Loading Precision .223 with Lyman Pro Dies

When Lyman acquired Mark 7, a company focused on commercial and semi-commercial progressive reloading, it gave them an opportunity to collaborate on a die set specifically optimized for progressive presses and the demands of commercial reloading. Their brainchild? Lyman Pro Die Sets.

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About Lyman Pro Dies

Each Lyman Pro Die set includes a sizer/deprimer, neck expander, seater, and crimper neatly contained in a foam cut case with an Allen key and instructions.

These stainless steel dies were specifically designed for progressive presses.

Lyman Pro FL Sizing Die on Apex 10 During .223 Brass Processing

We’ve previously shown the Lyman Pistol Pro Die line and used a Lyman Pro .223 sizing die on the Mark 7 Apex 10 to process over 41,000 .223 cases from Mojo Precision.

Lyman Pro Dies are now available in the following rifle cartridges:

.45-70
.223 Remington
.30-06
.300 AAC Blackout
.308 Winchester
.338 Lapua
6.5 Creedmoor
7.62 x 54 Russian
7.62 x 39mm

Stainless steel is tougher than regular steel and won’t rust like traditional steel dies will. Each four die set starts at $319.95

From Lyman:

Lyman Pro dies will set a new standard for reloading die performance! Designed for the tremendous volume of our Mark 7 presses, every aspect of these precision dies was carefully engineered for top performance. Of course, they work great in regular progressive presses as well as turret and single station presses.

Our first consideration was the material of the dies. Our size, seat and crimp dies are all made of stainless steel which was chosen for its toughness and anti-corrosion qualities. No more rusted dies! Our sizing dies are equipped with highly polished carbide rings for the ultimate in wear resistance and reduced sizing force. In addition, the sizing dies are equipped with a springloaded decapping rod system to ensure that the primer is forcefully ejected from the primer pocket.

Our rifle sets get our famous M die neck expander, with its famous two step expander plug for just the right amount of neck tension and case mouth flare. The pistol sets include our flare die which are designed to allow bullets to properly sit on the case mouth prior to seating.

Next is our Micrometer Seating die. This seating die has a micrometer adjustable seating head for precision bullet seating length. Its floating bullet seating punch centers the bullet on the case and eliminates excessive run-out.

Finally, each set is equipped with a taper crimp die (micrometer adjustable) to fully remove any case mouth flare and to provide improved bullet retention. Lyman Pro dies offer more features at a better price than any competitive dies available!

The sizing/decapping die features a polished carbide ring/sizer, generous radiused opening, slick carbide expander, and spring-loaded decapping mechanism.

It’s still important to use lubrication, particularly with bottleneck rifle cartridges, but the carbide does reduce friction. Lyman’s pro two-step neck expanding die is a step above their stainless M-Die.

It provides flare for enhanced indexing with the placed bullet and less scraping. This leads to fewer issues and stoppages on a progressive machine. I prefer micrometer seating dies as they allow for precise adjustments in bullet seating. Lyman’s stainless version is optimized for minimum runout with a floating bullet seating punch.

Lyman also incorporated a micrometer into their taper crimp die.

This unique die has a micrometer-adjustable head and floating crimp sleeves. Carbide crimp inserts are also available to further extend the life of the die.

Loading Demonstration

I decided to follow a recipe that performed well in my .223 trainer: Berger 77 Grain OTM bullets, once-fired Lapua brass, 24.6 grains of Vihtavuori N140, and Federal 205 SR primers.

This is a reverse-engineering of Berger’s factory .223 77 Grain OTM ammunition. Be sure to consult official loading manuals — do not use this data!

Kyle had analyzed a single once-fired Lapua .223 case on my AMP Mark II DB and stored the information for future use.

It was easy for me to pull up the record and relevant code, 140, to anneal the rest of the brass.

Annealing ensures consistent shoulder bump and near-zero springback, extending case life.

I set up the Lyman resizing/decapping die, seating die, and taper crimp die on the Dillon 550C.

This four-station press is ideal for in-home precision progressive reloading — watch our recent video with F-Class John to learn more about why. If I were loading on a commercial level, I would probably use a Mark 7 Apex 10. In station one, I bumped each shoulder 0.002” for use in the .223 trainer bolt gun.

If I were to be shooting the ammunition in an AR, I might have opted for more bump. The forward stroke primes a case.

Station two held the Dillon powder drop. Bullet seating commenced in station three while station four held the taper crimp pro die.

Crimping .223 is completely optional — backing out the die approximately 0.020” will allow it to retain its position without doing any work.

I decided on a slight crimp for demonstration purposes.

Conclusion

Loading on the 550C is simple and efficient — Lyman’s pro dies only elevated the experience.

These stainless steel dies are designed to last and though optimized for progressive reloading, are just as at home on a single-stage or turret press.