just took my own advice

[Kurt]

Semtav

When you use a cartridge seating tool like your tool from Rhoades your compressing the powder more on the case when you push that round into the chamber. That will change your load. That tool is a great tool when you get into a bind out on the hunting grounds seating a shell in a fouled chamber.
The tool Bruce is talking about, the Webber tool, is a great breach seating tool. It will seat a groove diameter GG or PP past the 45 degree and also the lead angle what ever that length is. It will not deform a bullet when it gets fired and expands in the chamber then gets swaged back down too the bore groove diameter. There is a noticeable improvement using that tool.
If you look at the photo below at the charged case you will see the wad seated flush with the case mouth. When I use that tool for a chamber with the 45 degree wall at the chamber end I seat the bullet about 1/8" ahead of the case mouth and leave the wad in place.
When I use the rifles with a 4 degree/1.5 degree compound throat that bullet I seat quite abide farther out ahead or just at the beginning of the 1.5 degree lead that leaves close to 3/8" between the case mouth and the bullet base so I do not use a wad because of the possibility of ringing the chamber.
I haven't made a new ram and shell for the .44's yet but as soon as I get my lathe going, new or the old one fixed, I will be using it for the matches.
By the way, the shell on the tool stays on the tool.
Also if you think about having Russ make one for you have him make it so you can cam the handle right and left. The hammer gets in the way on a Sharps when you push the bulled in. It's tougher if you have a scope on the rifle.
I called Russ about this problem and told him to mill both sides of the locking cam so I can change sides when using a side hammer. He build my second like I asked and it works great. He might be making them like that now???????

Kurt