Steve is having some trouble
figuring out how to reload. He points out- and he’s exactly correct- that the instructions they give you for reloading are sparse and incomplete. Kim even mentions that this is what keeps him from reloading, and I don’t blame them. Anything that gave me this much trouble, I would run from.
I suppose that it would be bad form to tell them that I bolted my press to a bench, installed the dies, and began reloading in about five minutes. “Oh, this is what takes out the primer. And sizes the case.And this one expands the casemouth. And this is the primer, and this is the piece that puts the primer in, and this is the way to measure the powder, and this is the die that seats the bullet” I spoiled four cases getting the dies set right.
This shit comes naturally to me. As it does to a lot of people. I don’t blame anyone for the frustration, and frankly, if you’re not heavily naturally mechanically inclined, this can be daunting. But it’s not impossible. Steve will master this as he’s mastered everything else, and Kim could easily as well. Sometimes it’s just having someone take you by the hand, or getting the right reading materials. If you want to do something bad enough, you can figure it out.
26 comments Og | Uncategorized
Probably the most challenging mechanical contrivance I’ve ever been around is a combine. There are so many adjustments possible. If you make the effort not to throw over grain, the manual is your friend, then practice.
Og,
My brother is the same way. But not only does he reload his own shells, he builds his own guns.
He has quite a nice side business where he imports chopped up fully automatic military weapons and converts them to semi-auto. I’m amazed at what he can do. He’s just a freaking genius at military weaponry.
Jeff, I never drove a full combine but I pulled a pull-behind. What a clusterfuck of gears and shit! Still, I made it work.
Boy, I dunno.
I’m thinkin’ anyone with one eye & half a brain can reload.
And having a friend owning a gun shop, I believe there are blind folks w/a quarter brain doing it too.
That’s another story though.
Follow the instructions, look at the dies & how they work, & bingo- new ammo!
I just made some crankin’ .44 special rounds last night…
Progressive presses DO take a non-insignificant amount of mechanical aptitude to get them to run right. I’ve got a Dillon 550 Bad-Deal D press (proprietary dies, expensive as hell) that I had to study all the monkey-motion for a while before I got it working right. Same for my shotshell press (forget the maker/model).
Fortunately, Dad took whatever natural aptitude I have, and trained it carefully, so I can figure out monkey-motion if I study it long enough.
Anybody in the DFW area, if you need help setting up a press, just let me know, and I’ll come help.
I am trying to rig and trim an aerobatics plane. There is no literature, the service manual has specs only, and the A&Ps generally don’t know shit. So after I reset the ailerons, adjust the throw and stick position, triple check the measurements, make sure everything is tied down, I fire her up and grab a few thousand feet. It really makes you a more careful and thorough mechanic.
When I decided to get into reloading, the first thing I did was some reading on what procedures were used, and why. After that, figuring out reloading was easy. Of course, all I have is an ancient Rock Chucker.
Reloading bullet cartridges is fine for a hobby. Those who shoot a lot of rifles and pistols may see the benefit of savings in the effort and pride in shooting a custom load. Kind of like catching a fish on a lure you made from scratch, as I have. Beyond that reloading seems to be too much to fuss with.
Reloading shot shells makes more sense to me. Those who shoot competition clays gain an advantage in mixing shot size with the amount of powder. Reloading shot costs far less than buying factory loads for sure and there seems to be a wider range of variables to play with.
Can the same be said for reloading bullet cartridges? I just don’t know enough about the subject.
Man, Bone, you got any pictures? I’d sure like to see that.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. It’s not like you don’t screw up links.
Still haven’t got her rigged properly, but a fellow pilot who rebuilds old planes gave me some good tips today.
I’d like to see the plane, to. Thought about doing something like that my self. Although I think flat and level will do just fine. I want to scout some deer ground and I think in the air is the way to go.
Reloading is also something I think I might try, once I make enough room on a bench for one, anyway.
aerobatics plane. Yeah, they’re good for scouting out a lot of stuff, especially fish. You really don’t know where you live till you’ve seen the place from the air.
aerobatics plane, good grief.
Steve did bite of a big chunk, starting with a progressive. Still, I know a couple of fellas who did just that and managed to get ‘er done. It’s too bad he doesn’t know a reloader who would stop by and help him get started, it would really help the ol’ learning curve.
nice, bone! is that like a champ, or is it a heavier bird?
She’s a Decathlon. Champ is the same motor, flat wing, flaps. Champ won’t fly upside down worth shit. Champ has a better rate of climb. Weigh about the same.
Fuck me, I’m an idiot. It’s the Scout, not the Champ, that has the same motor. Who cares, right?
Who cares if it gets you off this planet, right? Damned pretty plane, bone.
Man, it’s a different world up there Og, so peaceful, no cops, no turn signals, no speed limits. As long as you stay away from the big cities and such, there are no laws to obey other than the laws of nature.
Your entire view of life changes. You can see little shacks and great big mansions and everything in between. Each farm has it’s own signature and style. Illinois is unbelievable, they feed the world. Quarries are everywhere, spilling out stone that is crushed and laid to ribbons running through the countryside. The color of the roads changes to match the quarries.
Was this a kit, bone, or a partial turnkey, or what?
S’way to small a plane for a big bastard like me, but just about anything with wings is pretty. Well, except for the Shorts Skyvan.
Factory built, FAA certified, no way I’d get a kit built, not enough time. You’d fit just fine in front, I’ve had 6’4″, 240 in the back, but it was tight.
Oh, is this not stock? I thouhgt they had like a 280 kilo payload. I’m still over half of that.
Correct, Useful Load (Normal Category) 610 lbs.
40 gallons of fuel @6#/gal = 240
pilot @ 200 = 200
That leaves 170 for Og, which is a bit shy, I suspect, so we’ll have to go with half tanks, which leaves 132 kilos for Og. If we go a few kilos over that ain’t no big deal, just don’t want to be pullin six Gs at that weight.
lets wait till I get a bit skinnier.
If Steve started with the Lee progressive, that’s the issue, good unit, great price but weak instructions and complicated as hell. Dillon is much easier and have great customer service. Push him toward a single stage to start. So easy a troglodyte could do it.(Ouch,my knuckle just hit the floor)
Unless someone is mechanically inclined OR has someone to help them start, a progressive can be a serious pain in the ass to begin with. Much easier to start with a single-stage, then move on. You can always use the single-stage for specific jobs; very handy thing to have around.