JonF

Caliber changes are what the LnL was MADE for! Of course, switching between large and small primers take a little more time so as long as you're going to batch load in large numbers, its no biggie. Definitely get the micrometer insert and you wont have to get a separate powder measure. Super easy to go back and forth bwtween settings. Dont bother with the simple threaded inserts.

I've noticed on several occasions that 9mm and 45acp are always the *first* calibers to run out of equipment on.

Certain parts are extremely popular and are the first to run out of stock at retailers, namely anything for 9mm or 45acp; Americas 2 favorite centerfire pistol calibers! Anyways, i have an extra, new-version .355 PTX that i mistakenly bought with my 9mm bullet feeder die (the die actually comes with one, i just didn't know that at the time). you can have it for what i paid for it from midway. I would also add in a 3-pack of shell plate springs to your order. They eventually wear out, stretch or get damaged from handling and loading. Get a package of the Hornady lock rings too. They are the absolute best and beat the set-screw type, hands down! I always recommend the micrometer meter insert for the powder measure. I load several calibers on my press and can easily and instantly adjust to all my settings. Plus, it makes load development easier since you cna dial in changes in a very controlled manner, then go back to a previous setting with no fuss.

I had tried using N320 with Zero jacketed 230gr bullets, but i wasn't very satisfied with the accuracy. The velocity was there, but the groups were something like 5-6" at 15 yards off the bench with my STI spartan. I have some targets of that powder in various charge levels and none were very tight. I eventually settled on clays which put a very tight pattern on target at the same distance and is like half the price! I kinda wanted to use N320 since i have a ton of it for 9mm that i could consolidate powder inventory on but it just didn't work out. My targets from N320 and clays are below. the charge weights are scribbled on the papers.

Well, since i posted about having a light charge every once in a while, i've not had it happen again. I've actually just started loading 45 so i dont have *that* much experience with it and as of a couple months ago, i've have probably loaded roughly 4K rounds since i initially posted my experience with the light charge and it has not reoccurred. I suspect now it could have been a short stroke or two and i've been vigilant to spot it if it happens again but no luck (fortunately).

I get the same hangup from time to time with 9mm and it is annoying. There you are just zipping along loading loading loading when you get that hard *THUMP* where the case mouth bangs up against the die mouth causing a full stop. Like someone mentioned above, i believe its due to primers that had flow against the firing pin creating high spot. That high spot drags against the surface of the ram and makes them tilt to the side ever so slightly since there is very little clearance below the shell and the ram surface (ever not fully seat a primer and have it drage and lock up the shell plate?). Anyways, i don't believe its a fault of the hornady press since brass with normal primers proces fine. I had posted in the 9mm/.38 cal reloading forum to see if there were any dies that a wider mouth to help funnel the brass in better but no one really seemed to definitively know the answer to that.

Unfortunately i never checked it. When i hi iut, i checked all stations/settings, realized the lockout die was activating, dumped the powder and started over and everything would then hum along fine like nothing happened. I'll take more care to try to analyze whats going on next time including weighing out any undercharge.

Are you using Tekloc (its adjustable for width)? How wide is the belt?

I put Warrens on my M&P and they fit like a glove; no fitting required. Didn't really like them so i put on some Dawsons which, OTOH, are made to require fitting/filing and needed lots of it! The dawsons i put on my 1911's (front only) didn't really need any filing though which is odd because you would think for a particular make an model like the M&P, the dovetails would be more consistent being made by one manufacturer rather than many like the 1911.

True, but i'm not certain its short stroking either; there was no binding prior to hitting that one case that would cause me to stop short. Its just perplexing. I do have the lockout die set on the sensitive side so it could just be picking up a light variance in the metering. But what is causing that variance, whether its static or dwell time on the upstroke is the unknown. I think its more likely to be dwell time as i've been trying to speed up the process lately to load a ton of ammo during winter. But then how long does 4.0gr of clays need to drain out of the measure?

The internals of even the Spartan are pretty good from the factory so a quick (and free) spring tune can lighten the action to a really nice level. The Weigand method describes how to tun the leaf spring disconnector and sear legs with only a trigger gauge to get a sub 3lb trigger (or more if you prefer--several levels are defined). I did it on my Spartan and it works great. http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/lid=10297/guntechdetail/2___lb__Trigger_Pull

Meters well on my LnL but I do catch an occasional light charge with my lockout die. Not a Squibb but enough to lock the die so maybe a half charge? Not sure what causes it but it happens like 1 in a 1000 rounds loaded. I keep my Hopper pretty full and use the baffle but the hornady measure will throw accurate charges literally down to the last grain so the cause is a bit perplexing.

Buckmark and Ruger are totally different in installation. The buckmark tacsol barrel has its locking block glued to the barrel from the factory and its not uncommon for it to break loose. Happened to me too and the key is to not overtorque the barrel retaining screw but the problem is that there is no known torque value supplied by either Browning or Tacsol. The factory barrel is 1-piece so its not succeptable to this issue so that probably why browning doesn't say what the torque is and judging by the herculean torque it takes to remove the factory screw, they don't have one either. Send it back to tacsol, they'll make it right by gluing it "extra good".

