Shell plate spring engagement with case on Apex 10

[Slomo]

I know this forum has a fairly broad Mark 7 user base, so I'm hoping to find an answer to a fairly specific question:

 

Does the shell plate spring on the Apex 10 actively exert pressure on the case to secure it upright in the notch of the shell plate, or is there clearance between the spring and case? If the answer is caliber specific, I am specifically wondering about the 9mm setup.

 

The reason I am asking is that I have a gun that really beats up on brass, which causes the cases to tilt and catch the sizing die in my XL650. The gun leaves two protruding bumps on opposite sides of the primer pocket, and if one of the bumps is resting on the shell plate while the other bump is aligned with the open end of the horseshoe cutout, it causes the case to tilt towards the open end of the horseshoe cutout.

 

I've been looking to upgrade to an RL1100 or Apex 10, and watching some videos on the Apex 10 made me wonder if the case retention system might better address my problem than the Dillon retention buttons.

 

Thank you in advance.

[HOGRIDER]

27 minutes ago, Slomo said:

I know this forum has a fairly broad Mark 7 user base, so I'm hoping to find an answer to a fairly specific question:

 

Does the shell plate spring on the Apex 10 actively exert pressure on the case to secure it upright in the notch of the shell plate, or is there clearance between the spring and case? If the answer is caliber specific, I am specifically wondering about the 9mm setup.

 

The reason I am asking is that I have a gun that really beats up on brass, which causes the cases to tilt and catch the sizing die in my XL650. The gun leaves two protruding bumps on opposite sides of the primer pocket, and if one of the bumps is resting on the shell plate while the other bump is aligned with the open end of the horseshoe cutout, it causes the case to tilt towards the open end of the horseshoe cutout.

 

I've been looking to upgrade to an RL1100 or Apex 10, and watching some videos on the Apex 10 made me wonder if the case retention system might better address my problem than the Dillon retention buttons.

 

Thank you in advance.

On my Apex 10, I started out setting the spring by "feel" for loading 9mm since I had no experience on exactly how to set it.  Wasn't long till I was experiencing issues at the Expander Station #5 as shown in the attached pic.  Found out that I had the retaining spring set just a bit too tight.

 

Mark7's EXCELLENT Customer Service recommended loading all 10 stations with brass, then setting the spring to just touch the cases.  This turned out to work perfectly once I understood the correct retention setting.  Concerning your question above, I feel the spring is "touching" all cases without exerting any pressure on the cases. 

 

I've also heard that when loading longer rifle cases such as .223, there are specific procedures for retention spring settings.

 

FWIW:  I ran an RL1100 for right at 2 years then moved to the Apex 10 in manual mode; then added the Mark 7 Automated Drive along with certain sensors.  IMO, these digital sensors with automation are worth their weight in gold!  Especially when doing single pass loading!

 

Can HIGHLY RECOMMEND the Apex 10!  And there are some great package prices being offered right now!

 

HTHs!

 

[VeilAndrew]

Something you'll notice if your retention spring is too tight is that cases will spin when the shellplate is rotating. That means it is too tight. Just touching is good!

 

Seconded for the recommendation on the APEX10 and Mark 7's fantastic customer service. Jacen is extremely knowledgeable, responsive, and detail-oriented. They helped solve a handful of problems with my press as I bought it secondhand and there was some damage that required some parts replacement and fine adjustment. Their YouTube videos are very informative and filled with nuggets of knowledge that will help your press run smoothly.

 

I upgraded from a Hornady LnL, which was an absolutely giant leap forward in functionality.

 

I wish I had more than 1 APEX10.

[Slomo]

Thank you both, this is very helpful information. I had not realized the spring is adjustable/tunable. Sounds like an excellent solution to my predicament. I believe minimal force would be sufficient to prevent the problem, but I like that a spring provides a resilient barrier that can adapt to varying dimensions. I think it would be hard to provide a similar solution using the Dillon pins.

