Advice please

[gpidaho]

I'd like to ask the group what you are using to tap the center hole in your wads and cards when attaching tail wads to the slugs. I have been using wooden blocks with the appropriate slot cut in them to hold an empty hull in an adjustable vice like the one's used on a vertical mill. I shorten the empty hull and hold it firmly under the chuck of my table top drill press and insert the wad in this shortened hull to hold it and try my best to get the pilot hole for the screw centered. This works Ok some of the time but the small bit does tend to wander a bit off center. I'm hoping one of you know some sort of a clamp or center pilot set-up to get the pilot hole perfectly centered in the wads and cards. If you do, please enlighten me. Thank you Gp

[W.R.Buchanan]

Gp: I have been cogitating on this as well and since I have a machine shop I have a variety of ways I can approach this problem.

The best way I would try first is to chuck the wads up in a collet and drill them in the lathe That way you are assured of getting the hole centered.

The secret with small drills is to either chuck them up really short or make a shroud for the drill out of a piece of aluminum round stock, by drilling thru it with said drill and just letting the drill stick out a little. Essentially like chucking the drill up short with only a little bit sticking out of the chuck. This is called "making a stub drill."

You could put the wad into a hull and then make a bushing with the drill hole thru the center (made on a lathe) and the same dia as the inside of the hull and that could get you there. Start with a piece of 3/4" round stock about 3/4" long with a 1/16" hole drilled thru the center would be about the simplest way I can see. You might have to make several with different OD's to accommodate various hulls.

Trying to do it on a drill press without a jig or fixture of some type to hold the hull in the same place every time is a waste of time, and even then, finding the center in the first place is going to be difficult. The wads are flexible and therein lies the problem with locating them in a repeatable fashion. They need to be completely surrounded by whatever you are clamping them in so they can't distort.

I'll think on it some more.

Randy.

[gpidaho]

Thanks for the reply Randy. I think I'll shorten a bit up so just a very small amount sticks out of the chuck like you've mentioned. No lathe here so I need to find a workaround. I'd love to have a small lathe but at my age it's a little late to start in on a new and expensive hobby. With my love of gadgets and tooling in general I can see myself spending thousands of dollars to make ten cent widgets. LOL. Like you said, it's hard to get something repetitive set up because of the flex and a lot of the wads are either domed or concave right where I'm trying to get the bit to start. On the BPI brush wads I'm using there is a small nipple in the bottom center. I've been thinking of maybe a HOT pin of some sort at this spot to make an indent to pilot the drill bit. It's going to take some more thought. Thanks Gp

[JBinMN]

Maybe using a "pen type" soldering iron with the hot pointed tip to make your start divot/dimple, like when one uses a center punch?

https://www.harborfreight.com/30-wat...CABEgKNvfD_BwE

Or, even a center punch?
https://www.harborfreight.com/spring...punch-621.html

Both are less than $5.00 it looks like at HF.

"I" would try those first, since I already have them & have used them for other things where the drill bit wants to wander.

Just trying to help & not be too costly.


G'Luck!

[Petander]

I'd love to have a small lathe but at my age it's a little late to start in on a new and expensive hobby. With my love of gadgets and tooling in general I can see myself spending thousands of dollars to make ten cent widgets. LOL.

It's never too lathe to get a lathe.

[gpidaho]

Petander: Well, I have no proper female supervision so I guess there would be no scrap about wasting money. LOL As things are , a room and a half of my house and a built on 5' X 16' shed are clear full of reloading tooling. I just don't know where I'd find room for a machine shop. Gp

[gpidaho]

Thanks JB. That little hot poker is kind of what I was thinking. I have that exact center punch but with the rounded surfaces it's as hard to use as the drill. Gp

[gpidaho]

I think I'll try to find one of those drill bits that have that little starter point screw in the middle of the tip that fits tightly in the primer pocket hole of a deprimed case. Holding the wad down tightly inside the empty hull and running the bit in should give a centered start point. It would take a fine touch so as not to go too deep. Gp

[longbow]

I bored a piece of pipe nipple to wad size (yes, crude I know but it already had a large hole in it so less machining than solid bar) and made a close fitting insert with a hole through it to fit a 3" finishing nail (about 1/8" diameter IIRC) that has been machined to sharp conical point.

I punch the wads then push into the bored pipe nipple, drop in the insert with finishing nail (crude punch), push down to settle wads then whack the finishing nail with a hammer. That punches through 1 polyethylene disk, 2 felt disks and a second polyethylene disk all in one go. Then I pull the insert and nail out, put a Robertson head screw on the screwdriver and run it through the wads still in the tube, set a slug over the end and push it into the tube to center then run the screw into the slug... all items in line.

If all this works out and Lee slug accuracy is improved by Brenneke'izing I will add a center punch with spring eject to my wad punch so all punched wads will come with a center punched hole so less handling and easier.

If this doesn't work out then I'm back to hot melt glue tail wads!

Longbow

[W.R.Buchanan]

If you guys are punching a small hole with a hot nail or needle that's all you need. You are going to use a Wood Screw or other similar screw with a tapered point and the poly of the wad will give way and the screw will thread in easily. No need to drill after pushing the hot needle in just screw in the screw and be done with it.

All the small hole is doing is acting like a pilot drill to locate the hole in the center.. The screw is the actual drill. If you can hit the teat in the center of the wad with a hot needle you will probably be close enough to attach the wad, or wad package.

Randy

[JBinMN]

In a pinch, heating up a 4d ( 4 penny) finishing nail with a propane torch held in a pair of vice grips will likely do the job of making the divot/dimple, if a pen type soldering iron is not available.

Once again, just tossing out ideas & trying to help.

I have not gone into loading up slugs much yet. I have only loaded up about 25 Lee 1oz. slug shells so far & have not done anything like screwing or gluing wads to the base yet. I have done more shotshell reloading in the past. As a matter of fact, loading shotshells on a MEC reloading press is how I began reloading anything back in the 70's.
But I am reading up on you folks doings & trying to get ideas before I get into slug reloading more. I am just adding in ideas & suggestions from past life experiences that are similar to what is being asked about. Hope no one minds me doing that anyway.
I get to learn, participate a bit in the discussions & maybe even help out, all at the same time.


Seems good to me anyway.

[W.R.Buchanan]

I am just adding in ideas & suggestions from past life experiences that are similar to what is being asked about. Hope no one minds me doing that anyway. I get to learn, participate a bit in the discussions & maybe even help out, all at the same time.
Seems good to me anyway.

JB: that's what it's all about here.

Randy

[gpidaho]

JB: Your input is much appreciated. When you have many minds working on a problem, you get different points of view and the benefit of a lot of life experiences. This forum gives us all access to the broader wealth of knowledge. I just started this shotgun slug loading a short while ago and with the help of friends, I'm enjoying throwing ounces instead of grains. This adds a few more jokers to the deck incase your growing bored with hitting what your shooting at. LOL Gp

[JBinMN]

Thanks!
I am glad to help when I can.