If you use loadmaster, l@@k below.

[gunoil]

I have 2 loadmasters and have found mikesreloadingbench.com


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JBhm14O2eDA


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tC9Yb1SVZxk


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uWJ5T-gNBKc

Just mail your stuff to mike, call him! Talk to him in texas.

[44Vaquero]

He actually has a couple of very clever ideas for the carrier and shell plate. If I were reloading rifle cartridges on the LM I would most likely do several of his modification's.

I liked his captive priming slider it's a better idea than Lee's push it out and leave it design.

[gunoil]

Yea 44V, but there is so much more and loadmaster wont work less you have em all. And very very affordable. I know i kept adding and when i had all i got the answer i was looking for. Ya have to read careful, there are a bunch. Hes making a youtube soon and i will post. I mail my carrier to him, 1 week turn-a-round. 35$ bucks. The turret stabilizer plate lets you keep same OAL. Lee loadmaster turret moves til you buy this plate and tighten 5 set screws. The magnet mod is great.

[44Vaquero]

Gunoil, The question I have about his carrier mod is this: He is assuming the Ram to Carrier fit is square and true, if it is not will his mod still be effective? If the internal supports vary in height then is it not reasonable to assume that the ledge the ram pushes against may not be true also?

[VHoward]

I wish he had come out and offered this service before I sold the loadmaster I had. It never did prime worth a hill of beans. Too bad that modifications like this are neccesary to make it work.

[44Vaquero]

VHoward,

My son has a 2003 Mustang GT convertable, that has been lowered, oversize exhaust and MAF sensor with a cold air induction pipe and a an after market intake manifold oh and a custom short throw shifter added. It's a shame he had to add all that stuff to make it perform better! Do you see where I am heading with this line of reasoning?

I have never looked a the LM's short comings as impossible challenges that rendered the base unit unusable. Mine is over 20 years old now and still going strong, I have long since lost count of how many rounds it has processed for me.

I applaud Mike's ingenuity and would like to see a side by side comparison of 2 LM's with and with out his modifications.

[VHoward]

That 2003 Mustang came able to transport your son from point a to point b succesfully. Then he customized it to what he wanted. Quite a bit different then a loading press that is supposed to be able to prime a case out of the box and doesn't. I'm not customizing something that already worked properly. I wonder if Lee is even interested in these mods? They would only improve the design of the press. Make it work right out of the box like it's supposed to. Probably not. Probably got their heads stuck in the sand.

[gunoil]

Ditto VH,

Die stabilizer plate gives OAL a home each time.
http://i1113.photobucket.com/albums/k511/putt2012/D8D0A7B6-8CB2-4712-BC86-0CE7E980A141-18049-0000121AA750AF77_zps94684746.jpg

Magic Mike makes great youtubes and his new one should be out end of week i hope.

[gunoil]

Ive did gather these floor mount parts up, just need to install to take cantilever lever pressure away from press.
http://i1113.photobucket.com/albums/k511/putt2012/7BFD2FEC-BE34-4B32-AF3D-0F1BBC4FE183-13419-00001125D0792EE3_zps72b107e7.jpg

A lil' work and a lil' money at mikes shop and you have a wonderful LEE loadmaster.

http://www.mikesreloadingbench.com/



Sig938,xds45,g26,micro deserteagle,P3AT,TCP,LCP,sub2000-40s&w. Thanks!

[shoot-n-lead]

I gave up on my Lee progressives and went Dillon. I wish that Lee would make the work out of the box. I have never owned a Lee press that would prime 50 round without issue. I finally had enough...I hope your mods work.

[VHoward]

I gave up on my Lee progressives and went Dillon. I wish that Lee would make the work out of the box. I have never owned a Lee press that would prime 50 round without issue. I finally had enough...I hope your mods work.

I had no problem with priming on their single stage or classic turret presses. I agree that Lee should make the priming system work right out of the box with out needing modified. I too ended up going to Dillon for my progressive press. I have a square deal b and an xl650. I still have my Lee classic cast single stage and breechlock challenger single stage presses. I wore out the challenger, love the classic cast.

[gunoil]

Iam prob buying a dillon 1050 in next few months. Watchin it is like the state fair in your garage,heheheh!

But, thanks to magic mike the "lee loadmaster" has become a must and usefull around garage. Plus its a "treat" to see one work. really!

