Spar-T ram won't stay down

[Revolver]

I picked up a spartan turret press and then discovered the ram won't stay down. Gravity pulls the handle down and the ram up. Any ideas on a fix for this? Thank you.

[468]

Remove the handle. It easily screws in and out.

[44Vaquero]

My Grandfather used to use a rubber band when the press was not in use. Eventually, we made shims for the fulcrum pin to create some friction and retard the handles movement. I think we used brass shim stock and a hole punch.

[dbosman]

Grease instead of oil?

[NVcurmudgeon]

Revolver, I made a shipshape and Bristol fashion handle drop preventer from 13" of 1/4" cotton rope, with the ends heated with a lighter so they won't unravel. Finish by joining the ends with a square knot. Drop the preventer over the handle and primer punch.

Better than that, I recently added a leveling shim to my Spar-T. Lyman made metal ones, but apparently not enough for all the presses. It takes a hardwood block 4 3/4" long by 4" wide with the thick end 1.65" high from the bench and the thin end 0.75" high. It will be best if you drill the two mounting bolt holes with a drill press. (I did mine with a Sears 3/8" hole shooter and had to correct the hole locations with a rat tail file.) A friend of a friend made mine as this is a job for somebody who has a lot better saw than I do and knows what he is doing.

[KCSO]

A valve spring under the die works pretty good but it's hard to load ammo that way. I just put a bungee cord around mine when I have to keep it up.

[Revolver]

I ended up comparing this Spartan turret press against a regular Spartan press I had around. The ram, linkage, and handle were a match so I swapped them and now the turret handle stays up. The old regular Spartan press is now the one that can't keep it up. Age can do that.