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Thread: Case kicker for single stage press

  1. #1
    Boolit Grand Master uscra112's Avatar
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    Case kicker for single stage press

    I've seen elaborate mechanisms designed to flip a sized case out of the shell-holder on the down-stroke, to speed up single stage press operations, but none can beat this one. And the cost was essentially zero - just one used-up hacksaw blade and a machinists clamp from the toolbox.

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    Cognitive Dissident

  2. #2
    Boolit Buddy Tazlaw's Avatar
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    I was gonna try and make one myself in the morning. Does yours work well? For rifle and pistol cases?
    Just knowing enough to do it, is not enough to do it right! -Taz

  3. #3
    Boolit Grand Master Bazoo's Avatar
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    Thanks for sharing. I also not you've used a magnet to hold your shellholders on the side of the press. Thanks for that tip too!

  4. #4
    Boolit Grand Master uscra112's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Tazlaw View Post
    I was gonna try and make one myself in the morning. Does yours work well? For rifle and pistol cases?
    All pistol cases and the shorter rifle cases, like .223/5.56 family. The only secret, if there is one, is getting the curl at the tip just right, so that it rides over the joint between the ram and the shell-holder smoothly. You pull the ram all the way down to eject, then raise it about an inch-and-a-half to feed the next one in, so longer cases like .308 and up are a bit troublesome to insert. I can do about 12 pistol cases a minute once I get the rhythm going. There's a bucket on the floor with a foam pad for them to drop into. The biggest holdup now is stopping to vacuum spent primers out of that little white plastic tray. It will only hold about 100 or so.

    BTW if you look close at the first picture, you can see a bit of brass tubing wedged into the slot where the primer arm would normally ride. That guides the spent primers into the tray instead of spilling them all over the floor. There's another piece in the slot in the ram that guides them to the bottom of the slot. Unfortunately that makes the passageway too small for large primers; they jam up in it easily
    Cognitive Dissident

  5. #5
    Boolit Grand Master uscra112's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Tazlaw View Post
    I was gonna try and make one myself in the morning. Does yours work well? For rifle and pistol cases?
    All pistol cases and the shorter rifle cases, like .223/5.56 family. The only secret, if there is one, is getting the curl at the tip just right, so that it rides over the joint between the ram and the shell-holder smoothly. You pull the ram all the way down to eject, then raise it about an inch-and-a-half to feed the next one in, so longer cases like .308 and up are a bit troublesome to insert. I can do about 12 pistol cases a minute once I get the rhythm going. There's a bucket on the floor with a foam pad for them to drop into. The biggest holdup now is stopping to vacuum spent primers out of that little white plastic tray. It will only hold about 100 or so.

    BTW if you look close at the first picture, you can see a bit of brass tubing wedged into the slot where the primer arm would normally ride. That guides the spent primers into the tray instead of spilling them all over the floor. There's another piece in the slot in the ram that guides them to the bottom of the slot. Unfortunately that makes the passageway too small for large primers; they jam up in it easily. Not much of my reloading uses large primers, so it doesn't bother me.
    Cognitive Dissident

  6. #6
    Boolit Master
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    I still have one that RCBS made years ago that worked the same way. Apparently it didn't catch on as I haven't seen them advertised for quite some time.
    BIG OR SMALL I LIKE THEM ALL, 577 TO 22 HORNET.

  7. #7
    Boolit Master




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    Excellent idea! Very much like the older RCBS "Case Kicker" that is kind of rare now. I have gotten to where I use thumb and forefinger to load, and ring finger to flip out of the shellholder into a bin mounted on my bench next to the press.
    You can miss fast & you can miss a lot, but only hits count.

  8. #8
    Boolit Bub
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    Nice work. Of course I thought I was so inventive when I took a thicker piece of brass and did this same thing. Had never come across someone else doing it, would later come across many sources. Nothing new under the sun of course. I ended up going back to the green primer catch tray because the time saved with the kicker weighed less than the feeling of having a bunch of spent primers all over the floor and having to clean them up.