I have the Allchin comp but ive never used any other so i can't comment if its more or less than any other. I have also not tried anything other than my 4" barrel length and CCI mini mags so i dont know if its better or worse with longer barrels and other ammo. I cna say that it doesn't feel much different with it off except that its quieter without the extra top-facing blast. You can see that there are noticeable gasses going upwards with each shot and I did shoot it at night once as saw flames as well so the diverters work, just no sure there's enough gas for it to fight muzzle rise. I hear that using stingers may help make it function more efficiently since there is more gas there to work with. I will try that soon but with the price premium, the budget conscious allure of rimfire quickly wanes. You're better off with a heavy barrel setup and use sheer mass to fight it. I think my all steel 5.5" buckmark contour has less "recoil" than my buckmark with a 4" tacsol barrel and the allchin comp. This is just one data point though and i've not shot any others so my comparison is very limited.

They're not backing out as a whole, just high points centered around the primer strike. Like I said, not mine but ill have to take a pic of one to show an example next time I run across one.

Its a LnL so the shell plates are already bottomed out as far as tightenong is concerned. With this press, there is no adjustability concerning the tightness unlike the dillon.

I suppose you could also just increase the width of the chamfer and have the angle more extreme without reducing the sizing depth capability as well. But then I don't know at what angle the ability to feed the shell becomes compromised.

A lot what? I tried to be clear in my OP about this but its not from my gun. These shellys with primer flow are range pickups and not from any of my reloads or gun.

Do any of the manufacturers have a resizing die known to have a wider bevel on the die opening to facilitate better guiding of shells into the die? I notice that every once in a while i get some brass that has primers that have flowed out a bit raising a high point that causes the shell to teeter in the shell plate. The shell leans to the side just enough to make the case mouth impact the die mouth instead of sliding in like it should. Its not an issue with normal brass, only the stuff with high primers and i dont know what gun does this but its not all that uncommon that i get a few per hundred like this. I have RCBS dies currently and if there were a wider mouth die, i'd be willing to try it.

If they do and it's as finicky as the Glock kit, no thanks! I have one for my G19 and it's frustrating at best. I understand the very nature of 22's and the occasional jam, but no other kit or gun comes with a list of "do not use" ammo longer than the list of "known to work". Their biggest problem is their weak extraction system and they have to know this by now. The fact that they haven't revised anything about it since its inception is ridiculous. I guess when the line is still 3 months deep to buy a turd, why bother polishing it at all!

Unfortunately it's SA-only. No bueno for production.

I'm in the same boat regarding the big hands/fingers thing and it is a major determining factor in the guns i buy and how i set them up. I have found that the grip is less important overall and trigger reach is really the key (at least for me). I have a Shadow as well and really tehe only issue i have is that the stock recurve trigger in SA mode is too close to the back of the frame when it breaks; i'm practically pointing back at myself when its in that position. I have a hogue wraparound and that makes it fat enough for my general grip comfort. To address my trigger issue, I installed the SA only flat blade and its much nicer now to the point i'd call it comfortable. The problem is that thats not legal for production and i dont want to shoot limited minor, so its just a steel challenge gun now. If i were to put a .40 slide on it, maybe i'd consider limited again, but i prefer production for the "back to basics" aspect. Without a CZ as a production gun, i need something else so i went to the M&P. I actually use the medium grip since the large feels too spherical with the emphasis on the palm swells so medium is more comfy. I added the Pachmayr sleeve to fatten it up a bit and for local matches its fine. For the trigger, i had Burwell do the forward break so the reach is much better than the apex kit for my ergonomics. These might not suit your son, but it does illustrate that there are reasonably available options fortunately for those of us with basketball hands.

At what temperature? I need 4 grains to reliably make major, down to freezing. My log says mid 60's when i chrono'd those. The gun is new if it matters. I also have a Dan Wesson and although i never chrono'd this Clays load, i did chrono both guns with N320 and got comparable velocities in both guns with that powder so it doesn't seem like an anomaly. If it still seems off, then either my powder scale is off or possibly my chrono.

3.8gr Clays with Zero 230gr FMJ at 1.250" OAL. Chrono'd to 738 FPS average in my Spartan which was about 170 PF.

Are you talking about having one for large primers and one for small? If so, that a good case for having two presses but once you separate and dedicate a press and its dies to a caliber/primer size combo, you'll never have to switch back over. If you want them to be both small primer, caliber changeovers are a lot easier, even with a casefeeder. I've even gone as far as using the big drop tubes even for smaller cases to to eliminate that part of the switchover. Change shell plate, dies, powder quick change die, separate lock out die, shuttle v-block, adjust shell chute height, adjust powder measure micrometer to known setting and thats it.