Infernal Combustion Posted December 28, 2009 Share Posted December 28, 2009 Howdy everyone. I've had my 500b for about 3 month now and loved it until yesterday. Spent 3+ hours trying to get the primer feed to work. Spilled primers all over the place twice, and loaded the pickup tube twice. Of course several disappeared in the process in the dark nether regions of the loading area. I will find them eventually, but didn't want to spend a lot of time on the cold concrete floor. I finally figured out that I didn't have the internal primer feed tube (the one with the red end for large primers) installed/seated properly. Finally got that worked out and managed to load about 25 rounds before a misshapen primer gummed up the works. Took the primer assembly apart for the third time (darn, I hate those screws on the bottom!) got the buggered primer out of the feed tube, set every thing up again, and ran into a new problem. The darn thing started "flipping" the primers after picking it up out of the feed tube but before seating it in the cartridge. I verified that the primers were going into the primer cup in the correct position from the primer feed tube, but after seating, I would examine the cartridge and see that it was installed upside down - shiny side toward the powder. Sometimes, it would not complete the "flip" and install the primer in sideways. I've loaded a couple thousand rounds on the machine - about half .38 special with small primers, and the other half .45 Colt with large primers. I've switched back and forth between the primer sizes a couple of times and have never had any problems. After the time I spend yesterday getting a total of about 25 rounds and losing or buggering up about 15 primers, I gave up. Almost thought about going back to the Lee Turret. Anyway, does anyone have any idea why the primers are flipping between pickup from the primer feed to seating the primer? How do I fix it? Thanks in advance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarge Posted December 28, 2009 Share Posted December 28, 2009 (edited) look for one of your lost primers to be behind the cup where it goes in to pick up another primer. Maybe the cup is not getting all the way under causing the primers to roll into the cup. Also do a search in the reloading section. Somebody has probably had this problem solved before. And welcome to the forums! Edited December 28, 2009 by sandman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
High Lord Gomer Posted December 28, 2009 Share Posted December 28, 2009 What kind and size of primers? I have only had that happen frequently with CCI primers. They seem to have more of an outward curl at the lip of the primer, making them more susceptible to catch the edge of the primer pocket and flip. Also, verify that the small tube is inside if using small primers and that you're using the small primer pickup bar. Make sure not to overtighten those screws at the bottom, either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarge Posted December 28, 2009 Share Posted December 28, 2009 (edited) Is your bench solid? As in solid as a rock? Might be too much shakin' goin' on. Edited December 28, 2009 by sandman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan550 Posted December 28, 2009 Share Posted December 28, 2009 Watch the primer slide to see if it "jerks" during its trip toward the seating position. That's usually when mine flips the primer. I've started putting my hand on the end towards me to give it a nudge as it moves away from the pickup point and smooth out the travel. It's a bit of a pain to get used to, but it stopped the flipping problem. This is particularly noticeable on the ones with the case feed, since the primer slide will contact the clamshell that catches the old primer on its way to the seating position. Mine is the old original 550, not the "B" model so I don't have the shim that fits under the primer slide. Consequently, it's not "lubed" by that shim, making it a bit more difficult to get a smooth motion out of it. Try the "push" with one hand and that should cure the problem. Alan~^~ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarge Posted December 28, 2009 Share Posted December 28, 2009 (edited) Alan, I had chatter problems with my set up and Dillon sent me a new slide because mine was unnoticably bent or twisted just a little. When I explained it on the phone the CS guy knew right away what the problem was. Edited December 28, 2009 by sandman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Infernal Combustion Posted December 28, 2009 Author Share Posted December 28, 2009 Thanks guys. To answer some of the questions, I'm having the problem with Federal large pistol primers. I've used both CCI and Federal large pistol in the past with no problems. I do know I have the large primer feed tube (red end) in the primer feed assembly. I've also cleaned the slide, slide shim, and other contact areas with an alcohol pad. The bench is solid and I'm using the strong mount - not much shakin' goin' on. I also blew everything off with some canned air and have ensured I don't have a lost primer around any of the mechanisms. I also did a forum search on this problem before posting and found lots of problems with feeding, but not much of anything on why the primer might flip just before it gets seated. As I mentioned, the primers are feeding into the cup properly now - got that problem solved - and it is in the cup properly on the way to being seated. But when the cup disappears under the shell plate the primer gets "flipped". Could the piece that pushes the primer out of the cup be getting activated prematurely? