reloading blocks

I made some in the past but now i just wait for free shipping https://www.brownells.com/reloading...d-loading-block-sku749001305-33205-65238.aspx

Midway USED to sell wooden ones made by a small shop IIRC, in Idaho and took the design and had them made overseas. You might be able to find them on ebay or similar

I made a range block once, for .22 LR when I shot that in bullseye competition, but for reloading... get an MTM and don't look back.

If wood's your "must have" then ... I 'spose you're gonna have to drill it on a drill press, to keep the lines nice n straight. You're gonna have to round the edges with a router. You're gonna have to sand and finish it. And... most likely have one for each caliber. The range block I made was of dense pine, had 10 openings, and rounded corners as well as a double rounded top. The finish was a sort of antique brown with several coats of real Tung Oil (not the big box store stuff). Looked very old when I got done with it

And you can make them any shape and size you want

These are what I have for several different cartridges:

Have recently been impressed with the bleacher design, makes it easier to grip cases. Thinking about making something similar out of aluminum on the CNC.

Dead Eye Duck said:

What size bits for what calibers?.

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Use your calipers to measure cartridges. Take your calipers to your drill index box of bits. You'll figure it out.

What's wrong with the plastic trays they come in? Look in the range trash for free ones. I use the .45 blocks as general all purpose blocks. For smaller cal, blocks work fine.

Primed case gets ppwder drop in left hand...set the bullet.....seat....put back in loading block nose down; rifle, nose up. Transfer to Barry's plastic boxes with lids.

Charged case does not leave my hand until cartridge is completed.

You will also want a square bottom to the holes.

A couple of ways to do this. A custom ground drill bit is one. A friend in a machine shop helps alot!
One could level off the hole bottoms with an epoxy or such if using a drill bit with (i.e.) 59 degree grind on each side of the bit. That would be somewhat difficult IMO, keeping the depths filled consistently.

.

Have never tried a "spoon" bit, it may work...
Practice in a piece of scrap before attempting to make your block.

A block in the works....


8.5 inches X 11 inches. 2 inches thick. Four pieces glued and splined together. Some exotic wood from overseas, salvaged out of un-wanted dunnage. Very heavy! Heavy is good!
Plan to make 110 holes (11 X 10) wanting a ten hole line space between workings. Usually load 100 rounds at a time. You know, 100 primers, one hundred loads.
24 cans in a case, twenty-four hours in a day.

Some other blocks made by Dad decades ago. Double thick plywood.

Still in use today.

A couple of solid black walnut nearly 100 years old.



The sky is your limit...

I have a rifle block that my dad had made when I was still a pup. Its a 3" block of maple with 40 9/16" holes. Its worked for everything that I reload from .223 to 300WM. He worked in a machine shop and I think it was made as a favor to him.

I made my own pistol block with a hand drill and a 9/16 turbo bit. Drilled 50 holes clean thru a 3/4" piece of plywood, then glued on another piece for the bottom. Flat bottom holes! Its not pretty but totally functional. Now that I have a drill press I might do the same thing but make it neater. It wouldn't be that hard to make one for rifle using two 3/4" boards or plywood with another glued on for the bottom. I'm convinced that 9/16" is a good hole size for all of the common cartridges.

Sorry, too late for pictures.

Dang ! I stumbled upon 3 wooden blocks labeled "Midway" today in the storage building.

Laphroaig said:

Drilled 50 holes clean thru a 3/4" piece of plywood, then glued on another piece for the bottom.

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Another good idea!

I have loading blocks made of molded plastic, machined nylon, and wood. I prefer the wood ones.

I have some delrin I got from the scrap pile at work for almost free. I have been thinking about a couple custom blocks. The drill through and glue idea is much easier than a 1 piece design. I just wonder how well it would take a routered edge or if it would bust apart.

WestKentucky said:

I have some delrin I got from the scrap pile at work for almost free. I have been thinking about a couple custom blocks. The drill through and glue idea is much easier than a 1 piece design. I just wonder how well it would take a routered edge or if it would bust apart.

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Delrin is easy to work with ( a bit gummy) but you will need to keep the heat off of your bit or it will stick. A router runs at such a high speed , if your your not moving fast enough it will heat up and may grab. May want to do a test piece to see what happens. I use my router bits on my end mill all the time. But I do not run them very fast. Most of my router bits have 1/2" shafts.

I prefer the RCBS loading blocks. They have different size holes on to fit most all calibers.
https://www.rcbs.com/case-prep/accessories/universal-case-loading-block/16-9452.html

WestKentucky said:

I just wonder how well it would take a routered edge or if it would bust apart.

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If it’s the milky white Delrin we get for slides and boom bearings, it cuts like butter.
We slice them on a table saw and replace the pads in Pettibone and Skytrac boom lifts.
I routered the edges On a strip and screwed it to the wall that we park the trucks next to. No more chipped doors.

I really like the glue up idea. Two tone loading blocks! Brazilian Ipe and Tiger Maple!

I made these in the early eighties when I batch loaded rifle on a Lyman T Mag turret press. The smaller ones were specific for 30 carbine, the larger any bottle neck cartridge. A Dillion 550 rendered the small ones obsolete, the larger is still used for 45C with black powder

Over the years I have accumulated various sizes of shell blocks. I find if I am loading CF rifle, a 40/50 count size is usually more than enough. Pistols require a 50 count block to help with the quantity. 9 mm just needs a box to dump them in, I keep count of the # of hulls I have primed.

Have a blessed day,

Leon

Pine 2x4s. I use them for all my handloading. Can't see buying them when these work just fine.
These are all I use,

Do you guys leave them in the blocks to take to the range or transfer to a box with lids to keep from spilling?

I put them in plastic boxes after I reload them. I usually put a label on the box. Wooden boxes tend to be bulky. I am a woodworker and have a lot of tools. But repetitive drilling of a bunch of holes in a pattern is not as much fun as it used to be. A Forstner bit in a drill press makes nice clean holes. Maybe this weekend since we are staying home I will make some more. There is a piece of 1 1/4 inch maple scrap lying on the bench that looks about right.