A Star question...

[doghawg]

I sold a couple things at a gunshow today...and came home with this...for $40...:-D Even though I'm a rookie caster I knew enough to grab this off the table and hand over a couple of twenties..real quick. :drinks:


Now, where can I find some instructions? And sizing dies? I like the idea of base first sizing. The machine came with a .358" die and what appears to be a round nose or spitzer style nose punch. Thanks in advance.

[45nut]

wow,, thats a score!

[No_1]

Sometimes you step in honey, sometimes you step in poop. This time you stepped in honey. Contact Lathesmith for dies. The instructions are available on the board and maybe another member who has them will send them to you. Great find!

Robert

[HeavyMetal]

You'll find nose sizing to be a much better deal!

By now you've pulld the top punch on your Star and have seen that it is quite a complicated piece when compared to lyman or rcbs top punch's.

By nose sizing you need only two or three flat faced top punches. A .356 will do 9mm 38 spec. 357 mag & 40's. a 428 punch will do 44-40, 44 spec 44 mag 45 auto 45 Colt.

This in and of itself will save you a bundle of money on top punches and, in my personel opinion, also produce more accurate boolits!

By the way $40.00 is a steal on this! If your not married I suggest you go some place with hot babes. If you are married I suggest you play the lottery or hit a Casino!

Lucky streaks don't last long so make it work for you!

[jnovotny]

Doghawg you wanna double your money? ha ha nice score you lucky dog

[EDK]

+1 on Heavy Metal's comments.

Star uses some oddball thread sizes...top punch is 1/2 X 27 threads per inch...you don't found threaded stock or dies at the hardware store...makes do it yourself top punches a little harder to do...makes using the machine sizing nose first a lot better idea!

Magma Engineering is the current manufacturer....good service and will make your custom dies or nose punch pretty quick, but they aren't exactly a "non profit organization" LOL the little half-nut is about $4 and the plain top punch is about $10 (IIRC) from my last order.

Do some searches on STAR here and print/make some notes. I've had a STAR for 20 years or so and learn something new fairly often. It takes a little tinkering (and a few curses!) but once you get it set right, it's mass production time!

"A serious pistol shooter has 20 pound+ casting pots, 4 or 6 cavity moulds, a STAR lubricator/sizer, and a DILLON 550B (or equivalent) progressive reloading machine."

:cbpour::redneck::Fire:

[lathesmith]

dog, you've just demonstrated the main reason why I keep going back to gun shows. What a deal, great find! I agree with HM, best go buy a few lottery tickets while your luck's hot! Seriously, if you still need a manual let me know, I have one in pdf format I can email you. Now get out to the garage, fire up the casting pot, make a few boolits and enjoy that thing!
lathesmith

[doghawg]

Thank you gentlemen...My usual procedure is to buy high and sell low...That's what got me where I am today....My wife gave me an emphatic NO on the hot babes and casino.
I went on "search" and found a link for the Star instructions which have now been printed out. One more question....I see there is a "Die extractor rod" which I do not have. There is a second method mentioned which is using a brass or wood rod to remove the die. Is this a workable alternative to having the rod assembly? Thanks again.

[Orygun]

Yes, with a wood dowel or similar item you can push the die up and out. You may need to warm the die with a hair dryer first.

[HeavyMetal]

Bummer on the babes and Casino, but it sounds like you already have an angel so the luck is holding!

Plus 1 on what Orygon says: you can push the die out of the sizer, from the bottom up, if you loosen the set screw that holds it in and you have heated the sizer with a hair dryer or heat gun of some type.

Hot tip: if you wanna stay lucky buy your own hair dryer!

Hot tip number 2: Do not take the die out of your Star until you have a replacement in hand!
Once the lube is even mildly warmed up it will rush out of that machine as soon as the die leaves the unit! You'll have to pull and replace as fast as possible!

If your Star does not have a boolit in the die as we speak put one in! This will keep the lube from exiting, kinda like a cork, and you must always leave a boolit in the sizer untill you change dies.

Trust me on this! Any pressure at all on the lube screw will get the stuff out of it pronto with no boolit or die in it!

Do a web search and read up on all the set up issues some of the guys have had and I think you'll be much better prepared for your first efforts with the Star.

