mikeinctown

I load coated Blue Bullets. When I pull a bullet I want to see a line, but I don't want any of the coating to get pulled off or shaved off. This is the way I was told somewhere in these forums where I asked a half dozen times last year when I started. If you load plated or jacketed then I suspect maybe a very light line where the case meets the bullet but nothing more. Others will have a lot more info than I do.

I think a name change to DefiantTroll would be well suited. Someone who used to work for one of the mfgs specifically stated what happens to the cases and therefore why it is not recommended. Of course some is legal CYA type stuff, but the theory is sound in that the corrosion will cause a weak spot. The corrosion was verified through examination not with the naked eye but with testing instruments that is far more capable of detecting issues than the naked eye. A couple others chime in and say that they have also had verifyable negative results from loading Al cases. yet because this person hasn't had a failure yet, this person seems to think that all the research and issues that everyone else has had is a lie. Some people just refuse to believe research until it happens to them, and even then they try to sue someone for something that was their own fault. Got his head stuck further up a butt than an Obama voter.

A page back the question asked was why do people dislike the Lee FCD. Just my $.02 I bought a Dillon .45 die set and loaded a bunch using the Dillon crimp die. (not really a crimp, just make it straight.) A few rounds here and there seemed a bit snug in the barrel so I got the FCD. The FCD seems to resize the entire case in the crimp station even though my Dillon die in station #1 does the same thing. The FCD just seems to have a slight tighter tolerance. Handle pull is harder with the FCD in there and I use One Shot lube on the cases. The FCD also sizes the cases almost down to the shellplate where the Dillon has more of a rounded edge to the die, so it sizes just a touch higher on the case. Eventually I am going to buy a shockbottle gauge but until then I just use my barrel for every round. The FCD produces rounds that almost seem loose in the barrel while the Dillon seems to produce rounds that slide in nicely but do not get stuck. I may just go back to the Dillon crimp die for ease of handle pull on the press once I get the hundo gauge and determine if the Dillon die gets me near 100% passing rounds.

Thanks for clearing things up for me guys. Much appreciated.

I'm not sure if the Shadows come with a special barrel, but my factory SP-01 barrel came black and the coating on it is so chitty that it looked like it had 1,000 rounds through the gun, even though it was brand new. I can see why someone may take the 5-10 minutes and polish the barrel up before the gun left the shop.

There are many different Shadows. IIRC CZC offers a bare bones Shadow for less than $900 that doesn't have all the polishing work or some of the custom add ons done to it. Then you have the various versions of the shadow with trigger work, bushings, grips, etc. As far as I can tell, the 85 Combat is the closest thing to the base model Shadow, but the 85 Combat has the thumb safety where the shadows do not. (costs more $$ to get work done on the safety models, about $50 for trigger and polishing work based on what I have been told and read) The 85 Combat can also be had for less than $600, so you have $300 less in the gun from the start to work with.

Yes, PKT1106, that is the page and photo I am referring to. Just wan't sure how much work would be involved and if the brass shown as typical was ok. I've watched a couple vids since my last post and saw a typical method of fixing things quick with a small tapered punch before moving on.

I saw that Ballistic Tools was selling unprocessed brass at a phenominal price. However when I looked closer I saw that they say 35-40% of the brass has dented mouths with the included photo. (for some reason my browser won't let me paste the web address) I'm wondering if brass as shown in the photo can be processed and used as normal, and if so how much extra work will it take? I'm just looking at building up some brass stock right now so time to process isn't really an issue. I just want to make sure I can use it.

Unfortunately there is no frame plug. My gun looks just like this one. You have the roll pin and then on one side you have the small round plug or whatever that is. On the other side (right side) you only have the roll pin hole.

Salsantini, rather than leaving your slide in the freezer, a can of compressed air turned upside down also works to freeze parts and can be placed with some accuracy. Though I haven't ever used the method on a pistol, I have used it on some auto repair applications. One of the videos on the Apex website also shows removal of the rear site, though it didn't look like there was any thread compound on the set screw.

Doug, I assume you are on the East Coast? What are you paying for a jug? I think my 8 pounder of HP38 was like $140 with tax and the single I bought the other day was $23 plus tax. Strange enough, the 231 Winchester which is the same thing costs $10 more per 8 than the HP38. The Bullseye is cheap here, I think $21 a pound and like $130 per 8. I'm amazed when I go to the gun shows here and every single thing they sell is more expensive than what I pay at the local place. The only exception is the coated bullets one guy sells, but even he is more expensive than just buying from Blue Bullets or one of the other guys. Have a show this weekend to go to so I'm hoping to find a couple good deals on Wilson Combat magazines, brass, or maybe even nice new Colt 1911. Powder is never cheap at the shows and very few people have primers any more. Those that have them are priced higher than what I buy the Federal Gold for. The one thing I can count on is the guy seling me .45 brass for $30/750. Already tumbled too, but mixed size primers. I only wish I had some idea if any of the mfgs were coming out with new promotions. The usual free magazines easily add a hundred bucks of savings on to a purchase.