I mailed carrier and L&S primer trought's to mike and bought a few die plate stabilizer plates from him and your done with what he mail's you back. Love it.

[magic mike]

Hello All,

New to this forum however I have been reading it for some time. Sounds like my friend gunoil has been talking about me and some of the things I do with my LM press and other things on my website. He suggested that I post this video so you all can see what I have to offer. Hope it clears up any questions you might have. I was told by YouTube that this video would not be visible on mobile devices but luckily some are able to see it.


http://youtu.be/0Y6d2SWzKR4

[44Vaquero]

Hi Mike!

It's great to see people who see value in the Load Master and work to improve it vs. just complaining! I have owned mine since they came out and never seen fit replace it with anything else. I think your solutions are simple and effective. Your primer slide modification works very well, since Lee no longer sells just the slider it is a viable option.

The questions I still have relate to the carrier mod is this: What if the Ram to Carrier fit is not square and true, will the mod still be effective? If the internal supports vary in height then is it not reasonable to assume that the ledge the ram pushes against may not be true also? My ram cylinder was not square and true 20 years ago, it and the carrier did not mate squarely.

I do not mind tinkering with the equipment, to me it's an enjoyable part of the hobby!

P.S. I also gave you a plug on FB's The Reloading Room group. Hope you don't mind.

[magic mike]

Hello 44Vaquero.

Thanks for the kind words. There comes a time when you have to extend a little trust and just work with what you have. In the case of the LM carrier when I look at the serration marks left in it by the end of the ram I trust that the ram is in fact cut squarely. I lap the base of the carrier to make sure it is flat and that becomes the zero point for milling the tops of the carrier webs. The main reason to cut the webs is to make sure that they all make contact with the shell plate so it doesn't wobble. It really doesn't make any difference if the carrier sits perfectly on top of the ram when it comes to controlling COAL problems but it does make a difference if the shell plate tips back and forth on the uneven webs.

I hope I answered your question. I believe that anything I can do to reduce how much anything moves around during the loading process is a good thing. A little thing here and a little thing there, before you know it's all good.

Thanks for the plug. I can use all the help I can get!

[r1kk1]

Mike

Your video works on the iPad and iPhone.

Your press appears rock solid. That really helps!

Take care

r1kk1

[VHoward]

It may seem that i complained. My beef is that when you buy a brand new item, it should work like advertised without having to modify it to work. If I still had my loadmaster, I would be all over having Mike do the mods to get it to work properly. I think it's great that someone has come along to offer this service. When I sold my loadmaster, I made it a point to tell the guy I had problems with the primer system. He was OK with it and I sent him the spare parts I had for the pimer system also.

Now that mike is around to do some mods, if I come across an awesome deal on a loadmaster, I'll get it. I liked most everything about the loadmaster. Just didn't deal well with the priming frustration.

[44Vaquero]

Mike,

Thanks for the info on cutting/truing the carrier. Funny thing I was looking at my original primer pins and they are ground flat, being one of the 1st LM's sold I wonder if they changed them as production ramped up? Unlike many others I have never had any priming issues that were not caused by operator errors.

Keep an eye out for a turret stabilizer order heading your way soon as the paycheck clears!:awesome:

The video works on my windows phone just fine.


VHoward,

Really my comment was more general and not directed at you. Over the years I have helped many people get their Load Master's and Pro 1000's up and running correctly and fully understand that they can be extremely frustrating.

[VHoward]

I only wish I had found a solution. I am the type who will try the low cost way first. Most times they work, sometimes they don't. I had sold my loadmaster shortly before I found this forum I believe.

[gunoil]

Nother great video, this ones on 9mm.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=jU6Kb0jSono

[wb_carpenter]

Seems like good work being done here.

Maybe ask him(or if he's still in here) if he ever plans on doing some work with the pro 1000? It's a similar system and his mods may crossover.

[44Vaquero]

WB, I was actually thinking the same thing. I would like to see if he would be willing to do a run of Stabilizer Plates for the Pro-1000 3 hole turret. The 3 hole turret does move up and down quite a lot.

[gunoil]

Mike is most always in his shop ,a retired engineer. Call him up on the phone. Tell him what u want.