  9. #9
    Boolit Master Baltimoreed's Avatar
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    Clever idea. I built this mod for both of my Lyman turrets. The case kicker on my mod is thumb operated, it’s the spring loaded arm on the rt side side, just bump it with your rt thumb. The reloads slide down the chute into a Dillon plastic box. Primers drop into the T2 primer catcher with a hole in the bottom and go through tubing into a pill bottle. I can easily keep up with my Dillon 550. The 550 is located on the other side of the box so it drops loads to the right as normal while my Lyman kicks cases to the left. I prime on my presses.

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  10. #10
    Boolit Master pertnear's Avatar
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    I've made a couple of these when the need came up. I used metal strapping from pallets. I've also used the metal off of a large hose clamp. Both work great with just enough spring. Never thought of using an old hacksaw blade. Great idea, thanks for sharing!
    Hard times create strong men, strong men create good times, good times create weak men, and weak men create hard times.

  11. #11
    Boolit Mold
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    I made mine this way, see the link : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VMflQJ-MMEI

    Its operated by the handle.

    Just another idea

  12. #12
    Boolit Grand Master
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    Quote Originally Posted by robinver34 View Post
    I made mine this way, see the link : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VMflQJ-MMEI

    Its operated by the handle.

    Just another idea
    Thanks for sharing...nice design
    Don Verna


  13. #13
    Boolit Master


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    I have one of the original RCBS Case Kickers.
    I bought my friend’s Rock Chucker press just so I could install the Case Kicker and put up with the primer problem for over 30 years until one day I stumbled on a 3D printed primer catcher that was installed on the back of the ram and caught the primers and diverted them to the left side of the press for $20!
    Much joy using the press now!
    I had to replace the spring part after 30 years and used a piece of bandsaw blade with the teeth ground off.

  14. #14
    Boolit Bub
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    I made a very simple yet effective case kicker for free for my RCBS rockchucker press.

    Used a piece of wire coat hanger. Cut and bent the wire coat hanger to appropriate shape and then attached to the primer arm. When press bottoms out coat hanger presses casing out of the shell holder. Worked perfect on 9mm and 45acp. Didnt try it on any other calibers.

    Really speeds up the depriming process. I wet tumble so deprime the brass before wet tumbling to decrease the amount of lead/dirtiness in the water after tumbling.


    Can post a pic if anyone is interested.

  15. #15
    Boolit Grand Master uscra112's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by ridenclimb View Post
    I made a very simple yet effective case kicker for free for my RCBS rockchucker press.

    Used a piece of wire coat hanger. Cut and bent the wire coat hanger to appropriate shape and then attached to the primer arm. When press bottoms out coat hanger presses casing out of the shell holder. Worked perfect on 9mm and 45acp. Didnt try it on any other calibers.

    Really speeds up the depriming process. I wet tumble so deprime the brass before wet tumbling to decrease the amount of lead/dirtiness in the water after tumbling.


    Can post a pic if anyone is interested.
    I think I can imagine how that works, but a pic or two would be golden.
    Cognitive Dissident

  16. #16
    Boolit Master
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    My case kicker is the first and middle finger and thumb of my left hand. I install the shell holder 180* from normal and put a plastic tub behind the press to catch the brass. I pick up a lubed case, push the sized case out with the back of my two fingers, insert the unsized case, size, repeat.

    My primary press is an old Schissel H-type that I bought in 1963, or so, and has loaded an untold number of rounds over the years. The above system works especially well with the H-type press but when I need to use the Rock Chucker for whatever reason, it works as well but I usually just put a cloth on the floor and let the cases fall instead of catching in a plastic tub. The shell holder is installed with the opening to the right. I did have an occasional dented case mouth from the fall to the floor when a case would land on another, so rigged a "ramp" using a coffee can lid for the case to land on and then roll out of the way.

    Cheap and no fitting, tweaking or adjustment necessary.
    When it's time to fight, you fight like you are the third monkey on the ramp to Noah's Ark.... and brother, it's STARTING TO RAIN!!

  17. #17
    Boolit Grand Master uscra112's Avatar
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    I'll have to try that trick! I imagine it will take some practice.
    Cognitive Dissident

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Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check