Roll Crimping

[Rick Roemer]

Very nice display. And functional!

[Ed Blake]

Originally Posted by Pete Lester

Be sure to pattern test the shells with those plastic chips as an overshot card. It doesn't take much of anything over the shot to create a spreader load. I found a thin nitro card, .0125, over the shot and under a fold crimp will reduce a pattern by as much as 30% at 40 yards.

When you say reduce a pattern, you mean the shot pattern opens up with an overshot card under a fold crimp?

[J.B. Books]

Originally Posted by Ed Blake

When you say reduce a pattern, you mean the shot pattern opens up with an overshot card under a fold crimp?

It depends on what you use for an overshot card. if it's tough enough to hold together it can disrupt the pattern and create a spreader load. Always best to pattern something like that so you know for sure what it's doing.

[Rick Roemer]

I certainly appreciate all the help and guidance getting started with roll crimping. I have started over the Christmas time and I think have a good start. See pictures. Please critique.!

Couple questions I still have:

I’m loading strictly 2 1/2 inch cheddite new primed hulls.

20 gauge seemed to be perfect

12 gauge has too much crimp space. I’ve tried building things up with cards, but it seems to be too excessive.

I’ve tried 16 with the same results

I’m using recipes that I’ve used for fold crimping not sure if I’m supposed to cut off the shells to make them shorter than 2 1/2 because of the roll?

The Big thing I’ve noticed is I’ve shot some of these roll crimped shells now and they don’t seem to be to be able to be reused due to the shell opening being fairly bizarre-Much different than a fold crimp opening. I have a spin doctor tool, but even that doesn’t work just right. Do most roll crimpers just use one and done?

Thx guys

Again, thanks for all the help. I am pleased with the results and I know it will be better as I move forward.

Rick

[edgarspencer]

Your 20s look great. The plastic discs will put a hole in you pattern. The paper overshot card from BP seem to ''delaminate', if I'm describing it right. They pattern quite well. a sixteenth deeper roll crimp won't hurt, and you may still be able to trim off some of that deformation, but I do trim my NPE hulls slightly more than star crimped (BP hasn't had true 2 1/2" hulls for some time)
It's been many years since I've had any of my loads tested, but 'way back when' I did, and found using my same recipes that I used for star crimped hulls resulted in a slight pressure drop on roll crimped loads.
Roll crimping is, when you come right down to it, somewhat of a novelty. I wold use them mostly when hunting being somewhat kinder to the ass end of close bird. I don't get out much anymore, and don't use them much, if at all, shooting clays.
Ross tools seem to digest deformed hulls ok, not so much with the tools sold by BP.