Help with Star sizer... again

[20nickels]

So, I've ran the search feature to death and tried all the tricks to set up a NIB Star Lubrisizer and still no luck.

Using two dies (tks, Lathesmith) in .358 and .452 and two moulds; Lee 6-Cavity 452-228-1R 45 ACP and Lee 6-Cavity 358-158-RF 38 Special. White label 50/50 lube and casting from indoor pistol range scrap. Most of the boolits look good and drop at .453 and .360 on average.

I'm not getting complete lube groove fill out and boolit noses almost always have an excess amount of lube on them even when the groove is not full. I've adjusted the top punch up/down heater off/on and air pressure in every combination imaginable over the last 3 wks with the same results in both calibers! :confused:
I have about 3000 unsized boolits here just begging to go downrange :Fire: Any help appreciated.

[canyon-ghost]

Try leaving the heat on until the sizing die is warm, warm the lube all the way to the front of the sizer, works for me.

[454PB]

Without seeing the dies and their lube hole layout, it sounds like you may need to use lead shot and plug one row of holes.

[20nickels]

Wow, fast replies. These are both things that I have done.

[garandsrus]

20nickels,

Are you sure that you are using a full stroke of the pump? By this, I mean is the handle bottoming out and is the spring at the bottom of the lubesizer being compressed? This is the portion of the stroke that actually injects the lube.

The dimples of lube on the front of the boolit are due to too much heat or pressure. Incomplete fillout is due to too little heat/pressure or mis-aligned lube holes vs the boolit grooves or an incomplete press stroke. My guess is the part I have bolded. The fact that you have used various combinations of heat and pressure without success also point to the bolded text.

John

[20nickels]

Garandsrus, yes I try to give each handle pull a good hard tug and hold it at bottom until I have another boolit grabbed and ready to go right in. I'm about 1/3 the speed of this guy, because I'm having to visually inspect each boolit and re-lube about 60% of them and wipe the boogers off the noses;
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n8NdY15RstE

Occasionally I will completely compress the spring and squirt lube all over the nose or base of the boolit when the seal is lost. This is sometimes due to a crappy casting (new caster) and sometimes for completely unknown reasons. Believe it or not I have actually lubed over 1000 rds like this hoping the bugs would work out with adjustment. I'd kill to be able to size as fast as that video, that's why I bought the Star.

[cajun shooter]

Is your nickname dollar? The Star is the best machine available for the job. Having said that it also has a huge learning curve. You can't take a Star out of the box and start sizing and lubing.The die set up to the bullet is the most important. If you are trying to lube a one groove bullet with all three rows of holes open it will never work. Trying to tell some one what to do long distance is also a shot in the dark. Take your instruction manual and don't go to step two before your 100% sure that it's done correctly. I hate to sound anal but the Star takes this kind of adjustment. If you have everything set as it should be then the speed and sizing will be unreal. I have two machines set up with different lubes BP and the other stuff lube. You don't need these for the Star to work but once you have the machine going, buy the air cylinder and shovel handle. Also once you have the proper setting for a bullet with the punch. record it. It being the distance from the bottom of the punch to the top of the die. A very critial setting that will give you bullets that appear to be done by a factory. I write all of mine in my manual for reference the next time I set up for that bullet. Cuts your set up time in half. Later David

[KYCaster]

I looked at that video...kinda loafin' along, isn't he? When you get the hang of it you can really put out some boolits! [smilie=1:

Here's something to try....turn on the heater and go watch the second half of the game. Come back an hour later.

Now, take the brass plug out of the left side of the sizer. Crank down on the pressure screw till you get some lube coming out of the hole. It should be about the consistancy of Play-Doh or maybe slightly softer. Too soft?...too much heat. Too hard?...not enough heat. If you have to adjust the temp setting, go do something else for at least half an hour before you come back to the sizer. Be patient...if you get in a hurry you'll just get frustrated.

OK...finally got the temp set where it should be. Put the brass plug back in and take the sizing die out of the machine. Look down in there where the sizing die fits...see the 1/8" hole at the back? There may be some lube oozing out of it...that may be OK...we'll see. Pump the handle...a ribbon of lube should squirt out the hole. For every stroke of the handle you should get a 1/2 to 3/4" ribbon of lube from the hole. Adjust the pressure till it looks right.

Moving right along....Your sizing die is ready to use, right? Proper holes plugged with shot? No burs on the inner surface to shave lead and plug the holes? OK, put it in the machine. Now pump the handle...you should see some lube squirt from the holes that aren't plugged. If not, increase pressure first, then temp till you get it right. Remember, when you change the temp, give it at least half an hour before you continue.

Now we're ready to size some boolits!! Drop one in nose first and pump the handle...do that a few more times. Lube groove full?....you lucky #%@&**![smilie=p: More likely you have no lube at all or lube on the nose of the boolit. Adjust the punch down one turn and run three or four more boolits. Keep doing that till you see some results...either a groove full of lube or lube behind the base of the boolit before you put the next one in the die. If the second case, screw the punch back up till you get the groove full. Now, raise the handle to its limit and measure from the top of the die to the end of the punch and record that for future reference.

