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It depends. You have to adjust the die to crimp. The way I adjust the Lee seating/crimp die.

Grab a case and a bullet. Bell the case mouth in the 2nd die.
In the crimp die: Run the ram up with the case in it.
Screw the die down til it touches the case.
Back it out a turn or 2.
Back the seating adjustment knob out a good bit.
Sit the bullet on top of the case and run the ram up.
Check the overall length.
Screw the seating adjustment knob in.
Run the ram up.
Check the overall length.
Repeat until the overall length is correct.

Now to set the crimp:
Back the seating adjustment knob out a good bit.
Raise the ram with the shell you just made.
Screw the die in until it touches the case.
Lower the ram and screw the die in another 1/2 to 1 turn.
Run the ram up and down.
Look at the edge of the case mouth and check to see that the bell is gone.
If not screw another half turn and raise the ram again.
Repeat until the bell is gone.
Once the bell is just gone I normally go in another half turn to get a slight crimp.

Once the crimp is set run the ram up into the die again.
Screw the seating depth adjustment knob down until it touches the bullet.

Your seating/crimp die is now properly adjusted.

Don't feel 'ignorant' for asking questions. Feel free to ask. You don't start off knowing everything, only way to learn is to ask.

KRM45 wrote:Is it good practice to crimp no matter what gun I'm using? If so, why don't the Lee die sets just come with a crimping die?

Thanks for your help!

You should always crimp your bullets. Not only does it help with keeping the bullet from moving under recoil/chambering, it helps keep the bullet in place long enough to get proper ignition.

The Lee 3 die sets have the seating die that has a crimping section in it, this seats and crimps in one operation. The 4 die sets have an extra crimping die that post-sizes the case and crimps the bullet. The reason I use a separate crimping die is because my press has 4 stations, with this press it is recommended to separate the crimping and seating process.