1050 primer feed problems

[mds131s]

I have a super 1050 and have the same problems being described I am wondering where everyone is getting the shims for the primer system that I keep reading about.

Thanks

[Foxbat]

Seems like eight years should be more than enough time to resolve the primer system problems. To expect the user do the final fitting is plain ridiculous, I have no other word for it.

[DougCarden]

I guess I look at it differently......The priming system works well, and like anything else, needs to be torn down to clean periodically, and when you put it back together it needs to be adjusted. When it is clean, dry, and adjusted properly it will run like a swiss clock.

When people have priming problems with a majority of the presses, it is either the height of the primer slide arm actuator, the plastic tip being damaged, or the rubber tubing on the primer slide has gotten worn and needs to be replaced.

There are some Supers out there that have given people fits, and I believe Dillon took care of that and the current ones work well.

A lot of people want to pull these suckers out of the box, fill them up with components and just go to town. It just won't happen. They are like any other piece of finely machined equipment. You have to "learn" how to maintain and keep them running smoothly. They just aren't for everyone. That is not meant to be a dig, but some of us are not mechanically inclined, period.

I am still, after years of use, just awestruck on how simple the machine is at just running, period. When properly adjusted, I turn out some of the best ammo I have ever made, period. It has taken years to learn how to do that, and I have fought, cussed, and cried at it while I endured the learning curve! That is not to say that I don't still have brain farts, and make mistakes, but when I do my part, my 1050s have not let me down!

not a paid endorsement either....

Just another happy Dillon owner that drank the blue Koolaid....

DougC

[11charlie]

I began lurking this site when I picked up an RL 1050 at a good price. The seller was also having primer issues. There is a lot of good information here and I'm sure that as one works through what others have tried, the problem gets solved. In my case it didn't, but being a systems engineer it's not my style to be beaten on something so I'll share my two cents worth.

I was getting primers with their sides ripped off/crushed and they would pop out onto the bench. It would also occassionally smear a primer then pop it out also. Usually about 1% to 3% of a load run.

I made sure everything on the machine was up to spec., cleaned, polished and aligned as it should be and as others here have suggested on their solutions. When that didn't work, I sat down and watched the each component function as I operated the machine very slowly. At first glance (even 9th and 10th glance), everything seemed right. Then I noticed that as the operating lever came down fully the shell holder tipped up slightly on one side. Ok, I'm loading 40SW and used to a 550B, I'm used to having the size/decapping die firmly down on the shell holder and never had a problem. I backed it off til it just BARELY touched and started again. Then I noticed that my Lee Factory size/crimp die in station eight also caused a slight tip. I backed it off to where it BARELY touched the shell plate. Now there is no vertical shell plate movement at all at full down stroke.

The result, the primer problem went away completely. The vertical shell plate movement and pressure down against the detent ball was just enough to barely tilt the case in the priming station. We're talking a barely decernable amount of movement here but evidently the tolerances for this press are that close.

I'm very happy with the machine and the bargan price for it. I've loaded 2000 rnds in the last two days and my life just became so much easier.

[gohuskers]

I began lurking this site when I picked up an RL 1050 at a good price. The seller was also having primer issues. There is a lot of good information here and I'm sure that as one works through what others have tried, the problem gets solved. In my case it didn't, but being a systems engineer it's not my style to be beaten on something so I'll share my two cents worth.

I was getting primers with their sides ripped off/crushed and they would pop out onto the bench. It would also occassionally smear a primer then pop it out also. Usually about 1% to 3% of a load run.

I made sure everything on the machine was up to spec., cleaned, polished and aligned as it should be and as others here have suggested on their solutions. When that didn't work, I sat down and watched the each component function as I operated the machine very slowly. At first glance (even 9th and 10th glance), everything seemed right. Then I noticed that as the operating lever came down fully the shell holder tipped up slightly on one side. Ok, I'm loading 40SW and used to a 550B, I'm used to having the size/decapping die firmly down on the shell holder and never had a problem. I backed it off til it just BARELY touched and started again. Then I noticed that my Lee Factory size/crimp die in station eight also caused a slight tip. I backed it off to where it BARELY touched the shell plate. Now there is no vertical shell plate movement at all at full down stroke.

The result, the primer problem went away completely. The vertical shell plate movement and pressure down against the detent ball was just enough to barely tilt the case in the priming station. We're talking a barely decernable amount of movement here but evidently the tolerances for this press are that close.

I'm very happy with the machine and the bargan price for it. I've loaded 2000 rnds in the last two days and my life just became so much easier.

Thanks for the info. I'll have to give this a try along with all of the other suggestions.

