Hornady LnL broken bracket for priming system

[Fisherdave10]

My google-fu cannot find another instance of this part breaking on somebody so I'd figure I would ask if anyone has had this part break on them before and what may have caused it.

The part is LNL Item #8, Hornady Production part #392202, "Bracket LNLAP". I just received my press today and have only loaded 5 rounds of 9mm on it. I was dry cycling my press before I put it to bed. I felt a little bit of resistance and thought nothing of it. After cycling through the resistance, I saw the primer in the shuttle was a bit mangled and once it was removed and disposed of, the shuttle would not pick up another primer. The pictures should be pretty explanatory. Because the shaft the priming system rides on is not retained property the shuttle cannot move far enough to grab a new primer.


The obvious crack in the bracket.


The issue. Also, does the retainer thing below the shaft look normal? I'm a little worried there is supposed to be something else there that further retains the shaft. Even when I hold the broken bracket in it's normal position, only a little bit of the shaft is retained and it doesn't take much to have it pop out. Before this part broke, everything ran perfectly.

I'm giving Hornady a call tomorrow and I am expecting to be completely taken care of and have the new part in a few days.
Thanks.

 

[ReloaderFred]

They will take care of you.

I don't prime on my press, so I can't tell you whether the part looks right or not, but Hornady does back their products. I removed the entire priming assembly from my LnL a long time ago. All my priming is done on prepped brass before it ever gets to either of my progressive presses.

Hope this helps.

Fred

 

[crazyponie]

I purchased my LNL about four months ago and it has a different way to hold the shuttle rod attachment all together than yours. I have ran about 3K rounds through it w/o a serious problem.

 

[sjd78]

^^^ This is how mine is as well. I think the new design is to allow the rod to pop out instead of bending the rod or breaking the bracket when forced.

 

[floydster]

I learnt a long time ago about priming on my LNL.
I am in the same club as ReloaderFred

 

[Shmackey]

I've done the same (and worse) to that black bracket and to the rod itself.

Hornady will send you new parts and refuse to take your money.

In the meantime: that whole setup is not a precision-oriented thing. As long as the shuttle ends up where it belongs at the top and bottom of its travel, you can glue and bend it to suit your temporary needs.

(Seriously, between the crappy priming on the LnL and the Dillon's complexity and "ski jump," I sometimes wonder about the RCBS Pro 2000.)

 

[Blue68f100]

That is the new system Hornady came up with to break free when things bind up. It's my understanding it will just pop back in place. Give Hornady a call they will take care of you. They will send out the upper bracket quickly.

I have NO issues priming on my press. It feeds primers 100% and never misses. Problems seating primers are a operator error thing. Once you learn the feel your good to go. I was at a friends Saturday correcting his primer feed issues. Once these are dial in they are very reliable. He is now reporting that every thing is running smoothly.

tip: If you use some thread (or fishing line) on the shuttle spring (at back loop/hook) it makes it a snap to change sled sizes. Just run the ram up. Pull back on the thread holding the spring. Pull it away, change shuttle and put the spring back on. Takes less than 10 sec to do.

 

[Bowfishrp]

Blue! That is an excellent tip with the springs. Thats one of those things you slap your forehead and say "Why didnt I think of that?" Thanks!

 

[BYJO4]

Call Hornady and you will a new part within a couple of days. While talking with them, ask for several shims to use under the Hornady die bushing to prevent it from working loose. You normally need one for the powder drop. By the way, I have no problem priming cases with my LNL. Also if you feel any unusual resistance, it is best to stop and quickly look over the press as it probably means something isn't right. This is a smooth operating press.

 

[whtsmoke]

I started having aproblem with mine comming out alot so i called an the tech said that it requires constant pressure on it so it doesnt pop out. I took a 3/4 piece of aluminum angle and pt it on top ot that bracket, I also drilled and tapped a hole over the top of it on the rod end and used a thumb screw for adjustments. No problems sinc then so I am happy, the only time I have problems is when I dont pay attention to the rod that you put in the primer tube, when empty it will lock it up.

 

[Fisherdave10]

Thanks for the information guys. Good to know I am not missing any parts after my incident either. It's also good to know I can fix this redneck style and it will probably work fine until the new bracket gets here. I called Hornady before work this morning and a new bracket is on the way.

I would like to know the actual cause of the priming system to bind up and break though. I did notice the primer in the shuttle was deformed like it was squished from the sides. I know this press has a lot of leverage but the resistance I felt while noticeable, wasn't enough that I would normally think something was jammed up. I'll be a little more cautious in the future. I'm used to progressive reloading on an old Dillon SDB. The SDB isn't quite as beefy...

 

[A-FIXER]

What I found to prevent this is to stretch the spring that fits under the spent primer drop tube, this allow the ram plate assembly from bottoming out and the shell plate flipping the primer sitting in its seat as the shell plate rotates. I also have the threaded guide rod with nut.

 

[dickttx]

I bought a new LnL about a month ago and that part was not connected when it arrived. However, the instructions on how to install it (new part, as stated above) were on a loose page in my manual. It will pop back on without a lot of trouble.

 

[Fisherdave10]

Temporarily, I rolled up a tiny piece of paper and placed it above the operating rod inside of the bracket. I tightened down the bracket so everything is somewhat held together and so far it functions as it's supposed to.

Just because it's broken doesn't mean it won't work.