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Thread: Making that Bullet Collator

  1. #5401
    Boolit Master TylerR's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Charlie_Sweden View Post
    To not have to print for several days again, i cut out the interface parts from the .stls i listed above.

    Running a new testprint now with a setting to print outer perimeter first, should get more accurate dimensions that way. still, that wont explain why the .45 is 16.60mm. I'll get back to you.
    I am getting the same dia for all the feed dies. 16.46.mm


  2. #5402
    Boolit Bub
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    Okay, thanks for checking, I'll continue investigating on my end.

  3. #5403
    Boolit Mold
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    Quote Originally Posted by TylerR View Post
    Sure have. You want to use one of the offset connectors originally created for the APP. I use one on my 750.



    You did not mention what caliber, but for .45 I use the 13mm offset and the Drop_Tube_APP_Offset_Adapter. The adapter is what interfaces the feed die to the offset.

    https://github.com/BF556/Feeder/blob...nnector_13.stl
    https://github.com/BF556/Feeder/blob...et_Adapter.stl
    That looks like a nice solution to solve the powder measure/bullet drop conflict. Does that mean one would NOT have to get the DAA Extra short Dillon Powder bar to run a bullet feeder and a powder check? https://www.doublealpha.biz/us/daa-e...lon-powder-bar

  4. #5404
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    First off, huge thanks to TylerR, GWS, and all of the other contributors to this project! I'm in awe of your ingenuity and design skills! Purchased my 1st 3D printer to make this project (and many more I'm sure) and have some (probably very basic) electronics questions after trying to find answers in this thread:

    1. How crucial is having a 12v power supply running at 6A as suggested in the project user manual, or can one use a lower amperage power supply? I purchased the suggested Dayton motor rated at 1.3A and this speed controller from Amazon https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1. I found a 12v 2A power brick in my pile of old electronics- would that suffice or would it be underpowered for this application?

    2. This speed controller can run in two directions, and has a built in 3-position switch. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...5OP416LP&psc=1. Could I run one of these to add the functionality of clearing a jam in the collator, or would it not be compatible with the motor? And since it has an integrated switch, would that eliminate the need for the relay? Or is the relay needed since we are adding a proximity sensor to the circuit?

    3. I purchased a proximity sensor for the project, and the wires from the sensor are quite long. Will I need the JST connectors&wires if the existing sensor wires are long enough? This is the sensor I purchased if this helps: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1. I'd love to avoid the extra soldering and complexity of more wires if not crucial to the function.


    As you can see, my electronics understanding is very limited! Besides soldering I'm pretty lacking, and I am finding the electronics portion of the project to be the most daunting aspect.

    Thanks for any insights!

  5. #5405
    Boolit Master GWS's Avatar
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    I'll let TylerR answer most of your questions as you will most likely use his parts, but on #3, the sensor you bought is "NO" which means the sensor is Normally Open (circuit off) and turns on only when tripped. That one is Not what you want.

    You want a sensor that is NC. IOW's with the separate powder switch turn on, the motor runs (circuit closed) all the time, until it senses a bullet or case stopped in front of it...which opens the circuit, turning the motor off.

    I cut off my sensor leads to fit, then solder them or wire nut them to the other wiring as in Tyler's schematic.

    Well....since the speed control you already bought is beefier than the combo unit you mentioned in#3, I should tell you that I used the beefy one you already have, and bought a simple rocker on/off switch to go with it.....therefore maybe it's be simpler if you print the new box I made to fit that same speed control board. Fact is, I just got around to sending the stl files to TylerR Yesterday. Maybe he's posted the three files to the "Contributors" section already......(its made to mount under the collator as shown below)

    Here's a picture of those parts mounted under my case collator:

    Last edited by GWS; 01-15-2022 at 11:21 PM.

  6. #5406
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    Quote Originally Posted by GWS View Post
    I'll let TylerR answer most of your questions as you will most likely use his parts, but on #3, the sensor you bought is "NO" which means the sensor is Normally Open (circuit off) and turns on only when tripped. That one is Not what you want.

    You want a sensor that is NC. IOW's with the separate powder switch turn on, the motor runs (circuit closed) all the time, until it senses a bullet or case stopped in front of it...which opens the circuit, turning the motor off.

    I cut off my sensor leads to fit, then solder them or wire nut them to the other wiring as in Tyler's schematic.

    I will add one more observation: the speed control you already bought is beefier than the combo unit you mentioned next. I used the beefy one you have and bought a simple rocker on/off switch to go with it.....and made a box to fit that speed control board. Fact is, I just got around to sending the stl files to TylerR Yesterday.