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warpspeed Posted December 28, 2009 Share Posted December 28, 2009 Call Dillon Customer Service. They will be able to figure it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrumpyOne Posted December 28, 2009 Share Posted December 28, 2009 Sounds like something is "snagging" right before you push the lever forward to seat the primer, jostling the primer just a bit. I've never had this problem with mine, so..... Can you cycle the lever forward without a case in the sheel plate and see what is happening? If it doesn't happen when a case isn't present, I would almost suspect that the shell plate may be screwed down too tight, and the top of the primer (when it's upside down in the primer holder) may be hitting either the bottom of the shell plate or the bottom of the case as it's sliding into position. Try loosening up the shell plate allen head just a bit and see what happens. It needs a bit of play. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Braxton1 Posted December 28, 2009 Share Posted December 28, 2009 Check to ensure that the primer cup is ABSOLUTELY aligned with the hole in the ram that it passes through. If it scapes along the side of that hole just a little bit, it can flip the primer before seating it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Infernal Combustion Posted December 28, 2009 Author Share Posted December 28, 2009 Thanks GrumpyOne and Braxton1. I hadn't thought about the shell plate being screwed down a bit too tightly. It indexes well, but it still may be a tad too tight, causing the primers to scrape the bottom of the shell plate or to catch the hole in the plate before the primer slide has move all the way forward. I can't feel it when cycling, but that doesn't mean it isn't happening. I'll check it when I get home from work tonight. If that doesn't do it, it will be a call to Blue CS in the AM as warpspeed suggests. I'll let everyone know the solution as soon as I have it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fuzzysights Posted December 28, 2009 Share Posted December 28, 2009 I think Braxton hit this one on the head. I had a similar problem with my 550 when I first got it. I had switched from larger primer to small and did not align the primer bar perfectly and was having flipped and crushed primers. I called Dillon and they walked me through it as well as sending me the updated style primer bar with the plastic strip to make it work smoother. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benos Posted December 29, 2009 Share Posted December 29, 2009 I like to litter.... These threads with: 550 Priming Assembly Adjustment Notes: Thoroughly polish frame, wherever priming slide touches it, with green Scotch Brite. (Approx. every 3000 rounds) Wipe off Primer Slide with solvent or alcohol. Leave it all dry. At rest primer slide adjustment: Set so that one primer, dropped down the tube, goes all the way into the Primer Seating Cup, 10 times in a row. Angle of Primer Slide Operating Rod (13869) - Release rod from rollers and swivel it 180º so it's pointing straight up - it should be parallel with the Primer Housing Shield, or maybe outward "a little"; it should not be "inward" at all. Be sure both screws (14530) that tighten Roller Bracket Shell Platform (14280) from bottom (to the Shellplate Platform) are tight! Make sure Priming Seating Punch Assembly is fully bottomed out before tightening screw (13996): Measured from bottom of Primer Slide (13920) to top of seated Primer Seating Cup (13284/5), dimension should be between 2.125 - 2.220 inches. Be sure Priming Operating Rod Bracket (13887) is adjusted so it's within a few thousands of an inch from the top of frame/Toplhead. Be sure the plastic tips of all your Primer Pickup Tubes and the plastic tip on the bottom of the Priming Magazine are seated fully against the tubes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarge Posted December 29, 2009 Share Posted December 29, 2009 updated style primer bar with the plastic strip Is there something new out there? I had not heard of this change. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Infernal Combustion Posted December 30, 2009 Author Share Posted December 30, 2009 Thanks for everyone's help. I will be adding Benos' primer feeding adjustment notes to my load notebook. I did figure out the problem. GrumpyOne was pretty close and his advice to operate with out a case in the shellplate was what was needed - sometimes I just don't think of the obvious. The shellplate wasn't too tight, but the primer slide bar was ever so slightly askew. When the shellplate came down on the priming stroke, it was just barely catching the primer cup, causing the primer to flip. It was just pushing down the edge cup but allowing it to snap back up, causing the primer to flip before the shellplate came completely down around the cup assembly. Loosening the primer slide a bit, centering the cup in the shellplate, and then re-tightening the screws solved the problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Youngeyes Posted January 2, 2010 Share Posted January 2, 2010 updated style primer bar with the plastic strip Is there something new out there? I had not heard of this change. Happy New Year everyone! I'd also like to know what this plastic new thingee is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HotIce Posted January 9, 2010 Share Posted January 9, 2010 (edited) I had the same primer flipping problem yesterday, using Wold LP primers. Primers were going in correctly, but once I flipped the pickup tube to drop them inside the primer magazine, I could notice the first primer being flipped into the wrong side. Which could be bad news if it goes unnoticed. Are Wolf LP primers on the small-side as far as overall diameter, which allows them to flip inside the pickup tube? Edited January 9, 2010 by HotIce Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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