I got the replacement parts and hope to get them installed this week.Originally Posted by megasupermagnum
Life got in the way. Between trying to sell off over two dozen guns and some medical stuff both my fiancé and I are dealing with, this press has taken a back seat. I am posting this after 3:00 AM so that tells you things could be a bit better right now. LOL
Don Verna
Yeah, that will do it.
I did my maiden voyage with the 6 pack with good success. The case feeder worked 100% except for a couple upside down cases since I wasn't super careful with the case collator. How much better can you get with what is essentially a $10 funnel? I was loading cleaned brass, and in the press I used in this order: sizing die, empty, expanding and powder, empty, seating die, crimping die. The thing that really stands out to me is how rock solid the press feels. I never loved the Pro 100 handle. The loadmaster handle was ok, but the rest of the press did not have as rock solid as a feel, and I suspect it has to do with the turret, or lack of. I wasn't sure how I would like it, but I have to say I think the quick change bushings are a solid choice for a progressive. Being able to quickly remove a die for something is nice. For example when done, I just pulled out my powder die, and dumped it out, easy as that. Overall I am quite pleased. At 6 stations I finally feel like I have enough to where I can load in one run without having to sacrifice anything. I have a powder check die coming, and Lee just came out with a new bullet feeding die which I think has the potential to really knock it out of the park. I certainly wouldn't mind a 7th station to expand and powder separately, but as long as I can buy powder-through expanders, things are great.
Not to sound like all rainbows and sunshine, there are some things that can be improved on the press, and I will be sending these ideas to Lee. I don't have a problem with the case holders, but they also don't really offer anything over just rotating the plate to an open spot like a Pro1000. They are so stiff it's hard to use them one handed, but I don't want to loosen them either. I think they would be dramatically better if they were simply spring loaded. The spring would both hold the case in the shell plate better, and be easier to remove the case. I wouldn't even change the arm, just drill a hole for a torsion type spring arm and put it on. The priming I'm sure is what most people are interested in, and yesterday it worked really well. I do have my concerns with crimped brass. I had four primer malfunctions, two were my fault, two I can say were the presses fault. My faults were I didn't seat one fully, and the other I was messing with the shell plate when I dropped a bullet and was trying to re-index, and I think I knocked the primer off of the ram when it was just high enough. I did have two malfunctions that were not my fault. Once the primer didn't feel like it was seating right, I lifted, tried again. It ended up seating but did not look right. The second time was similar, but this time it tried to seat it sideways. After looking at it I think the problem is when you lower the ram, which pushes the primer seating punch up there is nothing to support the primer for a small period when the primer punch clears the carrier, but the primer hasn't quite reached the case to be seated. If anything happens during this period it is possible for the primer to move or even fall right off of the punch. I believe what was happening is the primer wasn't perfectly centered which I felt, I backed off, then tried seating it without it being centered. Even worse is if you back off with the primer off center of the punch, it can flip sideways on the way down. I worry that this problem will be even worse with crimped pockets which often are squared off on the entrance so the primer has to be started nearly perfect. I've been trying to think of a good solution but I haven't come up with anything yet. A key difference between this and a Dillon is that a Dillon delivers the primer under the ram. They use a spring loaded sleeve to center the primer. This 6 pack press delivers the primer over the ram, and under the shell plate, there is no way to use a sleeve that I can see. The only thing I can see is that Lee should change the cut out of the shell plate such that it can serve to guide the primer. I'm going to look at it some more later and see if I'm missing anything. I love the idea of the priming system. Trays are the only way forward for a progressive press, and there is nothing wrong with the chute. If primers can slide down it, it will work. It seems to work just fine until the last 3 or 4 primers, The pickup arm was flawless, never an issue.
After looking at my press I have noticed that my indexing pin is different than that of GSW's press and there is a noticeable wobble in the lower portion of the indexing rod. I think I have discovered the cause of this, on the upper part of the rod that nests in the die station, it seems like they cut it short away from where the die is and as a result it contorts as the carrier rotates, rather than being fixed in position.
This would be a simple fix with a welder and a bastard file or a grain of rice.
These men and their hypnotized followers call this a new order. It is not new. It is not order.
