I'm starting to see more traffic on here of people using the Lee APP, so figured I'd put this out there for others. I currently just load 9mm, so I'm able to leave it set up with the same feed tube. I went from decapping on a LCT with the auto indexing rod removed to using a universal decapper die in the APP; the case feed has speed the process up immensely. However, the first time I filled the feed tube up by hand, I was less than enthused. Cue using a funnel to direct the cases into the tube... Better, but far from great. Lee makes a universal case feed with 4 tubes and a collator ($35+$15+shipping= >$50), which is about 2/3 of what I paid for the press. I decided to make my own single tube version. It cost me a 4" funnel and about 2ft of duct tape. The basic principle is to have an oversized hole that only allows the case to drop with the bottom (heavy end) down.
I drilled a 3/8" hole in the center of an 1 gallon ice cream bucket lid (I store brass in them, so I have plenty) to begin. I then used a box cutter to trim the hole so that a 9mm case would just fit through. I then began to open the hole up a sliver of plastic at a time, until I was satisfied with the way that the brass dropped.
Starting 1/2-1" away from the hole I just made, I slit the lid all the way to the edge. I then drew one edge of the slit over the other to make my own funnel. You don't need too much, a 1/2" change from edge to center is plenty to get brass to move to the center.
I used a strip of duct tape to hold the edges together, making the lid hold it's shape.
On my 4" funnel, I cut the bottom up until the opening was large enough to fit over the feed tube provided with the press, and trimmed the top so that the case wouldn't have room to flip or turn sideways when it dropped in. I set my lid on what was left of the funnel, concave side up and taped it in place. I then slotted this over the feed tube, and fastened it with a wrap of duct tape.
Now, I grab a handful of brass, drop it in the lid, shake it about 5 seconds to fill the tube, and then go to town. I'm able to empty the tube in about 20 seconds, grab another handful of brass, and repeat.
I drilled a 3/8" hole in the center of an 1 gallon ice cream bucket lid (I store brass in them, so I have plenty) to begin. I then used a box cutter to trim the hole so that a 9mm case would just fit through. I then began to open the hole up a sliver of plastic at a time, until I was satisfied with the way that the brass dropped.
Starting 1/2-1" away from the hole I just made, I slit the lid all the way to the edge. I then drew one edge of the slit over the other to make my own funnel. You don't need too much, a 1/2" change from edge to center is plenty to get brass to move to the center.
I used a strip of duct tape to hold the edges together, making the lid hold it's shape.
On my 4" funnel, I cut the bottom up until the opening was large enough to fit over the feed tube provided with the press, and trimmed the top so that the case wouldn't have room to flip or turn sideways when it dropped in. I set my lid on what was left of the funnel, concave side up and taped it in place. I then slotted this over the feed tube, and fastened it with a wrap of duct tape.
Now, I grab a handful of brass, drop it in the lid, shake it about 5 seconds to fill the tube, and then go to town. I'm able to empty the tube in about 20 seconds, grab another handful of brass, and repeat.
