Lee makes are their "old style" hand primers and their Factory crimp dies for handgun cartridges. The rest of my stuff is RCBS, Pacific & Lyman.
 
Roll crimp

What happened with me: Let me share what happened with me first using rifle RCBS dies. The seating die was in too far throwing up a buckled area at the base of the shoulder. It was not possible to close the bolt. Backed off. Next problem was some cases were longer than others. Case buckling was on some but not all rounds. Problem was solved by back off seating die and trimming cases. For me it was a problem with seating die adjustment and/or untrimmed brass. Like others, I have been using RCBS dies for many years. Good product with excellent service.

Comments on original digital powder measure were right on. Everybody, maker and RCBS, washed their hands on that one. Got some big ticket door stops. Everything else had been excellent.:eek:
 
Cavitation said:
Does anyone despise RCBS dies as much as I do?

I hate there roll crimp
I hate there adjustments
I have them in 308,30/30,444M,35Rem, and they all suck.

How do you feel about them:D
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Put your RCBS dies up for sale in this forum & you can then buy Lee dies & pocket a few buck$.

Problem solved!
 
444 said:
I avoid buying RCBS dies if I can help it.
I own a few sets of them and I do HATE the way they are adjusted. Other than that, they work OK, the quality is fine. But, I hate the way they are adjusted.
And since I hate the way they adjust and there are alternatives, why should I buy them ?
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I need clued in here. How do the RCBS dies adjust unlike other dies? I've used them and Redding, lee, Herter, Lyman and other dies for 50yrs and they all adjust the same way. Screw them into the press then adjust the decap pin as needed. Can't be all that hard!
 
Cavitation said:
I suppose hate is a strong word. Some are a tad sensitive I guess. I mostly had trouble with the roll crimp on them. I dont mind them in bolts or single shots that do not require a crimp. I just have had much better luck with Lee,and Hornady. I really am looking for opinions and maybe find out why I was having trouble. Most local gunshops only carry RCBS around here and it would be nice to have that availability on the shelf as opposed to online shopping. I am far from an expert reloader but have put out some very good ammo. 308,35rem and 450 marlin have been my best. I am about to dive into the 6.5C and 30/06 and give them a try.
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Maybe you need to learn t crimp with them? Been loading handgun ammo a lot of years and always crimp it. Used RCBS dies mostly but also Lyman (adjust like RCBS). Also use a newer Lee 9mm die, it works fine but no better and no worse than any other dies.
 
Too bad RCBS and others didnt put fine threads on the seater die stem.
I believe they now do on their high priced sets.

A minute movement on the seater results in several thousands change in COAL w/ the threads now used.
 
Road_Clam said:
So we have an excellent quality functional die at a great price that has been around for decades and here we have a "hate thread" ? Nope, not falling for it, haters will hate.

RCBS dies are excellent, as is their customer support. Come up with something more factual than "I hate their crimp"
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Great post! +1!!!
 
FWIW; I looked at my 5 ACP die set the other day, I have a Lee size/deprime, Lyman M die and a Pacific die I use for flaring (depending if I'm using cast or jacketed), an RCBS seating die, and a RCBS (or perhaps Redding) taper crimp die. So, my ammo can come out with cheap sizing, good flaring, hard to adjust seating, and hard to adjust crimp?
 
Too bad RCBS and others didnt put fine threads on the seater die stem.
I believe they now do on their high priced sets.

A minute movement on the seater results in several thousands change in COAL w/ the threads now used.
Click to expand...

We have bumpers that precision size cases by shortening the case .001" from the shoulder/datum to the case head with a die that has 14 threads per inch; and then there is me, all of my seating dies are adjustable to .001" because I use height/depth gages when measuring from the top of the die to the top of the seating stem.

F. Guffey
 
I actually give a "slight" nod to LEE dies. I really like the quick tool-less adjustability of the LEE seating dies. It's a nice feature if your experimenting with varied seating depths within a load session.
 
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