Need to get the “cam wire” figured out, but I managed to figure out how to set the shoulder back on a case using this infernal whirling contraption, and measure it with my headspace comparator gauge-thing!
Sorta. That is I cheated and compared it to an actual round, and then made adjustments screwing the die-down until it matched, which is a way of overcoming my near complete math illiteracy.
So now it goes up and down and around and around – albeit somewhat jerkily as any Steampunk device ought-to, and Piggyback is an appropriate name, but you could call it Hunchback too, from the condition I’ll develop, bending over and fiddling with it…
It’s bit of a kludge, like RCBS never threw anything away, they just rearranged the configurations. It’s one presssitting on top of another, the rams are joined by a link that fits like a male-female case-holder.
UPDATE: Hold on, let me reorient this:
Here’s the new superstructure mounted atop the old RS-3 press. It’s semi-manual, so you pop-in a case and then another and then another and it rotates and goes up and down and when one comes around finallly for a bullet you place the bullet on top and press it up, meanwhile another case is being de-primed and another is being primed, and one is loaded with powder, etc.
The Upside is the shell-plates are the same as the Pro200 and now I have a bunch.
Downside is the arbor height and ram-stroke only accommodates cartridges 2.260″ tall so .30-06/.308 etc. is out – it’s .223 and pistols for me with this baby (and the v.3 is a shorty also). :
And this is the bottom half.
And it’s held together and operated by this ram connector.
Fully functional and a good idea, engineeringwise…but it’s definitely not super-smooth in operation though that effect can’t be attributed to this link, it’s just an overall design issue.
The term Steampunk fits I think? There should be a whistle attached somewhere and a bevel-drive gizmo-something running off the side, and sections wrapped in crocodile skin.
The top die-head is shared with the earlier RCBS progressive press, the “Ammomaster”, and it is changeable but not that easily – it would be a bit like removing your tires to change the transmission, or visa versa…
I don’t have a powder measure rigged-up and have to buy one, so I don’t know if it throws everything onto the floor…
Meanwhile I’m looking for primer tubes and a powder measure…
I feel your pain. I just had a Lee Challenger 1000 fall into my lap. This thing had been stored in a cardboard box in a crawl space for at least 5 years, and came with parts for some other press as well as a shortage of fairly important ones.
One thing I learned while doing industrial assembly machines is that every other step should be an inspection of the previous one. So far, nobody does this.
Oh well, at least it’s faster.
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Hi Billll! The step re-inspection approach seems like it would eliminate a lot of headaches, and I’m not rushing into this, that’s for sure. I’m thinking off a way to throw powder charges and measure them before I actually go and throw powder charges – maybe using an “Inert-something” instead of powder…Cream of Wheat?
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Do yourself a favor and take that handle off of that thing and replace it with this.
https://www.dillonprecision.com/content/p/9/catid/3/pid/23994/Dillon_Roller_Handle__Aluminum_
Your hand will thank you…
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Thanks Kirk! I’ve been looking for something like that…
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Waiting to see if the adventure leads to an increase in product output with an acceptable yield before conclusions are fixed. Good luck.
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You can add crocodile skin anywhere you want, but I suspect elephant skin might be more appropriate.
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Maybe an old ivory cue-ball for the handle – but with the arbor height limitation I can’t produce any Elephant-caliber rounds! 🙂
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If it works, it’s all good 🙂
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It aint all workin’ yet, only some parts – and it need more parts. Rube Goldberg could have *simplified* this.
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