Lee 6000 press

LiveLife said:
I am keeping the press mostly "stock" for production testing in factory form.
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Yes, understood, an enhancement I've done to all (4) presses I own that have a ball detent that was mostly for other owners...
carry-on,
:D
.
 
9mmepiphany said:
Which size nylon ball are you using?

Where are you getting it?
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Just measure the ball being replaced for size.
I'm thinking you can get to that ball to measure it by taking off the shell-plate, I don't have this press though. :uhoh:
My memory has them either 5/16" or 3/8" diameter. (?)
I may have bought them on Amazon but not individually:
uxcell 3/8-inch POM Coin Ring Making Balls, Plastic Bearing Ball 10pcs: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific

Most hardware stores have an aisle with pull-out drawers full of oddball stuff, you will find POM or nylon balls there.
Take the ball and spring with you and find a weaker spring to also help to reduce the shell plate "snap" even more.
:D
.
 
Just received the primer trough with the new bigger .093" pin. Installed it and it does appear to be much better than the old smaller pin. I can't tell if they changed the trough but the new pin and trough do shake the primer tray more than the old combo did. Will fire up the press later today and see how it goes.
 
I have the new longer shuttle, but I didn't order the "trough", since mine works just fine now. I also ordered a new primer rod, but I'm not in any mood for the take down and replacement yet. Just took a "Flu, RSV, Covid" swab test, and tested positive for the flu! No wonder I've been grumpy the last couple of posts. Feel like hell today, and coughing my head off....so I'm "disappearing" from here until I feel human again. Positive Christmas wishes to all of you....may you all "miss" the creeping crud this winter!!!
 
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curlysir said:
Just received the primer trough with the new bigger .093" pin. Installed it and it does appear to be much better than the old smaller pin. I can't tell if they changed the trough but the new pin and trough do shake the primer tray more than the old combo did.
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The larger diameter pin seems to have stiffened the chute/trough as pin insertion point as expressed by less twist and shaking the primers, even large pistol to flow down in the tray - https://www.thehighroad.org/index.p...-oal-consistency.911743/page-16#post-12495371

GW Staar said:
Just took a "Flu, RSV, Covid" swab test, and tested positive for the flu! No wonder I've been grumpy the last couple of posts. Feel like hell today, and coughing my head off....so I'm "disappearing" from here until I feel human again. Positive Christmas wishes to all of you....make you all "miss" creeping crud this winter!!!
Click to expand...
Get better soon!
 
Received today from Lee new primer pin and spring, longer primer pusher with a spring and their plastic retainer ring. They are providing the support. Will install tomorrow thanks to all of the excellent support on this site. lee.JPG
 
curlysir said:
Just received the primer trough with the new bigger .093" pin. Installed it and it does appear to be much better than the old smaller pin. I can't tell if they changed the trough but the new pin and trough do shake the primer tray more than the old combo did. Will fire up the press later today and see how it goes.
Click to expand...

Test run was positive, primer tray does get shaken more then before and I did not have a problem with primers not flowing out of the tray into the trough as I did previously. Appears as if the new larger pin may be the solution to the primers not feeding out of the tray.
 
Installed new primer pin and spring today thanks to the excellent advice of our members. Did not take the press apart as I was very careful removing the top plate and screw holding the bottom plate. You do need 2+ hands and did not loose the ball or springs. Thank you all for your help.
 
rotorloader said:
Installed new primer rod and spring today thanks to the excellent advice of our members. Did not take the press apart as I was very careful removing the top plate and screw holding the bottom plate. You do need 2+ hands and did not loose the ball or springs. Thank you all for your help.
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Well I was feeling a lot better tonight, and I just got through reading your post, so I thought I'd try to repeat your performance. So I took the two screws out of the top of the subplate, removed the one screw out of the bottom of the plastic pan....and voila primer rod ball and spring instantly accessible. That's when the 2+ hands were needed.....yeah I'd say at least 3 hands would improve me a lot. And eyes at the ends of my fingers!! Even better. Now I know why Lee shows everything taken down first, the ram raised, turned over, bringing the pan right side up. I also now wonder why the Lee demo man hid the ball and spring instead of showing that they dropped into his hand....