Now yank the knobs off the heater base and air pressure regulator and hide them somewhere...you don't need them any more. When you quit for the day, unplug the heater and air hose. Don't even think about resetting them to zero so you have to start over tomorrow. If you're using the screw for lube pressure, back it off a fixed number of turns (10?) so you'll always know how to return to your preferred setting for your next sizing session.

Your heat setting may need to change slightly because of ambient temp, but make sure you can always return to your basic setting. Sizing cold boolits at high rates can suck the heat out of the machine and cause problems. If your work area or storage area are cold you'll have to learn how to deal with that...it ain't easy.

I know that sounds kinda complicated, but you only have to do it once. After you get your basic settings adjusted you'll very seldom have to change anything. And when things start going south and you get really frustrated [smilie=b:, remember to keep your dirty paws off that temp control...that's not the problem.

Have fun with your new Star.
Jerry

[runfiverun]

i make a mark where my heater setting is so i can alway re-adjust to the same after each sizing.
it's my baseline setting and i an adjust as i go i would use a lighter pressure if you get lube on the nose it's pushing out between boolits make the stroke size...lube two different steps but in one push.
if you just need more lube you can lenghthen the rod at the top that pushes the piston in the back opening the lube inside.

[TAWILDCATT]

origanally star made the dies for specific bullets.I know that as I bought two stars one for 45 and one for 38.I made up a guage for the presses.because some would change the settings for a bullet they had.[this was a club reloading room]I did the maintainence for 20 yrs+.:coffee:

[bobthenailer]

i use a automotive a/c thermometer in the base of the heater to find the sweet spot for the lube temp , someware between 80 to 115 degrees, depending on the lube used and go easy on the pressure screw . and let the temp stablize for 1/2 hour before useing .

[anachronism]

The lube on the bullet noses is most commonly caused by too much lube pressure. My Star doesn't have the air cylinder, but it prefers really low lube pressure, about 2 turns on the manual cylinder is all it wants, once the lube is really warm. On my Star, It appears that the sizing die is the last part of the machine to attain normal operating temps. I use a Lyman heater with my Star,so I don't have any real temp control. I'm too lazy to build a temp control either, so I just unplug the heater when the sizer gets too warm. Really, it is possible that this could be causing your incomplete groove fillout. If the die isn't at full temp, it could cause the lube to harden in the grooves during filling, especially if the bullet is a little cool too.

[20nickels]

Finally got time to tinker some more and the .38's are up and running! :) 74lbs of pressure & no heat. Top punch was out of wack. Tks for all the replies!

Initially I spent much more time with the .45's and while researching read that the Star was designed for a one groove boolit, not two lube grooves. A two groove boolit would always leave some lube on the nose because of this. Any truth to this??? If so then I will just switch moulds.

[Dennis Eugene]

I lube two groove boolits with my star more often than not and the only time I get lube on the nose is when I crank the lube pressure up to high. After lubeing a half doz. or so, boolits the pressure drops and no more lube on nose. Next time I crank pressure I don't add as much and no lube on nose. So to answer you question no a two groove mold does not always leave lube on the nose. Dennis Eugene

[runfiverun]

i just lube one groove even if it has two.
especially for target type loads.

[lathesmith]

I routinely use my Star with a 3-lube groove bullet, and the noses are clean after a few "starter" slugs get things going.
lathesmith

[plus1hdcp]

First of all, thanks for the great information. I too am a new owner of a Star and have tried all weekend to get it set up. I am using the "blue" sample lube that Magma sent and am having a very difficult time getting a constant lube flow. I am using the manual crank adjustment for lube pressure and when I try to increase pressure it appears as though the increase is escaping more out of the small vent hole in the back of the lube tube. I have tried an increase in temp to heat up the lube stick however this seems to be taking me away from my goal as the grease is not thick enough plus the heating base is d** hot. Any ideas would be helpful.

[plumber]

First of all, thanks for the great information. I too am a new owner of a Star and have tried all weekend to get it set up. I am using the "blue" sample lube that Magma sent and am having a very difficult time getting a constant lube flow. I am using the manual crank adjustment for lube pressure and when I try to increase pressure it appears as though the increase is escaping more out of the small vent hole in the back of the lube tube. I have tried an increase in temp to heat up the lube stick however this seems to be taking me away from my goal as the grease is not thick enough plus the heating base is d** hot. Any ideas would be helpful.


How much lube did you put in there? The first time I filled
my sizer, I 'filled' it. I'm still cleaning lube off my bench.

[runfiverun]

the magma lube needs more heat and about 40 lbs pressure.
if'n i were you i'd buy some carnuba red turn down the heat and up the pressure.
shoot better groups and be happy.
wait thats what i did do.
look below for lars45's stuff.
a little further.....

[20nickels]

plus1,
Too much lube in the reservoir was one of my initial screw-ups, was throwing my pressure off methinks. I just turned up the air cylinder to max, added some heat and made "spaghetti" out the airhole. That took some time. In your case I would empty some out the brass plug on the left side.

[20nickels]

Oh, yeah. From reading here you could also just plug the hole with a hose clamp and keep yer high lube capacity.

[plus1hdcp]

Thanks 20 I just took out some of the lube, I probably overloaded the reservoir. I am back to square one and letting the lube harden back up. I should be in business tonight or tomorrow.

[jsizemore]

Thank you KYCaster for that description of setup. Sizer is working much better.