NOE has powder-through expanders now!

[Little Dalton]

Just found out NOE has added an entire line of their excellent expanding plugs in a powder-through style to fit Lee's die. Got a kit on order for my .44-40 loading, will report back here when I get to use it- but I expect the same superlative quality I'm used to from NOE. Oh, and when you click on the caliber listing you need, there's then a drop down menu of lots of exact sizes to choose from, instead of the old separate listings for each exact size they use on the old solid plugs.

[LonesomePigeon]

Thanks. I need some and I didn't even know it!

[David Battersby]

I am waiting for a couple of new sizes in the 38-55 caliber.  The largest 2nd step is currently .381.   Since I shoot .381 bullets, that will shave lead.  I was told to give it a week or three and two more (larger) sizes will be added.     When they are in stock I will; also get the 44WCF (44-40) and let you know what I think.

[LonesomePigeon]

I just thought I would report for informational purposes and in case it might help somebody.

I have a Uberti Flattop Target .44-40 repro that has .431" throats. I wanted to shoot it with .430" bullets but it was very touchy getting them to chamber. Some would chamber and some would not. My guess is that the .430" bullets were so large in diameter that they were deforming, or crumpling, the cases.

My Lee expander measured .426" and my RCBS Cowboy expander measured .427". Again I am just guessing but I think the .430" bullets have a hard time fitting in the .426" and .427" case mouths.

I purchased the NOE .433 X .429 Powder Expander Plug. Actually, I purchased the full 44-40 Winchester Powder Through Expander Kit w/Die, including all four expander plugs:
.432 x .428"
.433 x .429"
.434 x .430"
.435 x .431"

The .433 x 429" did the job, allowing me to seat .430" bullets without crumpling the cases. They chamber okay in the Uberti revolver. A couple were still a bit tight. I was using mixed brass so I think trimming all the brass to the same length might help.

https://noebulletmolds.com/site/shop/powder-through-expanders/pistol-powder-through-expanders/44-pistol-expanders/44-40-winchester-powder-through-expander-kit-w-die/

[Abilene]

...The .433 x 429" did the job, allowing me to seat .430" bullets without crumpling the cases. They chamber okay in the Uberti revolver. A couple were still a bit tight. I was using mixed brass so I think trimming all the brass to the same length might help....

With larger bullets, brass thickness makes a difference (in Uberti chambers).  Winchester and Starline has the thinnest 44-40 mouths.  R-P, 3D, PMC, and others are thicker.

[Little Dalton]

LP, I had NO END of chambering issues with my ca. 2015 Uberti revolver, and chased my tail for a while thinking it was a tight chamber neck issue until I got the idea to use a sticky round to find what seemed to be the tightest chamber, then coat the round in black marker or dyekem- then insert and twist in the chamber, then remove and observe the tight spots. What I found was, while my chamber necks were tight, they weren't near as tight as I thought. The first issue I found was I was getting little bulges below the crimp (done with the LFCD), even though I was careful not to let the case mouth bump the top edge of the crimp groove. My eventual solution was to get a Redding Profile Crimp Die, and those issues went away. This die is fantastic, but only works well with bullets that have a nose shape similar to the original Winchester bullets, not an issue for me as I use the Accurate 43-215C mold. I also discovered that the sizing die was not pushing the shoulder of the bottleneck far enough down, in fact it wasn't moving it. I ground a little off the base of the die, but later when I bought my second .44-40 gun (a 2019 Uberti 1873 Rifle) which had the shoulder of the bottleneck further forward in the chamber that I had to take more off the base of the Lee sizing die so the shoulder would be set further back when resizing. I'm not the only one who has had this issue with the Lee .44-40 sizing die. Wish I had not been cheap and bought the RCBS Cowboy dies out of the gate.

In summary, your gun may be sensitive to bullet diameter- but make sure your sizing die is good, and that your crimp doesn't have bulges either.