ROCKCHUCKER II MAIN RAM???

Did you use a little grease on the ram shaft?

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Did you use any lube when you put it back together? If not use your gun oil on the ram and all rotating points.

On oal that could be variance in the bullet itself.

I doubt your press is worn out. It could need lubed or maybe it is lubed too much. I'd completely clean and try lubing ram sparingly with a few drops and hinge points first.

I was thinking the shape of bullet may slightly change and may change how it fits in die.

Does ram move back and forth much when you have it up and try to move by hand,

I think what @ericuda was saying is that your OAL variance might be due to irregularities in the ogive of the bullet where it contacts the seating plug in your die. The cases have nothing to do with that. You never said what you are loading but some bullets aren't precise.

I can't believe you could wear out a Rockchucker in one persons lifetime. If you do, RCBS will send you a new one.

If you lubed the ram and it still squeals I don't have a clue what could be wrong.

1 drop of Break Free CLP *(hasTeflon)* should be put on ram & other moving parts @start of reloading session.

The iron frame did wear on a Rock Chucker. Never lubed it. The ram would fall forward a few thousandth at the top of the stroke. This caused a problem when seating bullets, not sizing. RCBS replaced the press with this RC2.

The squeals can come from the brass galling when sizing. Happens when I size 357 in carbide die. Lube the brass lightly with RCBS 2 Lube.

74man said:

The OAL would vary from .02 to .05

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Do you mean .002" to .005" ? If yes, its normal.

Sorry but do you realize how small .002 is. That could be variance in how you hold caliper.

Next time change dies and see if it continues.

I have long practiced lubricating my press rams with grease for several very important reasons.
• The ram needs to retain its factory fit in the body of the press so that my press is making accurate ammo during it's whole life.
• I don't want to be working any harder than needed to operate my press.
• Injected grease going IN should be pushing OUT any grit so that the ram/press requires no other major teardowns for cleaning.

1) I suggest that while you have the ram removed, that you drill 2 tiny 9/64" (0.140") holes, one from each side, at about the middle of the ram's bore. (One hole is all that's usually required, except that your press has the slot for the spent primer escape.)
2) Then purchase a Needle Nozzle Grease Gun (commonly used on chain saws), like THIS one.
3) Then once a month, you can inject about 3cc of fresh "chassis" grease into the ram from each side.

These holes are so small that they cannot typically be seen or noticed. Here's the same holes added to a Dillon 550. The facts are they are so small that you can add them to any portion of the linkage that you like for buttery-smooth operation....




Hope this helps.

What are you measuring to the tip of the bullet or with a comparator to the ogive?
Try measuring a few bullets and see how close the bullets by themselves are.

74man said:

I also noticed . . . (the) OAL would vary from .002 to .005. . .

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This is the first time you've ever measured OAL variation isn't it. And I'll bet you're measuring from the tip, not the ogive.

All but the most expensive bullets vary 0.005 or more in ogive position, and I doubt you can buy bullets that only vary 0.005 in tip position. The variation you observe is normal, and of no concern.

The squeak you observe is to be addressed by lightly greasing the ram and the pins in the lower linkage, since the pins are the source of the sideloading that produces the squeak. Clean and regrease periodically and that press will still be good as new when your grandkids are your age.

74man said:

squealing

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May also come from brass that is cleaned to well/much. Some of the surface zinc may have been removed. A tiny amount of RCBS 2 lube on finger tips, applied to brass, is all thats needed. So little that i dont wipe it off.

74man said:

That is what I mean,.002-.005 and you say that is normal for the OAL to vary that much

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Yes, normal on my 2 RCBS presses, RC & RC2. More on the old Dillon progressive, RL-450.

The Break Free CLP has Teflon, keeps on lubing.

When you say you cleaned the ram, does that mean you also cleaned the ram bore hole? Both parts can harbor dirt.
I prefer a goes on wet and then dries lube. I use motorcycle chain wax (wax not grease) when I rebuild. There are tons of dry lubricants around now, but that's what I use because it's heavier than clp.

I didn't see if you said what point on the bullet you are measuring from. If you are measuring to the tip that varation is not uncommon. You need to use a comparator and measure to the ogive.

I can't guess where your squeal is coming from. I occasionally put a few drops of oil on a rag and wipe the ram with it. I oil the ram under the press and then run it up to oil the upper part.

I like what rfwobbly did to his press.

Run the ram all the way up. Press on one side to see if there is any slop. There should be minimal play but not tight. Feel the ram as it is going up, should be no felt vibration. I would remove ram and make sure it is not bent and check for wear marks. Not much can go wrong with such a simple machine as a single stage press. I use Lubriplate (my Garand lube) on my ancient C-H single stage and gun oil on my other presses...

Ram problems should have little to do with OAL variations. My (very) old C-H can be considered "worn out", but has little effect on bullet seating.

Don't forget to clean and lube the pivot pins and the holes they go into. especially if they haven't been lubed.

74man said:

RFWOBBLEY, WHAT GREASE DO YOU USE? DOES IT HAVE SILICONE IN IT? THAT IS A GREAT IDEA. I HAVE SEEN ON THE REBEL THAT IS HAS A ZERT FITTING FOR THE RAM BUT RCBS SAID NOT A GOOD IDEA ON THE ROCKCHUCKER II. THANKS. 74MAN

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It makes a big difference on rams that have a primer trough. If you do that's where the grease will go.

RC II instructions & others. https://www.rcbs.com/rcbs-support/rcbs-product-instructions.html

So RCBS recommends gun oil for the RC2. My Rebel has zerk fittings for grease and Dillon says nothing but 30 wt. motor oil for the ram. I’m curious what Lee, Hornady and Lyman recommend?

If it’s squeaky, it’s tight. I’d lube it and keep it. If it’s so tight I had to lube it every 100 strokes, that’s what I would do.

It’s not like they have linear guide bearings in there. They require lube and are cheap enough products, they don’t have auto oilers like industrial equipment. I use an Elf synthetic oil myself.

As far as the OAL variations, I would start by grabbing a couple bullets out of the box and measure their OAL. If they are like the typical SMK, I’m not shocked to find they, themselves have that much variation in OAL. So it stands to reason the loaded round won’t be any better when measured from the tip.



If I have something with a hole in it that won’t touch the tip, rather some distance along the ogive they are the same though.



So, go back and check your loaded rounds not by OAL (that’s still important for function though) but by a reference diameter (datum) along the ogive of the bullet. You can even get handy ones that attach to your calipers.



Or in a pinch, can even use the seating stem out of the die.



All of those remove inconsistencies in bullet tip (that show up in OAL measurements) from the equation.

Just to put things in perspective, a standard sheet of paper is about .0035 thick. A .002 - .005 variance isn’t that bad wether you’re measuring base to tip or base to ogive.