I have been reloading some 6mm Remingtons with Nosler BTs and have noticed that when I seat the bullet and remove it, sometimes the little polymer tips are slightly bent. I am being very ginger while pulling the lever in an attempt not to bend anymore, but still about half come out bent. I imagin that this hurts accuracy. Any suggestions?

Bill C.

The bullet seating stem is "cupped" to the shape of an average bullet...it's probably not shaped just right for the one you are using. It's a removalbe part, but getting one that is an exact match can be a problem.

A "right now" fix that is semi-permanent:
Take the seating stem out of the die. Stand it "Up" so the hollow bullet noce recieving end is pointed up. Mix a small amount of some 2-part epoxy steel (Devcon is one brand name).

Take one example bullet and heavly wax the bullet nose (wax or a light coating of heavy grease). Fill the seating stem recess with the mixed epoxy. Set the greased bullet nose into this recess, letting the excess epoxy "squish" out. Make sure it's straight. Clean off the "squished" epoxy before it hardens. Make sure it's straight again...and again. Let it cure. Remove bullet and file/trim the ragged edges, being sure it still fits back into the die.

This one will fit those bullet noses perfectly...and if it was made straight, will seat straight.
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Just for my peace of mind..clean the shell holder. Get a toothpick and clean the rim recess. IF gunk gets in there, will hold the case off center...does odd things when you size and odd things when you seat.

I don't know how hard the seating stems are, but you might be able to drill out some relief with a very small drill bit that is about the same diameter as the base of the plastic tip.

Suspect that even the bent ones will be OK. Damage to the bullet base is a more severe problem, actually.

I've seen the plastic tips sanded off to the jacket and they still shot pretty good.

More worried that the pressure applied to the tip to bend it also "cocked" the bullet as it was seated. May not have...the proof would be in the shooting (or in a run-out gauge).

There was a write-up in one of the gunzines awhile back about bent poly tips, saying that there was no discernable change in POI or accuracy in limited testing. I'd love to tell you where to find the article or who wrote it, but I'm a victim of the dreaded disease called CRAFT.*

You could always grind them to a new point on a disc sander if it bothers you. HTH.

*Can't Remember A Flippin' Thing!

PJ the Space Cadet