Which bullet puller?

[Tackleberry41]

Have gotten along fine w the inertia puller for a long time, obviously not made to do a whole bunch of them at once. Mine has seen better days, how long can plastic hold up to being smacked against concrete that many times.

Press mount there is RCBS, Hornady, and Forster. The Hornady cam system looks easier/faster. Is one better than the other?

[JBinMN]

Recently there was a topic about this offering many suggestions. You may have to search for it, but I'd bet it will help ya out.

Personally I have had no luck with a FA blue "hammer" puller. Instead of buying another puller, I went out and got a 3/8 drive 7/8 SAE deep well socket, placed it over the ram on the press with the appropriate shellholder (.357) & round in the holder, brought it up & used a reg. pliers to remove the boolit as I pulled the ram down with the lever. I also tried it with a Diag. Pliers( dikes < sl.) and although the dikes butchered the boolit & the reg. pliers did not so much; it was a cost effective & simple method to remove the boollits/bullets. Maybe try that instead of buying one? Saved all of the components instead of everything falling out of the cartridge. Only the recast-able boolit had any type of damage & I bet if I was more careful it would likely be reusable in a pinch too. I then simply fixed the issue & using the same components added another boolit & went on...


Maybe try that instead of buying one?

G'luck with whatever ya decide!

[Taterhead]

Of the three that you mention, I have the RCBS collet puller with a number of collets. I can recommend it without reservation. The only issue that I've had is a 35 cal collet that did not fully spring back open after a few uses so it would not accept .358" bullets. 9mm was ok, but a wee bit tight for 38 cal. Of course a note to RCBS and they sent a replacement without hesitation.

Just be mindful that the cost can add up quickly if you have numerous caliber to outfit. Also note that not all bullet profiles are suitable. The collets have a hard time gaining purchase on some handgun bullets. For those, if I want to preserve the powder, I'll give a few raps with the kinetic hammer to expose some bullet shank. Then finish the job with the collet puller.

Overall, the experience using a collet puller is far better.

EDITED TO ADD: I recommend not smacking the kinetic hammer on concrete. An end grain of hardwood is best. I think your instructions probably mention that too.

[Soundguy]

Have gotten along fine w the inertia puller for a long time, obviously not made to do a whole bunch of them at once. Mine has seen better days, how long can plastic hold up to being smacked against concrete that many times.

Press mount there is RCBS, Hornady, and Forster. The Hornady cam system looks easier/faster. Is one better than the other?

For what it's worth, I've been using a green rcbs inertial hammer puller for years, but I smack mine against a 6x6 chunk of timber that is in my reloading room.

I recently picked up a hornady cam lock puller to pull a bunch of 762x54r that i was given. I may even get to it tonight and give it a test. If no work pops up to block my time, I'll post back with results.

[country gent]

I have several of the forester super fast pullets These are very fast and accurate to use press mounted there is no real set up or adjustment to them screw into press and install shell holder in ram. The insert shell and raise to where the mouth just touches the collar and lower ram pulling bullet. The next round ejects this bullet ( and this down force tends to help break the bond on the round ) and repeat the steps above pushing up thru to case mouth touching then pull bullet. I bought 1 and made a few more using cold roll for the body and ring. .060 thick hard steel banding for the collet. They work fast and easy. If the bore in the collet is cut right and polished there is very little marking on the pulled bullets.

[Johnny_V]

I like to use the RCBS kinetic puller for most of my pulling, but have used the Forster collet puller for over 40 years and it has NEVER failed me.

A little hint when using any kinetic puller, instead of using the 3 piece shoe for grabbing the case rim, use the appropriate shell holder for the case. This saves a ton of time if pulling a lot of bullets.

[M-Tecs]

My favorite is the Forster Superfast (Possum Type) Bullet Puller. It is no longer made but you can still find them on ebay. Used them to pull tens for thousand of 55.6/7.62 for making Mexican match.

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from...uller&_sacat=0

[Soundguy]

Just had some time to set down and pull some 762x54r

Definitely like that hornady cam lock puller. No marks on the projectiles, 5-7 rounds a minute easy. Got to get more collets!

[Reddirt62]

Maybe someday as is I still whack the floor....of course I have had to do a few repairs but still ok.

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[Soundguy]

Ps, I initially tried the collet puller on a lee c press, and switched to my rcbs rock chucker for more leverage/ longer handle.

[Kraschenbirn]

Like most of the responders, I've got both. Haven't had a lot of success pulling boolits with the RCBS collet puller but it's always been satisfactory on JBs. For boolits, it's the good ol' RCBS hammer and the dedicated chunk of white oak cordwood I keep on top the garage tool cabinet. If neither of those work, then it's the Rockchucker and a pair of fence pliers, tossing the pulled projectiles into the 'remelt' can.

Bill

[ikarus1]

I have both types, Hornady cam and FA inertia. I use the FA more than anything else

[David2011]

A little hint when using any kinetic puller, instead of using the 3 piece shoe for grabbing the case rim, use the appropriate shell holder for the case. This saves a ton of time if pulling a lot of bullets.

This is a truly great tip. Someone showed it to me a few years ago and it works great!

Maybe someday as is I still whack the floor....of course I have had to do a few repairs but still ok.

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I hope you wear eye and face protection when you use that. They survive by being flexible and yours now has 4 hard stress points trying to cause it to explode on every impact. They hold up much better when used against end grain wood.

Have gotten along fine w the inertia puller for a long time, obviously not made to do a whole bunch of them at once. Mine has seen better days, how long can plastic hold up to being smacked against concrete that many times.

Press mount there is RCBS, Hornady, and Forster. The Hornady cam system looks easier/faster. Is one better than the other?

Yeah, that concrete thing is a problem as already mentioned. I have a portable post for that purpose. Mine is an RCBS and the nut broke while using it a few years ago. A call to RCBS and they sent a new nut and a collet. No charge. I have the RCBS press mounted puller. It doesn't work with most cast pistol boolits but is a wonderful tool on rifle j-words. I don't think I have ever left a mark on a bullet with it. Like all of my regularly used single stage dies and tools it's in a Lock-n-Load adapter for a fast change. I have 30 or more dies and tools in the Hornady adapters and bushings in all of my presses that will accept them. Worth every penny to me.

[Reddirt62]

It's all good.

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[Tom W.]

I had a FA that shattered in short order. I sent it back and they sent me a new one. That was a lot of years ago. I put an earplug into the hammer so the bullet noses won't get deformed. I have a dedicated end grain piece of wood I use. I also have safety glasses and ear muffs on. That rap is sharp!

[DocSavage]

I've 2 kinetic pullers and use a piece of 4x4 fence post to bang on and off the top of my head had only 2 bullets that I couldn't get to move. Had both for 20 + years.

[John Boy]

I ave the Hornaday cam lock and it crunches a lead bullet and will no remove it. Kinetic puller no issues

[jimkim]

Duplicate please delete

[jimkim]

I use needle nose pliers or a multitool. This is with jacketed bullets only. If I'm pulling them in an aluminium press I use a Lee rifle FCD body to protect the threads. First I bump the bullet with a seater to break the neck tension. Then I raise the ram and lightly squeeze the bullet with the pliers. Then I lower the ram, and the pliers engage the hole and self tighten on the bullet and the case pulls free. If it leaves a mark at all it is usually very light. It only squeezes as hard as is necessary to pull the bullet.

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[Tackleberry41]

Cant complain about the hammer, its the second I bought in the last 30 yrs. First one the rubber rings holding the inserts came apart, so bought another one. It still works, was just considering a press type. The hornady looks a little cheaper as the collets seem to fit a wider range of bullets.