And yes I shoulda waited at least one more day to feel normal before I tackled this.....I knew better and I had warning, but you get bored when your sick with the flu and doing nothing. Just too many parts loose at once, and that would be fine, if you were aware of ALL of them. The ball and spring I knew of, the primer rod I was aware of.....what I wasn't aware of, was, I didn't know the plastic center gear cover, and the center shell plate post was loose, until it wasn't lined up well enough for the plastic pan to be pushed up back in place again after changing out the primer rod. It's just a bit frustrating when the stupid pan won't rise and you can't see why! And I'm only smart enough barely to refrain from forcing it up, fully knowing that that never turns out well.

OK, so I need the ball and spring in-place, and the primer rod plumb and set in the hole, AND the center shell plate axle vertical with its gear cover in place, and I could see two at once but not all three...... But I finally managed after several tries.

Then I screwed on the shell plate and can't for the life of me remember the trick to get the center rod to drop all the way in. Finally got it in, but still the advance mechanism didn't work. Been there before, but I can't remember the cause and fix. But that's when my flu got the better of me and I walked out. I'll get it tomorrow, but Mr. John Lee.....replacing the shell plate ought to be the simplest process on a progressive, and it's not. Not even close. Time to pay some bonus money to the engineer who can simplify it. Or if it IS simple then put it in the instructions in such a way that nobody will miss it. Seriously.
 
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GW Staar said:
what I wasn't aware of, was, I didn't know the plastic center gear cover, and the center shell plate post was loose, until it wasn't lined up well enough for the plastic pan to be pushed up back in place again after changing out the primer rod. It's just a bit frustrating when the stupid pan won't rise and you can't see why! And I'm only smart enough barely to refrain from forcing it up, fully knowing that that never turns out well.

OK, so I need the ball and spring in-place, and the primer rod plumb and set in the hole, AND the center shell plate axle vertical with its gear cover in place, and I could see two at once but not all three...... But I finally managed after several tries.
Click to expand...
After 20+ disassembly and reassembly, I share your frustration and added "Tips ..." to the "Best Practices ..." thread - https://www.thehighroad.org/index.p...x-pack-pro-pro-6000-kit.913577/#post-12496177

Using the hex wrench inserted into the index shaft will make it easier to align the shaft with carrier core/top cover without looking so you can better focus on putting the top of priming pin into the sleeve hole.

Aligning index shaft during carrier cover assembly - If you have trouble aligning the index shaft while lowering the carrier with top cover, insert the hex wrench through the cover/carrier into the index shaft to make alignment easier.

index.php

​

GW Staar said:
Then I screwed on the shell plate and can't for the life of me remember the trick to get the center rod to drop all the way in.
Click to expand...
The "trick" is to lower the carrier all the way down (so the twist of the index bar is above the cross slot gear) and the index bar will drop right in.

GW Staar said:
Finally got it in, but still the advance mechanism didn't work. Been there before, but I can't remember the cause and fix.
Click to expand...
By forcing the index bar's twisted section down, you are jamming up the plastic index gears that were designed to "free float" without load. Pull out the index bar, lower the carrier all the way down and index bar should drop right down and shellplate should index while plastic gears "free float".

GW Staar said:
Mr. John Lee.....replacing the shell plate ... if it IS simple then put it in the instructions in such a way that nobody will miss it. Seriously.
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Mr. John Lee must have been listening as email I got from Calvin today asked for just that ... any additional information/tips to improve instruction/documentation for Lee Precision products.

And it was for the same reasons why I added the "Tips to maximize/optimize ..." post yesterday - https://www.thehighroad.org/index.p...x-pack-pro-pro-6000-kit.913577/#post-12490108

I was planning to update the "Best Practices ...." checklist to include the updated primer chute/trough with larger diameter pin and could expand on reassembly tips to make things "simpler" and easier.
 
