Tips and Tricks!

[Skip Sackett]

Since the management has been so kind as to provide a place for us to put "notable" threads, what say we have one about the tips and tricks you and I have learned over the years!

Here is one of mine.

I know I have posted this many times in other threads but, it will live in infamy here!

All kidding aside, setting up a Square Deal B can be a pain in the fanny if all you have is one tool head and powder measure combo. Here is what I do:

After I set the dies up the first time, I wrote the measurements down on the inside of the caliber conversion kit box lid so the next "go round" wouldn't take so long. The place it really comes in handy is for that pesky powder measure setting. It controls the bevel and when the powder measure is full, it is a trip to try to adjust.

This "trick" can be used on any die set though. Keeping records is the key to quicker setups.

What about you? Make a special tool? Figure out something that has really helped you?

Post it here and let's see where we get!

(I have a few more should you good folks get stuck! )

 

[gregintenn]

I have one. To extend the life of the media in your brass tumbler, toss in a dryer sheet when tumbling. It collects a lot of dirt and debris, therefore keeping it from cloging your media. You can also use NU-Finish car polish in place of the expensive brass polish. One more while I'm on a roll...You can buy a 5 pound bag of corn cob bedding at Petsmart for about $6.99. This is a fraction of the cost of media at your local reloading supply store.

 

[Snapping Twig]

Since we're piling on, here's my contribution.

Not everyone has a dedicated reloading area. Many do not want their reloading set-up visable to outsiders, hoplophobes.

Here's my solution.

Mount your gear on a "T" block of wood and put it in the vise when you use it.

Please forgive the untidy bench. Here's my Lyman 450 in the vise, cranking out sized and lubed bullets.

Do the same thing for your reloading press, etc.

Solid as a rock, stows away when you want the bench for other uses.
Protects your privacy.

 

[Paul5388]

One I have posted many times is the way to use Lee dippers instead of a trickler or powder measure.

The big dipper gets it close and the small dipper can be gently tapped with the index finger to add small amounts of powder. I don't normally burn my hand on the wood heater, but did a day or so before the picture was taken.

 

[silvercn]

I love this forum.......... keep the tips and secrets coming!
This new guy needs all the help he can get........

 

[Cary]

Here is one that is probably a no-brainer for most. Have you ever been reloading and dropped a piece of brass on the hard floor and bent the mouth of the case. I have sereral times and have to fix the case before I can use it. The floor in my shop is cement and not very forgiving about that. I don't like to have things on the floor to trip on so I have an old rug (2'x3') that I lay under my work area when reloading in case I drop a case on the floor. It has already save me several times. When done I roll the rug up and store it under the bench. Works for me.
Cary

 

[dickttx]

One of the handiest tools I have used on my reloading bench is a crochet hoop, the ones with two wooden rings, one inside of the other. Yesterday I dumped 100 new 357 cases in one. Since they are so low(about 3/8") it is easy to access the brass to run thru the sizer, or any other stage of processing. Also good for small parts, screws, etc.

 

[JohnnieB]

To minimize airborne lead dust hazards, I pre-wash fired brass before tumbling, depriming, sizing, etc.

I fill a gallon sized jug about half full of brass, cover brass with the washing solution, screw on lid and shake for several seconds, let rest for several minutes, shake again, dump washing solution, rinse brass and dry thoroughly before tumbling. As a side benefit, my tumbling media stays clean much longer.

Here's the old NRA recipe for washing .45acp Brass from a 1957 American Rifleman article:
1 Pint water (I use filtered or distilled water)
1 cup white vinegar
1 tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon dish detergent (I use D-Lead made by Esca-Tech)

Personally, I mix it up in 3 Gallon batches (Above recipe X16)
2 Gallon Water
1 Gallon White Vinegar
1 Cup Salt
1/3 Cup Detergent

I pour the used solution back into the bulk container through a paper coffee filter (Fine mesh latex paint filter might work) and dump the whole batch when it gets dark.
Remember to wear gloves while handling the lead contaminated solution and wash-up before eating, drinking or smoking.

I dry the washed brass in a clothes dryer. I put the brass in mesh bags the better half uses for "Delicates" that were re-purposed after being replaced with new items.
Note, a few old towels or rags will cut the noise to more acceptable levels for delicate ears.

SWMBO is a shooter also, so she is very understanding about such things, but YMMV.

I only reload straight walled handgun rounds, so I don't know if this will work for necked brass, but after washing and tumbling with a little of Nu-Finish in the media, my .38spl, .357Mag and .45acp brass goes through the sizing/depriming die like fat through a goose.

John

 

[Moonman]

This should be a STICKY to keep adding to.

 

[valkyriekl]

Since we're piling on, here's my contribution.

Not everyone has a dedicated reloading area. Many do not want their reloading set-up visable to outsiders, hoplophobes.

Here's my solution.

Mount your gear on a "T" block of wood and put it in the vise when you use it.

[IMG]http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a51/SnappingTwig1/IMG00123-20090628-1730.jpg[/IMG]

Please forgive the untidy bench. Here's my Lyman 450 in the vise, cranking out sized and lubed bullets.

Do the same thing for your reloading press, etc.

Solid as a rock, stows away when you want the bench for other uses.
Protects your privacy.

That's ingenious!

