RL 1100 new press setup issues.

[ddc]

7 hours ago, Cuz said:

Update, the Lee decap/size die is too short to install.  I would need about 3 more threads to make it work.  I guess I could put the lock nut under the tool head, but I don't like that.  I filed down the Dillon decapping pin to flatten one side and I'll try that.

 

I am a little annoyed that spent primers miss the cup and fly all over the place.  I got a primer catcher thingy from RangePanda when I ordered the MBF mount, but now I'm sort of dependent on watching for the primer to fall out of the case to make sure it didn't get stuck.

 

I got the primer seating issue squared away, or at least I think so.  I'll take my son to the range tomorrow and we'll see if we get any light strikes.

 

If you want to use Lee dies then putting the lock nut under the tool head is a common occurrence. 

I use multiple Lee dies on multiple tool heads and if there are more threads available under the head than on top then that is where the nut goes.

There are about a zillion ways to set up your tool head with any number of different dies so if you don't want lock nuts on the under side then you'll certainly  find a way but why limit your options...

 

[dansedgli]

The lee locknut doesn't clear the alignment pin on my 1050 if I put it underneath. Are 1100's the same?

 

The dillon locknut clears the alignment pin but hits the shellplate lock nut when the toolhead is down.

 

I just looked and Ive got a dillon locknut on the top of the toolhead with my lee decapper. 

[mkmckinley]

10 hours ago, dansedgli said:

 

When you had issues were you still running the backup die over the swage? Was it adjusted correctly? 

 

In the early days of 1050 ownership I tried running the press without the backup dies and would have priming problems. I was loading 38 super so figured it wasn't needed. I replaced all the parts with no change then finally put the backup die in and all was good again. 

 

Since then apart from the occasional crushed primer or problem when the machine is dirty I haven't really had any problems. The shellplate is tightened as much as it will go then loosened 1/8th of a turn.

 

Last friday night I had a few priming issues in 300 rounds so cleaned the machine and the following day I loaded 9200 rounds with zero primer issues. The shellplate and under the shellplate was spotless at the end. 

 

I find that the primer punch will get a build up of crap on it (especially if you just run the machine to size and deprime first) so it is no longer flat, when this happens primers tilt and problems happen. 

Thanks for the info. I was/have been running the backup die the whole time and tried adjusting it from a little too tight to a little too loose with several steps in between. I played with the swage depth a bit too. Same with shell plate tightness. All in all I think I loaded approx 1500 rounds in batches of 50-100 attempting to find the right adjustments. I contacted Dillon and got an email back saying to make sure the shellplate is tight, the toolhead retaining bolt is tight, the primer ram collar is tight which they all were. Their follow up was to see if the problem is specific to one kind of brass. It doesn’t seem to be, but I need this press to run through mixed range brass. 
 

In the end I’m not sure what the problem was, maybe something with the press, maybe something with my brass prep, who knows. But thankfully I was able to get it fixed with the hold down die. 
 

I do have a pet theory that maybe rollsizing was enough to reduce primer pockets a tiny amount but I haven’t tested it. I’d need to get pin gauges and do a before/after which is a lot more than I want to do considering it won’t change the outcome (I will rollsize anyway). It doesn’t seem like anyone else has had a problem with that so it’s unlikely. 

[ddc]

I should have mentioned that I don't use Lee lock nuts. All Dillon.

On my 1100 there is no interference with the shell plate retaining ring.

 

[cbrussell]

I use these below the tool head. Worked on my old RL1050.

https://www.uniquetek.com/product/T1745

[Cuz]

5 hours ago, cbrussell said:

I use these below the tool head. Worked on my old RL1050.

https://www.uniquetek.com/product/T1745

thanks, I’ll keep those in mind if I decide to put the Lee dies on. I did prefer my Lee FCD over the Dillon, but had switched it out on my 550 when I was loading coated Bullets because I heard the Dillon was better. There’s a thread on that discussion here somewhere. 

[cbrussell]

I am a big believer in the Lee Undersized sizing de capping die for all my pistol loading. Used it first for my 40 S&W and then 45ACP and all other pistol calibers.

[Cuz]

3 hours ago, cbrussell said:

I am a big believer in the Lee Undersized sizing de capping die for all my pistol loading. Used it first for my 40 S&W and then 45ACP and all other pistol calibers.

 

I agree, I also used the undersize die in 40 cal when I shot Limited with my SVI, but I haven't loaded or shot 40 cal in more than 10 years.

 

[HOGRIDER]

Some food for thought............

 

When I first got the RL1100, I was fighting the press trying to make the Lee U-Die part of the equation vs using my regular Redding Pro Titanium sizer/decapper.  I knew that several here on the forum were using them in various calibers and having no issues.

