New Press

[robertbank]

"She who knows best", just bought me a RCBS Rock Chuker Supreme press. Got it at Cabellas great price. The press is larger than my old Rock Chucker I sold years ago. Seem to be built as strong or stronger BUT I have to say who ever designed the priming method on this press must have been on Crack with a stale can of warm Miller in his hand. RCBS you go from a very simple straight forward priming system that worked great on the old Rock Chucker to this! Obviously speed, convenience and ease of operaton were low on somebody's check list.

Am I wrong on the priming method on this press? Thoughts?

Well I intend to size all my rifle brass on this press and that will be pretty much it. I can then set up my Dillon to bell, prime the case in Station 1, powder in 2, seater in 3 and crimp tool in four. Should work just great. I know about the hand seating tool but prefer to use my presses.

Take Care

Bob

[shotstring]

I've always used the RCBS Automatic Priming Tool with my single stage presses. I prefer it to the hand priming tools. Works fast and reliably. I let the press do everything else but the priming. All my progressives are Dillons, so primer feed can be a little tricky on the 550 but the big 1050 has been a dream for primer feeding and reliability.

[johnp]

The very first time I reloaded I used the priming system mounted on the press, after that I bought a Lee hand primer and after about 3 shipments from Lee to make it work I have never primed on a press since with the excepting of using my Piggyback.

[creekwalker]

I've never used the RCBS press based primer system, just didn't like it so I've used hand held primer tools. I haven't tried the ASP system though. IMO the RockChucker is and always has been in a class by itself. It's that good. Mine is at least 37 years old and still with me.

Creekwalker

[robertbank]

shotstring - The Supreme Press apparently can't be used with the RCBS Automatic Priming Tool. When I had the old Rockchucker Press I used the auto priming tool that came with the press. It was easy to use. The new press requires the dexterity of a watch maker. I suppose it is a way for RCBS to sell their hand priming tool. I intend to use the Supreme Press to re-size my cases and I'll prime and bell my cases on my Dillon 550 in Stage 1.

creekwalker - If ever we meet you have my permission to kick my in the butt for being so stupid as to sell my old Rockchucker.:mrgreen:

Take Care

Bob

[Marshal Kane]

Have the RCBS standard priming tool bolted to my bench in conjunction with my Rockchucker. The priming tool is simple, inexpensive, and sensitive enough to feel the primers bottom. Works even smoother with a light coat of grease on the cam. Priming is done with a downstroke on the handle which is a natural motion for most of us. Enjoy your new press, it's a "keeper".

[Lloyd Smale]

never liked any priming system that came on a single stage press. Most of them you have to handle primers buy hand and i dont like touching primers. Probably doesnt hurt them but ive allways worried about contaminating them.

[Sundogg1911]

If I am priming on one of my single stage presses, I usually use a Lee Ram prime. It works feel and has a good feel to it. It's a one primer at a time system, but I can actually go pretty quickly with it. For the most part I just use the single stage presses for decapping. Once my brass is prepped I use the Dillons for everything else (Except for some of my Rifle loads)

[Swagerman]

I still favor the RCBS hand-held primer system, has the little round plastic primer pattie that feeds to the aluminum squeezer...works great and fast for me. :-D

Sometimes I use my AA Lyman press, or the C-H 4-die station to do a few primer jobs.

Jim

[Tom-n8ies]

I have several priming units and like my Lee Autoprime hand priming tool the best, no tubes to fill just dump the primers in the tray give it a shake and go.

tom

[DLCTEX]

I do most of my priming on my Lee Classic cast turret press with the safety prime. It is about as fast as the auto prime handheld, with all the leverage you can possibly use. Dale

[Rod B]

I do most of my priming on my Lee Classic cast turret press with the safety prime. It is about as fast as the auto prime handheld, with all the leverage you can possibly use. Dale

I agree.

I have the safety prime on my Lee Classic Turret & it works perfectly.:-D

[lee n. field]

I usually use a Lee Ram prime.

When I started handloading 10-ish years ago I started with a Lyman ram prime die. Switching from one size primer to the other was a true PITA, so I got a second. Lately I"ve gotten RCBS' unit, which I like better.

Don't much care for the Lee -- primer seating has to be by feel, because there's not enough length on the body to put a lock ring on, so you can adjust the primer seating to exactly where you want it.

