Props to Freechex!!!

[DukeInFlorida]

I'd like to give a shout out to the fellow who is making the FreeChex II and FreeChex III gas check makers.

Not sure what has changed, but I've had my eye on one of these for a long time. The issue has been the eBay auctions driving up the price.

Well, they are still being sold on eBay. BUT......... There are auctions, and there are also now "BUY IT NOW" purchases available.

I saw one of the 30 cal FreeChex III's on auction for about $10 under the BUY IT NOW price, and figured..."What the heck, nothing to lose"..... Well, someone came in and bid it up to where it would have been for the Buy It Now purchase. Silly.

So, I shrugged my shoulders, and purchased one of the BUY IT NOW versions, and then saw an email in my IN BOX... It was from the manufacturer, offering me a second chance purchase at my original bid. But, I had already bought one. So, after a couple of emails, I was given a partial refund on my BUY IT NOW purchase.

So, while many have been complaining recently about the way that these are being sold (high bid auctions), you now have (for the first time in over a year!) a BUY IT NOW option for getting one of these FreeChex gas check makers.

Offering me a second chance buy, and then a partial refund was very generous for an eBay seller.

I'm glad I got the FreeChex III version, and can't wait to mount it on a press.

Color me: VERY HAPPY with the product and the service, and the new way of selling it on eBay!

[JeffinNZ]

What the thick end of shooters don't know or refuse to accept is that Charlie is not in the gas check making business to make money. He would rather be out shooting or hiking and is happy to break even. His intent is to keep people shooting. I have had many discussions with him and he could care less if folk buy them or not. He is just happy to help people keep shooting economically. That is one of the major reasons I have done so much work on the system and reporting my finding both good and bad.

The reality is that outside of the USA shooters are paying through the nose for components. AU, NZ and EU prices are higher than US shooters would ever pay. As such the ability to make gas checks at nil cost is very appealing. It is the EU shooters paying top dollar for the FC systems.

Now I don't expect anyone to believe this but it is the truth.

[mrbill2]

Now I might not be the sharpest pencil in the box, but give me a brake.

[Fat-beeman]

well I tried to go the e bay rout but there is bid runners out there and now I refuse to buy on e bay. I think once the market get flooded you will buy the now price way lower. too many other making them now for whole lot less. I think charlie is make a big mistake. there are lot of shooter like me need several dies for check makers and at those prices we can get ready made copper ones on sale.
Don
22 cal 35 cal 8mm 45 cal 270 cal 243 cal:groner:

[JeffinNZ]

Now I might not be the sharpest pencil in the box, but give me a brake.

Case in point. I said I didn't expect you to believe me and I have not been disappointed.

[DukeInFlorida]

Please RE-READ my post. You NOW have the option to BUY IT NOW instead of the auction routine. BUY IT NOW means that if it's listed, and you want one, it's yours, no bidding against anyone.

Go look! He's got plenty of buy it now deals going, but supplies are limited. You snooze, you lose.

I am very happy with the way that he handled my purchase.

btw, the situation in Europe is exactly what I reported in that other thread.

All I can say is THANK YOU, Charlie!


well I tried to go the e bay rout but there is bid runners out there and now I refuse to buy on e bay. I think once the market get flooded you will buy the now price way lower. too many other making them now for whole lot less. I think charlie is make a big mistake. there are lot of shooter like me need several dies for check makers and at those prices we can get ready made copper ones on sale.
Don
22 cal 35 cal 8mm 45 cal 270 cal 243 cal:groner:

[WILCO]

too many other making them now for whole lot less.



That's why I made my own GC making kit. The price was right and the supplies were readily available.

[DukeInFlorida]

I envy you guys with the machine shop equipment!

I was able to scrounge up an old Simpson rivet press, and adapted the FreeChex to work. Drops the checks into a tray. Runs fast and smooth.

http://www.sebagosales.com/swagedbullets/freechexIII.jpg

[JKH]

Charlie is a good guy, I have been in contact with him for several years and helped iron out a few bugs on his early tools, I was impressed then, and continue to be impressed now and will continue to buy his products.

Where, pray tell are all the other people making these for commercial consumption? Pardon my ignorance but all I know of are Charlie and Pat Marlin (has he started shipping his product yet? Just asking). I know there are quite a few enterprising and talented individuals makng tools for themselves but that does not equate into a market flood of consmer ready products.

