RCBS Green Machine

[cheese1566]

Don’t throw hate towards it!

I have been intrigued by these little guys and know of all the lost patience and anger towards them. This one came up locally and picked it up near Devils Tower Wyoming. Missing the poor design primer tray, case tubes and top, and powder hopper. Interesting that it uses a different version Dandy measure.

Direct call to RCBS got me a new powder hopper, but that’s it. I can easily mod the measure rotor to clear a modified Hornady or Dillon primer tube. Amazon has clear tubing for the case feeder.

Looks to be complete with very little rust (mostly on the handle) since it is full of old grease, lube, and gunky oil!

Factory set up for 45ACP. Be a good project tearing down, cleaning, and adjusting.

284168

[OS OK]

That's a great start...no hate from me...I run one also.

https://i.imgur.com/WVsgJFJ.jpg

I bring 'pre-primed' brass to the machine and we get along fabulously!

https://i.imgur.com/vyl1YM6.jpg

Did a couple videos about it too... 'GRANNY the Green Machine'> https://youtu.be/Tji-7WRA3DA & 'Dancing with Granny'> https://youtu.be/8Kf93Do_LHk

A friend of mine set up a forum just for the Green Machine... (all happy owners, plenty of help there)... https://greenmachinereloading.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=51

[dverna]

I hope there is a special super toasty place in hell for the people who brought the GM to market.

I bought mine new shortly after I married decades ago. It was $600 and a Star was $1000 IIRC. Newly married, and not having a lot of money it was a hard sell but my wife agreed. I doubt I loaded more than 2000 rounds on it before giving up. Fortunately, my Bullseye mentor had two Stars he let my use, and then he purchased a Camdex and I left the GM boxed up for decades. Tried to get it working again about 20 years ago and failed again....sold it on eBay for a couple of hundred $$.

The good thing about the machine...I learned never to purchase something new and unproven.

[Cougar Hunter]

I'm with OS OK. I purchased mine new in '86. I de-cap and prime off the press. As long as you realize that you can't prime on it, it's a good machine. A good addition to the Lil Dandy is one of "Bailey Boat" adjustable powder rotors. There is also a Web Forum dedicated to the Green Machine.

[Savvy Jack]

It is very finicky but I like a challenge. I modified mine to use with the 44-40.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WUp7amWz-FU


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5CqHK3km0oU

[OS OK]

It is very finicky but I like a challenge. I modified mine to use with the 44-40.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WUp7amWz-FU


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5CqHK3km0oU

"OK...splain this to an old'Fart of 71 . . . how the heck do you get those Y-Tube videos to post like that in this forum?"

[OS OK]

I'm with OS OK. I purchased mine new in '86. I de-cap and prime off the press. As long as you realize that you can't prime on it, it's a good machine. A good addition to the Lil Dandy is one of "Bailey Boat" adjustable powder rotors. There is also a Web Forum dedicated to the Green Machine.

https://greenmachinereloading.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=49

https://i.imgur.com/iDUprwR.jpg

[1hole]

I know little more about Green Machines than they're green. But, I know without question that they quickly flopped in the market and that alone tells me a great deal about how good they may not have been. Some of RCBS' products work well but they also have a significant trail of rusting iron behind them.

I have to wonder about those who see anything green as a supposed mark of reloading perfection and loudly hate anything red no matter how well it works; how can they automatically explain the difference?

[perotter]

I have both a 38/357 and a 9mm. One I bought just to see how they worked mechanically.

The other one I bought because I felt sorry for the guy who had it. During the last ammo shortage the guy decided he should start reloading and traded a $600 rifle for it. Never having reloaded before he couldn't figure out why it didn't work and just wanted to sell it for enough to buy a Lee press. It was set up for large pistol primers, so that was a kwik fix.

I never did load more than 50 rounds with them just to see it work, but thinking of getting the 9mm going. Likely add a servo motor to it or at least try that.

[Savvy Jack]

"OK...splain this to an old'Fart of 71 . . . how the heck do you get those Y-Tube videos to post like that in this forum?"

