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Time to make the donuts....

RGRobinett said:
View attachment 1681903

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Thank You, George! :D Here are some snaps of The Ulrich bullet swage press just set-up and ready to run a few thousand thirty Cal. bullets. George had advised an initial mount angle of 45* - and, "boy was he wrong" . . . until I made it 27.5, only to learn that, 'just maybe', George was/is correct!:p That said, the Hood air assisted presses are positioned at about 27.5* - they are a very good, but different animal.

This press is ROCK SOLID, 'SILKY SMOOTH', and with more than adequate leverage - I'll know a lot more following today's 'real work' session. Once i acquire the materials, I'll make an adjustable angle mount. This press will accommodate a wide variety of positioning. :cool: RG

P.S. for comparison, here are a couple of the Meister/Ulrich clones of the original B&A swage press (i have & use three of these): for all operations, up to 6mm, these presses are GREAT! For thirty Cal., though very good for core-seating, when it comes to pointing, they are disappointingly short on leverage. View attachment 1681911
View attachment 1681912
GREASE & OIL are your friends . . . except on jackets, where lubrication is a necessary evil. ;)
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George's new press looks to be killer good! Can't wait to see it in action, first hand.
 
One way I control flex is I have a spacer the is machined for a few thousanths over the punch on the ID and the OD about like the die body. This seats firmly against the bottom of the punch so I am not relying on the linkage. We let the bullet stay in the Point Up Die a few seconds.image.jpgimage.jpgimage.jpgimage.jpg
 
AlNyhus said:
Jackie, with your spacer, do you have any 'float' in the punch? -Al
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Sure. The spacer has clearance over the punch.

All the spacer does is provide a positive stop, taking the linkage flex out of the equation. Notice it has a slight counterbore, so it never contacts the carbide insert, only the body of the die.

All this does is insure every bullet points up exactly like the one before. I have determined the best point up length of my bullet, and machined the spacer so that when it is firmly in contact with the die body, the linkage just breaks over.

When Ed I’d pointing the bullets up, he checks this periodically, just to be sure the spacer is firmly against the die.

Also as a post script, keep in mind. We make just one bullet. A 112 grn on a .925 jacket. A different bullet would require a different custom fitted spacer.
 
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RGRobinett said:
Liseo, to what and how is your base attached? To the press? RG
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geo.ulrich said:
Liseo the ram is in the same position for both photos , how and where is the indicator attached if it on the bench and you are checking that wont work
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Randy/George

Randy , the magnetic base is attached to the press.
George, almost same position , as I just released the handle
 

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AlNyhus said:
When pointing, what are some thoughts on having a positive stop versus a little bit of over center at the top of the stroke? -Al
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I have made bullets both ways. As you know, the Blackmon press is a cam over press. It makes very good bullets. I also have an Ulrich converted Lee press that hits the stops built into the press linkage and thus does not cam over. It also makes very consistent bullets. I have always figured that the normal method of measuring a bullet "base to ogive" length is fraught with a few problems. Firstly, I use a caliper which is not as accurate as a micrometer. Second, you have to use some kind of device that approximates the diameter close to a bullet diameter to fit against the ogive portion of the bullet and I find that varies by how I insert the bullet. So, in my experience, the measurement can vary from time to time. I just sort of work to make sure it stays close over time if you will. Having said all that, both methods seem to me to be very consistent as long as you the operator are consistent. It probably makes sense that you are removing one variable from the operation if you pull against the positive stop. But I am not experienced enough to say for sure.

I would like to see George's and Randy's comments for sure.
 
JoeDuke said:
I have made bullets both ways. As you know, the Blackmon press is a cam over press. It makes very good bullets. I also have an Ulrich converted Lee press that hits the stops built into the press linkage and thus does not cam over. It also makes very consistent bullets. I have always figured that the normal method of measuring a bullet "base to ogive" length is fraught with a few problems. Firstly, I use a caliper which is not as accurate as a micrometer. Second, you have to use some kind of device that approximates the diameter close to a bullet diameter to fit against the ogive portion of the bullet and I find that varies by how I insert the bullet. So, in my experience, the measurement can vary from time to time. I just sort of work to make sure it stays close over time if you will. Having said all that, both methods seem to me to be very consistent as long as you the operator are consistent. It probably makes sense that you are removing one variable from the operation if you pull against the positive stop. But I am not experienced enough to say for sure.

I would like to see George's and Randy's comments for sure.
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Joe I like the stop at full length of the linkage where you get the most leverage. I have used the cam over as long as it goes way past over and you dont have to fight it bringing back but the stop method as you said takes another variable out like the speed bring it past and and back over...I just had a conversation with Randy about this last week...
 
AlNyhus said:
When pointing, what are some thoughts on having a positive stop versus a little bit of over center at the top of the stroke? -Al
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I modified the links on my Lee Press that George made me. Before they were the stock links with holes drilled for better leverage. They had the factory stop. After, they were heat treated tool steel without a stop (same leverage, though). My bullets were *much* more consistent in OAL after the change. I don't know for sure if it was better links or the over-center, but it was notable. I don't recall the actual numbers before hand, but I want to say it went from something like an SD of .004 down to about .0015.

I still use a stop (same custom links) for seating because I didn't want to fix something that isn't broken, and going over center on the seating operation was pretty jarring for the lee press when doing .30s.
 
Since buying a new press from George is out of the question due to shipping costs, I'm designing one based on the Lee Classic, but much more robust and larger, with shaft diameters double the diameter.
 
liseo said:
Since buying a new press from George is out of the question due to shipping costs, I'm designing one based on the Lee Classic, but much more robust and larger, with shaft diameters double the diameter.
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I don't think increasing the shaft diameter will add anything to the press as the shaft is operating in compression, if you build a press that operates on the same principle as the Lee (and most others) the links, pivots and frame operate under tension
 
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