The beauty of these tools is that they will NOT wear out, unless you abuse them, and they will pay for themseves in a hurry, after that depening on you're source of material you have a limitless free supply of gas checks (granted, you're time does count for somehting but this is a hobby after all).
I wil be more than happy to pony up whatever Charlie asks for his tools, especially the Frechex III,
I consider it to be the absolute best check making tool out there by virtue of its versatility, it is the only one step tool that can be used in a variety of presses AND can also be used by itself with a hammer (or even a stick of wood around the camp fire for that matter!), you cant beat that with a stick! ;^ )

Charlie made a very good point to me about using e-Bay exclusively, he said it is like having a small company but not having the overhead, they (in essence) supply a secretary, billing department, records keeping, etc., etc. for a very small fee. A very convenient way to keep track of all you're transactions without having to pay anyone else.

As far as price and Buy it Now is concerned, Charlie had been shopping around for the best deal a machine shop could offer him on making the new tools, so, he did no have a fixed/stable price for a while till the details were worked out and he struck a solid deal allowing him to establish a fixed price, as you can see he must have accomplished just that, so that now you do have the option of outright purchase via B.I.N.

There are a few folks here that for whatever reasons have sour grapes about Charlie and his tools and the way he markets them, the beauty of a free market economy is that you have the choice of buying from whomever you want, if you dont like the way CHarlie does business than you can always go elsewere. Those of us that have gotten to know Charlie a bit and have dealt with him, can assure you he is an honest and upright man who is doing this to help fellow shooters, at the prices he charges there sure as heck isnt much of a profit margin!

And Jeff in NZ (nice name by the way!), I for one believe you about pricing outide the US, too many of us here in America take for granted the freedom we have and the options we have, most of the world doesnt have the free and relatively cheap access we have here to firearms and components, and we tend to be a bit arrogant about it! How soon we all forget just how great our constitution and bill of rights is and what it affords us in personal freedoms!

Jeff in NY

[Thecyberguy]

Well said, Jeff.

[squirrellnuttz]

Even the prices and availability of components here in Canada is ridiculous!
We're paying around $30-$40 per pound of powder, depending on type -and our $'s are very close to parity at this point. Bullets-Jacketed that is Partitions-around $70-80 per 50, depending cal.

Last box of .30 cal. Hornady gas checks I bought was around $33 Canadian/1000.And that was 2 yrs. ago.

Heck, Primers are up around $60-$70 per thousand for Winchester or Federals in the smaller shops.Wolfs for $44/thousand. If you can find them, any of them.

I'm kinda new to the casting game, but I am in it to stretch my dollars and enjoyment further. Any tool like this checkmaker unit seems like a bargain in the long run. As does almost any casting/ reloading equipment given the price of factory ammo here. Regular silver box Winchester Power Point .30-06? Any guesses? Try anywhere from $27-$31 per box of 20, at Wally World here.

This casting thing is starting to make all the sense in the world to me....

[vonnieglen]

What the thick end of shooters don't know or refuse to accept is that Charlie is not in the gas check making business to make money. He would rather be out shooting or hiking and is happy to break even. His intent is to keep people shooting. I have had many discussions with him and he could care less if folk buy them or not. He is just happy to help people keep shooting economically. That is one of the major reasons I have done so much work on the system and reporting my finding both good and bad.

The reality is that outside of the USA shooters are paying through the nose for components. AU, NZ and EU prices are higher than US shooters would ever pay. As such the ability to make gas checks at nil cost is very appealing. It is the EU shooters paying top dollar for the FC systems.

Now I don't expect anyone to believe this but it is the truth.

Your experience with Charlie and impression of him is the same as mine. I have never actually spoken with him; we have communicated only through email. After he sent me one of his Freechex III prototypes I emailed him back and told him I thought it was an amazing tool and he would have people knocking down his doors to get ahold of them. He responded that his costs producing them were high and that they would be too expensive for him to sell very many.

If you look at Charlie's feedback on Ebay you will see that he has a rating of 100% and a score of 865 since February of 2006. His detailed ratings are also 100% in... Item as described, Communication, Shipping time, and Shipping and handling charges. Since many of us are repeat customers and repeat customers don't advance your score, I think we can conclude that he has probably sold over a thousand units. The big retailers such as Sears, Harbor Freight, and others are unable to keep everyone as happy. Typical ratings are about 97% probably because around 3% of the population are nearly impossible to satisfy. Charlie has excellent products and he is willing to bend over backwards to keep people happy.

[JKH]

I received my FC III in yesterdays mail, Charlie shipped it within n hour of my purchase on Monday and sent me an e-mail immediately, NOT an e-Bay message, how many flea-bay sellers do that?

I ordere mine with the stem for use in my drill press, it ill be set up lie DukeinMaine's unit except I will most likely use a machinist vice on the bottom end if the return spring is in the weak side. I used my drill press with my FCII's by chucking a carriage bolt to press the punch and forming rod, the leverage is just right. I knocked out a few checks with te FCIII using one of my loading presses, trhe tool works like a charm! BUT, as Charlie has stated (and provided the mathmatical proof), a loading press's leverage is just not right so punching through even my .008" anealled aluminum lith plate was difficult (same force as was required using my FCII tool's on the loading press).