[noylj]

I screw the shellplate lockring assembly down as tight as possible and then just barely loosen it such that the shellplate advanced easily and yet is tight enough not to visibly tilt. I find the recommendation of backing off the lockring assembly a 16th of a turn is more than desirable.

[Loki999]

When i load on my 1050 on a 100 round 4 or 5 primers turn sideways in the brass?

I think i should put the primer deeper, so there is no room to turn.

[sperman]

Add me to the list of 1050 owners with primer problems. I bought the machine new in December. It loaded several thousand rounds without issue. Then I started having 1 or 2 unprimed shells out of 100. It has progressively gotten worse until I can barely use the machine.

It looks like there's lots of good info in this thread. I'll give them a try.

I am a bit dissappointed that Dillon has known that the primer system has issues since 2002, and hasn't come up with a solution yet. For the price of this machine, I would expect better. When it runs, it's an incredible machine. That hasn't happened much lately.

[dillon]

@Sperman- check the rubber sleeve on the back of the primer slide. Most likely it is torn or damaged. Replace it with a short section of 1/8" automotive vacuum hose.

[sperman]

I'll check it when I get home tonight.

Thanks,

[benos]

First, as Gary said, check the rubber tubing. You want the part of the tubing that "touches" to always be in perfect condition, with absolutely no wear or "denting."

You can either rotate it a bit, or buy foot of it at an auto parts store - which will last you forever.

Then with that variable removed, this is what made my 1050's priming system 100% reliable: Add or remove the .001" shims from under part# 13108, until - with the machine at rest - drop a single primer down the primer magazine tube, and it should drop into its hole in the primer slide - 10 times in a row.

be

[sperman]

@Sperman- check the rubber sleeve on the back of the primer slide. Most likely it is torn or damaged. Replace it with a short section of 1/8" automotive vacuum hose.

It's not torn, but it does have a little bit of a flat spot. I'll replace it with some tygon tubing from work.

Is there any reason this piece couldn't be made out of something a little harder, like nylon?

[RiggerJJ]

I'm not really sure why the rubber tubing is there, but when I took it off my Super1050 and adjusted the primer system without it about 5 years ago, it started working great and its been working great ever since...

(I'm knocking on a piece of wood to keep the jinx away...)

jj

[benos]

@Sperman- check the rubber sleeve on the back of the primer slide. Most likely it is torn or damaged. Replace it with a short section of 1/8" automotive vacuum hose.

It's not torn, but it does have a little bit of a flat spot. I'll replace it with some tygon tubing from work.

Is there any reason this piece couldn't be made out of something a little harder, like nylon?

If the tygon tubing doesn't have the exact same wall thickness that the 1/8" tubing does, then you will have to shim part #13108.

The "flat spot" is most likely the culprit. Maybe just rotate the tubing so a fresh part is now the contact point.

The tubing "cushions the blow" when the primer slide "lands." So the softer the tubing, the better it does that. With a harder tubing, you may get more primers not settling all the way down in the primer cup.

be

[sperman]

None of this is adding up to me. My primer slide stops against the part #13108. I'm not sure why the condition of the little rubber tube would have any affect on where the primer slide would stop. (I've replaced it with a piece of hard plastic for now.) Also, There are no shims under #13108, nor are there any in my spare parts kit. I brought some small shims home from work, but the smallest one is .005" thick.

I'm going to shim the primer slide as instructed, but I just can't figure out how the piece of rubber wearing would have any impact on the stop position of the primer slide.

[sperman]

I'm still not having any luck with my 1050. Once I had the primer slide adjusted, I dropped 10 primers in a row and they all fell right into the slide. I didn't get through 10 rounds before I had a primer jam in the slide. I cleared that out and loaded another round or two and then had no primers at all. Now I get to take the press apart again because it only takes 1 or 2 rounds without a primer and there's powder everywhere.

I've got new magazine orifices on order. When they arrive I'll replace that, and then put rubber back on the primer slide. If that doesn't help, I'll have to ship the machine back to Dillon.

[usmc1974]

Try disassemble the machine and clean every part. And try again. May be the left over powder cause the feeding problem

I was having the same problem with my SDB. I took it ALL apart cleaned everything, turns out it was the indexer. put it all back togather and now it runs great. Not sure what I fixed/cleaned but hay! it's all good. I did change the little blue tip that holds the next primer.

Edited July 3, 2011 by usmc1974

[Greg in VA]

I've been going thur problems with my 1050 primer system to, it seemed that it would jam up the whole press and I would have to take it apart to clear and then start all over again. I got tired of that so I took the whole thing apart......what I found to be my problem was the return spring on the primer seater, it had broken into two pieces and was causing the primer seater to hang up in the way causing the whole system to jam.