    Here's a picture of the parts mounted under my case collator:

    Thanks for catching that error in sensor type! As luck would have it, I ordered two different prox sensors, including this one, which looks like it is NC and will hopefully work! https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

    That electronic box looks good. I ran into probably the same problem you did when using that large controller in the large electronics box. The controller was too large to mount near the cutout for the power switch, so I edited the file to move the small hole in the large box down about an inch. It's printing now so we'll see how I did! I also printed MillerKiller's electronic box back extension to accommodate that controller.
    Last edited by heliskyr; 01-15-2022 at 10:22 PM.

  7. #5407
    Boolit Master GWS's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by GWS View Post
    Well....since the speed control you already bought is beefier than the combo unit you mentioned in#3, I should tell you that I used the beefy one you already have, and bought a simple rocker on/off switch to go with it.....therefore maybe it's be simpler if you print the new box I made to fit that same speed control board. Fact is, I just got around to sending the stl files to TylerR Yesterday. Maybe he's posted the three files to the "Contributors" section already......(its made to mount under the collator as shown below)
    I rewrote the last paragraph of my last post, after realizing you might actually have it easier using that speed control with my new box & mount I just sent TylerR. Didn't realize you already posted. Appears I'm too late to help out with the box.... no matter...I'm sure you'll make it all work.
    Last edited by GWS; 01-15-2022 at 11:21 PM.

  8. #5408
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    Quote Originally Posted by GWS View Post
    I rewrote the last paragraph of my last post, after realizing you might actually have it easier using that speed control with my new box & mount I just sent TylerR. Didn't realize you already posted. Appears I'm too late to help out with the box.... no matter...I'm sure you'll make it all work.
    Thanks! I'll keep an eye out for your new box and print it out as well. It's great to have so many options to customize the feeder to one's specific use case.

  9. #5409
    Boolit Master TylerR's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by heliskyr View Post
    That looks like a nice solution to solve the powder measure/bullet drop conflict. Does that mean one would NOT have to get the DAA Extra short Dillon Powder bar to run a bullet feeder and a powder check? https://www.doublealpha.biz/us/daa-e...lon-powder-bar
    I have not tried running it in station 4, but I bet it would work. It is a pretty aggressive offset.

  10. #5410
    Boolit Master TylerR's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by heliskyr View Post
    First off, huge thanks to TylerR, GWS, and all of the other contributors to this project! I'm in awe of your ingenuity and design skills! Purchased my 1st 3D printer to make this project (and many more I'm sure) and have some (probably very basic) electronics questions after trying to find answers in this thread:

    1. How crucial is having a 12v power supply running at 6A as suggested in the project user manual, or can one use a lower amperage power supply? I purchased the suggested Dayton motor rated at 1.3A and this speed controller from Amazon https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1. I found a 12v 2A power brick in my pile of old electronics- would that suffice or would it be underpowered for this application?

    6 amps is way overkill. I hooked up my killawatt the other day and it was averaging less then 1 amp. I think a 2amp supply would work fine.

    2. This speed controller can run in two directions, and has a built in 3-position switch. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...5OP416LP&psc=1. Could I run one of these to add the functionality of clearing a jam in the collator, or would it not be compatible with the motor? And since it has an integrated switch, would that eliminate the need for the relay? Or is the relay needed since we are adding a proximity sensor to the circuit?

    I dont see any practical use for reversing the motor. relay is still needed.

    3. I purchased a proximity sensor for the project, and the wires from the sensor are quite long. Will I need the JST connectors&wires if the existing sensor wires are long enough? This is the sensor I purchased if this helps: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1. I'd love to avoid the extra soldering and complexity of more wires if not crucial to the function.

    The jst connectors are more for being able to disconnect everything and easily replacing something that might break.


    As you can see, my electronics understanding is very limited! Besides soldering I'm pretty lacking, and I am finding the electronics portion of the project to be the most daunting aspect.

    Thanks for any insights!
    hope that helps

  11. #5411
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    Quote Originally Posted by TylerR View Post
    hope that helps
    Immensely! Thanks!

  12. #5412
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    Quote Originally Posted by TylerR View Post
    I have not tried running it in station 4, but I bet it would work. It is a pretty aggressive offset.
    I have it running on mine and it seems to work just fine, only issue is I think I need to smooth down the die some so it will fall back in place easier. I have tried it without the offset and it does the same thing so I know the offset is not the problem.

  13. #5413
    Boolit Master GWS's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by heliskyr View Post
    I'd love to avoid the extra soldering and complexity of more wires if not crucial to the function.

