Ordered a progressive press finally.

Mark_Mark said:
wonder if they sell the case feed without the motor hopper. Just a tube is all I need
Click to expand...
If you don't want a motorized collator, you'll need more than a tube.

You'll need a device to feed the cases from the tube into the shell plate. You should look into one of the 3D printed case feeds designed for the Hornady...then you can use it with the Lee tubes from their Universal Case Feeder
 
9mmepiphany said:
If you don't want a motorized collator, you'll need more than a tube.

You'll need a device to feed the cases from the tube into the shell plate. You should look into one of the 3D printed case feeds designed for the Hornady...then you can use it with the Lee tubes from their Universal Case Feeder
Click to expand...
too much work
 
Manual loading you can load 250-300/hr. With a brass feeder that can jump up to ~600/hr (500/hr if you take your time) if every thing is adj right. I added the brass feeder to mine after I had the press for a year. This was before the printers came out to make your own.
 
CoalCrackerAl said:
I like running mine hand fed, so far.
Click to expand...
I have found the biggest bang for your buck is adding a bullet feeder "die".
It allows me to only load a case with my left hand and my right hand never leaves the lever.
I don't have a collator and just use long (3') preloaded tubes for the bullets (50 in each tube).
I don't have to take my eyes off of the shell plate to look around for the container of bullets to pick one up.
My left hand goes back to the container of cases without even looking that way.
jmo,
.
 
CoalCrackerAl said:
I like running mine hand feed so far.
Click to expand...
The Lee Pro 4000 case feed is quite good. IDK, I invested so much time on the Lee Progressive system, Like the flush mount die sleeves thing, figuring the powder check, case feed setup.

Hear me out… I might get a Lee Pro 6000 with thr .45 ACP dies when it’s on sale.

LET THE HATE reply BEGIN 😂
 
Tilos said:
I have found the biggest bang for your buck is adding a bullet feeder "die".
It allows me to only load a case with my left hand and my right hand never leaves the lever.
I don't have a collator and just use long (3') preloaded tubes for the bullets (50 in each tube).
I don't have to take my eyes off of the shell plate to look around for the container of bullets to pick one up.
My left hand goes back to the container of cases without even looking that way.
jmo,
.
Click to expand...
Bullet feed die with a powder check!!! yes
 
Tilos said:
I have found the biggest bang for your buck is adding a bullet feeder "die".
It allows me to only load a case with my left hand and my right hand never leaves the lever.
Click to expand...
That was my idea when I cut off the LNL arm that would hold a case feeder. Brass is no problem at all.
www.youtube.com

Sizing & Decapping 38 Spl

www.youtube.com www.youtube.com
 

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If you don't have a collator your wasting a lot of time loading the tubes, brass or bullets. I can set a bullet pretty quick and easy since it's up front in station 4, easy to see. I crimp in station 5. That brass is fed from the back left back so I don't have to reach, just have to keep the hopper full. I tried different setups and found the brass feeder gave the most bang for the speed. I did one time setup a bullet feed die with a short fill tube, 2-3". I just dropped the bullet into the feeder instead of setting it on the flared case. Timing it both ways It was a wash so I did away with the bullet feeder. I always take a peak to confirm powder even though I run a powder cop to check after the powder dispenser w/ptx. Now if your going to hand feed the brass the shuttle system makes it very fast since you don't have to slide the brass into the shell plate. You just set it front of the pusher and it does it's thing. A friend of mine was over that has the same press and saw how the shuttle worked and said that alone will speed things up. I don't know if Hornady sells these parts separate from the kit. When I get ready to make a run the only thing I do first is load up the primer tubes for how long I want or need to load. My back tolerance is 500 before I have to stop, something longer but not my much. I take a brake and come back in a hour or so and do another run.
 
Tilos said:
I have found the biggest bang for your buck is adding a bullet feeder "die".
It allows me to only load a case with my left hand and my right hand never leaves the lever.
I don't have a collator and just use long (3') preloaded tubes for the bullets (50 in each tube).
I don't have to take my eyes off of the shell plate to look around for the container of bullets to pick one up.
My left hand goes back to the container of cases without even looking that way.
jmo,
.
Click to expand...
This is what I found also.

I even did it with the Hornady Bullet Feeder which has long been reputed to "not feed"...it's just a matter of adjustment.

