Lee Auto Drum Problems

[BigMacMI]

Read everything I could find on here prepping to start reloading. First post however

Picked up Lee Turret and 9mm/223 dies

Loaded up some 124g with 3.9, 4.1, and 4.3grain HP38. liked the 4.1

So, things are going well.

Now for the long part... settle in.

I was noticing I was getting light throws from the drum. Upon closer inspection, the drum was not fully rotating. LEE customer support was awesome, tried to walk me through some trouble shooting and ultimately 2 day mailed me a new powder measure. This one seems to be rotating a bit better, but it is still only turning to about the 4 o'clock position.

Because I want consistent charges, I end up rotating the powder measure the rest of the way down and around to make sure everything dumps. This is with the recommended LEE die setup for the powder through case expander. I can adjust the die closer to the shell plate and get full rotation of the drum that makes me feel more comfortable with getting consistent throws.

The problem with the 'adjusted' position is that it ends up flaring the case more than I would probably like. I have found an acceptable drum throw position, that had 10x throws right on the money, even if it is a bit less rotation than I would like (i can always finish the throw by hand, but it's the principle here). It is about 1/2 turn from shell plate.

My other line of thinking is that with the drum measure on there, the tension in the springs pushing the drum up will set the flare versus the actual compression against a fixed die... could this be right? That basically the case flare is set by this tension in the measure?

My 'adjusted' position gives me a bullet drop into the case of about 0.07". Seems a bit much to me, and that I am working the brass a bit.

Thoughts?

 

[Reefinmike]

I have this exact same problem with my lee autodrum. If I wanted it to get anywhere near fully dumping the charge with a proper minimal flare, I would have to give my pistol brass a flare that resembled a french horn. I took the measure apart to ensure I hadn't skipped a gear or anything and everything was in order. I believe I was able to remedy the issue by putting a washer between my ptx die and the drum measure.

Then I had to deal with all the powder sticking due to the crazy static and residual oil left on the internals. I pushed a used dryer sheet through the measure and it got terribly stuck. The measure is extremely difficult to disassemble and at the time there were no online instructions on complete disassembly. I ended up having to put the measure in a vice and literally hammer the dryer sheet out bit by bit with a dowel. As a result, I boogered up some plastic piece inside the measure. I boxed the measure up and my lee pro autodisk has since resided over my turret press. It meters charges perfectly fine and I'm happy with all the charges thrown by the disks.

That was over a year ago. One of these days I will contact lee and try to get this measure straightened out. until then, I'm perfectly happy with the pro autodisk.

 

[Tech Ninja]

I had the same issue with .38 Special. I think that's because it's designed to work that way. You have to accept maximum flair on the case to get it to make a full throw. The case mouth has to travel all the way up the expander die nose and contact the body of the expander die to get enough force to operate the power throw. The return spring in the throw is really strong and requires a lot of force to operate. I solved this by removing some of the flair from the die with a file. Not an elegant solution but it worked and I had a spare expander on hand to use. I like the Auto Drum because it meters American Select better than anything else I have tried.

 

[Fire_Moose]

I don't remember if I don't use my auto drum for 9mm because of this issue or just inconsistent throws. But, same as above, tried it once then went back to the auto disk. I love the drum for my 223 but the disks are perfect for pistol.

 

[drband]

If you are not getting adequate rotation there is a problem and you should contact Lee again.

Check below first...

Are you using the riser with the AutoDrum? If so, it must be screwed all the way into the powder-thru die AND the AutoDrum must be screwed into the riser all the way for proper linkage of the charging mechanism before adjusting case mouth flare.
It is a little tricky to get the AutoDrum screwed all the way in but the swiveling adapter must be screwed all the way down so the PM does not turn easily on top of the die/riser.
This will provide a full stroke for the linkage and repeatable throws.
You should also be able to adjust for as little case flare (even none) as you want without causing powder throw changes. I have 3 AutoDrum pm's that are trouble free so I know they can work properly.