 

After talking with George at EGW and a friend that's an engineer at Redding, I set out to see exactly what was the difference in these two sizing dies.  To make a long story short, I put the Lee back in the cabinet and have stayed with the Redding.  ZERO issues with press operation and/or bullet setback. (Non-Major, standard PF 9mm)

 

 

In all fairness, I do use FULLY PROCESSED, once fired Winchester brass; or occasionally new Starline for testing purposes.......

 

 

 

 

[Cuz]

1 hour ago, HOGRIDER said:

 

…In all fairness, I do use FULLY PROCESSED, once fired Winchester brass; or occasionally new Starline for testing purposes.......

 

 

 

 

thanks, I’m more of a mixed junk range brass sort of guy. That’s why I accept a large amount of variance in my OAL of loaded rounds, and SD at my chrono. 

[Cuz]

Next problem, I'm getting light strikes on some of my test ammo with my Glock17.  It has a lightened striker spring and a very light trigger pull.  But, it has been 100% reliable shooting ammo from my RL550, which leads me to believe the primer depth setting is not deep enough.  I've adjusted it about 1/8th of a turn 3 times now and while I'm getting less of them, it's still happening.

 

So, my question is, how deep is too deep to seat the primers???  What happens if I crank it down more than I should?  Will it simply crush a primer, or detonate it?  The primers are currently seated below the case, but every time I get a light strike, the round will fire if I cycle it through again, so I'm assuming I can still seat them deeper.

 

Any advice is appreciated.  Once I know how deep is too deep, I can set it there, and back it off 1/8th turn, right???

 

[Cuz]

My MBF seems to be dropping 1 out of 10 bullets upside down.  Is that the sliding adjustment screw just under the unit that needs to be moved in slightly?  I'm using 124gr conical JHP bullets, currently from Precision Delta, which I am liking a lot.  May need to order more of these.

 

Thanks.

[NETim]

6 minutes ago, Cuz said:

My MBF seems to be dropping 1 out of 10 bullets upside down.  Is that the sliding adjustment screw just under the unit that needs to be moved in slightly?  I'm using 124gr conical JHP bullets, currently from Precision Delta, which I am liking a lot.  May need to order more of these.

 

Thanks.

Yep.   You need to adjust the plate that has the scalloped spacers on it to fine tune it.  It's a seat of the pants adjustment though.   I've found that the plate has to be adjusted outwards in order to completely flip upside down bullets to a nose up attitude.  

[George16]

13 minutes ago, Cuz said:

Next problem, I'm getting light strikes on some of my test ammo with my Glock17.  It has a lightened striker spring and a very light trigger pull.  But, it has been 100% reliable shooting ammo from my RL550, which leads me to believe the primer depth setting is not deep enough.  I've adjusted it about 1/8th of a turn 3 times now and while I'm getting less of them, it's still happening.

 

So, my question is, how deep is too deep to seat the primers???  What happens if I crank it down more than I should?  Will it simply crush a primer, or detonate it?  The primers are currently seated below the case, but every time I get a light strike, the round will fire if I cycle it through again, so I'm assuming I can still seat them deeper.

 

Any advice is appreciated.  Once I know how deep is too deep, I can set it there, and back it off 1/8th turn, right???

 

According to the RL1100 manual, primers should be seated between .002-006” below flushed max at .008”. Keep on adjusting the seating depth until you reach this parameter. 
 

If it’s adjusted too much, it’ll crush or detonate the primer so be careful. By the way, what primers are you using?

 

 

 

 

Edited June 24, 2021 by George16

[Sarge]

8 minutes ago, Cuz said:

My MBF seems to be dropping 1 out of 10 bullets upside down.  Is that the sliding adjustment screw just under the unit that needs to be moved in slightly?  I'm using 124gr conical JHP bullets, currently from Precision Delta, which I am liking a lot.  May need to order more of these.

 

Thanks.

You have to move the cardboard thingy ever so slightly. Same thing happened to my. MG JHP ran perfect but PD JHP would occasionally come out upside down

[Cuz]

7 minutes ago, George16 said:

According to the RL1100 manual, primers should be seated between .002-006” below flushed max at .008”. Keep on adjusting the seating depth until you reach this parameter. 
 

If it’s adjusted too much, it’ll crush or detonate the primer so be careful. By the way, what primers are you using?

 

 

I read the manual, but I can't figure out how to measure something that's .002-.006" below flush.  I'm just not that skilled with calipers.  On my 550, I just pushed the handle up all the way until it didn't go anymore.  I guess I may have to "sacrifice" one primer by increasing the depth until I get to "too much", and then hope I recognize that I reached "too much" and back it off 1/8 of a turn.