[BiknSwans]

10 hours ago, HOGRIDER said:

Mark7's EXCELLENT Customer Service recommended loading all 10 stations with brass, then setting the spring to just touch the cases.  This turned out to work perfectly once I understood the correct retention setting.

Thank you for the tip.  I don't think any of the Mark 7 videos I've watched indicate that all the stations have a case loaded, but I have the older Evolution.  I haven't had any issues, but I'll re-adjust my spring tension today as I have noticed cases spinning when the shell plate advances.

 

I love my Mark 7 Evolution, and can highly recommend their products and customer service.

[HOGRIDER]

1 hour ago, BiknSwans said:

Thank you for the tip.  I don't think any of the Mark 7 videos I've watched indicate that all the stations have a case loaded, but I have the older Evolution.  I haven't had any issues, but I'll re-adjust my spring tension today as I have noticed cases spinning when the shell plate advances.

 

I love my Mark 7 Evolution, and can highly recommend their products and customer service.

I actually have some slight rotation of the cases during loading 9mm and have experienced zero issues with how I have my spring adjusted............

 

This video may help if your loading .223 or 9mm:

 

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/ur6q7l6dw1oq0nl/AACzzCF82CzKIlZKTQ7p_njPa?dl=0&e=1&fbclid=IwAR0IXum_8PHfOKzbz-1TW3UOauJgtn_dxlKXd3OyzQZHpzTdYQ01tS8Jct8&preview=Tuning+for+223.mp4

 

[HOGRIDER]

@BiknSwans:

Not sure if you've found this group of factory videos as I'm not sure they are published........but there's a ton of great info here:

 

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/ur6q7l6dw1oq0nl/AACzzCF82CzKIlZKTQ7p_njPa?e=2&fbclid=IwAR0IXum_8PHfOKzbz-1TW3UOauJgtn_dxlKXd3OyzQZHpzTdYQ01tS8Jct8&dl=0

 

[HOGRIDER]

9 hours ago, Slomo said:

I think it would be hard to provide a similar solution using the Dillon pins.

Back when I was running an RL1100, I discovered this simple trick to help with case stabilization between the retainer pins.  Worked surprisingly well!

 

 

[BiknSwans]

11 minutes ago, HOGRIDER said:

This video may help if your loading .223 or 9mm:

 

I see in that video that the 9mm shell plate is empty when adjusting the spring tension, but is full for .223.  I think I'm ok the way I have it adjusted now.  I just barely took out the slack with the shell plate empty.

[BiknSwans]

11 minutes ago, HOGRIDER said:

@BiknSwans:

Not sure if you've found this group of factory videos as I'm not sure they are published........but there's a ton of great info here:

 

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/ur6q7l6dw1oq0nl/AACzzCF82CzKIlZKTQ7p_njPa?e=2&fbclid=IwAR0IXum_8PHfOKzbz-1TW3UOauJgtn_dxlKXd3OyzQZHpzTdYQ01tS8Jct8&dl=0

 

Thanks.  I've never seen any of his Dropbox videos, so I'll be busy today.  Thanks again.

[Slomo]

2 minutes ago, HOGRIDER said:

Back when I was running an RL1100, I discovered this simple trick to help with case stabilization between the retainer pins.  Worked surprisingly well!

 

 

I was actually contemplating yesterday whether a small rubber band (like the orthodontic kind for braces) might fit around the spacing pin itself to provide some additional support on an RL1100 while remaining resilient to accommodate variation. Of course on my 650XL, there is no pin where I need it to address the issue. So far I have not had problems with any other stations or between stations, just at the sizing step. I think because the bottom of the case is uneven, the sizing die is probably introducing a slight angle between the case body and the bottom of the case head, which eliminates the alignment issue at subsequent stations (at the expense of having slightly out-of-square brass). Some day I may get a rollsizer to see if that helps because the same gun bulges the cases to some degree.