[pa_guns]

Hi

You are not the only one that thinks they took a step backwards with the "improved" setup.

These days I hand prime while I watch TV.

Bob

[TNsailorman]

I first "match" condition each and every round I reload. I tumble the brass. I uniform the flash hole, I uniform the primer pocket, I size the case, I trim it to length, I champher the mouth inside and out. I tumble the brass again-to remove the polish material with dry media. I then sit down to a good football or baseball game with a RCBS hand Prime tool, the old one, a supply of the correct primers and proceed to prime brass while enjoying a ball game. I thought that was why they put ball games on television. I know that everybody doesn't go to the extremes that I do but loading is a hobby to me as well as shooting, so I enjoy it. I still have my old RCBS rockchucker and a Dillion 550 but rarely us the priming system on a press. I want to "feel" the primer when it seats firmly against the bottom of the primer pocket. I also have a C-H "H" press(the old 3 station press), an old C-H "C" press, and a Dillion Square deal press. I haven't even looked at the new RCBS Supreme press as yet.

[dromia]

RCBS do an auto prime unit for the supreme for $40 US.

I haven't used it but it looks very like the Redding unit that I have on my T7 Turret.

Although I am big fan of off press priming, I do use the Redding one more and more if I'm using that press. It is good and filling the tubes doesn't take that long that its a bother.

Link to the RCBS unit here:

https://shop.rcbs.com/WebConnect/,DanaInfo=shop.rcbs.com+MainServlet?storeId=webcon nect&catalogId=webconnect&langId=en_US&action=ProductDisplay&screenlabel=index&productId=5329&route=C06J030

[pa_guns]

Hi

When I try the link you provided all that happens is that smoke starts coming out of the RCBS web server. :mrgreen:

There are a couple of tube based primer kits for the RCBS. The one they had on the old ones was better than what they have today.

Bob

[robertbank]

Ah, see that. There goes another $40.00. RCBS can't ship direct to
Canada so I will have to go through Cabellas.

Take Care

Bob

[Crash_Corrigan]

I was using a Lee Loadmaster when I was a newbie....it stunk@! I junked it. A good friend gave up on reloading and gave me his Dillon 550 with all the goodies. Once I figured out that I needed a need primer feed tube and some other smallish parts (Great customer service from Dillon's) I got it up and running.

Now I always prime with the 550. I can make 600 rounds an hour with 9 MM and maybe 500 with .45 LC and .45 ACP's. I have the casefeeder and I load up 4 primer tubes, keep a good supply of loadable cases handy, fill the powder measure and pile up a decent supply of boolits to the left and I am off to town.

If I keep the danged thing clean and lubed right it will do it's part. I get into a rythem and just keep on cranking them out. The akro bin fills real fast and my Browning 35 loves those Lee Truncated Cone TL boolits!~

The priming stroke is up with the Dillon and I get good feel for the seating of the primer. I used to have a problem with crimped military primer pockets but since I now cull those out and run them thru a Dillon Swager it is not a problem any more.

That is a must for .223 cases which I find all over. I also use the Dillon 550 for this but at a much slower pace. I spend more time prepping the cases on the .223 with cleaning primer pockets, checking length of cases, inspections, swaging military crimped pockets and such. However it is a lot faster than a single stage press.

I even run my 8 x 57 Mauser rounds through the Dillon. The only rounds that I use a single stage press for are .380 ACP as the powder charge is so light and the AOL so critical that I do them kinda careful and slow. I am shooting them in a LLAMA blowback (looks like a mini .45 ACP) and I do not trust the soft steels used in this older design and since I can't depend on finding parts for it...I treat it gently.

[robertbank]

My primary reason for the RCBS was to do some of the prep work away from the Dillon 550 so when I start a run of .303 Brit I go with the Lee Expander die in Stage 1. I shoot lead exclusivley in all my rifles so now I do my sizing on my RCBS and soon will remive mil crimps etc using the RCBS as well. May as well get that priming tool for the RCBS and take another step away from the Dillon. We shall see.

Take Care

Bob

[dromia]

RCBS haven't got their non US agents sorted at all.

In the UK the distributors carry limited stock, therefore getting anything from them can take at least 8 -12 weeks.

I can order direct from US suppliers and have the kit here in anything from 3 - 8 days depending on how much I choose to pay for shipping.