Thanks for posting that. I have had life deal me a few issues but hope to get back to wringing this press out this week. I really want this to work and I am encouraged that some folks are having good success with theirs.
I have had enough hands-on time (shall I say too much fiddling time) with it to conclude it will never be a Dillon. Can it made to run? Definitely. Can it be reliable? I doubt it. The question is just how reliable does it need to be. Not everyone can justify a 750 and it is even more difficult to justify a 1050.
I used to shoot a lot and had little patience with stuff that needed tweaking or had a hiccup if there was a bit of dirt. I wanted to be able to run 2000 rounds in a sitting without any "issues". Dillons do that. At least the 1050's will.
Expecting a $300 progressive press to do that is unfair. I do not "need" that kind of reliability now that I shoot less. Most reloaders do not "need" that either. I am keeping that in the forefront of this evaluation.
When I decided to try the 6000, I thought it would be acceptable to deprime off the press. Crude is the Achilles heel of most progressives. I hope not to resort to that. So far, powder drops into an unprimed case have caused the majority of my problems.
Don Verna
Gentlemen,
I started listening to LiveLife on THR a little better, actually studying his many findings, and things started working better for me. First thing I discovered was that you need to have the shell plate all the way down, before you try to insert the indexing pin.....and then secure it with a die on top so it doesn't decide to lift when you start a stroke.
I still don't care for the primer system leaving the last three primers in limbo.....so I tried printing a new chute for that reason and because I wanted to print an LED lighting addition which interfered with Lee's primer chute. It took three tries but I've improved it to where it only leaves ONE primer unfed.
The other big change was to add a new version of TylerR's quick-change he created for the APP.
All that is working great now.....and I'm feeding both bullets and cases viva electric collators. Really beginning to like the 6000. The last test was to test the 9mm collator plate and quick-change having replaced the .223 shell plate, the quick-change downtube insert, and collator plate.....maybe a 6 minute effort.
Here's the resulting video.....now it's all ready to load 9mm......223 worked great.
You noticed the two feed fails in the video, but keep in mind that I was short-stroking the whole test....I thought it did pretty good in spite of the impatient nut at the press lever....Pretty effective test in spite of that.
The printed primer chute needs some smoothing with fine sandpaper is all, and if you know where to get it printed with a resin printer it would eliminate that. Here's a picture of how the design changed:
The 2 reasons for it was to "S" it away from my LED holder and also to reduce the flat where the last three primers lie and won't finish the feed......not totally successful with that part, but better....it only leaves one unfed now.
I also wanted more to drop into the chute per flick....so I made it a lot longer. That didn't hurt anything either!
Last edited by GWS; 02-19-2023 at 10:19 PM.
Priming off the press is a non starter for me. I can make almost anything work if I want to put enough effort into it. I have three of the early Lee Pro 1000 presses and have managed to make them work but you have to watch the primer feed constantly as 1 small bit of powder in the primer slide will mess things up. The short cases (9mm and such) like to throw powder on the primer slide as does the powder spitter (Lee's powder thrower). Lee's priming systems are the worst I have ever seen. I don't need another progressive as I have a Star a Dillon Square Deal and a 550b as well as the 3 Pro 1000. I am watching this thread to see if Lee is learning how to make a press that works properly out of the box. The Star and the two Dillons both have primer systems that work about 99.8%. Why continue to use a new system that seems to be real problem? I haven't looked at the 6000 primer system. Does it use a primer tube or some form of the primer slide system? Why are there unprimed cases? I does happen on my 550b once or twice in a thousand as a primer jumps out of the primer slide as the slide is being pushed up to prime. However the spilled powder has no effect on the operation of the press.
Does the 6000 have the powder dispenser directly over the priming station?
The primer system that Lee rejected years ago was primer tubes....I still remember the shock of hearing of loaders really getting hurt with blown up tubes.(early 1970's) Then companies started putting shields over the tubes to reduce the risk. Richard Lee went further....he refused to use tubes, inventing trays. They are a mixed blessing....safer, but not as reliable feeding.....they still aren't perfect....but neither are tube systems. The version used with Lee's 6000 is a little different, but still has to be shaken to get it to empty....and the last three won't even shake to the primer slide.
