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Thread: Upside Down boolit sizing press-purpose built, for lee dies

  1. #1
    Boolit Master
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    Upside Down boolit sizing press-purpose built, for lee dies

    UPDATE: Post #50 including videos
    Version 2 with bushings, thrust washers, adjustable linkage, and adjustable handle.


    A number of months back, there was discussion in a couple threads regarding purpose built presses to accept lee bullet sizing dies. Some of us have flipped a cheap lee press and even made brackets to mount them like a traditional press. These are popular with PC or powder coating, but they would likely work if pan or tumble lubing as well.

    I mentioned that I thought I could build such an animal, after seeing one that someone else made and sold a few of (but non longer offers them). There was talk about lee building an upside down press, but I don't know any of the details on it.

    After a little tinkering, cutting, welding, and grinding, tonight I was able to pull mine out of the powder coating oven. Yep......I powder coated my powder coated boolit sizing press.

    Now it is time to cast more boolits and try a few sizes to ensure it work well on everything. It sizes 40 cal on the low force setting, through a clean and dry die. Boolits vary in size, for others, so I may have to cast some real fat ones to try it out. One shot case lube makes it very easy to size boolits but I know some don't like using lube. The handle seems plenty long, but I can make it any length for more or less leverage.



    Click image for larger version. 

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    There is relief for your fingers when dropping boolits in and the handle is a roller style. The purple is transparent so I had to polish the parts with a surface prep disc before coating. It would have looked better with blemish free steel and a real polish job, but it just needed to work. The body is silver vein powder, which is textured. That steel was also blemished when I started. Oak or mahogany would have been nicer for the handle, but poplar was in stock at depot and I didn't want to hit up a wood supplier.

    The base is 3/8" steel plate, 1/4" steel plate for the vertical, linkage, and main arm with the handle frame being 1/8". I like small neat welds, and they are quite strong. I set my tig machine to the middle range with the dial at 100 percent (250 amps) and feathered it until it was almost floored, for the bottom welds. While top range would have given me up to 460 amps to weld that out, it just doesn't have as much force on it as you would think. Even the tack welds on the prototypes held easily.

    This one was made with my CNC plasma table, but the manual lathe and mill. If I make a bunch of them, it might be worth using the CNC mill. The thought was to keep this stupid simple, so I didn't even bother adding any kind of logo, engraving, or fancy edges.

    Would you have designed or built it differently? Any input is appreciated.

    If there is enough interest from people who think they would like a copy of this press, or another variation, I would consider putting some in the for sale section. I still need to test this one more, get feedback, and decide on a price, before I get into that. While this press looks simple, there is a bunch of labor in building it and I'm not sure how much people would be willing to spend on a specialized press.

    Anyway, it was a very fun project and I couldn't wait to share my solution to an upside down single stage.
    Last edited by CGT80; 12-01-2018 at 06:44 PM.

  2. #2
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    RedlegEd's Avatar
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    Hi. Very nice! I’d imagine the interest would be directly proportional to the cost. As you alluded to, many people just buy a cheap Lee press and flip it, so your sell price shouldn’t be too far outside that ballpark. Good luck if you decide to sell them. Ed
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  3. #3
    Boolit Grand Master OS OK's Avatar
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    Very nice craftsmanship. Does the handle get in your way when it's directly in front of the press? Or...sit to one side depending on whether or not your right/left handed?

    I am a fan of the 'upside down press' but I copped out for less work in making one...I concentrated on production instead... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_bhSQvM4xtQ&t=6s
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  4. #4
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    Let me make this suggestion. This is a great idea for sure, as folks have been flipping the Lee press and liking it, and the engineering/fabrication/fit and finish are truly first rate.

    Why not go one step farther and be more inventive, and turn the axis of the lever on a 30 or 45 degree angle to one side, so that the handle swing is out of the immediate path of access to the dies. Leave the center stand as it is, and add a mount point off to the left hand side where the end of the lever will fasten. You could also put the same mount on the opposite side for use by lefties.

    It could even be attached at a full 90 degrees off axis, and you mount the press to the baseplate at a 45, as the user sits at the press, it would sit like an X with the dies on one side and the handle pull on the other. Turn the entire vertical portion 45 degrees and put the handle 90 degrees to the axis of the plate that holds the dies.

    I find myself sitting to the side of the Lee press to operate it, and it takes a lot of repetitive leaning side to side to size boolits. I think if the lever pivoted off center, there would be easier access to the dies (and this is a busy path) and less leaning.
    Last edited by DougGuy; 08-21-2018 at 07:17 AM.
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  5. #5
    Boolit Master
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    I would be very interested in getting one!

  6. #6
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    I would love one as is... work on improving version 2! Price is important, but that does not look very complex or painful to make.

