KCSO
09-03-2013, 12:26 PM
I recently converted my double linkage Tru Line to 7/8-14 thread so I could use it to load samll pistol calibers. First a warning, the Tru Line isn't storng enough to load rifle calibers unless you neck size only, and I wouldn't do this to a single leverage press as they are neck size for pistol too.
That said it wasn't too bad a job taking about 2 hours of lathe time and a good 4 jaw chuck. I started by mounting the plate on center in the 4 jaw and used the back or bottom face of the plate to true up the front of the plate and remove the little humps for the small dies. This left me with a smooth topped plate with the center shank the same size as the top washer (1.440 this clears Lee lock rings) . I then centered each of three holes and bored them out to .780 and then roughed in the threads on the lathe. I then cleaned up the threads with a 7/8-14 tap and painted the top red to match my Spar T. The turning down of the center hole exposes the spring recess for the detent spring so I turned a samll guide to fit in the hole and drilled it out to take a new 1/4" spring, leaving room to let the ball ride up in the recess. It works like a champ and makes a dandy turret press now for all the samll pistol calibers. If anyone want's to do this I have the pictures of the finished plate and dimensions of the parts handy.
I left my plate with one standard tru line hole as I have a universal decapper I run in that hole.
That said it wasn't too bad a job taking about 2 hours of lathe time and a good 4 jaw chuck. I started by mounting the plate on center in the 4 jaw and used the back or bottom face of the plate to true up the front of the plate and remove the little humps for the small dies. This left me with a smooth topped plate with the center shank the same size as the top washer (1.440 this clears Lee lock rings) . I then centered each of three holes and bored them out to .780 and then roughed in the threads on the lathe. I then cleaned up the threads with a 7/8-14 tap and painted the top red to match my Spar T. The turning down of the center hole exposes the spring recess for the detent spring so I turned a samll guide to fit in the hole and drilled it out to take a new 1/4" spring, leaving room to let the ball ride up in the recess. It works like a champ and makes a dandy turret press now for all the samll pistol calibers. If anyone want's to do this I have the pictures of the finished plate and dimensions of the parts handy.
I left my plate with one standard tru line hole as I have a universal decapper I run in that hole.