    As you can see, my electronics understanding is very limited! Besides soldering I'm pretty lacking, and I am finding the electronics portion of the project to be the most daunting aspect. Thanks for any insights!
    I soldered leads only to where I had to... to the relay pegs, but I prefer small wire nuts connecting all the wire leads. I really like the ease using wire nuts to take things apart and changing components whenever...if ever needed. The push-in connectors IMO are not as versatile.

  14. #5414
    Boolit Bub
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    TylerR,

    Regarding my issues with the feed inserts and interface with drop tubes, turns out it was a combination of too many perimeters and low quality PLA which had some bad tolerances.

    Thanks again for checking on your end.

    Best regards
    Karl

  15. #5415
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    Quote Originally Posted by GWS View Post
    I soldered leads only to where I had to... to the relay pegs, but I prefer small wire nuts connecting all the wire leads. I really like the ease using wire nuts to take things apart and changing components whenever...if ever needed. The push-in connectors IMO are not as versatile.
    I suck at soldering. Still working on the wiring. Want to find some better 18ga. I have some solid core, but it is stiff and not easy to work with. And my 16ga is too darn thick for some of the screw terminals. I gotta sit down and give it a real go. Haven't had a lot of time in the last month or two.

    Sent from my Pixel 5 using Tapatalk

  16. #5416
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    So I wired up all of my components (roughly, outside of the box) today to test the function and I’m having a problem with my proximity sensor that I’m hopeful I could get some help with.

    The motor turns on when I flip the switch, the led light on the switch lights up, the knob on the speed controller modulates the speed, and the led on the back of the proximity sensor lights up when nothing is close to it, and the sensor led turns off when I place a case close to it.

    My problem: while the proximity sensor appears to be sensing cartridges as evidenced by the led turning on/off, the motor stays running regardless of the status of proximity sensor.

    I’m using these components:
    1. Speed controller https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
    2. Proximity sensor https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
    3. Relay https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
    4. Switch https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...2?ie=UTF8&th=1

    I've gone over the wiring several times to see where I made a mistake and can’t get the sensor to work,

    Any help is greatly appreciated!

  17. #5417
    Boolit Master GWS's Avatar
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    That happened to me once too, and I thought I had a bad sensor. Turned out I had the Relay wired wrong. A picture might help, but I'd bet you need to change leads on the relay.

  18. #5418
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    Quote Originally Posted by MSUICEMAN View Post
    I suck at soldering. Still working on the wiring. Want to find some better 18ga. I have some solid core, but it is stiff and not easy to work with. And my 16ga is too darn thick for some of the screw terminals. I gotta sit down and give it a real go. Haven't had a lot of time in the last month or two.

    Sent from my Pixel 5 using Tapatalk
    I was in the same boat using scraps of wire so I bought this package of color coded wire on Amazon.

    I too had problems with small screw terminals so I had these terminal lugs, pulled off the plastic and soldered in the wire(s). It was especially easier for connections with more than one wire. These forked terminals would probably work even better.

  19. #5419
    Boolit Buddy Sig's Avatar
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    I finished mine last week. I figure not bad for never using a 3D printer before 12/26/21. The only piece I had to reprint was the drop tube for the proximity switch. I have my collator on the right side so the bullet window was facing away from me. I figured out how to print a mirror image & all better now except the #10 on the tube is also reversed now(I can live with that). I did a trial run of 400 rounds. Not ONE failure or jam of any kind. I have to say thank you again to Tyler & all who have contributed here, making it possible for the average Joe to build this. Try not to laugh at the 3D printed brass feeder in the pic. It actually works really well.
    Click image for larger version. 

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  20. #5420
    Boolit Master GWS's Avatar
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    Sig! Looks great! 3d printers.....where were they 10 years ago! I think of all the time I spent manufacturing parts by hand and I am thankful all the more. And thanks be to AmmoMike, TylerR, and others who influenced me to buy my Creality CR-10v2. Way more fun than than other Home Manufacturing Methods.....and while they are printing (does take a while) we can be working on the next project's .STL files!

    As for the brass collator.....you KNOW you will be printing another TylerR special to replace that. Adding two videos to show you my efforts in that same direction:.

    First video (pre-3D Printer days).....4 l--o--n--g 36" tubes in a minute or less. (that's 12' of cases collated.)

    Second video Making and perfecting TylerR's bullet feeder into a casefeeder (with a little TylerR help of course).



    Last edited by GWS; 01-18-2022 at 06:07 PM.

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Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check