Mine that I offset to allow my LED lights, has no flat spot at the end....so it feeds all but the last one. Betting Lee changes theirs similarly....not the "S" shape but removing the flat....doing so doesn't hurt anything.
Typically, yes the powder measure is on station 2 above the primer insert rod. You can move it to 3, but then you are back to what a five station press can do. I have not had problems feeding primers, but for military brass not properly swaged, there would be more chance for problems.
I don't deprime on anything but my Lee APP. I do that then wet tumble......I just prefer that....you don't have to. So then here's what I do ........
Typical for pistol: After depriming and tumbling, 1-Case Feed & Size; 2-Prime, then Powder Charge and "M" Expand (powder-thru expander); 3-Powder Check (lockout die); 4-Bullet Feed; 5-Seat; 6-Crimp.
Typical for rifle: After depriming and tumbling, I size a batch separately, on another press....then trim..... Then on the progressive: 1-Case feed and expand with "M" Expander die; 2-Prime, then Powder Charge; 3-powder check; 4-Bullet Feed; 5-Seat; 6-Crimp.
Last edited by GWS; 02-18-2023 at 11:47 PM.
I've been loading for 60 years and have only blown one primer on a press. That was on a Lee pro 1000. It shattered the primer slide and the primer tray. Apparently a primer stopped half way onto the primer punch and was crunched while trying to seat it. I'm not sure how you could blow a primer on a Dillon 550b.
The Lee primer slide system makes me real nervous.
I have reloaded about 500k rounds and most of those on progressives (obviously) and like you have not had an "oops" yet. But I know one guy who has blown the tubes on a Dillon 1050 twice.
He admitted he runs "slam bang" speed as he shoots a lot and quantity is important to him. I have never reached the production rates others can get and I plod along at my speed.
One reason I am not a fan of the Lee priming system is due to the lack of protection if there is an "oops". Then again, I have the same concerns with my shotgun progressive. The PW 800+ has the primer track right in front of you and there is a 300 primer tray at the top at head height.
One thing about the Lee 6000 is the primer slide moves the primers a fair distance from where the primer tray sits. Seems nearly impossible to have a primer jam in the shuttle so the "oops" will occur will seating the primer and that distance will help minimize a detonation getting to the tray.
Don Verna
I don't shoot that much either and only make a run of 300 to 500 handgun rounds per secession. This usually takes an hour to 1 1/2 hrs. It takes even longer if using one of the Lee 1000s as I watch everything very closely after having the one oops. I'm not sure how many primers blew with my oops as it sent pieces of the slide, the primer tray and primers all over the bench.
Apparently Lee has made a revision of the primer chute.
These men and their hypnotized followers call this a new order. It is not new. It is not order.
Too little IMO. It still has the bottom flat spot that refuses to feed the last three.....heck I don't like the last ONE which my mod with the offset still can't take care of. Yes you can load three extra....but that's not a fix. Primers are the hardest nuts to crack....and nobody has a 100% safe and efficient on press primer. RCBS came close with their strips, but strips are a PIA in their own way.
As for the rod, whatever size it is, it sure isn't a 100%er either.....whatever the size. I didn't even add a rod to my offset one.....once I load a tray, I just flick it good with my finger before I start and it works better than theirs. I think it's because I made the feed tube a lot longer so the flick pretty much empties the tray before I even start stroking the press....there are many more in the tube. If the tray has a whole box of primers, then I flick it again every 10 or so strokes.....and they feed.....except for the last one......working on that problem.
There's got to be a better way that's still safe. I just haven't found it yet....Lee neither.
The worst problem I see with the fat rod method is that the column works back and forth and does not stay down tight against the shuttle housing.
I recently had surgery and will have plenty of time to run my press through it's paces. One thing that I have noticed on this press is that the universal case feeder really does not like 7.62x39 ceases. they are just small enough to jamb up the rotating disk. A simple fix for this is a rubber cork like plug and everything is operating normal.
These men and their hypnotized followers call this a new order. It is not new. It is not order.
What rotating disc are you referring to? My feeder works fine with 223 and 308, although the collator doesn't.
