This reminds me of Johnny Carson and Ed. McMann; that is not quite everything there is to know about 'the shell holder. From the big-inning I have said my favorite shell holder is the RCBS shell holder because they fit like a hand me down shirt. I am from a family of 10 children; I know how a hand me down shirt fits, if it touches, it fits.
And then there are the advantages of a loose shell holder: I am a case former, the loose shell holder allows me to increase and or decrease the length of the case from the shoulder to the case head. the loose fitting shell holder allows me to increase the presses ability to overcome the cases ability to resist sizing, the loose shell holder allows me to size cases for short chambers and long chambers.
And then there are small base dies; I can use a loose shell holder with a feeler gage to duplicate the effect of small base dies. Some find it necessary to purchase Redding Competition shell holders. There was a time before the Redding Competition shell holder. Back then I used feeler gages to increases and or decrease the deck height of the shell holder; (meaning) I could increase and or decrease the distance from the deck of the shell holder to the shoulder of the die. I understand I have to explain: I sized cases for long chambers and I sized cases for short chambers with one loose fitting shell holders and 'the feeler gage'.
If there are loose fitting shell holders there are tight fitting shell holders; if the loose fitting shell holder has advantages the tight fitting shell holder has advantages. I have both tight and loose fitting shell holders. I have three different RCBS shell holder sets, all three are different.
So you though that was everything there was to know about 'the shell holder?
I made a tool that was similar to a portable alignment tool, I stuck it into a Rock Chucker and then raised the ram; the tool could not be pulled out. I could say it was like a reloader examining hot horse shoes. It does not take a reloader all day to figure the shores shoes are hot.
Straight away I knew the Rock Chucker was not a cam over press and I knew it was in a big time bind. All I had to do was turn the press upside down or crawl under the bench to determine the Rock Chucker was in a bind.
I have at least 15 presses that are cam over presses, for me? It is so simple to measure the amount of cam over.
F. Guffey