I don't have CZ, but I'd assume that my CZ clone (Sarsilmaz Mega) has the shortest leade.
• You're not catching on. In
science, in
reloading, we
do not make assumptions... we do tests, we make measurements, and find out for ourselves. We take a set of facts, we build on those facts by combining them with new facts until we see the entire picture. Doing it any other way is simply dangerous. Making assumptions in this hobby can get you a missing finger or blinded eye.
• I'm not familiar with your pistol. When makers claim it is a 'CZ clone', what they are saying is that they bought the patent rights from CZ for the
CZ 75 trigger mechanism. The "mechanism design" does not cover the barrel, which could use
any dimensions. Bottom line: I don't know and you don't know. So you're starting from zero, and you'll need to do
all your own measurements.
Hot tip of the day: Throw all the hear-say, internet rumors, and the false advertising out the window and believe only what you measure for yourself using your measuring tools and your barrel. That's the only way to safely proceed.
Well, I'm confused with what Lee is saying that "...it offers little or no advantage when used with 1986 or newer Lee Dies as the crimp angle is already a modified taper crimp". Can you please clarify?
Before the 80's there was really only one 9mm on the market, the Browning Hi Power. The 9x19 Luger cartridge was a 'joke', and all
real men carried a 1911 in 45ACP. About the only 9mm made in the USA was a Ruger revolver. And revolvers all use a
Roll Crimp.... so a lot of 9mm Dies provided a roll crimp in place of the correct taper crimp.
Then the US Army converted to 9mm and the USA went 9mm crazy. All of a sudden law enforcement departments everywhere were converting to 9mm, and 9mm pistol sales were through the roof. So die makers had to go back and start revising all the die designs. But still, most reloaders were using single stage presses where you need to change the die for every step. So the maximum number of dies for handgun reloading was 3.
Seating and
Crimping functions
both took place in the 3rd die.
Then Dillon popularized the progressive press. It was shown early on that the crimp process was much better done is a separate step, and not in the Seating Die as had been done for the previous 60 years. So the 4th die entered the reloading scene.
So what I believe they are trying to say is that if your Seating Die has previously applied either type of cartridge mouth crimp, then this die will be of little use. Which is a true (but
very nebulous) statement.
All I can say is that I use this exact die on 3 different calipers and it works very good for applying a simple and highly effective Taper Crimp onto the cartridge case mouth. And it does so without changing the
bullet or
cartridge diameter, which the FCD is very famous for doing.
My powder/primers order will be delivered in May, so I have enough time to play with bullet seating and crimp setup Today I did plunk and push tests for all my 9mm barrels. First I made dummy round with 1.132 length with no crimp (just used seating die). My plunk test went well - dropped in with sound, I can twist bullet in chamber without problems, bullet is dropped out easily. Then I tried a push test and it was hard. I managed to push it further to 0.131 only on my Sarsilmaz Mega barrel. I think this can be still caliper's error and I didn't push it at all. After that I produced another dummy round with OAL 1.156 - my plunk tests went well on all barrels, but trying "push test" I was able to push it to 1.155 only.... Confused.
By using our test (as clearly outlined
HERE) use of any other method is made moot because our test method is more detailed, and in fact more thorough. Your testing was "hard" because you did not follow the instructions. Please read them again.
With this being said I think that either all my barrels chambers, including Sarsilmaz Mega are forgiving or round nose shape of Berrys's bullet fits all of them.
Yes the Berry ogive shape is very forgiving. We knew that. You should be getting a Max OAL measurement well in excess of 1.169". Something more than 1.180".
I think I will try reloading live ammo with OAL=1.14 and load 3.9/4.0 grains (Winchester 231) when I receive my powder and bullets. I still don't know when ranges will be open to try them, so I'm not in hurry anyway.
OK. So what I hear you saying is that you're not following our advice on OAL. And you're not going to shoot a "ladder" of incremental loads beginning at the
Staring Load.
All the best.