Now that I think about it, I did have a riser with bad threads that Lee exchanged for me, but that was an obvious issue. Also, if your PM Is pretty new, a drop of oil on the swivel adapter threads before you screw it into the riser helps a lot. New threads are pretty tight.

Hope you get it sorted out! My AutoDrums live on dedicated caliber turrets and the only changes I make are switching drums for different powders/loads. They're dead-on even on a switched drum (but I always weigh after a switch so I know).

 

[SARuger]

I have loaded thousands of 9mm rounds with the Auto-Drum.

Clean it good before the first use, after that you are good to go.

On short pistol brass, use a riser

Disable the safety feature. It doesn't allow a full rotation of the drum. Lee needs to fix this IMHO

I use LED lights on my press to check each case for a full charge/double charge. I also check every tenth drop for consistency.

 

[Load Master]

You might find a few tips here that might help too:

 

[BigMacMI]

Thanks guys. I have a 2nd inquiry to Lee (since both measures have had the same issue), fully admit it MAY be operator error, but we have not bee able to determine that it is at this point. It's a pretty easy setup. They have been very helpful. Some type of spacer seems like it would be the best bet (internal spacer). When I finish the rotation by hand, it's certainly better. Throwing very consistent (when I hand rotate it).

I am going to disable the safety feature. it doesn't seem like I can double charge the HP38 anyhow. At least I would visually see it easy enough

If you are not getting adequate rotation there is a problem and you should contact Lee again.

Check below first...

Are you using the riser with the AutoDrum? If so, it must be screwed all the way into the powder-thru die AND the AutoDrum must be screwed into the riser all the way for proper linkage of the charging mechanism before adjusting case mouth flare.


It is a little tricky to get the AutoDrum screwed all the way in but the swiveling adapter must be screwed all the way down so the PM does not turn easily on top of the die/riser.
This will provide a full stroke for the linkage and repeatable throws.
You should also be able to adjust for as little case flare (even none) as you want without causing powder throw changes. I have 3 AutoDrum pm's that are trouble free so I know they can work properly.

Now that I think about it, I did have a riser with bad threads that Lee exchanged for me, but that was an obvious issue. Also, if your PM Is pretty new, a drop of oil on the swivel adapter threads before you screw it into the riser helps a lot. New threads are pretty tight.

Hope you get it sorted out! My AutoDrums live on dedicated caliber turrets and the only changes I make are switching drums for different powders/loads. They're dead-on even on a switched drum (but I always weigh after a switch so I know).

 

[Load Master]

Thanks guys. I have a 2nd inquiry to Lee (since both measures have had the same issue), fully admit it MAY be operator error, but we have not bee able to determine that it is at this point. It's a pretty easy setup. They have been very helpful. Some type of spacer seems like it would be the best bet (internal spacer). When I finish the rotation by hand, it's certainly better. Throwing very consistent (when I hand rotate it).

I am going to disable the safety feature. it doesn't seem like I can double charge the HP38 anyhow. At least I would visually see it easy enough

Here is the instructions if you don't have them. Newer models don't come with the the original instructions. Also note the screw location. It needs to be moved to the back hole shown in step 4.

 

[Dudedog]

I removed the "safety" feature right away as I was used to using the Pro Disk and I felt I was more likely to miss a charge than double charge.
No problems with 9mm but with the strong spring it is possible to mangle .380 brass if its not centered in the shell holder.

 

[sugarmaker]

I have turned the PTX plug on a lathe to reduce the flare. Otherwise it takes enough pressure to fully operate the drum that the flare is way oversized. The lee plugs are soft, unlike some. A small file and a drill can also work but tends to come out a bit lop sided if the plug isnt concentric (needs a bolt and nut to turn in a half inch drill, not super precise). I have also used a redding or lyman expander followed by a PTX measure (I have several) using a smaller caliber expander. Thats how I do cast.