Foster seater and Cutting Edge Bullet conundrum

[EXPRESS]

Today I tried reloading some new Nosler custom brass, after having unsatisfactory results with Norma.
And a strange thing happened...using the Foster seater die, same bullets (CEB 225 LZR) same setting; the bullets were jamming up in the die.

It got frustrating, I dismantled the die several times and found nothing amiss, and had loaded several hundred rounds with the same bullets. I polished everything, lubed it and kept getting the same result. While it was all in pieces in front of me, I noticed that the bullets don't quite fit though the collet sleeve, before they encounter the seater plug. Or rather, the the bullets fit, but the sealtite band doesn't, and jams. So I found a way to set it up so the the band stays out of the collet and solved the problem.

I suspect the Nosler brass holds less neck tension than the Norma, even though I ran it through the sizing die without expander ball to try to get them to hold the bullets.

Since I am also getting marginal accuracy from these bullets, which can do much better, I hope that now that the seal tite band is not being damaged during loading, the accuracy might improve.

 

[waltercrouse]

I had problems with my 243 win foster seating die with barnes bullets. The die would crush the thin tip on the copper bullets. All other brands I have no problems. Do not get me wrong I like Foster dies.

 

[EXPRESS]

I finally discovered the problem; the Forster die has a washer that set the bullet straight before and during seating.
Because the CEB have the seal tite band which is slightly oversize by 0.0039", it was catching on that.
I put it in my lathe and polished with some wet sandpaper until the bullets cleared, and also got an accuracy improvment!

 

[waltercrouse]

gun)

I had problems with my 243 win foster seating die with barnes bullets. The die would crush the thin tip on the copper bullets. All other brands I have no problems. Do not get me wrong I like Foster dies.

I used a 45 degree reamer and recut the seating plug and clean out the inside the plug. I am no problems with it now and using it with Barnes and other plastic tipped bullets.

 

[EXPRESS]

the problem in this case isn't the plastic tip, but the ring aroung the bullet which is oversize by about 7 though, it was hanging up inside the bushing.