That would be the rotating drum on the case feeder. M43 boolits are to big for the small port and with the wedge out on the large side, they barely get hung up on the small port enough to jam up the rotating drum. Lee should revise the universal case feeder so that the 1 wedge can be inserted on either side of the drum, rather than just the large port. Hey maybe then people would be less prone to losing the wedge too.
These men and their hypnotized followers call this a new order. It is not new. It is not order.
Today I received the updated parts for the
Pro 6k, I am debating if I will parkerize the new priming pin and holders, I might try doing a batch of shell holders & plates as well.
One thing I would really like on this press is a KMS UFO type light, I can see them having fun trying to design one right now.
These men and their hypnotized followers call this a new order. It is not new. It is not order.
I see what you are saying now. I'm still running an older set which isn't as you describe. I dug out my Lee APP parts, and sure enough that case feeder has both large and small holes on one head. The older set came with three heads, one large, one small, and one for rifle. I can't tell if Lee doesn't make those style feeders anymore or not, but it does appear Ballistic Products has the "rifle" one in stock. It works really well.
https://www.ballisticproducts.com/Le...info/LEE95663/
Copied from Lee's tech page about setting up dies on the Pro4k, This should apply to the Pro6k in reducing torsion on the carrier and some said variances in ammo people have noticed.
On the Auto Breech Lock Pro, rotation of the shell plate is in the
clockwise direction. So the order of the dies are sizing at position one
where the case first enters the shell plate, then the powder die to the
left of the sizing die (position 2), then the seating die (3) and
finally the crimp die at station 4.
A progressive press has a rotating shell plate with multiple shell slots. If the sizing die is
installed just to contact with the shell plate, cartridge overall length
(COL) can vary with the number of cases on the shell plate. With a full
shell plate, COL will tend to be longer because the increased pressure on
the plate from dies pushing on 4 cases/cartridges keeps the plate from
rising as high as it would with just one case on the shell plate.
Installing the sizing die 1/3 turn (.024" deeper if you do the math)
past contact with the shell plate, eliminates this COL variation because
the shell plate stops on the sizing die not when the press mechanism
hits the built in stops in the linkage.
If you are using a crimp die in the fourth position, then you will want to set up the seating die
to seat the bullet only without crimping. The quick and easy way to do
this is to have a sized and expanded case in position 3 on the shell
plate, Hold the press lever down as far as it will go with one hand and
turn the seating die down over the case with your other hand until the
die stops. The die will stop when it contacts the case mouth. Now back
the die away from the case 1/4 turn and lock the die down. The bullet
seating adjustment screw at the top of the seating die can then be used
to establish the desired bullet seating depth (COL).
If you have the carbide factory crimp die for a pistol caliber the die should be
installed to contact with the shell plate. The the crimp is adjusted by
means of the adjustment screw at the top of the die. Begin by backing
the screw out until threads show. To acquire the start position for the
adjustment screw raise a cartridge that has not been crimped into the
crimp die. Hold the press lever down as far as it will go with one hand
and with the other hand turn the adjustment screw into the die (toward
the shell plate) until the screw stops. Lower the cartridge 1/4 inch and
turn the adjustment screw into the die 1/2 turn. Push down on the press
lever to crimp the cartridge. If a heavier crimp is desired turn the
screw toward the shell plate. For a lighter crimp back the screw away.
If you are using a collet style crimp die then here is how to set it up.
Hold the press lever down as far as it will go with one hand and turn
the die into the press with your other hand until the die makes firm
contact with the shell plate. lower the shell plate 1/4 inch and turn
the die into the press (toward the shell plate) 1/2 turn. This will
yield a moderate crimp. For a heavier crimp adjust the die toward the
shell plate. For a lighter crimp back the die away from the shell plate a
little.
https://support.leeprecision.net/en/...-pro-4000-kits
These men and their hypnotized followers call this a new order. It is not new. It is not order.
Just got an email from KMS2. They have an LED kit available for the 6000 now if anyone is interested.
Thanks for the update, that looks like it will do just fine. I would instead use shrink wrap over the power cord up to the tool head though.
These men and their hypnotized followers call this a new order. It is not new. It is not order.
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