 

[Ceapea]

One I have posted many times is the way to use Lee dippers instead of a trickler or powder measure.

The big dipper gets it close and the small dipper can be gently tapped with the index finger to add small amounts of powder. I don't normally burn my hand on the wood heater, but did a day or so before the picture was taken.

I've been doing this ever since I started loading with my used, inherited equipment. It works great and you can get very accurate weights by doing so.

Another "tip"...for a media separator.
I picked up a $2 dish washing pan at the dollar store (huh?) and marked 1" square lines all across the bottom. I drilled a 1/4" hole at every intersection to "drain" the media. I put it into an 18 gal tub ($4 at hardware store) and dump the media and brass into the dish pan. After 35-40 seconds of shaking, all you have left is clean, shiny brass. Then I pour the media from the 18 gal tub back into the tumbler.
Works great! To speed thing up even more, I recently drilled 1/4" holes in the middle of each square and now it takes about 1/2 as long (20-25 seconds maybe) to separate everything.

Here are some pictures...

 

[Skip Sackett]

Yep!

That's ingenious!

That's our TWIGGY! GEENY OUS!

 

[socal s&w]

I have three Dillon Square Deal presses and got tired of using the allen wrenches of differing sizes so I replaced most with phillips-head screws. On size (screwdriver) now fits all.

I also put an extended thumb-screw with a lock nut on the powder bottle to rid myself of that allen screw as well.

Went to the Office Depot and bought some sticky dots to paste on the side of the powder bottles for caliber, load data and weight verification. I use a different sticky dot for each part...bullet weight is one dot, powder and charge another, weight verification another, etc.

Since the WW primers come in a container that doesn't need a primer tray to be shaken, I filled the convoluted side of the primer tray with a foam filler....it's actually drawer liner. I turn that half over, put the factory package up to it an turn it right-side-up. Then put the smooth side in place and turn it over once again and start using the primer tube. Without the foam piece, the primers need to be shaken to turn them all right-side-up. It simply takes up the slack so that I bypass that step.

I took the vise concept a lot further. I made a metal plate with an 'I' beam welded to the underside to chuck it in my vise. However, the plate has provisions (drilled & tapped) for four Square Deals on it. (Three are mounted right now.) Since the vise can spin about 230° I can access each loader without removing the plate. Works REALLY well. (I will post a picture over the weekend.) Plus, I can use the loader to the lefts loaded round box as my bullet feed box.

Since the plate in the vise hangs the loaders beyond the edge of the bench, I got rid of the primer catcher cup and simply use a small trash can on the floor under the loader, spent primers rarely miss the can.

I bought an elongated loaded round drop box to hang on these loaders. I trimmed about 1/8" off of the blue stock box rail at the open end and it fits perfectly side-ways (perpendicular) on the elongated box, leaving enough space for the loaded rounds to still drop into the elongated box by sliding it to the right. I then use the side-ways box as the empty brass feed box.

At the bullet seating station the SDB has a small hole drilled through the die. I opened this hole large enough, but didn't drill completely though it, to be able to put one of those bendable, extended lights into that hole. It shines directly into the case for verifying powder content. I sometimes forget to turn it off after loading though, gotta figure something out there.

 

[dickttx]

What does anyone use to store your Lee turrets with dies in?

 

[Paul5388]

I just use the older round die containers ( shaped like the push through bullet sizer containers) turned upside down. With the change to rectangular Lee die boxes, I don't know what would work.

 

[Engineer1911]

Cheap tricks

For die storage, I use a plastic tool box with a plywood insert. Drill rows of 7/8" diameter holes space 1-1/2" apart. The 22 Hornet and 222 Rem die sets are on the left and the 45-70 set is on the right. Rifle dies are in this box, another box has the pistol dies. At this time of the year, Sears has a nice big 23" wide tool box on Christmas special for ~$25.

 

[Engineer1911]

Cheap tricks, part 2

For a brass reloading tub, I found that Walmart plastic meat trays work great. The hamburger or roast tubs will hold a couple hundred pistol cases, don't tip over, and are free.

Someone please send me a PM on how to post multiple attachments. I couldn't get 2 thumbnails to post together, and the 'post picture search' function didn't help.

 

[Cary]

I just use the older round die containers ( shaped like the push through bullet sizer containers) turned upside down. With the change to rectangular Lee die boxes, I don't know what would work.

As Paul mentioned the three-hole turrets with dies will fit in the round Lee Die containers and that makes it real convenient. I have the original Lee Turret Press with the three hole turret. I understand that the four-hole turrets will not fit in the round boxes. I like to keep my dies in a covered container to keep them clean.
Cary

 

[TAROMAN]

I have the LEE 4-hole turret press and the turrets fit fine in the round red boxes. I label them with caliber to keep things organized.
As I like the turrets to avoid messing with die setting and Lee dies are relatively inexpensive, I got a second set of .357 and .44 dies so I can leave one set for magnum calibers and the other set for their shorter cousins.

 

[Skip Sackett]

Folks from San Diego as some smart folks! (That's where I was born!)

I did something similar to remove the problem with Allen bolts everywhere on the Square Deal press.

Here is what I did though:

MSC had a small set with a bunch of different knobs in it. Simply press them on to the existing Allen bolts and you are good to go!

This is great, keep them coming!
(Don't forget to spend some time with the family tonight though! )