How long does it take you to service your presses?

F

flashhole

New member
It takes me two beers.

That's how I measure chore time ... number of beers to complete the task.

Mowing, loading the wood caddies, cleaning the pool, cooking on the BBQ ... all measured in number of beers to complete the task.

Serviced 5 presses, two powder measures, two primer stations and a drill press ... two beers. A feat yet to be equaled in this century.

:)
 
My written reloading procedures forbid alcohol consumption within the 8 hours prior to any reloading function.
 
What is your definition of servicing presses? If it means something like changing calibers on a 550 progressive, about 10 minutes if the primer mechanism doesn't have to be changed, in which case throw in another 10 minutes. However I keep one 550B set up for large primers and a second set up for small primers. But I don't think that is what you are referring to. :rolleyes:
 
I think flashole will be okay having a couple beers while servicing his loading equipment.

Evidently, I don't spend as much time servicing my loading equipment. The ram gets lube prior to every use. If it's been any length of time (a couple days or more) since last use, I'll first wipe the ram clean, followed by an application of fresh 30wt non-detergent motor oil.

If I'm de-capping cases, the ram gets dirty pretty quickly. I may even stop mid-process for a wipe-n-re-apply.

No matter what; I keep the ram glossy with oil during use.

About twice a year, my powder hopper gets dismantled for a good cleaning; including a re-application of graphite lube. The action is smooth and it throws consistently, so it doesn't seem to need much attention. It's over 33 years old and works like the day it was made. RCBS Uniflow, for those keeping score at home.

About a half dozen times a year, I hit the entire work bench area with a prolonged blast from the air compressor. I spend particular time hitting all the nooks n crannies of the press (I have two presses, actually). That gets everything good n clean. And yes, the last step after blowing off the bench with compressed air, is a wipe-n-re-apply of oil on the ram.

As for the beers: I've loaded drunk. It's stupid. Don't do it.

Actually: I've (insert any verb phrase here) drunk. Fortunately, those days are over. Haven't had a drink in over thirteen years; nor do I have any desire whatsoever. Caffeine remains as my only vice. And yes, loading while over-caffeinated is a thing :p. Don't do that either ;).
 
Clean and lube is less than 5 minutes per press.

Full tear-down, deep-cleaning, and re-lubrication... Probably 30 minutes apiece for the single-stage and turret presses. The Dillon 500B, while it was still around, took a bit more time.


The most a powder measure ever gets is pulling out the cylinder to make sure there's no debris stuck in it, and swabbing excess graphite off the inside of the hopper. ....Two minutes?
 
I will spend about 40 minutes or so once a year for a full clean and lube on the 550B. I do a primer system clean and ram clean/lube every 1000 rounds that takes maybe 10 minutes. That is usually associated with a primer swap.

The Rockchucker gets a wipe down, a little oil on the ram, and tightening of the primer assembly on every use - less than 5 minutes and part of the setup.
 
I was referring to clean and lube. Q-tips are good to get grunge out of the tight spots where wiping with a cloth won't get it done.

Dies take more effort but i generally don't do them in batches, just when I need to use them. I'm sure my stuff will outlive me by a wide margin and I'm hoping a family member will take an interest and keep everything together ... and use it.
 
"My written reloading procedures forbid alcohol consumption within the 8 hours prior to any reloading function."

Very good practice, I do that myself, but I was taking about cleaning equipment, not reloading.
 
flashhole
I have a single stage RCBS Rock chucker, not much to do on the press. I wipe it down after using . After 25+ years of use , never gave me a problem . Comparing it to time with a cold one , maybe taking the cap off , first one goes down pretty fast. IPA all the way.

Banging down a brew an talking shooting & reloading , I need a designated driver. I loose all track of time. flashhole it was a fun post , not politics.
 
All kidding aside, for lubing my presses, I've found that Hornady One-Shot lube to work best for me. When dried, the wax lube just doesn't tend to collect the spent primer carbon dust and/or misc. powder granules that tend to hide in small corners. That, and keeping a can of compressed air nearby is all I've really needed.
 
I found Ballistol works better then a oil , great for 22 lr. Shooting with oil in a barrel isn't good , takes forever for the rifle to shoot accurately. Best with dry barrel. Found in a 22lr. the bullets are lubed , after cleaning with Hoppe's #9 bore solvent ,then dry patch & run a patch with Ballistol , it seems to embed into the steel . Fires accurately from the first shot with no fliers. Wife hates the smell though. Can't blame the dog on that one.
 
Service my presses? Nobody said nothing about servicing no presses.

I wipe them with a gun cloth and occasionally throw a little CLP their way. That and clean out any crap with a Q-tip.
 
After every reload session I take my small air compressor and blow everything off. About 2 Min. per press.

Twice a year I pull out the alcohol and wipe everything down to remove all the old grease and grime. After everything is clean I hit the grease zerks with lightweight marine grease and take the oil can and run a few squirts down between the hub drive and the subplate. I then use graphite on the primer slide and the case feed slide and pivot assy. I then check to make sure that my timing is perfect on the primer assy the primer pawl and the case pawl. This takes about 10 min per press.

Now on May 23, 2015, I did what you Dillon boys call "sending it in for a complete rebuild." Except I didn't send it anywhere I did it my self. I tore my presses apart (every bolt) and put it into the parts washer and scrub them perfectly clean. While they were drying I took my case feeder and bullet feeder apart and wiped everything down and got them perfectly clean Then I use good old 3-n-1 oil and oiled all the gears. Then I put them all back together. Re-lubed everything and timed everything Total time for each press 3 hours. Now I have 4 Hornady Ammo-plants. That was a long day.

Oh, about 3 pots of coffee.
 
Around 1 hour.

X1 Dillon xl650s
X1 RBCS Rock Chucker

First post virgin here. Thanks for all the great information on the forum. There are alot of knowledgeable people that post, and its great to get advice from people that have been reloading for as long as I am old. (41)
 
This has been a fun and enlightening thread to say the least. Thanks flashhole, we all needed that! I've had and been using my Rockchukar since 1978, and all I really do to "service" is to lube the ram with alight oil, sometimes Kroil and wipe 'er down. About 10-12 years ago, I called RCBS for some pins to tighten it all back to like new. They sent me everything to do just that and a new handle with the ball on to replace my straight grip handle. For FREE! Gotta love RCBS CS. Maybe I'll have a beer and go wipe it down; just for flashhole. Ta-ta.
 
On rare occasion I will oil the Dillon and clean gunk off bearing parts. The Hollywoods get an occasional coat of oil on the rams.

Only a fool mixes alcohol and gunpowder, and I am no fool.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top