Anyone Own a Mark VII Apex 10?

[Kevin Rohrer]

Am thinking about moving up from a Dillon 750 to the new Mark VII Apex 10.

I have read thru the topic on the Brian Enos site about it, and see that the primer delivery system setup is critical to reliability. Am wondering how Apex 10 owners here like the press?

[Rfeustel]

I have one. Moved up from a Hornady LNL AP (with bullet feeder). I cranked that bad boy for 100s of k. The Apex with drive and sensors is a dream. I’ve never loaded on a 1050.

Expensive. So I have it set up for my oft-shot calibers. I keep the LNL for lower volume.

Customer service, and the community support, has been outstanding for the Apex. The first time it runs at 3k it’s anus pucker factor 9. At some point 1500 feels like a crawl…..

[Kevin Rohrer]

What teething problems did you have with it?

[Rfeustel]

What teething problems did you have with it?

Nothing major. It came out of the box 99%. There’s an internal guide rod that looks scary to adjust but really isn’t. Indexing is like a Swiss watch and adjusting it means simply finding the little screw that turns it. Most people need to learn that. I did get an out of spec swaging rod with the swaging sensor. Once I put back the rod that came with the press, that was fixed.

Understanding the correct shellplate tension was a matter of learning. There’s no technical spec (like use a feeler gauge under the plate or something). Once I had the guts to tighten it until it failed to index, then backed off, I had it nailed.

I didn’t try to load right away. I instead set it up to process 9mm to take the machine through it’s paces. Started at 1k rpm, watched and learned, and now run it at 3k like a top (for brass processing).

Another thing people seem to not get (I didn’t). When removing the tool head (or tightening it), the tool head needs to be in the bottom position. Do it at the top and the guide rods can get out of alignment. Very simple.

I’ll say the biggest problem I had is with my dies. Crap gets loose at 2500 and 3k per hour. Then stuff happens and it being a new press I didn’t think to look at my dies. For example, I had a decapper bushing holder come lose (that was annoying). I had the knob on the top of my swage hold down come loose (annoying), etc. A little vibratite is a friend. The tool head bolt should be checked before EVERY reloading session.

All in all I am really, really happy. I’m about to put the new primer oscillator feeder thingy on it. No more primer tubes for me (hopefully).

There’s a great facebook group dedicated to it. You should lurk there. Very supportive and collaborative. Everyone is willing to help.

[Kevin Rohrer]

So no problems w/ getting the priming system right, which seems to be a pain for others?

[Rfeustel]

Not for me. It came set nice. BUT - here’s the BUT - I run both a decap sensor and a swage sense. If either triggers, I pull the case, check, and vacuum the plate. Anything riding across and lodging under the primer disc might jam it, which I have had happen. I also occasionally (often?) shoot Hornady one shot gun cleaner and lube under the disc (when there’s no open primer).

Also - a spring loaded decapper can cause flipped/smashed primers if it isn’t set to “pop” late (after the primer is being sat). That caused a number of people some problems.

[Kevin Rohrer]

How smoothly does it operate? I get vibration on my 750 that occasionally knocks some powder out of the case.

[Rfeustel]

So no problems w/ getting the priming system right, which seems to be a pain for others?

Well I tempted fate. The primer disk is biting me. I’m working through it. Meh.