NOE Expander Plug Setup

The steps to properly adjust the NOE Expander Plug (the solid top plug) in either the Lee Universal Case Expanding Dier or the Powder through Expander Die capped with a Lee Adjusting Screw are:

[*]Set the Expander Plug in the mouth of a sized Case. Mark the plug against the case mouth.[*]Determine the sizing needed on the plug with a caliper. NOE recommends .001″ over bullet size. Mark the plug at that point.[*]With the caliper, measure the distance between the two marks on the plug, write it down for the calculation.[*]Place the Expander Plug in the Lee Universal Expanding Die and screw the Adjusting Screw in until the threads just disappear into the top of the  die.[*]Place the sized case in the press and raise the ram.[*]Place the die on the press and screw it until you feel the case make contact with the plug.[*]Lower the ram.[*]Complete the calculation to determine how to adjust the die:

[*]Divide the distance the plug needs to sink in the case to achieve the desired depth by .071. Example: If the distance is .40″, the calculation is .40/.071= 5.633.[*]Using the units from the sum (5), mark a reference point on the the die body and then turn the die down into the press 5 revolutions.[/list][*]Before the finer adjustment, mark the top of you adjusting screw with five “star’ points.[*]There is a bit more math involved but just take it in steps. The calculation is:

[*]((distance required to seat plug-(number of die body turns used*.071))/.011). The steps to solve the .040″ used in the previous example are:

[*]5*.071=.3571.[*].040-.3571=.0428[*].0428/.011=3.8571.[/list][*]Using the units from your sum, turn the Adjusting Screw in 3 “star” points[/list][*]Slowly raise the ram while verifying the case neck sizing by feel. The case should not meet heavy resistance while it is raised into the die.[*]Proper seating will take place at or after the calculated “star” point on your adjusting screw and prior to the next star point.[/list]

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Here are the steps detailed in images.















The idea behind an expander plug is to eliminate the case runout caused by shoving the oversized cast bullet into a sized case. Flaring a case does not ensure that the bullet will seat square in the case. Typically, they don’t and a non-concentric bulge can be seen. Here is the runout being measured from that sample case expanded with the NOE Expanding Plug. No measurable runout!

Examining Case Runout on YouTube

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I’ve created a spreadsheet that does the calculations for me. I use Apache OpenOffice CalC, I’m not sure if opening the attached file in MS excel will properly format the calculations so I’ve included a screenshot with those calculations noted.



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Setting up the NOE Powder Through Expander Plug with a any of the Lee powder measures is basically the same but with the additional consideration of the dispenser actuation. I will detail the setup of such in another topic.