[QUOTE=Thegreg;8220149]
Quote Originally Posted by 223AI View Post

I’ll explain my comment on reducing case life. I suppose this depends on the type of crimp, but the type you often see on factory ammunition, where there are 4 deep compressions around the case mouth, this is the type I wouldn’t even bother trying to reload.

It’s probably 0.5mm-0.75mm or so down the neck, so I’ve never managed to trim it all away, and they can be so deep that they cause fractures in the brass if you press a new bullet in.

It’s possibly what Lee recreate with their “Factory Crimp Die”, and I know plenty of people wax lyrical about those.

I 100% agree that consistent neck tension is important for accuracy, but it can be achieved without relying on crimping.

Cheers
Greg
Ah so you’ve never actually crimped a bullet?

Crimp type depends on how you crimp, the most common for bottle neck rifle cartridges is with the Lee FCD, this crimps a much smaller portion of the case mouth than the heavy factory crimps you mention above. So is generally removed when you next trim the brass.

If the rounds I do crimp, I’ve never noticed a detrimental effect on case life .