[3006mv]

In the first video where did he get his green bullets from? Sounds like he said youbullets.net

[Mike Hughes]

In the first video where did he get his green bullets from? Sounds like he said youbullets.net

He might have got those green boolits from gunoil. They look like the Hi-Tek coating, gunoil started a thread on the Hi-Tek, it's a sticky in the boolit lube section at the top of the page. I use the coating on all my pistol caliber, no more leading, smoke, or mess. Good stuff!
He probably said bayoubullets.net, they sell the coating, which is imported from Australia

[gunoil]

yea, 3006mv, bayoubullets.net

You've heard of "Jerry Miculek"? His family owns bayoubullets.net. Call: "donnie miculek". swamprat. You can also watch Jerry's many youtubes/a world champion shooter.

Case lube 5000
Mold lube 500
Many colors of bullet coatings
T-shirts

This stuff along with mikesreloadingbench.com has really cleaned up my presses, drop dies, drop tubes,and my skin,etc.. Kinda like wealthy people with dillons and FMJ's. hehehe.


Yea, and its lots of fun. "its shake-n-bake mama".

[JeffG]

I just purchased a slightly used (500 rounds) Loadmaster from a friend at a nice price so I can pick up the pace on 9mm. I noted a couple issues pretty quick with setup, one being the indexing was mis-adjusted just a little causing the indexer to bind against the frame as you started lowering the carrier from the top position and it interfered with the first support rib. I also noted the carrier plate had a little too much slop in it and was able to adjust that pretty quick too. I'm planning on decapping with the universal decapper and capping with the Lee Ram Prime on the single stage , which I like a lot due to the feel seating primers, then on the LM, put the sizing die in Stage 1 minus the decapping pin, Lyman M Die in Stage 2, a case activated Hornady LNL PM in Stage 3, Seating die in Stage 4 and Taper Crimp in Stage 5, with no crimp applied, just iron out any remaining flair from the M die. I'm using cast TL356-124-TC and like the M die a lot. I plan on manually feeding the cases and bullets. I'm looking forward to getting this thing cleaned up, lubed and mounted to the bench. I hope it all works out, I was itching for a Dillon BL-550 but could not pass up the deal.

[smilie=p:

[gunoil]

Jeffg, did u read whole thread? Your sure throwing the loadmaster out with the dishwater. For bout 70$ bucks u can have a great loadmaster for 9mm with casefeed and primer system that works. You should call mike in dallas an talk to him. He's retired engineer an loves to help members/loaders with loadmasters

mikesreloadingbench.com

I bought all his stuff. You will have to mail your carrier and primer trough to mike, real quick turn-a-round and cheap.

And this is old vid without alot of mikes stuff, You should see it now.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uWJ5T-gNBKc

http://i1113.photobucket.com/albums/k511/putt2012/null_zps0e7e384d.jpg

http://i1113.photobucket.com/albums/k511/putt2012/null_zps788322be.jpg



xds,sig938,lcp,tcp,p3at,g26,sub2000,micro deserteagle

[flyin bryan]

absolutely love my loadmaster. the biggest issues I ever had with it, like most I guess, was with priming. more often than not it was due to the case keepers being out of adjustment causing the case to be out of position. pretty much runs flawlessly if the priming system is properly setup and the keepers are adjusted properly.

the case feeder is awesome. it works perfectly out of the box for 45lc and 45 acp. I had a few problems making some rifle rounds feed consistently so I made a little riser device that bolts between the two halves of the feeder pusher to essentially just make it taller, and it works 100 percent. literally cant remember the last case feeder misfeed I had and ive had the press for at least 5-6 years.

properly lubed and set up, its one slick running little motor scooter. I can load 80 45acp (that's how many 45acp cases mine holds) in 5 minutes and change.

currently loading 223, 45acp, 45lc, and 30-06 for a couple of beautiful cmp m1 garands.

[gunoil]

Fbryan, check out mike's site and call him, hes retired engineer and can really give you some helpful tips for your loadmaster. What makes loadmaster smoother is a whole bunch of lil' things. With his mods (dirt cheap) you are better off for a bunch of reasons i did not understand till i got involved. You prob already checked out loadmasterforum.

[timtonya]

Why waste the money to do mods? When you can buy a 550 and IT works like it should out of the box. Im glad I sold my loadmaster boat anchor.

[44Vaquero]

Thanks for stopping by loved your positive energy!