Very fashionable together indeed. They look even better together when the blue bullets are assembled and sitting in the bin after station 5. I'm about to accessorize with a case feed.

Bought my first couple guns and realized just how expensive the ammo for them was. $25 a box for .45ACP at the store and I could load my own for $12or less a box. (that includes buying brass!) The $550 I spent on the 650 was a chunk of change, but at a savings of at least $10 on every 50 rounds I make, the press pays for itself fairly quick. I also like the idea of being able to produce my own ammo while everyone else was making stops at the gun shop every day hoping to get some at an affordable cost. I also liked the idea that I could change the charge and bullet weight and shape to suit my needs. There are so many different shapes and weights and colors available now that it should be easy enough to find something I really like. The added bonus was that if I needed to sell, I could recoup a good amount of the money I spent on the press and accessories.

With a new measure you get some static holding on to the powder until you get a buildup of the graphite on the sides. My initial charges were always varying by .01 or .02gn. I started storing used dryer sheets in the measure and also originally wiped down the inside with the dryer sheets. i noticed that the powder didn't stick any more and that my charges became much more consistent. Even wiping down the little tin that I use on the scale really helped.

Saw 3 pounds on the shelf yesterday. Grabbed one and left the other two for others. Local place seems to have plenty in stock these days. All Alliant stuff, WST, WSF, 700x, 800x, HP38, CFE Pistol, and probably a few others I am forgetting. All mixed between 1's, 4's, and 8's.

Wait, you are the OP and he explained back on page one not only why they do not offer any guarantees as to accuracy, but also who gave you the information and that he was curently unavailable. He explained WHY an accuracy guarantee was not really possible with the type of pistol this was. He explained the percentages of what they have found to be results based on most likely thousands of guns being worked on and that if something is way off that they will do their best to fix the issues. One thing this thread has shown me, and that is who to go to for work on their XD. (SP)

Question for those with good guesses... I've watched about every Apex Tactical video on the site and think I can figure out everything. Way easier than working on the CZ75 it seems. Anyway, based on the video I appear to have a version 1 of the striker assembly. The gun was made in 09. Would it be a fairly accurate guess to assume I have the smaller sear spring and plunger? I'd like to figure out as much as I can off the top so I can get all the parts needed before working on it. I hate starting work on something only to need to set something aside for a week while waiting. Also, When I rotate the slide release down, it does not always stay rotated down and wants to pop back into position. I'm assuming a new spring clip and lever would solve this issue? Thanks again.

I like the idea of using my finger in front of the hammer. Even dry firing I had my thumb slip off the original hammer a few times after I had lubed the gun. That round shape doesn't lend well to the thumb method where the finger in between does. I guess with a different hammer shape the control may not be an issue. This is one time were I really like my Sigs. Lever on the side of the gun and it is decocked with good control.

Just wanted to say thanks to the answers I got. Went and picked up a used M&P40 yesterday. There were probably a dozen to choose from (police trades) and I found a clean one pretty easy. Only holster wear appears to be on the top of the sights and at the very front edge of the slide. Everything else looked good and the gun had no slop in it. Cool thing was the guy had his S/N sheet for the guns and he was able to tell me what serial numbers to avoid as they either looked well worn or in one case the guy told him he shot the hell out of it. I believe I was told it doesn't have the magazine safety. (I can pull the trigger with the magazine out) It also has no manual safety so for me this will be range only. Heading over to the maintenance thread to get some info. Thanks again!

RJH, those guns are fitted and are direct from the MFG. They cost thousands. They use ammo that they have selected personally to be consistent with how their product operates and all their testing is likely done using the same ammo. You may get the test target and go through 25,000 rounds yourself and NEVER have a couple shot group as similar to the test, no matter how hard you try. Are you going to turn around and complain because the gun never performed to the expectations you had, or are you willing to consider ammo choice among other variables went into the lack of reproducing results? In a worst case scenario, the MFG works on the pistol and finds something out of spec. They scrap the gun. The guy you are taking your product to, after it has been purchased does not have the same luxury. The OP in this case wants a guarantee from someone that something will be better, yet the "better" is completely objective and full of variables. He just explained that he never asked for a "before" test, but how can one objectively look at any improvement if there is no before testing? You HAVE to have a baseline metric to compare. Even if Springer was to do a before test, their results would be different than the OP's results because a different person was involved with different ammo and at a different temperature most likely. The point that we have all been trying to make is that one sends a USED gun in for work with the expectation that a service will be performed. If you want a guarantee that the service was performed then I suppose any gunsmith can offer that. The service is completely independent though of the original hardware and how the original hardware reacts to that service. I haven't ever heard a person say that their trigger job was worse than factory or that the gun didn't cycle smoother with the proper springs. The argument is that someone should be able to guarantee a percentage of improvement over something that is completely unknown. How do you quantify that in any way, shape, or form? IE, HOW do you guarantee what the customer is looking for, when you have so many variables not in your control? The simple answer is that you cannot and personaly I would not trust anyone who says that they can, unless you were spending so much money on the service that you could have just bought a couple new guns instead.