At worst Fed Ex and full customs VAT I will save a couple of poond out of a hundred at best I can get the stuff over here at 60% of UK prices, currently 4 out of five parcels have come in at the 60% rate.

RCBS would do better dealing directly with me than having partial distributors in the UK, we are too small a market here for any one to carry stock so just let us go direct I say.

[pa_guns]

Hi

I suspect they would do better setting up a warehouse somewhere in the EU and dealing direct out of there. Better yet, set up the warehouse for the full ATK "family" of products.

Bob

[robertbank]

Lady in the service department told me it has something to do with their parent company, and it having US Defense Contracts that preclude direct export. Who knows???

Take Care

Bob

[pa_guns]

Hi

They also have problems with things like selling powder and ammo over the entire EU. My guess is they simply aren't interested enough.

Bob

[brshooter]

Read instructions for Lee Auto-Prime tool, they do not recomend using FEDERAL Primers period... Three times have I seen at Benchrest matches, the Lee Auto-Prime tool set off a whole tray of primers... Sounds just like a rifle shot, and all three times the user's face took the blunt of the explosion, instant suntan, and imbedded particles in the face. Thank God all three people were wearing glasses of else they would have suffered eye truama. Federal primers were the cause in all three instances.

[38 Super Auto]

I have the casefeeder and I load up 4 primer tubes, keep a good supply of loadable cases handy, fill the powder measure and pile up a decent supply of boolits to the left and I am off to town.


Crash, is the casefeeder a good addition to the 550B experience? I can load about 400/hour with a 550B w/o casefeeder.

The thing is, adding a casefeeder for me is nearly the same cost that I spent on the original 550b?

Does the casefeeder cause you any additional mechanical grief? Does it make a racket? Other issues/benefits? Thanks,

[pa_guns]

Hi

My understanding is that the 550 case feeder is pretty similar to the 650 case feeder. The one on my 650 works like a charm. No downside that I can see.

Bob

[Crash_Corrigan]

The casefeeder takes about two good handfulls of cartridge cases at a time. It loads the case into the shellplate for you and all you have to do is put a projectile onto the end of the charged case at station 3. Then you pull the handle down and then up. At the end of the stoke you will be priming your sized case in station 1. While you are pulling down and up on the handle your left hand is getting another boolit ready for the next charged case at #3. You run about 35 to 50 rounds this way before you have to dump another two handfulls of cases into the bin.

It is a little noisy when the casefeeder turns and drops the cases into the tube. But it is not that bad and it sure does speed up the process. The biggest slowdown is when you have to stop to load the primer tubes. I have four now so I can run thru 400 rounds before I have to stop to load the tubes. It takes only a second or two to empty a tube into the 550.

[pa_guns]

Hi

Here the biggest slow down with the case feeder is when I find out I've been scooping the cases into the feeder so fast I didn't look at them very carefully.....

I load a lot of 45 acp and the odd 40 s&w case brings things to a halt pretty fast.

Bob

[DaveInFloweryBranchGA]

Bob,

Your problems with the primer feed is one of several reasons I now advice folks to get the new Lee Classic Cast single stage. It has a really good primer feeder on it along with a fantastic primer disposal system and ergonomic adjust-ability.

That said, if I were you, I'd be getting myself a Lee auto prime and buy one for large and one for small calibers. Those cheapies, when kept properly lubed and not "forced," do a fantastic job. I've had the two I've got for about ten years or so now. Still doing a great job.

Regards,

Dave

[Tom-n8ies]

Read instructions for Lee Auto-Prime tool, they do not recomend using FEDERAL Primers period... Three times have I seen at Benchrest matches, the Lee Auto-Prime tool set off a whole tray of primers... Sounds just like a rifle shot, and all three times the user's face took the blunt of the explosion, instant suntan, and imbedded particles in the face. Thank God all three people were wearing glasses of else they would have suffered eye truama. Federal primers were the cause in all three instances.

I was using all different kinds of primers including Federal in the Lee Auto-prime

years ago before there was such a warning and never had one go off. I will suggest that users of the auto-prime just kind of tip the tray away from the case when priming so as the primers (in the tray) are not near the case being primed.
I would bet that would cure the problem with sensitive primers going off.

I also raise the ram with a primer on it partialy before putting a case into the shell holder that way I can see if the primer is correctly orentated and not stacked on top of another primer.

I would not be affraid to load Federal primers using the above method.

tom