Do you need one of these? APW Expander Mandrel review 

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Thanks for the detailed look here! As you mention some people do, I started with the new black aluminum 21st Century die body with a window and two mandrels in black nitride, and paid around $100 for just those three pieces. I was going to go back to get some .001” under mandrels, then saw this full set on Pieters channel, and even with shipping from South Africa they were an incredible bargain for 13 pieces, die and mandrels. I almost ordered this exact set, but then saw they were offering the gold titanium nitride mandrel set for $100 more and placed that order. APW was out of stock and are making them up now. For what you get I think this is the best deal. One thing they noted on the order page, I’m running a co-ax so they said to note that and they would ship it with a narrower die body, as the standard one won’t fit that press. I’m hoping the narrower one will also fit a standard 7/8x14 press as well though. One thing, I anneal each time, so I’ve just been using a standard Redding FL sizing die with no bushing, then a mandrel. I guess I’m overworking the neck, but I’ve seen mixed results from others on concentricity sometimes when they use a bushing, and just don’t want to mess with buying a new bushing sizing die to save not moving the neck an extra .004” or so, but that’s something I might have to reconsider later if it becomes an issue, but annealing does help with case life. Thanks for the detailed look at these mandrels as I hadn’t seen them up close yet. 👍

Very well shown and explained. I am now a Subscriber! I started out with the Sinclair die and their assorted mandrels for neck turning and neck sizing. They are in HSS or TIN coated, some even in solid carbide which is super smooth but so hard and brittle and pricey. I then went to Wilsons expander die and mandrels which is nice, but lacks any oversize mandrels for each caliber. They only have 22, 6mm.6.5 and 30, 33 cal ifirc. I had looked at area 419 but the cost kept me away as I need 3 calibers and a couple in each caliber plus the die is quite costly. This APW seems even nicer quality and lower cost for all the mandrels I need plus I get a bunch of others I may need in the future. Very well presented. I was so confused when I first started down the path of the factory ball expander stems, then to mandrels with Sinclair and thier die. Then I learned about neck turning and caliber specific bushing dies and all the assorted bushings. Those dies and their price is pretty high, especially if you need multiple calibers as well. I eventually found Lees collet die and was amazed at how inexpensive and easy it was to size and perfectly set a specific caliber ID to the brass without stretching the case. It didnt allow for adjustable neck tension but for the crazy low cost it was incredible. This seems like the best of everything at a much more reasonable cost.

Was looking at this set but ended up getting the 21st century nitride mandrel and die. Using their dry molly lube for the mandrel and bullet seating. Super smooth

In order for an expanding mandrel to work well, the brass should be annealed prior to any sizing action. While the APW set looks great, you should try one of the 21st Century mandrels that are Black Nitride coated mandrels. Just like butter! Unfortunately they aren't available in .001 or .002 increments. The Black Nitride coating is da bomb!

When you want to use an expander mandrel, is it necessary to first use a collet die? Can you simply FL size your brass and then run it through an expander mandrel for the intended neck tension?

Maybe I missed it but the Eric Cortina expander was mentioned in the beginning but I didn’t see where it was covered?

i’ve actually damaged brain cells watching this ..

It is NOT neck tension…It is neck interference. is properly measured in units of force (pounds, for example), but is more often referenced by the size of the interference fit. ‘2thou neck tension ‘

Is there a manderel for 25-06 in the APW ?

I’ve got the 21st century stuff with no complaints, but I’m looking at scooping up an APW to try it out.

Drop me a comment if y’all have questions or have any topics (reloading specific) you want me to make videos on for the channel

Sorry that I still don't see the need for the expander mandrel. I use a Redding bushing die and set my tension to .003 so why do I still need a mandrel if all I want is .003 tension. There must be more of a reason for using expander mandrel but I don't know what those reasons are.

Now let's see a double blind test of neck tension on group sizes.

Can you use the APW mandrels in 21st body ?

Here are the differences as they appear to me. 21st Century offers their mandrels to the nearest .0005 and offers a wide spread of sizes in each caliber. APW offers their mandrels in two sizes for each caliber and only to the nearest .001. The cutout window in the 21st Century is nice for adjustment. The biggest difference to me is that 21st Century products are advertised as made in the United States of America. APW are not.

What if one thousand or two thousand friction fit in your neck and isn't enough. That's where one or two thousand sets are not adequate. You have to experiment. And find out what release point is your rifle the most accurate. It might be nine thousand smaller than diameter of course. I like everything you showed us, I do not disagree with anything that you said. But when ordering a general set, it might not be enough. Complete assortment of mandrels for your rifle.

Does not work for my 6ppc .

You need to add in that you are shilling this product out and badly explaining on what it does too.

Neck tension is as important as the bullet you are using . The two top important reloading influences .

Would have been nice if you spent 3 minutes in the 23 minute video to talk about setup...

Col-let die. Don’t hear it pronounced that way often. kol-it is usually how you’ll hear it.