GBertolet

I just read that there was a fire at the facility that manufactures the Clays line of powders. No more Clays until early 2014.

I recently had a squib at our monthly IPSC match. I had not loaded any ammo on that particular progressive reloader for quite some time, and had left the powder in the measure for at least a year. It didn't affect the plastic, so I didn't worry about it. I was using Bullseye powder. Upon emptying the powder measure to investigate the possible cause, I found a layer of compressed powder at the bottom, with a tiny hole over the charge bar. I believe vibration from past use, and passage of time caused this condition. The remaining 50 rounds left from that last batch of ammo are suspect, and will be used for practice only. Turning the measure upside down and shaking it did not dislodge the compressed powder. Tapping the measure on the table did, and the powder reverted to it's normal state. After this incident, I will regularly empty the powder measure.

Has anyone on this forum tried these? The claim is that they act like a dead blow hammer, deadening the rebound of the slide. I was wondering how long they hold up, and are there any unintended pitfalls of aluminum over the polymer. I have been using the regular shockbuffs for years with good results, and recently learned of these being available. Does anyone have any experiences to share?

What is the prefered length for most users in the single stack 1911? Is it better to have more or less finger on the trigger, as determined by the trigger length, for fastest splits and resets? I had been using the short trigger, and just aquired a long one to try.

I have been told that maybe sometime late this summer things will begin to loosen up somewhat. The gun control legislation issue should be settled, for better or worse, hopefully for the better, and the hoarding will cease. Industry insiders say, expect 20% price increases across the board, on components and ammo.

Just got word recently, that in our section of Area 8, the match directors are reducing the round count of their matches, because of the ammo and component shortages.

Small pistol primers have less compound in them than large pistol primers. Switching to magnum or small rifle primers will increase the primer strength, giving better ignition and cold weather relialbility. Some have had success just using the small pistol primers alone, and will argue this point. Why tempt fate, just use the small rifle primers and be done with it.

.469 to .470 at the case mouth is pretty much the accepted standard for the 45 ACP.

I had my older SDB handle break at the same place. Prompt replacement from Dillon. The new design handle is beefier than the old style. I suggest you give the Hornady One Shot lube a try also. Cases will glide through the machine, and it will not affect the powder either if you get some inside the cases.

I had problems metering Clays in my Lee Disk measure with the adjustable disk. Had large variations in charge weights. Measures OK in my Dillon SDB and RCBS uniflow measure.

I use 4.0gr Clays in my 40 cal Para for IPSC major with a 175gr cast bullet. NO problems whatsoever. My Lyman manual shows 4.0 gr as OK with this bullet. I think the controversy on using Clays for IPSC major, was with the 200 gr jacketed bullets, when the PF was 175. Of course when you are shooting a major match, you are going to load to at least 180PF, and that's where the trouble began. At those loadings you were right on the edge, and bad things occasionally happened. There was an article in Front Sight magazine some time back, warning of this problem, and recommending you avoid Clays for this reason. I avoided Clays for the 40 then too, when I was using 200 gr jacketed.Now the IPSC major has been reduced to 165PF, and you are back from the edge. Also using cast bullets will lower pressures somewhat. I think you will be alright if you follow sound loading practices. My 2 cents worth anyway.

Mine ran the same way before the motor died. Possibly windings going bad. At my last check, Dillon wanted $105 to replace the motor with the CV750 motor, which is the designated replacement motor now. This includes an upgraded mount and return shipping. It's your call to deceide whether it's worth it or not.

The 250gr bullets will work just fine, even using Bullseye. Loaded at 165-170 PF they are a soft shooting load. The down side is, that unless your slide has been lightened, the functioning is more lazy compared to the 230 and 200 gr bullets. I have tried the 250gr bullets, but abandoned them because I like the snappier feel that the lighter bullets give.

I had my Dillon CV500 motor go bad in 2008. I returned it to Dillon and for $30 including return shipping, they replaced the motor. Two years later the motor went bad again. I think the windings went bad, as when unplugged, the motor spins freely, but when plugged in, the magnetism locks up the motor. I called Dillon again. This time they wanted $105 to repair, which included return shipping. They said they found the original CV500 motors were not up to the task, so they upgraded to the CV750 motor. This required a different mount and base for the CV500, which is part of the reason the repair cost is so high. Dillon has no more of the old CV500 motors, (although I heard they did for a while, and were selling them off as DIY). The original motors were manufactured by A.O. Smith, made to Dillon's specs, as per the Dillon rep, and are not commercially available. I contacted A.O. Smith, and could not get one. So far I have been unable to find a suitable replacement in the aftermarket world. I'm sure there is something out there that could be adapted. I did the math, $105 to repair, plus at least another $20 to ship out, That's almost the cost of a new CV750! In the mean time I purchsed a Lyman 1200 for $42, which works great. I still have the carcass of the CV500, and maybe someday, if I need an additional tumbler I will breakdown, and send it to Dillon for repair. I would like to know where Eric got his replacement motor also.