I copied and pasted the web address in the "movie" option. Click the movie icon next to the quote icon and paste the link in the window. I USE A DESKTOP so that may not be an option for an iphone

[Savvy Jack]

Dump the original primer junk and get a feeder tube like I did


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_gKZSuNc9DM

[OS OK]

I copied and pasted the web address in the "movie" option. Click the movie icon next to the quote icon and paste the link in the window. I USE A DESKTOP so that may not be an option for an iphone

Thank you.

[cheese1566]

I like how the 3rd gen manual clearly states one should read and read again the manual to understand the complexity of the machine, and that any previous reloading experience doesn’t matter.

I am no engineer, but I have a good understanding in problem solving and things mechanical, heck,, I loaded ammo for years on a Hornady Pro7 and Early Projector without hang ups.

I don’t ever plan on this press being my sole unit, it’s more a tinkering project to pass some time as a small project.

I tore it down and can easily see how poor misunderstood maintenance can cause issues. All this gunk was under the rails and bar system.
284242

[Savvy Jack]

I like how the 3rd gen manual clearly states one should read and read again the manual to understand the complexity of the machine, and that any previous reloading experience doesn’t matter.

I am no engineer, but I have a good understanding in problem solving and things mechanical, heck,, I loaded ammo for years on a Hornady Pro7 and Early Projector without hang ups.

I don’t ever plan on this press being my sole unit, it’s more a tinkering project to pass some time as a small project.

I tore it down and can easily see how poor misunderstood maintenance can cause issues. All this gunk was under the rails and bar system.
284242

Absolutely,

Although they can certainly be fast when working properly, I like to go slow myself!

It takes a special breed of man to work these machines. If one doesn't have a passion for mechanics, stay on the porch!

[cheese1566]

Cleaned up rather nice. Did the primer tube mod, new hopper from RCBS, and 5/8x1/2” petg tubing from eBay.

284832

[j4570]

I thought it was funny you got it near Devil's Tower. I thought sure you were going to throw out some Alien reference there.

Nice job cleaning it up.

I was always intrigued by these. When I was looking for a progressive, I looked at used Green Machines, Piggybacks, the Lee's, the Hornady (Pre LnL AP, it was 1994-5, the newer LnL AP is good press). I'm so glad I got a Dillon 550B.

However, if I found one cheap enough, I'd probably get one to tinker with (maybe not til retirement....).

JW

[jason367]

They are beasts and overengineered genius. Great old presses. Saw one here in 38/357 for sale locally for 350.00.

[JimB..]

Every time one of these threads come up I regret that I threw mine that was in good shape in the recycle dumpster a couple years ago. Consider it my contribution to the increasing value of the remaining examples.

[GBertolet]

I bought one new in 1983. Mines a 45 acp, and it works great. I ditched the disk primer feed, and went to a stick feed. Also I upgraded the powder measure to a Lee disc measure. I think it is a mechanical marvel. You do have to have a certain level of mechanical ability to set this thing up correctly, and periodically make small adjustments. The designing engineer later lamented, that he overestimated the mechanical ability of the average reloader, and many customers failed to read or understand the instructions in the owners manual.

There was an article stating, that RCBS had to have as many people in tech support, to deal with GM issues, as there was building them. Ultimately, it was just not worth it to market the GM. Dillon was just starting to market their machines, and the carosel type reloaders were less complicated, and more readily accepted by the reloading community.

[OS OK]

I like how the 3rd gen manual clearly states one should read and read again the manual to understand the complexity of the machine, and that any previous reloading experience doesn’t matter.

I am no engineer, but I have a good understanding in problem solving and things mechanical, heck,, I loaded ammo for years on a Hornady Pro7 and Early Projector without hang ups.

I don’t ever plan on this press being my sole unit, it’s more a tinkering project to pass some time as a small project.

I tore it down and can easily see how poor misunderstood maintenance can cause issues. All this gunk was under the rails and bar system.
284242

One simple trick with the Green machine is to lube the under rails area with a dry lube, keep an air compressor or canister of air handy to blow out any powder that you accidentally dump into the rails.

[1hole]

When I read posts from low-information folk who think RCBS is the perfect "do all/best all" of cast iron reloading equipment and everything by Lee is presumed to be the pits, I have to wonder if they have ever seen the Green Machine and Partner press. I don't know that Lee has ever produced anything as finicky and fragile as them.

[15meter]

Perhaps where it was purchased explains it all:kidding: