Hornady Taper Crimp Die Instructions

[pitted bore]

Here's a question for forum members who have purchased new (not used) Hornady 450B die sets in the last year or so:

Did the instructions included with the die set have any information about the taper crimp die?

The instruction sheet from 3-4 years ago provided only generic instructions for a 3-die set, including misleading instructions on how to set the seating die to apply a roll crimp. There was no information about the taper crimp die.

Maybe Hornady figured that any persons sufficiently intelligent to purchase a 450B and reload for it were either bright enough or so well informed that the theory and application of taper crimp dies would be obvious.

I'm curious whether the situation has changed for the die sets presently available.

Thanks.
--Bob

[Keesey]

My set will be here in the mail tomorrow night so I will try to up load them to the site

[East TN]

Here's a question for forum members who have purchased new (not used) Hornady 450B die sets in the last year or so:

Did the instructions included with the die set have any information about the taper crimp die?

The instruction sheet from 3-4 years ago provided only generic instructions for a 3-die set, including misleading instructions on how to set the seating die to apply a roll crimp. There was no information about the taper crimp die.

Maybe Hornady figured that any persons sufficiently intelligent to purchase a 450B and reload for it were either bright enough or so well informed that the theory and application of taper crimp dies would be obvious.

I'm curious whether the situation has changed for the die sets presently available.

Thanks.
--Bob

I bought an extra complete set last month just to have on hand , if I were to need it. After reading your post, I opened the shrink wrap. The instructions are exactly the same as what came with my Hornady 450 BM dies I bought in October 2011. There are still no instructions regarding the crimp die (4th die).

[pitted bore]

My set will be here in the mail tomorrow night so I will try to up load them to the site

Keesey-

If your set includes any instructions about the taper crimp die, that will be helpful.

If there are no instructions for the taper crimp die, then you need not go to the trouble of uploading the generic instructions for 3-die sets.

Thanks.
--Bob

[Keesey]

Bingo


http://www.hornady.com/assets/files/man ... 0Guide.pdf

[East TN]

Keesey,

The Hornady Dies are dated on the label, so you should be able to tell when they were manufactured. I have a knife pointed at the dates on the two sets I have. At least until March 2012 the instructions did not address the 4th die.

Bought this set Oct 2011

450 die 6-11.jpg (44.62 KiB) Viewed 15413 times

Bought this set Nov 2012

450 die 3-12.jpg (35.28 KiB) Viewed 15413 times

[pitted bore]

Bingo
http://www.hornady.com/assets/files/man ... 0Guide.pdf

Keesey-

Nope, sorry. Ognib! (taking back the Bingo - altho I understand the official game term is "false alarm".)

The instructions shown by that Hornady pdf are for application of a roll crimp. The 450B requires a taper crimp.

A roll crimp applied to 450B handloads can create major problems. The 450B, like most of the cartridges designed for auto pistols, headspaces on the mouth of the case. A roll crimp alters the mouth of the case, which can lead to various kinds of difficulty. One of these possibilities is that the cartridge can enter the chamber too far forward, and the neck of the chamber can compress the mouth of the case around the bullet, essentially clamping the bullet into the cartridge case. If the cartridge fires, the bullet may not be able to exit the case easily, so pressures can rise to dangerous levels, and parts and pieces of the rifle can become airborne.

One of the curious features of Hornady's 450B die set is that the seating die does include a shoulder for applying a roll crimp. Why Hornady did this is a mystery, and seems at least silly. An additional problem is that their generic instructions enclosed with the die set describe how to apply a roll crimp (just like the pdf you found on Hornady's web site), which should never be applied to 450B loads.

The taper crimp die Hornady furnishes with their die set is necessary for handloading operations, but the die set instructions to date have not even mentioned the die.

Here's a link to the blurb on the Hornady web site where the 450B taper crimp die is offered for sale separately from the die set. The die description there contains more than they include with the die set: Hornady 450B Taper Crimp Die.

(In case the link becomes stale, here's what Hornady says: This die removes the flare from the case mouth and crimps case mouth around the bullet while maintaining a sharp edge for proper head-space. Improves feeding of reloaded cases in semi-automatic handguns.)

I had hoped that by now Hornady would have begun to include something about the taper crimp die with the 450B sets. Please let us know what you find with your new die set.

Thanks.
--Bob

[pitted bore]

... The Hornady Dies are dated on the label, so you should be able to tell when they were manufactured. ...

EastTN-
Thanks for that information. I can't read the date on my set because the seam tore right through the date code. From the remaining bottom half, tie appears that the date is an 0X/0Y, where X and Y may be any of 3, 6, 8, or 9.

The instruction leaflet included in my set is dated 5/05.
--Bob

[Keesey]

This is all I got about the crimp die

[pitted bore]

This is all I got about the crimp die

Keesey-
Thank you for your effort and time spent copying and uploading the page from the instruction leaflet.

That page appears to be identical to the page in my own instruction set dated 5/05. (You may find that date in the lower left corner of the back page.)

As I noted above, those crimping instructions should not be used with the 450B.

It seems to me that Hornady is being careless in neglecting to furnish with the 450B die set instructions for using their seating die correctly and for applying a proper taper crimp with their die.

(If I'm mistaken about this, the true gurus will be along shortly and clean up the mess I've made.)
--Bob