With the options now available on the market, I would just get the Lee Inline Bullet Feeder and the single tube attachment
 
Blue68f100 said:
If you don't have a collator your wasting a lot of time loading the tubes, brass or bullets. I can set a bullet pretty quick and easy since it's up front in station 4, easy to see. I crimp in station 5. That brass is fed from the back left back so I don't have to reach, just have to keep the hopper full. I tried different setups and found the brass feeder gave the most bang for the speed. I did one time setup a bullet feed die with a short fill tube, 2-3". I just dropped the bullet into the feeder instead of setting it on the flared case. Timing it both ways It was a wash so I did away with the bullet feeder. I always take a peak to confirm powder even though I run a powder cop to check after the powder dispenser w/ptx. Now if your going to hand feed the brass the shuttle system makes it very fast since you don't have to slide the brass into the shell plate. You just set it front of the pusher and it does it's thing. A friend of mine was over that has the same press and saw how the shuttle worked and said that alone will speed things up. I don't know if Hornady sells these parts separate from the kit. When I get ready to make a run the only thing I do first is load up the primer tubes for how long I want or need to load. My back tolerance is 500 before I have to stop, something longer but not my much. I take a brake and come back in a hour or so and do another run.
Click to expand...
I understand why you feel that way.
I was not claiming my method is/was the ultimate, just that the bullet feeder over the case feeder is the better way for me to increase my production.

My press(es) don't have a case shuttle, so that's not an option, and without a shuttle, a case feeder is of no use to me.
The stations are not the same layout as a LNL, and filling bullet tubes is about the same as filling primer tubes (for me).
I have a fixture for filling bullet tubes like what we all have for primer tubes, so it goes quickly for me.
We all have different/unique methods, developed over time, and I don't think what I do wastes my time just because the way you did it didn't work out for you.
jmo,
.
 
Mark_Mark said:
too much work
Click to expand...
Shucks Mark_Mark, 3d printers took the work out of such things in my experience.....
Before jmorris showed us what his home-assembled 3D printer could do, we had to do it the hard way......harder and more expensive for me than jmorris, since I have no machine shop nor the skills to use one.;) Honestly, 3D printers replaced the work with more fun.....

This old video shows how I made an old Hornady bullet collator twice as efficient by cutting it up and adding a plate, a ramp and a rubber surround.....in my company's wood shop....for my old feederless RCBS Pro 2000........ a year or so before I knew there was such a thing as the 3D printer.......sure made my hobby more fun and 100% more efficient.



Now with a cheap Lee 6000 and a cheap Creality 3D printer you can make such a thing from already made print files, for about $75....the motor costing 2/3's of it.....the bullet feeder was only the beginning. Look what a 3D printed "case" collator for the same price can do.......(admittedly, It was desirable to buy a lower voltage wall wart and a $10 speed control to slow it down.......)

 
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GW Staar said:
Shucks Mark_Mark, 3d printers took the work out of such things in my experience.....
Before jmorris showed us what his home-assembled 3D printer could do, we had to do it the hard way......harder and more expensive for me than jmorris, since I have no machine shop nor the skills to use one.;) Honestly, 3D printers replaced the work with more fun.....

This old video shows how I made an old Hornady bullet collator twice as efficient by cutting it up and adding a plate, a ramp and a rubber surround.....in my company's wood shop....for my old feederless RCBS Pro 2000........ a year or so before I knew there was such a thing as the 3D printer.......sure made my hobby more fun and 100% more efficient.



Now with a cheap Lee 6000 and a cheap Creality 3D printer you can make such a thing from already made print files, for about $75....the motor costing 2/3's of it.....the bullet feeder was only the beginning. Look what a 3D printed "case" collator for the same price can do.......(admittedly, It was desirable to buy a lower voltage wall wart to slow it down.......)

Click to expand...

you even find yourself at a fork in the road with modernity. I’m there, yes, I’m good with computers and such, did manufacturing technology in Community college and worked in labs and factories.

My fork is to age gracefully with not so much technology. burry myself in manual scales and gears.

BUT… what 3-D printer you recommend?
 
First of all, what you can buy today is different from what there was 3 or 4 years ago. They have gotten a little better and faster........and as for me, I didn't want to pay for the European brands though they might be better.....maybe. I really don't know since I only bought the much cheaper Chinese Creality brand. So I suggest to spend some time looking into it.....watching videos on Youtube by the guys who think they are experts.

What I can tell you is only what I bought and why...in the November that brought America Covid. A Creality CR10 version 2 for $500. I could have bought an Ender3 for about $200, but I felt I want a print surface larger than 220mm square. The one I chose had a larger 300mm x 300mm x 400mm high print bed. The first thing I had to learn getting used to thinking metric....ugh....for an American Autocad cad designer of homes and commercial buildings. The following picture shows what a 300mm bed can print.