 

I'm currently using CCI small pistol primers.  Once these run out, I don't know what the heck I'll be using...

 

[Cuz]

11 minutes ago, NETim said:

Yep.   You need to adjust the plate that has the scalloped spacers on it to fine tune it.  It's a seat of the pants adjustment though.   I've found that the plate has to be adjusted outwards in order to completely flip upside down bullets to a nose up attitude.  

Thanks, that's what I figured.  It's just hard to get to since it's towards the front of the machine, and not very accesible with the limited room I have around the press.  Oh well, the adventure continues.

[Sarge]

Just now, Cuz said:

Thanks, that's what I figured.  It's just hard to get to since it's towards the front of the machine, and not very accesible with the limited room I have around the press.  Oh well, the adventure continues.

And it’s just like adjusting a die. The smallest movement will fix it. If you can get in a position to see it run from above you can see the problem instantly. This is another reason to Mount the MBF “off press” on a pipe. I can loosen it and slide it down to troubleshoot, clean etc.

[HOGRIDER]

27 minutes ago, Cuz said:

My MBF seems to be dropping 1 out of 10 bullets upside down.  Is that the sliding adjustment screw just under the unit that needs to be moved in slightly?  I'm using 124gr conical JHP bullets, currently from Precision Delta, which I am liking a lot.  May need to order more of these.

 

Thanks.

These videos helped me a lot!

 

https://www.doublealpha.biz/us/mrbulletfeeder-video-tutorials

 

 

[George16]

41 minutes ago, Cuz said:

 

I read the manual, but I can't figure out how to measure something that's .002-.006" below flush.  I'm just not that skilled with calipers.  On my 550, I just pushed the handle up all the way until it didn't go anymore.  I guess I may have to "sacrifice" one primer by increasing the depth until I get to "too much", and then hope I recognize that I reached "too much" and back it off 1/8 of a turn.

 

I'm currently using CCI small pistol primers.  Once these run out, I don't know what the heck I'll be using...

 

Keep in mind the CCI primers are harder compared to Winchester or federal too. 
 

You don’t have to sacrifice anything. adjust the primer seating depth by turning the Primer Push Rod a maximum of 1/4 turn at a time and 1/8 of a turn at a time for fine tuning. Do this with one primer at a time to prevent detonation of the whole stack of primers.

Here’s a video showing how to measure primer seating depth using a caliper.

 

 

By the way, I can relate to what you’re saying about seating primers with a 550. I still have one and sold the 650 after getting the 1100.

 

You’ll be happy once everything is sorted out. You might not even want to use the 550 afterwards .

 

Edited June 25, 2021 by George16

[HOGRIDER]

18 minutes ago, Cuz said:

 

I read the manual, but I can't figure out how to measure something that's .002-.006" below flush.  I'm just not that skilled with calipers.  On my 550, I just pushed the handle up all the way until it didn't go anymore.  I guess I may have to "sacrifice" one primer by increasing the depth until I get to "too much", and then hope I recognize that I reached "too much" and back it off 1/8 of a turn.

 

I'm currently using CCI small pistol primers.  Once these run out, I don't know what the heck I'll be using...

 

I would think you have a set of calipers near by?

 

http://bulletin.accurateshooter.com/2016/01/primer-seating-depth-uniformity-and-accuracy/

 

[Cuz]

Thanks George16 and Hogrider. I never used the other end of the calipers before. I measured about a dozen, and just like my OAL variance, I got measurements from .001 - .008”. But I think part of that is my inexperience with the back end of the calipers. Most were in the .002-.006 range. These rounds are loaded after I made an adjustment earlier. Haven’t tested them yet. I may look for some old rounds I loaded on the 550 and see where they measure. 

[HOGRIDER]

I've found the case gauge to also be a very steady platform for random primer depth checks........

[Cuz]

17 hours ago, Sarge said:

And it’s just like adjusting a die. The smallest movement will fix it. If you can get in a position to see it run from above you can see the problem instantly. This is another reason to Mount the MBF “off press” on a pipe. I can loosen it and slide it down to troubleshoot, clean etc.

now that would have been a good reason to mount the pipe on the bench going up to the MBF, rather than having it come down from the ceiling. I can only lower it about a foot, and I think my press may be in the way. I may need to relocate the pipe mount. 

[Dirtchevy841]

On 6/19/2021 at 7:08 AM, Cuz said:

So, progressing on, I'm getting some primers sucked back into the pockets which is messing up my flow.  I may try my Lee decap/size die, but it seems a lot of folks are using Mighty Armory or FW Arms decapping dies.

 

For those folks running just a decapper die, when do you size the brass?  It seems like the rest of the spots are being used.

File the dillon pins to a chisel point and that fixes issue of pull back. Not one since I did that years ago