Sigh! If you don't have anything positive to add, just move along with out comment. The Op's original post is about helping people who have chosen to continue working with and improving the Load Master.

Just trolling and baiting with snarky comments does nothing to further the discussion, other then boosting your post count. Just another name to add to the ignore list that's all.

[timtonya]

Anytime. Im glad I could help

[r1kk1]

Hey 44 Vaquero,

Would Lee be receptive to incorporate Mike's modifications? I mean for them to incorporate them in the future?

I wish they would release a Classic Cast version of the Load-All with toolheads of different gauges.

Take care,

r1kk1

[44Vaquero]

r1kk1,

According to my contact the product development team is working on several new ideas based on the 4 Hole Classic Cast platform. What they are has not been revealed. I had mentioned in passing that I was looking at building a Frankenstein Pro-1000 on a Classic Cast Chassis. My thinking being it would provide a much more robust platform than the aluminum unit. It has apparently been a popular thought recently.

So maybe a 4 hole Pro might be in development???? One thing I have noted is the feed angle on the Safety prime is much steeper vs. the feed troughs on the Pro and LM. I am thinking the next generation of Lee progressives will follow suit.

We have to wait and see!

[blikseme300]

Glad I read through this thread as I have a LM which is gathering dust and needs a working over to be useful. I have replaced the primer system 3 times and never could get the case feeder to work reliably. I have 5 Pro-100's that run perfectly after some tuning but never could get the LM to work properly.

I essentially switched to Hornady progressives and now have 6 on my bench along with 2 SDB presses. The LM is the only press I could never get to work right and have considered dumping it in the trash. I like and use many Lee products but this unit has been my only lemon in the bunch.

I am quite capable with machine tools and have fabricated many reloading tools and accessories but the LM taunts me. I'll contact Mike and work at getting this gorilla off my back.

[gunoil]

blikeseme, yep hes home rite now, almost always answers phone less he at store or something. You will be happy. I have twin loadmasters working incredible 380's/9's & 45's.

http://i1113.photobucket.com/albums/k511/putt2012/D53DA729-6F70-4B5B-9A13-3AEAE5AA74ED-4696-00000505EC32BEE3_zpse052cfa1.jpg

NEWER PHOTO.
http://i1113.photobucket.com/albums/k511/putt2012/null_zps6fe8b15d.jpg

[JeffG]

Yes, I read the whole thread. Understand there I some things I want to do a certain way. I doin't want to use the case feeder or primer feeder. I prefer top decap and cap separately and don't care that I could do it on the LM. Also, I am using an M die for cast bullets and a hornady case activated measure. I'm very satified with what it's producing at this point.

Have a good weekend


Jeffg, did u read whole thread? Your sure throwing the loadmaster out with the dishwater. For bout 70$ bucks u can have a great loadmaster for 9mm with casefeed and primer system that works. You should call mike in dallas an talk to him. He's retired engineer an loves to help members/loaders with loadmasters

mikesreloadingbench.com

I bought all his stuff. You will have to mail your carrier and primer trough to mike, real quick turn-a-round and cheap.

And this is old vid without alot of mikes stuff, You should see it now.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uWJ5T-gNBKc

http://i1113.photobucket.com/albums/k511/putt2012/null_zps0e7e384d.jpg

http://i1113.photobucket.com/albums/k511/putt2012/null_zps788322be.jpg



xds,sig938,lcp,tcp,p3at,g26,sub2000,micro deserteagle

[gunoil]

blikseme300, he finished the new long wedge bars, i bought 2.

[timtonya]

Hey 44vaquero..... thought we still lived in america and had freedom of speech.... oh wait... I forget... obama is in office and is slowly taking that away too.. woops... my bad folks. Btw im not trolling around and baiting comments. Its freedom of speech.

[VHoward]

If I still had my loadmaster, I would be all over these mods. I just don't see the purpose of an auto progressive if your not going to prime on it also. I did sell what was a boat anchor to me at the time and moved on to a machine that did work properly. Glad somebody out there offers solutions to the priming problem.

[gunoil]

What⬆he said. Iam real happy with mm mods. And yes, case and primer feed is for progresssive.
If not: by this
http://i1113.photobucket.com/albums/k511/putt2012/null_zpsac980066.jpg

I doo wish loadmaster was 6 hole.