Bronson7 Posted February 16, 2003 Share Posted February 16, 2003 I'm having a heck of a time getting primers to seat at least flush on Winchester 45ACP brass. I have a 550B and have no such problem with Hornady or Remington brass. I'm using Winchester primers. Any anomalies with Winchester that I'm not aware of? Is there some way of slightly increasing primer seating depth? I've done everything layed out in the troubleshooting section of the press's manual and still no joy. I've swapped primer punches and primer bars but that didn't rectify it either. Any ideas? Bronson7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TBF Posted February 16, 2003 Share Posted February 16, 2003 I have not seen any problems like that with win. brass, or win. primers. Thats not to say there cannot be, have you switched lots of primers about the same time this problem appeared? When you run other brass through with current setup does problem go away? Travis F. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricW Posted February 16, 2003 Share Posted February 16, 2003 It *might* not be the brass. Check the underside of the aluminum plate where you slide in the brass to station 1. See that the two countersunk allen-head screws are seated tight. (Blue locktite would not be unwelcome on these two.) I've had one or both of these screws back out before, in which case one is unable to fully seat primers because they prevent the ram from going down all the way. E Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hawker Posted February 18, 2003 Share Posted February 18, 2003 I had the same problem awhile back. It turned out that the shellplate was a little loose. Tighten it down some and you should be good to go. Don't forget the set screw before and after you make the adjustment. Hawker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bronson7 Posted February 18, 2003 Author Share Posted February 18, 2003 TBF- yes, problem goes away with Hornady and Rem brass. Hawker- shellplate is as tight as I can get it and still rotate freely. EricW- Very Interesting. Looked at the underside of STA#1 ramp and the what looks to be countersunk screws are tight but not flush! And yes, they are hitting on the primer slide. Are they supposed to be flush? If they are, then this is the problem. Bronson7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
youfoundthekingbaby Posted February 18, 2003 Share Posted February 18, 2003 Bronson, I have the same problem on my SDB (45acp) with cci primers and win brass (winclean specifically). It just seems to take an excessive amount of force to get the primers seated close to flush. I dont have the problem with fed or umc brass. Perhaps the primer pockets need uniforming. But I dont have a uniformer so someone else will have to try that. Sam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bronson7 Posted February 18, 2003 Author Share Posted February 18, 2003 Thanks everyone. Right now I'm thinking it's the cases. Primers are seating fine on all but my Wins. Talked to Dillon about it also. They suggested also the pockets may need to be uniformed but agreed that buying new brass would probably be cheaper. So....I'll stick with Remington brass which seems to work the best. Thanks again. Bronson7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
racine Posted June 10, 2003 Share Posted June 10, 2003 Maybe I'll post my problem with my 550 here also. I basically have the same problem but add to that, the primers often are seated flush on one side and high on the other. I've read BE's threads on tip for the 550 through and through to find some way to figure out why my 45 ACP primers are being loaded at a slight angle. Dillon has sent me a new primer punch (2nd) which I installed but it still prevents me from getting the deep seating I see with my 40sw. I've tightened my shell plate till it just gets real slow. and clean in, around and under the primer punch area. I usually push the primer in with a jab on the forward motion (550) but since I just bought 5000 Federal primers I will be a little more careful about pushing too hard. I've gone so far as to clean each and every one of 1000 primer pockets which I've never done for a pistol but I'm still getting primers that are seated flush on one side and up a tad on the opposite side. IF ANYONE CAN OFFER A BIT OF ADVICE IT WOULD VERY SURELY BE APPRECIATED AS THIS PROBLEM HAS PLAGUED ME FOR THE LAST 7 MON. AND I'VE BASICALLY STOPPED USING MY 2 45 ACP PISTOLS IN COMPETITION. Thanks in advance...BTW, I've also bought 1K new Starline 45 ACP in hopes to find a fix for this... Racine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JT Johnson Posted June 10, 2003 Share Posted June 10, 2003 Maybe I'll post my problem with my 550 here also. I basically have the same problem but add to that, the primers often are seated flush on one side and high on the other. I've read BE's threads on tip for the 550 through and through to find some way to figure out why my 45 ACP primers are being loaded at a slight angle. Dillon has sent me a new primer punch (2nd) which I installed but it still prevents me from getting the deep seating I see with my 40sw. I've tightened my shell plate till it just gets real slow. and clean in, around and under the primer punch area. I usually push the primer in with a jab on the forward motion (550) but since I just bought 5000 Federal primers I will be a little more careful about pushing too hard. I've gone so far as to clean each and every one of 1000 primer pockets which I've never done for a pistol but I'm still getting primers that are seated flush on one side and up a tad on the opposite side. IF ANYONE CAN OFFER A BIT OF ADVICE IT WOULD VERY SURELY BE APPRECIATED AS THIS PROBLEM HAS PLAGUED ME FOR THE LAST 7 MON. AND I'VE BASICALLY STOPPED USING MY 2 45 ACP PISTOLS IN COMPETITION. Thanks in advance...BTW, I've also bought 1K new Starline 45 ACP in hopes to find a fix for this...Racine Is it possible the primer cup is contacting the shell plate on the up stroke? Josh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricW Posted June 10, 2003 Share Posted June 10, 2003 There's a little trick to getting a 550 primer system aligned correctly - 1. Slightly loosen up the two cap screws that hold the priming system in place - just enough to allow things to jiggle. 