Greg in va

[RiggerJJ]

I'm still not having any luck with my 1050. Once I had the primer slide adjusted, I dropped 10 primers in a row and they all fell right into the slide. I didn't get through 10 rounds before I had a primer jam in the slide. I cleared that out and loaded another round or two and then had no primers at all. Now I get to take the press apart again because it only takes 1 or 2 rounds without a primer and there's powder everywhere.

I've got new magazine orifices on order. When they arrive I'll replace that, and then put rubber back on the primer slide. If that doesn't help, I'll have to ship the machine back to Dillon.

Exactly why I took the rubber tube out...

Do you know how to adjust the primer system by moving the clamp up and down the tube? If you do, do it in tiny incriments, 1/32-1/16 of an inch at a time...

Are you getting good swages in the brass (if its mil brass) or are you not using the swager? It will make a huge difference.

Are you crushing primers, like they arn't perfectly lined up with the primer pocket every time?

I get 1 in 100 or so crushed, with mil brass, and the swager is set up correctly, as well as the primer system. (I think its just the nature of the beast with mil brass) I can feel when a primer isn't seated right and seldom have the problem of powder flowing out the empty primer pocket. Pay attention to how the primer seating feels...

jj

[sperman]

I guess my machine is going back to Dillon. Replacing the blue "magazine orifice" made things better, but I still had 4 cases out of 100 without a primer in it.

[reising]

I bought my Super 1050 new about two years ago and I had priming trouble right out of the box. All the symptoms described earlier in the thread were exhibited by my press. It was very frustrating!

I am now well into the 6 figure range on rounds and here is what I have done to make mine reliable.

1. Using 1000 grit sandpaper smooth the primer slide groove in the press body. It should be as smooth as you can possibly make it. There must be absolutely NO chatter on the primer slide and the primer slide must return to the same spot every single time.

2. Solid mounting, the press should be as unmovable as possible.

3. The primer slide should be lubricated with one drop of Militec synthetic lubricant rubbed all over it. This stuff is amazing, a little goes a long way, it really only takes one drop.

4. Loosen the bolt that holds the clamp on the primer magazine. Run the ram until the tool head is all the way down and the primer slide lever is vertical. Lower the clamp assembly on the primer magazine until the primer slide actuating rod bottoms out on the frame of the press. Now raise the clamp just a hair, just enough so the tip of the rod is not in contact with the press frame.

5. CLEAN CLEAN CLEAN. I can't stress this enough. Crap in that slide channel will be a disaster! Don't be afraid to tear your 1050 apart. It won't take long until you can break it down and put it back together in minutes.

This is just my advice and what works for me. Your mileage may vary. But using these tweaks my priming system is 100% functional.

I will agree with many posters though. These are really workarounds for what essentially is not a very good priming system. The priming system on my 550 has worked flawlessly from day 1. It is simpler to boot. It would make more sense to just use the 550 system on the 1050 and prime on the upstroke. I know a lot of people rave about priming on the downstroke but I would gladly prime on the upstroke if it meant not having such a finicky primer system. It would eliminate A LOT of heartache and frustration.

[benos]

My 1050's priming system was every bit as reliable and my 550's priming system. But, that was "back in the day" ('80's to pre-2000). Nowadays, primers, from the same company, are far less consistent, spec/dimension-wise, then they ever have been. I have been told that this is because primer making compaies have not remade their tooling in years, and I have a suspision that this is a big factor in "the problem."

be

[sperman]

I spent a few more hours fiddling with different adjustments, and I think I've got it sorted out. I loaded 400 rounds without any missing primers. I'll keep my fingers crossed.

[punxsutawn]

sperman: can you share what you think mnade the biggest difference for you? I'm glad you have it going well. I have greatly minimized my priming issues however, I still get one or two per hundred. Like you stated, the powder mess is quite an annoying issue! I switched to a flake powder for some of my pistols just so that when a primer is missed, it doesn't fall all over the place. I am also in the habit of looking at each round coming off the press to verify it has a primer. This of course slows down the process greatly!

[Jim Watson]

If a foot of cheap vacuum tubing will last a lifetime as a supply of rubber baby buggy bumpers on the primer slide, why don't they INCLUDE a foot of @#$%^&* vacuum tubing with a $1639.95 machine? Or at least put a piece in the spare parts kit or maintenance kit?

That and the clamp on the primer magazine tube which allows by guess and by God adjustment were the key to getting mine going.

It is now as reliable as my 550 but neither is up to my 1978 CH AutoCHamp. But the CH case advance is not as good, so it seems that getting EVERYTHING right may be beyond American Industry.