Reloading woes

[benjamin]

Get a reloading book like Lyman's and just read it for a couple of hours and I do not know how you could screw up reloading bullets. Try RCBS reloading presses, have used the same one for 45 years and have not had any problems. I reload about 500 rifle every year and save a lot of money.

 

[jimmythegem]

Get a reloading book like Lyman's and just read it for a couple of hours and I do not know how you could screw up reloading bullets. Try RCBS reloading presses, have used the same one for 45 years and have not had any problems. I reload about 500 rifle every year and save a lot of money.

Thanks for the info.......

 

[ga6693]

Wow.......what a good "talk about"!

I too, considering reloading. Got the time and think I'd enjoy the hobby.
Concerns bother me though.

I've read and watched different sources but still feel uncomfortable with the process. Looks easy enough but you are dealing with things that go "BOOM".

Thinking of contacting a experienced re-loader and providing some free labor while picking his brain.

Handloading is a very rewarding hobby and I encourage you to give it a try. It is a safe process if you stay focused, develop good habits and use a some common sense. And as benjamin advised, get a good reloading manual which will touch on all the safety aspects as well as guide you step by step through the process. It will also give you a good idea if the internet sources you look at are giving you reliable information.

 

[hpurvis]

Try priming a few cases with the other dies up and out of the way. Get the priming down pat and then move on. It may mean wasting a few but you are doing that anyway. A good hand primer would be a way to see if the primer pockets are a little small or whatever. Some primers are crimped in and that could be a problem. Do you know if any of the brass was military or is it all commercial. Lee progressives are a pain to get going but once you do they work great. Can you get the guy you bought it from to come and help you?

 

[Cobalt 60]

The brass is all commercial. Right now I am planning on buying a hand primer and priming a handfull of brass and loading it after primed (after removing the de-priming pin of course!). Also going to get a primer pocket cleaner/reamer and go ahead and clean out the pockets of all my brass (after de-priming of course!) I figure that way I can get solid on everything else and then go back to working on getting the press to prime again.

Wife and kids are off Monday so I took it off as well. Out of town! Probably get back at it once I get a hand primer

 

[1006]

Cobalt--

Your plan is a good one. I just want to point that it will be easier to creat a routine that leaves the de-capping pin installed. Just remove the entire die from your press after you de-cap them all.

Then run it as normal to load with the fully prepped and primed rounds. Just leave the sizing die station and the primer system empty.

Happy loading--

 

[Twitch2120]

I've been reloading a few years if anyone needs help on the north/northeast side. I do mostly precision rifle but also do some pistol

 

[Shovelhead]

I held an impromptu discussion. I say discussion because as I learned teaching a class can have some legal ramifications should one of your students blows his hand off with a reload. That crap being said, once it warms up (My garage is unheated) I would be glad to hold a "discussion" with lab time allowing new reloaders a chance to reload say a box of 20 rounds. Attendee's would need their own components (primers, cases, bullets, powder, maybe dies) I have all the tools. We'll discuss pistol and bottleneck rifle reloading. However, the lab part will usually be limited to pistol ammo reloads. It would be a very basic reloading 101 discussion. If we could swing further sessions more advanced subject matter could be discussed. Max of 6-10 attendees per session. Oh I make a kickass chili ask one of the previous attendee. Not Dakota Port he stunk the place up....

I do have ulterior motives for these discussions. I'm a retired IT puke with an instructor background. I've been trying to find something I could do since retirement = boring! If I can construct a quality lesson plan and curriculum I may try to peddle my training at LGS venues for a modest price.

If there is ample interest I'll post some sort of signup sheet.

 

[Clarke123]

First of all, give Lee Precision a call ... talk to one of their PRO 1000 experienced technicians.
Second of all, CLEAN your shell-plate-carrier (YOU-TUBE Video's) ... Just remember that the shell-plate
is removed opposite threading (Righty-Loosey / Lefty-Tighty - NOT like a normal bolt).
Also, lube is NOT recommended by the factory.

After cleaning, adjustment is critical ... as in show-business: timing is everything!

I would echo the suggestion that you get into the habit of using the PRO 1000 in two separate steps.
First to deprime and size, then (after cleaning the brass) Hand Prime the Brass, then load it.

BTW: "Priming" is the "Achilles-Heel" of current progressive priming technology ... if / when it works, it is wonderful .... but don't count on it!

 

[jcountry]

The brass is all commercial. Right now I am planning on buying a hand primer and priming a handfull of brass and loading it after primed (after removing the de-priming pin of course!). Also going to get a primer pocket cleaner/reamer and go ahead and clean out the pockets of all my brass (after de-priming of course!) I figure that way I can get solid on everything else and then go back to working on getting the press to prime again.

Wife and kids are off Monday so I took it off as well. Out of town! Probably get back at it once I get a hand primer

I think you are on the right track!

I have a primer seating tool on my press, but I never use it. The hand primer I have (RCBS) just seats them much better. I also like being able to load a bunch of the from a tray, rather than handle primers individual primers. That gets a bit fussy with the small ones.

I definitely recommend cleaning primer pockets! I don't think it hurts a thing-and it may solve many of your primer seating problems. I have noticed that some primers are "stiffer" than others and will deform more easily if there is any ash on the sidewall of the primer pockets. If they are clean, I never have any problems.