  7. #7
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    I spoke with Lee Precision last year and they told me a dedicated sizer was in the works. One of our members made a few, I got two, that are really nice to use.
    I bet the Lee unit will look similar.
    Click image for larger version. 

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  8. #8
    Boolit Master
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    Love it and yes, very interested. Thanks!!!

    Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

  9. #9
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    I'm in too
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  10. #10
    Boolit Master
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    I would be interested in one as well depending on price

  11. #11
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    I use the H&I die adapter that someone here made or makes. They look like they would work in this design as well. Would be so much easier than doing it all on an RC4. Darn thing is a finger pincher!

  12. #12
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    interested again depending on price

    like idea of angled/offset handle--not sure how you would do that for both lefties and righties unless each was custom welded.

    Think option of ordering a longer handle has merit. With shoulder surgery I find I have lengthen all of my handles to lessen force needed to operate

    I'll be watching for more info
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    I found the Lee classic cast press to be well suited for mounting upside-down, because the handle is reversible as well as adjustable 360º, So NO modifications were needed to the Press. It's strong and has all the mechanical advantage needed for the toughest boolit sizing jobs.



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  14. #14
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    I understand that when Michael Faraday built the first dynamo, a woman asked him what was the point of it. i am wondering the same thing about this well-made gadget, not as criticism, but to enlighten my ignorance. Am I correct in assuming it is for sizing tumble-lubed and powder coated bullets which do not require conventional lubrication as achieved with a sizer-lubricator, and for rapid accomplishment of this task?

  15. #15
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    This will make starting the bullet much easier in the die. Flip it over and it can be a finger pinching fun time with small bullets.

  16. #16
    Boolit Master
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    Quote Originally Posted by OS OK View Post
    Very nice craftsmanship. Does the handle get in your way when it's directly in front of the press? Or...sit to one side depending on whether or not your right/left handed?

    I am a fan of the 'upside down press' but I copped out for less work in making one...I concentrated on production instead... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_bhSQvM4xtQ&t=6s
    That is a slick little tray and tube setup. Nice job!


    The handle does not get in the way. I sit with the press to my right and as the handle is moved down, I reach with my left hand for another boolit. It isn't much different in feel to my RCBS LAM I, other than having a nicer handle.

  17. #17
    Boolit Master
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    A handle to the side is a great idea...........I will have to think about that one.

    Making the handle longer or with multiple holes to be adjustable would be doable, depending on the length needed.

    The other option that I just remembered was a mount to go under this to hang an akro bin or container from. This has not been started yet, but should be a quick project.

    Another person suggested a slider to feed boolits, making it semi automated. A number of others have done that but I don't know if I will pursue that. It is quite involved to make it work for so many bullet profiles.

    Yes, the purpose of this press is to size tumble lube or PC boolits. Others expressed an interest in a dedicated machine that was small, simple, and a more professional looking version of an upside down single stage. Some of the flipped single stage units are a little cumbersome to work around. The lack of availability of that green sizing press is what prompted me to develop my version. It was a fun challenge that I will occasionally use and there seemed to be interest from those who missed out on the green presses. This is a bit of a niche style press, but I always like a better mouse trap and I know there are others who also would prefer something more than a flipped single stage.


    Thanks for the responses and keep them coming. I will put some more work into the suggestions and see if I can come up with a price to do make more of these. Moving some of the work to the cnc mill would be good, but then it means more expense with having my brother set jigs and programing since he owns that machine. If the interest is high enough (higher quantity), cnc milling would pay off and possibly keep costs lower than manual milling.

  18. #18
    Boolit Grand Master
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    Quote Originally Posted by jmort View Post
    I spoke with Lee Precision last year and they told me a dedicated sizer was in the works. One of our members made a few, I got two, that are really nice to use.
    I bet the Lee unit will look similar.
    Click image for larger version. 

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    That is nice.

  19. #19
    Boolit Master
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    I use the Lee "C" press mounted upside down, but am not thrilled with sizing on the upstroke, and don't have the mechanical/machining skills to change the linkage. So, whether red, green or blue, I'd be up for one of these.

  20. #20
    Boolit Master
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    This looks like an answer to something I have been thinking about.
    By using a C&H shell holder on the bottom and drilling and tapping the ram for a 1/4 28 thread, use a decapping stem from an old die, this would make a great dedicated decapping press to keep the carbon, etc. out of my Rock Chuckers. (I de-cap and stainless tumble before brass gets anywhere near my resizing dies)
    Plastic tubing could be used underneath to guide spent primers to a bin underneath thus getting rid of the problem of used primers on the floor from the Rock Chuckers.

    My only two questions are "how did you get the alignment from the shaft to the hole in the base, and how did you keep the base from warping when you welded it, or did you machine flat after welding?

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