Has Lee stopped selling this press because of the few problems? Have been thinking about buying one to replace my Pro 1000 but no one has any in stock.
 
maddmaxx11 said:
Have been thinking about buying one to replace my Pro 1000 but no one has any in stock.
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This was anticipated/predicted - https://www.thehighroad.org/index.p...-press-finally-in-stock.912231/#post-12483855
LiveLife said:
With Christmas approaching and Lee Precision having updated pre/early production parts to address/resolve issues identified (Such as longer primer slider and "self-cleaning" priming pin), looks like people are buying up SPP/Pro 6000 kits and if you are interested in one, better hurry or they may become "unobtainium" by Christmas time.
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maddmaxx11 said:
Has Lee stopped selling this press because of the few problems? no one has any in stock.
Click to expand...
No, and "few problems" have been resolved with updated parts -
https://www.thehighroad.org/index.p...-oal-consistency.911743/page-17#post-12495679
 
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Paid $240 for my no dies set at Midsouth. Have all my dies. I am pretty happy with mine and Lee is doing a good job supporting it. I go fairly slow, haven't loaded with the new primer pin yet but did load a bunch of .38 special with old primer pin. I do use a RCBS lockout die which really works well.
 
LiveLife said:
After 20+ disassembly and reassembly, I share your frustration and added "Tips ..." to the "Best Practices ..." thread - https://www.thehighroad.org/index.p...x-pack-pro-pro-6000-kit.913577/#post-12496177

Using the hex wrench inserted into the index shaft will make it easier to align the shaft with carrier core/top cover without looking so you can better focus on putting the top of priming pin into the sleeve hole.

The "trick" is to lower the carrier all the way down (so the twist of the index bar is above the cross slot gear) and the index bar will drop right in.


By forcing the index bar's twisted section down, you are jamming up the plastic index gears that were designed to "free float" without load. Pull out the index bar, lower the carrier all the way down and index bar should drop right down and shellplate should index while plastic gears "free float".
Click to expand...

I had already figured out using the hex wrench as an alignment helper was the way to go, did that, and I finally remembered something about running the carrier all the way down, but by then it was already screwed up.

So this morning I removed the index bar, and put it in "right" and it still didn't work.....so repeated last night, removing the screws and separating the plastic pan.....started over more carefully. I took the axle out, checked it out carefully...no damage yet to the clutch, so with everything in place, carefully lifted and aligned (used the hex wrench as a guide)...eyeball on the primer rod side, used a spacer to hold it up while I screwed in the front screw. Then the spacer still in place replace and tightened carefully the top wood screws. (Those won't last forever going in plastic, so will order an extra plastic pan to have on hand.....and with a pattern then in hand (with the triangled primer hole), may just make a 3d pattern for future ones....

Anyhow index works again, and I got all the mental exercise I want today.....flu stinks.....this stuff is virulent! Its been 3 days and already everyone in my house has it....take it seriously this year and take precautions....
 
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LiveLife said:
After more than 25 times of being loosened and tightened, no sign of screws being loose with "plastic" posts. :)
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That's good. It will wear out eventually, I figure an extra will last me my lifetime if I'm carefull and don't over tighten. Okay, for me, but you're going to be around considerably longer....and..... you're not likely to be like my bother-in-law, who destroys his things before mine even look used. Having muscle is great.....controlling it is even greater.;)

First attempt at this post wasn't very clear.....thought I'd better figure out how to say what I meant to get across better.....joys of getting old.
 
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rotorloader said:
Installed new primer pin and spring today thanks to the excellent advice of our members. Did not take the press apart as I was very careful removing the top plate and screw holding the bottom plate. You do need 2+ hands and did not loose the ball or springs. Thank you all for your help.
Click to expand...
Why do you have to install a new primer pin ?
Thanks , Merry Christmas !
 
bfox said:
Why do you have to install a new primer pin ?
Thanks , Merry Christmas !
Click to expand...
The original primer pin would stick in the up position and lock up the press. New pin is supposed to prevent that. My press locked up even before I actually started reloading. I was just cycling the press.
 
rotorloader said:
The original primer pin would stick in the up position and lock up the press. New pin is supposed to prevent that. My press locked up even before I actually started reloading. I was just cycling the press.
Click to expand...
Thanks , I thought they would take two different pins like the Loadmaster .
 
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