IMG_3951.jpg


That's a size big enough for rifle cases. The next one shows the same one on the left and a smaller bullet feeder, that the smaller 220mm print bed of the way cheaper Ender 3 can print.....or cases too.....large ones even...but smaller numbers.

IMG_4005.jpg


So determining budget and what's available on that budget is the first step. Creality's are easy to put together.....but there are improvements that make printing way easier. More on that later today if people are interested. Probably a new thread on the subject might be more useful for those interest.

Last Picture......shows rifle case collator plates for the SMALLER one......so see still useful. .223 on the left, .308 on the right. Plates use about $2 worth of PLA plastic. Those big things in the middle with a handle is way more than a handle......they are TylerR designed clutches, so if a case hangs the center keeps turning while you "fix" the hanging case.

IMG-3864.jpg
 
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GW Staar said:
First of all, what you can buy today is different from what there was 3 or 4 years ago. They have gotten a little better and faster........and as for me, I didn't want to pay for the European brands though they might be better.....maybe. I really don't know since I only bought the much cheaper Chinese Creality brand. So I suggest to spend some time looking into it.....watching videos on Youtube by the guys who think they are experts.

What I can tell you is only what I bought and why...in the November that brought America Covid. A Creality CR10 version 2 for $500. I could have bought an Ender3 for about $200, but I felt I want a print surface larger than 220mm square. The one I chose had a larger 300mm x 300mm x 400mm high print bed. The first thing I had to learn getting used to thinking metric....ugh....for an American Autocad cad designer of homes and commercial buildings. The following picture shows what a 300mm bed can print.

IMG_3951.jpg


That's a size big enough for rifle cases. The next one shows the same one on the left and a smaller bullet feeder, that the smaller 220mm print bed of the way cheaper Ender 3 can print.....or cases too.....large ones even...but smaller numbers.

IMG_4005.jpg


So determining budget and what's available on that budget is the first step. Creality's are easy to put together.....but there are improvements that make printing way easier. More on that later today if people are interested. Probably a new thread on the subject might be more useful for those interest.

Last Picture......shows rifle case collator plates for the SMALLER one......so see still useful. .223 on the left, .308 on the right. Plates use about $2 worth of PLA plastic. Those big things in the middle with a handle is way more than a handle......they are TylerR designed clutches, so if a case hangs the center keeps turning while you "fix" the hanging case.

IMG-3864.jpg
Click to expand...
that crazy that you can do all that! Ender brand is what I’m looking at!

I just did get a new MacBook Pro!
 
Enders now come in a lot of flavors and prices. TylerR uses an Ender 5 plus.....with an even larger bed, 350mm square. Ender 5 S1, I just bought on Christmas sale, supposedly faster. for a #2 printer but has the original 220mm bed. Still haven't got that one set up. Take your time....research just a little. There is also the new Creality K1's enclosed top of the line. I would love any of them, but the 220mm bed one costs a little over $500....and the Max version with 300mm bed like mine is close to $900....either claim to be 5 times faster than older printers.

https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/creality-k1-max

On my new Ender 5 S1 with the small bed, I like the box support, and the faster speed....if it really is faster.....but it ain't perfect. I've already made some upgrades..... If I'd had room for it I would have preferred the bigger 5 Plus.....350mm bed that Tyler bought a couple of years ago.


View attachment 1192015

The venerable and cheap Ender 3 in its latest and probably best model is here:

https://www.amazon.com/Creality-End...s-8680491691697269000-20&geniuslink=true&th=1

You can still get cheaper and older models of it....but the difference isn't worth it...same standard 220mm square printing bed.

Speaking of beds.....Creality's glass beds are fine for a while, but pretty soon you'll be buying "glue" to keep prints from releasing prematurely.....everybody has their "pet" bed material....but they all have to use glue eventually except one. Polypropylene. With Polyp beds, brand new I "scratch" them with 220 grit sandpaper.....just a quick scuffing....maybe 30 seconds to a minute....then I just turn creality's glass bed upside down, and mount the poly bed with paper clamps.....see my printer picture above....or the attachment below.

Then before each and every print, I wipe it down with 99% isopropyl alcohol with a paper towel while it is heating up.....no lifting....no glue...no PIA. In about a year you need to repeat the sanding to unclog pores again.

Here's where I buy my polyp beds: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07JFY2LPN?tag=3dprintment09-20&th=1&geniuslink=true

View attachment A-polypropylene-3d-printer-bed-on-a-Crealtiy-Ender-3.webp
 
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