After market STEEL Lee turret press parts

[AggiePharmD]

Is anybody making no plastic parts? Specifically parts for turret presses.

[A pause for the COZ]

I have not seen any. I think MR LEE would give some one a good legal butt whoopin if they did.
I have heard they protect their patents pretty vigorously. Boy but if LEE offered a Upgrade kit for a price.
I would be in.

[mdi]

Upgrade for what? I've been using my Lee old style turret for mebbe 12+ years. I disabled the auto-index 11 3/4 years ago (I believe the small plastic gizmo is a "sacrificial" part, it'll break before any damage happens to other parts of the press). I have reloaded every thing from 9mm up to 30-06 quite successfully. I have sized at least 5,000 bullets on my Lee turret (I have one turret full of Lee push through dies). I haven't broken anything on my press prolly 'cause I know how to use hand tools and don't act like a gorilla trying to smash a coconut with my press. So, what needs improvement with a steel/iron part? :confused:

[angus6]

Is anybody making no plastic parts? Specifically parts for turret presses.

Used the Lee Classic Turret for several years ,There are no plastic parts on it that need to be steel that I could see , care to share what parts you feel need changed ?

[AggiePharmD]

First off I'm no gorilla as far as working with hand tools and I respect my presses as well. I am referring to the plastic clamp and small plastic square within that guides up and down the rod that rotates the turret. It seems to me that at least the one or both of those parts could be a bit stronger. I've had the little square slip out of its holding area inside the big clamp while using the machine at a normal pace.

[LeftyDon]

I think mdi gave you the answer as to why that square plastic part is made from plastic. Much cheaper to replace that part than any other thing that could be damaged indexing with the round stuck in a die.

[AggiePharmD]

I think mdi gave you the answer as to why that square plastic part is made from plastic. Much cheaper to replace that part than any other thing that could be damaged indexing with the round stuck in a die.

I agree, however, I'd postulate that if it were a bit tougher there be no reason for anything to break. Just my opinion. My question has been answered and my solution will be to purchase a small supply of replacement parts.

[Maximumbob54]

The plastic widget is cheaper to replace than the rod that would strip out if you were to force it. You don't want the plastic to be any stronger. However, the only way this should happen is if you are short stroking the arm.

[AggiePharmD]

The plastic widget is cheaper to replace than the rod that would strip out if you were to force it. You don't want the plastic to be any stronger. However, the only way this should happen is if you are short stroking the arm.

And the short - stroke could very well be the issue. Thanks

[Bjornb]

I broke the plastic indexing pieces shortly after I got my Lee Turret press. When I got replacements I started oiling the plastic bushing with light 3D oil every time I sit down to use the press. One drop. I also rub a couple of drops on the outside of the turret before dropping it in. The new parts have now lasted through more than 5000 rounds with no sign of wear.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

First off I'm no gorilla as far as working with hand tools and I respect my presses as well. I am referring to the plastic clamp and small plastic square within that guides up and down the rod that rotates the turret. It seems to me that at least the one or both of those parts could be a bit stronger. I've had the little square slip out of its holding area inside the big clamp while using the machine at a normal pace.

Wait til you start playing with Lee's Saftey Prime for the classic turret.[smilie=b:
I've come to like them the way they are...but they are finicky and the plastic you describe does break easily, until you get use to how to finesse the press :)

[rondog]

I've found the square plastic thingy lasts just fine, unless you try to rotate the turret by hand when the ram is down, or even below halfway. If the ram is up near the turret, you can turn the turret safely. But below halfway and that square thingy is gonna suffer.

I do agree about that plastic clamp, that thing sucks. Same with the on-press priming setup. I boxed that thing up years ago. Those items need some work.

[mold maker]

RCBS piggy back press has a similar plastic piece, and yes it is intended to be the weak link.

[rbstern]

I've found the square plastic thingy lasts just fine, unless you try to rotate the turret by hand when the ram is down, or even below halfway. If the ram is up near the turret, you can turn the turret safely. But below halfway and that square thingy is gonna suffer.

I do agree about that plastic clamp, that thing sucks. Same with the on-press priming setup. I boxed that thing up years ago. Those items need some work.

I've loaded 10's of thousands of rounds on my classic turret. Still using the original plastic square guide. I leave the extra one wire-tied to one of the posts. Hopefully, I'll remember it's there if I ever need it.

For the safety prime setup, I found that a very small wedge of foam tape (about 1/16" square) was needed in the right pivot well, to get the alignment happy. What that there, it functions 100%. Love it. incredibly fast.

IMO, Lee got this particular press as close to perfect as anything they've ever done.

[Mausermeister]

I just got a Lee Classic Turret Press yesterday. Hoping it will speed up loading pistol rounds vs my single stage RCBS with Hornady LockNload bushings. The safety prime seems a little flimsy, but I tried feeding a few through it and seems to work fine.

[Klaus]

i had changed over to a Lee Turret Press for one year ago
Former i used a Rock Chucker and a Hornady 5 Stages Press.

i`ve been very surprised about the reliability and fast possibility to change from one to another Caliber and/ or use it as a single stage press.
Not to forget the cheap prize.

I get some spare parts but never have to replace any part since i use this Press

Klaus

[enfieldphile]

My Classic Turret has loaded tons of ammo and still works perfect.

