die set suggestion

[SCSCHNUR]

I have found the wilson dies work great for my wsm with 180 gr. Accubonds

I use redding body dies and a LE Wilson expander dies with the correct mandrel ( these are new to market I believe) for the Cartridge I am reloading. With the Redding body die can use competition shell holders to set back the shoulders then I use the Match Master RCBS micrometer bullet setting die and get great results. I also use Foster seating dies to And have Redding seating dies. But I like dropping the bullet in the little window and RCBS does a great job. We live and learn after spending money. I currently load for 300WSM, 6.5 Creedmoor, 223. and 264 win mag I anneal every 3-4 firings, wet cleaning with SS pins every time trim as needed. Also use universal decapping die.

 

[264MHC]

You probably have a lot more experience than me but I've settled on a pretty specific setup for my bolt gun reloading. I only have cartridges that have a Lee Collet die available off the shelf. Pretty sure the 300 wsm collet die is a standard item. I pair the collet die with either a Redding body die or a Whidden custom body die for wildcats (full length sizer with neck honed .002 over chamber neck). I have multiple Hornady seater dies with their micrometer top. I also have one Forster micrometer seater. I think the Forster is the better quality product but the Hornady is more versatile since the sleeve only rides the neck, and the stems are more easily changed for different bullets. I also like the Hornady die boxes best. Works pretty well for me

 

[264MHC]

Forgot to mention that Lee sells undersized mandrels for their collet dies that allow for some neck tension flexibility

 

[Paper boy]

got a 300 wsm coming in a a month or 2 -- saami chamber
right now for my other rifles, I use a full length set with expander mandrel for final neck size some of my dies are just factory with the expander ball removed, some are bushing dies with no expander ball --- I think I want to try a micrometer seater die this time too--I kinda like the idea of the whidden click adjustable dies but not sure its necessary as Ive been able to keep my shoulder bump consistent with out them so far

in other die sets I have just about every brand, not sure If I have found a "clear winner" when it comes to manufacture, but I have had 1 company that had a bad die (lyman), could have been a fluke as thats the only lyman die set I have ever bought --- what brand do you use for least run out, best consistency

I heard that some guys really like the std FL size dies that have been honed to their chamber/neck dimensions base off of fired brass--which manu's do this? Im pretty sure Forster does and I think redding and whidden do also

the problem I see with a honed die is that I usually have 2-3 different bullet/loads and often times 1 bullet will like a different neck tension than the other (usually 1 or 2 thou) -- I have found that a slight undersized neck expanded with a mandrel gets me better numbers and performance than just using a bushing alone so I prefer to do it that way---also with a honed die I know I will need to buy enough brass of same manu/lot so that I dont need to worry about different neck thicknesses later (though I usually neck turn so I could adjust for this as long as the necks are thick enough to turn)

basically-- after rambling, what I'm asking is what type/brand of die set have worked best for you

thoughts? and opinions

Gotta say here that I agree with just about everybody! I have been compitition shooting for years and narrowed to ONLY USE either Forster micromater and Redding micrometer dies. Whidde are good but Forster and Redding offer the same quality for a more sencable price. Never owned a Lyman or RCBS die and hve been dissapointed latley with Hornady.