[cbrick]

Well doghawg, you stole that Star machine. The die in it alone is worth $40.00 at Magma which is why my next Star dies will be coming from lathesmith, I've got about 30 Star dies now but that ain't near enough.

I also recommend nose first sizing. I also recommend getting the correct die removal tool; it makes changing dies incredibly fast and easy.

Couple of tips, I NEVER put the lock nut on the punch, trust me, it won't move if you don't and it allows the flat punch to self center on the flat boolit base. Next, I never use the die locking set screw, it simply isn't needed and adds an un-needed step. If you should get it too tight you could possibly end up with an oval die. I keep the set screw in the machine only so lube doesn't come out the hole.

If you want to spend a bit of money on your new toy the air pressure system is a great addition as is a heated base. I used my Star for many years without either but once I added them I saw instantly how foolish I had been. These two additions turn a great tool into an awesome one.

If you have any questions setting it up or using it and you will, feel fee to log on here and ask away. There is only one dumb question and that's the one not asked.

Enjoy!

Rick

[mtgrs737]

Man you hit the Star Lotto!! Nice find! I would also suggest the air cylinder and shovel handle, they will take you to the next dimension of Star use. I also use a heater, even 50/50 lubes need a little heat in a cool basement and the sizer just seems to work smoother. Good Luck! (As if you need anymore)!

P.S. I hope you bought a few lotto tickets!

[runfiverun]

go to magma engineerings web site, you can see what all the goodies are.
you can get base punches from them fr about 12-15 bucks.
i got a few of their bigger ones and i just grind them down to fit ,what i need them for.

[686]

that is just wrong. send it to me and i will make the instructions and send it all back in a year or two. grate find

[jsizemore]

Damn, that's less then I paid for a sizing die and punch.

[doghawg]

Thanks for the help and envy :-D...Believe me it's a rare thing when I get a "deal" on anything. This was even more enjoyable than stumbling on to a bucket of free ww's. :-D

There is some leftover lube in there so I guess I'll be using my new/old hair dryer to warm it up and melt it out. (Wife said to use the old dryer for casting related duties and keep my hands off the new one). I've got a dozen sticks of BAC lube and plan to use that in here and have read that it should be melted and poured in. I'll also have to PM the lathesmith soon also...

[cajun shooter]

You don't have to melt the BAC if it's the solid type. If it has a hole in center for the RCBS or Lyman sizers then you will need to melt it or you will have air pockets. For standard pistol loads` the BAC can't be beat.

[cajun shooter]

Doghawg, The $10 heat gun gun sold at Harbor Freight works better than a hair dryer and keeps the ruler of the house in a good mood. My wife is always coming out to my shop and when she finds a kitchen tool of hers she retrieves it and buys me one just for my use. Yes, I'm a luckey man. She goes to all my CAS shoots and picks up brass for me too.

[fecmech]

If you want to save a few more pennies just degrease (really good) the depressed portion of your round nose top punch. Fill it with an epoxy or JB weld and level it off to the edges. Let it harden and voila a flat base punch!

[FN in MT]

What a score! Very Quickly run out and buy a LOTTO ticket.....and I mean NOW! You may be on a roll.

You did VERY well.

FN in MT

[Lloyd Smale]

wana triple your money?

[doghawg]

wana triple your money?

No sir! You should have taken the drive down to Green Bay....it's only 150 miles or so...:) There really wasn't much in the way of casting stuff....just this Star.

[wv109323]

I'll do one better than that. I was at a gun show and a guy had a Star Universal Loader in .38 spec and a Star Luber with .358 Sizer. I asked the price and he said $60.00. I asked if that was for one or both. He said both.
It was not as good as first thought. The Luber needed the (3/8"X 1" I believe) bolt that holds the handle in place and the Loader did not come with the powder hopper lid. I bought a flip-up scope lense cap that fit down over the hopper. I must have $3-4.00 in getting them up and running. And yes, the expense of mounting them.

[Maximilian225]

You have been had!:shock:

This is obviously a Cheap Chinese knockoff at that price :killingpc

As I favor to a new caster I will help you get your money back by giving you 50 bucks to cover your loss and shipping. :kidding:

Just glad I could help! :mrgreen:




:lovebooli