You are asking for something not possible because of the variables involved. Gun A may react differently with brand A bullets than with brand B bullets. It will react differently with your powder/primer/brass/bullet combination than it will anyone else's. Even with factory ammo, no gun will fire exactly the same. What you want is a guarantee that the gun will fire better with an unknown ammo than it does with another unknown ammo. This is simply not logical and is impossible. What you really need to look at is; What work are you contracting for. What parts are you contracting for. What other services are you contracting for. The work is new barrel fitting, trigger fitting or polishing, etc. The parts are the barrel, sear, trigger, etc. The parts often have a warrantee or guarantee. Most companies will do this. A part is not subjective as it either performs as expected or it does not. I don't think that is the issue here. Other services... This is the part you want but don't appear to be willing to pay for or understand. You want the company to perform a test both before and after and based on said tests, to continue to adjust performance. The problem is, #1 it costs $$$ to have someone keep testing your gun, and #2 it is a used gun. How can someone make a guarantee that they can get it performing any better? (and as I said above, better with what ammo?) Even in your statement above about a purchasing agent, they will understand when something is out of the control of the person doing the work. Most likely the person doing the work will have this built into the contract or proposal. Their work will perform to such and such a standard, but only to a standard that they can control. I know for a fact they will almost NEVER guarantee a percentage difference because of how many variables most things have, unless the person doing the work can control every variable. This is why it is important for the person requesting the work to be done actually knows what the hell they are talking about and what the potential positives AND negatives are. if you take any project management course through an organization, they will tell you the very same thing I just did.

I bought the 650 without the case feeder. i learned really quick that when you get a good pace going that stopping to put 20 more cases in the tube SUCKS!!! So I did the next best thing... had my kid stand on a chair and feed the tube. LOL Texted my guy on Saturday asking if he had any case feeders in stock. Never did get back to me, so I can only assume he changed his number in the last 9 months. Going to give it one more shot through email, but I'm not going to go too far out of my way to try to give someone $$$ in business. BTW, the 650XL was my first ever press. It is a bit overwhelming at first but within a couple hundred rounds, you will realize just how nice the case feed function works, how well the platform advances, and how much more you can concentrate on the process of verification of powder in the case and proper seating of each bullet. For the price difference, I just couldn't see myself getting the 550 vs the 650.

Poor guy had everyone trying to get the same information. The original story just didn't make any sense. So waht if it is harder to make, you price the product accordingly. If you can make another product 3x faster than you canmake another product, the price should reflect that difference. People will either migrate to the cheaper product or continue to pay a premium price, either of which will make the company money. You don't see Lexus claiming they are going to discontinue their line of vehicles and start an economy line because the Lexus line takes longer to produce and costs more money.

A guarantee and expecting work to be performed as outlined in a proposal are two different things. For example, if I wanted work done on my parking lot I may require the contractor to use a specific mix of asphalt, a certain depth, not paved under x temperature, grind out x areas first, etc. Those are all measurable and can be verified by inspection. They can't guarantee that I won't have cracks in the pavement 6 months fom now or that the new pavement will last x number of years. It just isn't prctical, and if they did, I'd be paying a hell of a lot more for the service. Likewise, if you tell a gunsmith you want x barrel purchased, fitted, trigger work done, and so on, if they have done the work and it can be verified by inspection or test firing, feel etc then they have done as you have contracted them to do. A guarantee is not needed because offering one up would force prices to rise because on the off chance something isn't improved, one must incur additional costs to keep working at it and so that cost must be spread to all other consumers of that product. Basically, guarantees are a marketing term to make the consumer feel like he has confidence in the company he is purchasing a product from. When a company has a very good reputation, guarantees normally aren't needed.

I have no dog in this hunt, but if a respected gunsmith who is used by professionals tells me that they put the same amount of effort into every gun, then I don't need a guarantee. I can be nearly 100% assured that I am going to get something back that was better than when it left my hands. In the unlikely event that something isn't up to snuff, the respectable people will go out of their way to verify things and double check to make sure. As I'm the one who hires and supervises contractors for my location with the company I am with, I don't often worry about a guarantee. I look at the professionalism of the company, the clients they have worked with, and the willingness and likelyhood that they will fix any issue should I not be satisfied with their work. Because people in the gun world tend to to to or away from people based on word of mouth advertising more than most industries, it is in the best interest of a professional to take care of any unsatisfied customers. I can't see how this would ever be an issue with any of the well respected shops.