Herter's Super Model 3?

[thehouseproduct]

Is this press strong enough for swaging 224 bullets?

[Pressman]

Yes, Herter's made 7/8-14 dies for small caliber rifle bullets. You could use your Lachmiller also. I have one a previous owner lengthend the handle on to get better leverage for swaging. A lot of old timers would slip a piece of pipe over the handle to reduce the effort.
Remember the Herter's and Lac both use the 4 to 1 Pacific type linkage.

RCBS presses with their swing arms are better.
Ken

[ANeat]

FWIW swaging 224 bullets doesent take a great deal of effort. Any standard single stage reloading press should be up to the task.

The larger calibers take a lot more "pressure"

[Ervin]

I have a lot of experience with these presses. I can't remember how many of these I have seen with broken or repaired handles. The press is very strong but the handle isn't. I have been reloading for fifty years and I have used just about every press made. Hope this helps.
Ervin

[STP22]

I had an extra one here that was bought by a fella that wanted to use it for swaging...he wanted to "learn" how. Told him that I doubted that it would tolerate his efforts. Sure enough, the press broke early on in his efforts.:(

[BwBrown]

I have, over the years, owned a bunch of Herter's stuff - LOVED that old Catalog! I still use a Super 3 on my bench, rock solid, fairly short stroke, makes loading a few hundred fairly easy - no shoulder aches form repetitive motion.

I have two more on the shelf below the bench for good measure. My son wants one - THAT is a test of love.

All that said, it is a super strong, heavy reloading press. I've seen guys working hard, pipe extensions, etc trying to swage bullets - with some limited success. I guess the press itself is strong enough, but the leverage is light and the handle is cast. ANY flaw in the casting, and that skinny cast handle is toast.

Even old Mr. Herter sold two or three other presses advertised for swaging. You can screw a swaging die into a reloading press, but that doesn't make it an ideal swaging press. It always goes better when you are able to use the right tools for the job.

Bob

[oldtoolsniper]

I own four and I have two broken handles from my swaging efforts with a four foot cheater bar. The nice thing about them is the ram does not use a standard shell holder and making inserts for the ram is simple on the most elementary metal lathe.

[BwBrown]

The handles do seem to be the weak link.

You could replace the handle with a (longer) length of square stock, drill holes for the pins. I suspect the next part to break would be the pins themselves.

Fix the pins and you'll blow the bottom off the press were the pin holes weaken the casting.

The Super 3 is a great reloading press - light swaging with partial jackets. Any more stress than that and you'll end up breaking things and hurting people. Compared to the cost of dies and jackets (if you buy them), the cost of a used press heavy enough for swaging is minimal. Most of them will also serve well as reloading presses.

Bob

[buck1]

WOW! I wouldnt haved belived it (past) . The cast iron handle seems very strong . I guess its too hard to flex?