1.5 Prior to step 1, make sure ALL of the crud is out of your priming system. 2. Make sure your powder measure return rod is DISCONNECTED, so that you know your ram will move all the way down and won't be under spring tension. 3. Let the ram rest down, so that the priming cup is properly located. Jiggle the primer slide a bit just to make sure that it's resting freely and not bound in any way. You're kind of trying to find the natural center of the system. 4. Tighten the cap screws back down 5. Test the alignment by gently pulling and pushing on the press handle. There should be NO binding whatsoever. After that, you should be off to the races. If primers are being seated at an angle, the first thing I would look at is the seating punch. It's kind of a bugger to get set correctly as you have to compress the cup and it's spring to get the set screw into the groove on the punch. You may need to use a vice as a 3rd hand. If your primers aren't getting set deep enough, disconnect the rod from the powder measure and try again. It may be preventing the ram from going down far enough. The 550 has the travel and mechanical advantage to set any primer for virtually any case well below flush. Push the press handle forward with no primer in the cup and you should see the punch come up well above the base of the shell plate If your primer pocket is too shallow you should be seeing slightly crushed primers - not just merely a high primer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevin c Posted June 10, 2003 Share Posted June 10, 2003 If you are desperate, you can always rotate the case 180 degrees before dropping the powder charge and run the punch into the case (gently) a second time. This will kill your production rate, but provided the pockets are reasonably true, it should give you a well seated primer. I sometimes will do this for special lots of ammo for shooting groups (dunno why, though - can't shoot a group to save my life). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nolan Posted June 10, 2003 Share Posted June 10, 2003 The problem may be with the shellplate holding the cases too loosely allowing the cases to tip while being primed. Put a case into the priming station, mark a vertical stripe on the case where it contacts the wire bail that holds the case in position and prime the case. Look at the case and see where the high side of the primer is in relation to the vertical stripe. If they are lined up contact Dillon and tell them what it is doing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scooterj Posted June 10, 2003 Share Posted June 10, 2003 Check to see if the table isn't coming loose from the ram. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dillon Posted June 11, 2003 Share Posted June 11, 2003 A couple of thoughts;First, clean out the hole in the underside of the platform where the primer cup goes up into the platform. Second, the most common cause of tippy primers is the shellplate isn't tight enough. Be sure that the underside of the shellplate bolt is very lightly greased, and there are no burrs in the recess in the top of the index sprocket where the shellplate bolt head fits. Suggest that when you adjust this bolt, you tighten the shellplate bolt down until it stops, then back it up about 1/8th of a turn. then snug the brass tipped set screw on the left side of the shaft. There are two different styles of roller bracket shell platform screws. older brackets used socket head cap screws,which stuck out above flush. Current design uses beveled head screws,whcih should tighten pretty close to flush. Using the old style screws with the new design will cause the screw heads to stop on the top of the primer slide, preventing proper primer seating. Additionally, if the current beveled head screws are loose, they will bottom out on the slide as well, again preventing full primer seating. Be sure that the handle does not contact anything when pushing forward to seat a primer. Also, be sure there is no debris on the inside of the link arms where it contacts the crank stop surfaces. this will prevent you from pushing the handle far enough forward to fully seat primers. What is your bench top material made of? Plywood flexes too much, unless greatly reinforced. One inch thick particle board is much stiffer, and is a superior top material surface. This will have a great effect on primer seating. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bronson7 Posted June 12, 2003 Author Share Posted June 12, 2003 Thanks dillon. I previously checked everything you mentioned. As it was only ocurring with Win brass, I carefully inspected the primer pocket and found that there was'nt a lead in like the other brass I was using. I very slightly chamfered it with my Lee deburring tool and Viola. All is well and the primers seat below the lead-in. When the life of these cases expire, I'll use something other than Win brass. Just an observation: The primers on Winchester white box factory ammo are flattened as if excess force was used to seat them. I found that to be stange. Bronson7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turtle Posted June 24, 2003 Share Posted June 24, 2003 Not to beat a dead horse, but I had the same problem with a bunch of new Winchest .45 brass a few years ago. Due to the lack of lead-in the primers were hanging up on the way in and getting skewed. Glad you got it woked out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nolan Posted June 24, 2003 Share Posted June 24, 2003 The primers on Winchester white box factory ammo are flattened as if excess force was used to seat them. I found that to be stange. Are the cases headstamped Winchester or WCC? I think the WCC stuff used to be the same as military ammo and had crimped primers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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