I punched out 5 checks in the few minutes I had, they are formed perfectly with a nice smooth factory like edge, I am well pleased!

Charlie is a great guy to deal with, very interesting to say the least having an e-mail conversation with him, almost cryptic (Like VG & JeffinNZ I have never spoken directly with him), I dont know what he did for a living but the way he throws out formula's and mathmatical equations about stress, leverage, etc. leads me to believe he was at least a mechanical engineer but most likely something a whole heck of a lot more technical, but then again he may have been something else entirely but is just extremely knowledgeable. Either way, as VG has pointed out about his feedback, his tools, and his business, Charlie is a big 1 to deal with and has NEVER said a word about his competitor (I think you all can figure out who) or his tool and has been nothing but proffessional in at least 30 e-mails we have exchanged in the past 2-3 years.

If you are looking for a check making tool look no further, you simply cannot find one that is more efficient AND versatile.

Jeff in NY

[JKH]

I set up my FC III in the drill press last night, in 30 minutes I made well over 500 checks just loafing along, before quitting for the night I had my son time me punching out one strip of aluminum.

The strips I was using last night are 1" by 5" and will produce 22 to 23 checks depending on how close they were cut, I do one side then flip it around to do the other, taking an easy pace my average was 35 seconds per strip! I did manage a few that took 20 seconds but that is foolish and to easy to get cut on the second side.

Using a 2 step check making tool in much slower, even with a lot of practice using my FC II it would have taken me at least 2 to 3 minutes to punch ou the same 22/23 checks! This tool is rediculously easy to operate on the drill press, I just chucked the stem so the tool was upside down in the vice and positioned it over the table hole (the table hole is to big and the tool slips through, later I will make an base adaptor and eliminate the vice), start feeding aluminum and pull the handle and all the checks drop right into a container underneath and watch it fill up with perfect checks.

This tool is THE BEST out there, no ifs, ands or buts about it.

Jeff

[vonnieglen]

I set up my FC III in the drill press last night, in 30 minutes I made well over 500 checks just loafing along, before quitting for the night I had my son time me punching out one strip of aluminum.


I am really glad that you are enjoying your tool also. I think your drill press sounds like a better set up than my arbor press. I used to go with 1" strips because there is less waste, but I would tend to cut myself on the sharp edges after I turned them over.

I made enough checks with my FreeChex II that I felt I was getting pretty fast with it. I didn't see any need for an improved tool. I have an ADHD type of personallity that thrives on repetative mindless activities. When I got the FreeChex III prototype, I already had thousands of extra gas checks in storage.

The Freechex III however is so insanely easy to use and fast. My wife doesn't really understand my excitement; I made her come down and watch me. She was asking how many gas checks I really needed. I told her that wasn't really the point. "Honey, just watch this, you are not going to believe it." She left shaking her head. She was making the same face when I told her we needed to change her car's air intake and put a smaller pulley on the supercharger. "Why do we need more power? Doesn't it waste enough premium gas already"

[RayinNH]

She was asking how many gas checks I really needed. I told her that wasn't really the point. "Honey, just watch this, you are not going to believe it." She left shaking her head.

How is it you know my wife? And why are you calling her Honey?

[JKH]

Vonnie/Ray,

THAT is funny! My wife kinda gave up, she now just refer's to my firearm's as my "girlfriends" :^ )

Vonnie, I am thinking of cutting all my strips narrower, it is a bit more hazardous when moving at FC III speeds to try cutting both sdes. The drill press rig is great check out the pics...


http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4029/4635927311_6ed7bddd33_o.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3379/4636534384_cdc8674bd4_o.jpg

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4019/4636534122_83a8ae1d0d_o.jpg

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4071/4635926633_b9890dc082_o.jpg

[JKH]

I apologise for the crappy cell phone pics, too lazy to go get my 20D ;^ )

[DukeInFlorida]

Nice! I've also abandoned the Stimpson riveting way to stamp the FreeChex III's. I have chucked the FreeChex III up in my drill press, and used a socket from my socket set (cause it has a hole through it, to allow the checks to fall through the center hole in my drill plate.

I just have to make a longer arm for the actuator. Metric threads (damn Chinese stuff)

Oh, and here's some tips for those who are buying them:


Put some synthetic lube on the metal wear surfaces. The tool will last longer that way
Be careful NOT to get any lube wherever the FreeChex will be touching, you want them to slip through the tool easily.
When cycling, don't just punch enough to shear the part from the parent metal. You need to fully cycle the tool, in order to form the cup correctly, and allow the finished checks to fall through the tool.