I rub SNOW SEAL on the square rod and the sides of the turrets to lube them. They rotate very slick! The press is as tight and works as perfect as when new.

I have worn out (not broken) one of the primer feed (large primer) things that hangs off the side of the press. But it took 10 years of constant use to wear it out! I just bought a NIB one from an eBay vendor for about $23.00 delivered.

[Green Monster]

I also polished the indexing rod. It dosent chew up the little plastic square as much. A little flitz does it real quick. Just dont over do it especially around the twisty part. Then a drop of oil rubbed on. Also polish the spot where the rod sits on the press and turns.

[Maximumbob54]

Some dry lube might be better on the indexing rod than oil as oil will catch everything and soon become a lapping compound. I just pull the rod and clean it every now and then. Also, it helps to lube the contact surface of the turrets and keep them clean. You will see and feel the turrets start to drag when they get dirty. I lamented and bashed the Safety Primer system until I got it setup right. Now it's loaded thousands of primers and runs just fine. The operator is the only weak link in the design. It's a little easy to get too in a hurry and short stroke the arm or get ham handed.

[tomme boy]

I have broke the spring in the safety prime about 5 times now. Both in the large and the small one. They seem to last around 7K rounds for me. Call Lee up and tell them and have a new one a couple of days later. Have not broke anything else. I also have 2 pro 1000 that use the same square plastic piece on the rod. Over 50K on the 45acp one and at 6K on the 9mm. Keep it oiled is all you have to do.

[r1kk1]

This is not to bash Lee or the RCBS Piggyback. I don't understand a part to be manufactured as a weak link so to speak. I have not seen documentation from either company to support this. It is brass, that is relatively soft that is sized. I've done a ton of case forming and seated primers on more cases than I can remember, yet I've never tweaked, sanded, or worn out one.

I can say from experience, the old Challenger's weak point was the linkage. Replaced that twice and finally sold it. They introduced a steel linkage upgraded and it was sorely needed for forming duties. Lee does stand by its 30-day money back warranty. This occurred pre-internet and back when you could talk to Richard and what duties the presses could do.

I was hoping when John took over the company, some of the plastic stuff would go away. I guess not.

It appears, after reading numerous posts, you either get one that works out of the box or have to tweak this or modify that or get frustrated and not use all the features.

I don't know. I'm seriously wishing the CC series success. I also don't understand the breechlock as it would have been great to try that bushing system in other presses.

You know I get grumpy at myself when I accidentally screw up a piece of brass forming it to an obsolete or wildcat cartridge. It's the only fragile thing on my presses.

I just don't understand how a part fails before a brass cartridge case will or wear out. I can only think of lack of maintenance.

Take care

r1kk1

[Ben]

One has to FULLY understand the operation of Lee Turret Presses to realize why the rachet is made out of nylon that is designed to fail when subjected to more stress than it was designed to withstand.

A single blow electrical fuse is designed to do basically the same thing. It sacrifices itself rather than see a more catastrophic failure of the main system occur.

They may be less expensive than this if ordered from Titan :

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/178889/lee-classic-4-hole-turret-press-indexing-ratchet?cm_vc=ProductFinding

[r1kk1]

I'm waiting on a response from RCBS as mold maker pointed out the RCBS piggyback utilizes a plastic/nylon nut similar to Lee's.

Both presses utilize a twist hex rod. Lee explained that nylon and not steel, allows for flexibility between the twist of the hex rod to the transition of the straight. I wondered about uses a steel square nut as the only other part that was plastic is the square nut housing. Lee pointed out from an engineering standpoint that nylon works very well for this purpose as being resilient, flexible, and having good strength.

I will post what RCBS has to say on the subject when I get my reply.

Lee say's the square ratchet should yield around 10,000 or more rounds before needing replacement. It is considered a consumable.

It was explained to me that the nylon square nut is NOT made to fail as a safety or any other reason. It is made to function, as a steel square nut is not going to yield going from the twist to straight on the hex rod.

Lee pointed out a couple of points to extend the life of the nylon square ratchet:

Don't short stroke the press (as pointed out by a couple earlier posters).

Don't store the press with the square ratchet engaged on the twist of the index rod. This causes severe stress on the square ratchet and leads to early failure of the square ratchet.

The part is a 0.50 cent piece and if I had one, I would have to replace it once or twice a year right now (until components start rolling in). Not a big deal.

I wonder if anyone uses a piggyback as well as a Lee turret and see if square ratchets will interchange. I wonder which will yield longer life.

Take care

r1kk1

[zuke]

The plastic ratchet is the fuze for the panel box.It'll go before there's permanent damage done.

[Cowboy T]

Eventually the plastic ratchet does seem to wear, after several thousand rounds. Fortunately, they're very inexpensive to replace.

If I were allowed only one press, it would be the Classic Turret. It does everything well, and at a decent (not barn-burner, but decent) speed. It's beefy enough as it is, so I don't see the need to replace parts in it.

[mdi]

The plastic ratchet is the fuze for the panel box.It'll go before there's permanent damage done.
Exactly, that's pretty easy to understand, ain't it? If the piece was made of steel or even brass, the more expensive and difficult piece to replace would be damaged...

[dbosman]

A lot of equipment comes with parts designed to fail.

Shear pins.
Woodruff keys.
Computer batteries.