Not sure what I’ve got here

[LittleBill]

Hello all. It’s been a while since I posted. Recently an acquaintance of mine offered up a trade of instruction in my profession for all his reloading equipment, as he doesn’t reload anymore. Yesterday I picked up a whole bunch of boxes and two presses. The boxes are filled with mostly brass and a few odds and ends. The two presses are Star. One is apparently a universal, and the other a lube/sizer.

Both need considerable work, if only getting the surface rust off and getting them adjusted. I’m not even sure where to begin. The universal seems to be set up right now for .357/.38 Special, and I found a plate and one die for .45 ACP, but nothing else.

Are parts still available? Looking at these pics, it is worth it? Part of my job is determining what it’s worth and assigning a value for the instruction that is my part of the bargain. I know he loaded many thousands of rounds with it, but that was a long time ago, and I need to figure out if it’s worth rehabbing, for me or for someone else.

Thanks.

[Markopolo]

well, the star press is very worthwhile.. ebay is your friend for parts and so forth, but looks as though its mostly there... the star sizer isnt worth all that much and are pretty common, but the press is very cool... talk to user "Pressman" and send him a message.. he is our resident expert on vintage things like that..

Marko

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

Is your acquaintance able to give you any instruction on the Universal?
It is surely worth cleaning up, it probably doesn't need anything beyond cleaning.

The Lubesizer is easy, and is the same as the Magma, they are still in business.
http://www.magmaengineering.com/magma-star-lube-sizer/

[rancher1913]

the press has the case feed which adds about 150 bucks to the value, it also has i believe the moon advance mechanism which adds another 150 bucks to the value. the bare press you can pick up for around 400 bucks. a offshoot of star is stil around and parts are available, they will even refurbish the press if you so desire http://starmachineworks.com/index.html

[rbwillnj]

Actually the Reloader is a Phelps, not a Star. Phelps made copies of Stars. Still a good machine. I do rebuild them as well as Stars.

The Lubesizer is a Star. Phelps also made copies of those, but yours is a Star.

[LittleBill]

well, the star press is very worthwhile.. ebay is your friend for parts and so forth, but looks as though its mostly there... the star sizer isnt worth all that much and are pretty common, but the press is very cool... talk to user "Pressman" and send him a message.. he is our resident expert on vintage things like that..

Marko

Thanks Marko!

Is your acquaintance able to give you any instruction on the Universal?
It is surely worth cleaning up, it probably doesn't need anything beyond cleaning.

The Lubesizer is easy, and is the same as the Magma, they are still in business.
http://www.magmaengineering.com/magma-star-lube-sizer/

It is possible. He’s pretty busy for an old guy (as in even older than me). I’m not even sure he’s going to take me up on the time I’m going to owe him.

the press has the case feed which adds about 150 bucks to the value, it also has i believe the moon advance mechanism which adds another 150 bucks to the value. the bare press you can pick up for around 400 bucks. a offshoot of star is stil around and parts are available, they will even refurbish the press if you so desire http://starmachineworks.com/index.html

Thanks for the link and the response!

Actually the Reloader is a Phelps, not a Star. Phelps made copies of Stars. Still a good machine. I do rebuild them as well as Stars.

The Lubesizer is a Star. Phelps also made copies of those, but yours is a Star.

PM inbound. We’re practically neighbors!

[quasi]

well, the star press is very worthwhile.. ebay is your friend for parts and so forth, but looks as though its mostly there... the star sizer isnt worth all that much and are pretty common, but the press is very cool... talk to user "Pressman" and send him a message.. he is our resident expert on vintage things like that..

Marko

the star sizer is worth a fair amount, a new one is pushing $300.00