Lyman Spartan Refurb

[georgerkahn]

I REALLY like the bolted on lead weight! I have a Lyman Spartan 100% dedicated to decapping; I have a RCBS Universal deprimer die in it, and -- as written -- use it exclusively to pop out the spent primers -- my first operation upon return from the range, or spent brass acquisition. I made a primer catcher from a Kodak film can -- just drilled a hole in bottom to pass the shell-holder and ram through -- but it's handle dropping could, at times, be annoying. Next trip to reloading room -- I surely will give your weight trick as try! THANKS!
georgerkahn

[ndnchf]

georgerkahn - glad you found this helpful. The weight shown is just barely enough to keep the handle up. A little larger would be more positive. You may have to experiment a little. I have to say, I really like this little press!

[Silverboolit]

Beautiful job!! I had one of those many years ago, and if I remember right, the RCBS primer tube/assembly should fit right on the press. Don't remember the part number, but I am sure that it will be obvious which one will work.

[ndnchf]

Thanks silverboolit, i'll look into the primer rod. I gave the press a good work out today and am really liking it. The angled opening takes getting use to, but it is easier to see what's going on. I can see why so many people still like these old presses!

[brstevns]

Was wondering are these little presses strong enough for swageing. Say 22cal thru 25 cal?
Very nice job by the way.

[ndnchf]

Was wondering are these little presses strong enough for swageing. Say 22cal thru 25 cal?
Very nice job by the way.

It's pretty stout and all heavy cast iron. But it does not have the compound linkage of newer presses. I haven't tried any case forming with it, just resizing that was easy enough. Maybe someone else can answer your question.

The real beauty is the ease of use and low cost. I paid $30 for the press and spent under $10 for the paint. That and a little elbow grease was all it took to bring this little gem back to a life of useful service.

[brstevns]

That was my very first press. I believe I ordered it from Gander Mountain back in 1966. Still have it and still use it.Just never tried to swage on it, was just wondering what or if others have? Dog gone that is 50 years ago! I am getting old.

[ndnchf]

I imagine you guys are getting tired of this thread. But I want to show one more thing. There have been several discussions about adding lighting to a press, so I've been thinking about this. I went to my local Harbor Freight store today with my new years day 25% coupon too get a few things. They were also giving away little LED flashlights as freebies. So I got thinking about how to use it on the press. As I strolled the aisles I found a 3 Pak of magnetic spring clips. The largest one held the little light perfectly. At home I tried the magnetic clip, but it wasn't secure enough. But thought about the unused primer rod screw. The magnet was riveted to the lip handle, so I took a dremel and ground it until it popped off. Then drilled the hole 1/4" for the screw. With a flat washer under the screw head and a rubber faucet washer between the clip and the casting for friction, I put it together. With the screw snug, it will pivot for adjustment. It's a simple mod, cost little and it works great.

[Mike Kerr]

Great restoration job. Looks great. Very professional. Thanks, also for the detail of the restoration steps. Those detail steps give the rest of us a guide to use for projects which we might not otherwise try to do.

[ndnchf]

After loading 50 rounds of 32-20 this morning I realized that the handle counterweight was not satisfactory. It was located too close to the pivot point. While it provided some improvement, the handle would still fall down if bumped. Not wanting to alter the press, I reworked the counterweight system by moving the weight to the rear about 3.5" using a steel bar. This works MUCH better, providing positive handle stability, yet not too heavy. The ram will stay in the full up position, but when the ram is down, the handle stays solidly up. The photos explain it pretty well. One note, the notches in the bar around the large hole provide clearance for the base of the casting as it pivots. It took a little trial and error to get the right clearance. I did it with a milling machine, but it could easily be done with a grinder too.

I've read several Spartan and Spar-T threads where this has been an annoying problem. This set up works great and is adjustable by varying the ingot size. It positively solves the handle drop problem.

[RoGrrr]

ndnchf

I'm SO used to seeing Lymans as GRAY so when I saw your refurb in BLACK, I was a bit surprised.
Being left-brained, I don't think out of the box so I hadn't even thought about another color (even tho someone else mentioned ORANGE).

As my good friend, Rocky Balboa said, "I like black bcuz black's my favorite color.

Needless to say, I LIKE IT !

[ndnchf]

RoGrrr - thanks. It's the hammered black that actually looks like a dark gray with the texturing. Since I was making a couple other updates, I figured that a slightly different paint was ok. I'm really pleased with the results and the added light and counterweight really make it a pleasure to use.

[magic mike]

I bought my Spartan back in 1967 and it is still in use today. I have it loaded up with decapping/sizing dies. Still have the original primer catcher and priming system. I did break the handle off a while back but it was easily replaced.

I solved the handle dropping issue by simply sticking a small (3/8" dia x 3/8" L) rare earth magnet on the handle so that it contacts the frame when the handle is in the up position. End of problem.

[ndnchf]

Hey Mike - great idea! It just shows there is more than one way to skin a cat. That handle is solid 1/2" hardened steel. You must have been doing something really tough to snap it off!

[Pressman]

the Spartan handle is weak. The 1/2" thread shank usually breaks at the shoulder. I good friend of mine has a part time job making new handles when Lyman refers people to him when looking for a replacement.

The same problem was common on the RCBS Jr2 till they enlarged the threads to 9/16" and renamed it the Jr3.

Ken

[ndnchf]

the Spartan handle is weak. The 1/2" thread shank usually breaks at the shoulder. I good friend of mine has a part time job making new handles when Lyman refers people to him when looking for a replacement.

The same problem was common on the RCBS Jr2 till they enlarged the threads to 9/16" and renamed it the Jr3.

Ken

I'll keep that in mind if mine breaks!

[Ric-san]

You're Spartan press came out lookin' pretty good...

[OS OK]

That little Spartan is no 'girley' press…she will take it, so...give her a good workout.
Great results…aren't you satisfied with your efforts? I would be!

[ndnchf]

Yeah, I'm pretty pleased. I'll use it for all but the heaviest work. Adding the light and counterweight really improved it for me. It's a pleasure to use now.

[barney67]

Great job on the refurb, really like the color. Thanks for the inspiration, my old Spartan needs some love now.