[JKH]

Hey Duke!

Great idea on the socket, you just saved me some head scratching :^ )

Good points on use of the tool, mine didnt want to push the checks through at first and they stacked/stuck together and wedged in, then I thoroughly cleaned it out and they drop through almost every single check now. What lube do you recomend?

Full stroke is imperative as you said, I intend to extend one of the handles on my press for a little more leverage, its not overly difficult but the shorter handle is uncomfortable especially with the small rubber tip. I will most likely find a bolt with the same threads and cut the head off, then take an ash bolt or other large hardwood dowl and drill it to fit, then attach it with some Gorilla glue.

Isnt is nice to just feed and pull, feed and pull? :^ )

Jeff

[Thecyberguy]

So....If i was to get a chex tool....., not sure I will cast enough to pay for one, but it should be the more expensive III model vs. II model? I need to get shooting some of my 223 cast to see if i want to go the cast boolit route or stick to $10/100 J words...maybe it the III's are that much better, I can buy a used II cheap......LOL

I got into hand loading to save money....then casting to save even more....but....I bet I could sell all my casting, and reloading gear and buy enough cast boolits and J words to last the rest of my shooting life....LOL

[JKH]

Hey Guy!

FREECHEX III !!!!! nothing else, you wont regret it :^ )

I havent forgotten you, I will be making a bunch of .22 checks over the weekend and will get them out probably Tuesday. These are made on a Freechex II, not as fast but they are vey good checks.

Jeff

[DukeInFlorida]

Glad that's working for you.

For the lube, I used Militec I, which I had around the shop anyways. It's the BEST gun lube going, bar none! I use it on all my guns, and it has never ever let me down. Just a light amount works best. Too much, and you risk getting lubricant oil on the checks, and they'll never work on the end of a casting. I put a small amount on a Q-Tip, and wiped it on the surfaces that way.

The springs are a bit light (for my liking) and the Militec I treatment seems to allow the springs to slide smoothly.

My drill press is from Harbor Fright (purposeful mis-spelling), and the actuator handle is metric thread. Have to take it to Home Cheapo and try and match up something longer. Alternatively, I'll make up a set of longer ones, and just weld those to the end of the handle spindle on the press. I have another press that my buddy, Kicker96FS gave me, and the welding treatment is what he did on that one. It's out in the barn though, and not convenient for this check making.

Maybe I'll take some pics though.


Hey Duke!

Great idea on the socket, you just saved me some head scratching :^ )

Good points on use of the tool, mine didnt want to push the checks through at first and they stacked/stuck together and wedged in, then I thoroughly cleaned it out and they drop through almost every single check now. What lube do you recomend?

Full stroke is imperative as you said, I intend to extend one of the handles on my press for a little more leverage, its not overly difficult but the shorter handle is uncomfortable especially with the small rubber tip. I will most likely find a bolt with the same threads and cut the head off, then take an ash bolt or other large hardwood dowl and drill it to fit, then attach it with some Gorilla glue.

Isnt is nice to just feed and pull, feed and pull? :^ )

Jeff

[DukeInFlorida]

Yes, go with the III version. BTW, I doubt that you would ever find a used II version anywhere.

Damn bullet casters are way too frugal to give one up.


So....If i was to get a chex tool....., not sure I will cast enough to pay for one, but it should be the more expensive III model vs. II model? I need to get shooting some of my 223 cast to see if i want to go the cast boolit route or stick to $10/100 J words...maybe it the III's are that much better, I can buy a used II cheap......LOL

I got into hand loading to save money....then casting to save even more....but....I bet I could sell all my casting, and reloading gear and buy enough cast boolits and J words to last the rest of my shooting life....LOL

[JKH]

Duke is right, finding a used one is hard, especially a .22 caliber tool. Perversely I am selling my FC II in .30 cal so I am breaking the mold so to speak ;^ )

Jeff

[Thecyberguy]

Jeff , I think you need a 22 III......you know you need one.....you know you want one...then what on earth would you do with the II?...oh wait....you could always TRY to sell it....

LOL I know you haven't forgotten me. That would be great to get some made form one of these. Then I can see what they look like and how they work...I am sure I will be buying one as soon as i know i am going to keep casting for the 223.

Thanks again guys for letting me hijack the thread a bit....LOL
Have a good 'un, Guy

[vonnieglen]

I tried going back to my FreeChex II the other day just for comparisons sake. The FreeChex III has got me way too spoiled.

[Thecyberguy]

vonnieglen, What caliber do you have?

[kbstenberg]

JKH have you sold your F.C. II yet? PM me if you havent! Im very interested
Kevin