herters c-press and pull downs

[michael.birdsley]

so the same guy i bought my m38 swedish mauser also has this older herters c-press for sale. he wants $40 for it. I think it’s a good deal but, does it take special shell holders. if it does take special shell holders how expensive and are they hard to get ?


he’s also selling me 400 completed reloaded rounds of 30-06 for $120. plan on pulling them apart and using the brass, primer, and bullets. i don’t know how i’d feel about re-using the powder. how many people re charge pull downs?

edit: looks like i can buy a rcbs adaptor and than i can use my lee shell holders




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[TNsailorman]

CH4D makes adapters for those older presses and allow the use of modern day shell holders(RCBS, Lyman, Lee, etc.).

[michael.birdsley]

CH4D makes adapters for those older presses and allow the use of modern day shell holders(RCBS, Lyman, Lee, etc.).

i’m assuming he’s member. i’ll get a hold of him. thanks


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[Green Frog]

Michael,

That old Herter’s press should be good to handle just about anything you could dream of loading. The only fly in the ointment is the proprietary shell holder. I see it comes with the priming arm, and that’s a neat feature, but that won’t work with the shell holder adaptors, IIRC and I don’t remember ever hearing of a primer arm adaptor! OTOH, if you like to hand prime off press like I do, this is a non-issue. If you do decide to use the original type shell holders, they are available at only slightly ridiculous prices, from S&S here, Gun Shows, and flea Bay. Depending on what you want to load, most can be found relatively easily if you’re willing to pay the freight. I started gathering Herter’s shell holders decades ago, and with the recent acquisition of one for 32 S&W-327 Fed Mag I finally have all I need for just about anything I’ll be loading.

BTW, you should be aware that Herter made some of its early shell holders for a short time using a threaded mount which won’t fit on your press. Don’t ask how I found out about that!

Froggie

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

I've had a couple of these Herter's presses.
While the opening is long enough for working with standard rifle cases, if you use the RCBS adapter for standard shell holders, you will probably run out of room. It's been a long time since I played with that, so I'm not 100% sure. Of course if just using for pistol ammo, you'll be fine.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

SNIP>>>

he’s also selling me 400 completed reloaded rounds of 30-06 for $120. plan on pulling them apart and using the brass, primer, and bullets. i don’t know how i’d feel about re-using the powder. how many people re charge pull downs?

I wouldn't hesitate to reuse the powder if I'm 100% sure what it is and it looks/smells good. Obviously if you reuse the powder, you should measure it for each case, just like you would with new powder.

[michael.birdsley]

Michael,

That old Herter’s press should be good to handle just about anything you could dream of loading. The only fly in the ointment is the proprietary shell holder. I see it comes with the priming arm, and that’s a neat feature, but that won’t work with the shell holder adaptors, IIRC and I don’t remember ever hearing of a primer arm adaptor! OTOH, if you like to hand prime off press like I do, this is a non-issue. If you do decide to use the original type shell holders, they are available at only slightly ridiculous prices, from S&S here, Gun Shows, and flea Bay. Depending on what you want to load, most can be found relatively easily if you’re willing to pay the freight. I started gathering Herter’s shell holders decades ago, and with the recent acquisition of one for 32 S&W-327 Fed Mag I finally have all I need for just about anything I’ll be loading.

BTW, you should be aware that Herter made some of its early shell holders for a short time using a threaded mount which won’t fit on your press. Don’t ask how I found out about that!

Froggie

I do have a lee hand primer so i can use that. yeah i’ll have to ask him what’s up with the priming system on this press. i’ll have to ask him if he has the shell holders or not.

I don’t know what exactly i’ll use this press for but, i think it’s neat and I would like it. it will be a nice up grade from my aluminum lee challenger and aluminum lee C press.


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[michael.birdsley]

I wouldn't hesitate to reuse the powder if I'm 100% sure what it is and it looks/smells good. Obviously if you reuse the powder, you should measure it for each case, just like you would with new powder.

the brass and bullets alone will be worth pulling the rounds apart. since he loaded them i’m hoping he remembers what powder the was. if the powder looks good i’ll probably save it. 400 rounds should be almost 2.5 lbs of powder. i will definitely be re-weighing the powder if it looks good.


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[JonB_in_Glencoe]

Another thing about the Herter's C press.
when mounted, you'll notice the ram is at a slight angle off 90º, some people find that off putting because you will likely need to hand guide long cases into the die(especially a FL size/decap die), due to the "lean" effect.

The link shows a aftermarket primer catcher, incase you want to deprime on the press
but I mostly copied the link here because the 4th image shows the Herter's C press mounted and you can see the angle I'm talking about.

https://primercatchers.com/product/h...rimer-catcher/

[michael.birdsley]

Another thing about the Herter's C press.
when mounted, you'll notice the ram is at a slight angle off 90º, some people find that off putting because you will likely need to hand guide long cases into the die(especially a FL size/decap die), due to the "lean" effect.

The link shows a aftermarket primer catcher, incase you want to deprime on the press
but I mostly copied the link here because the 4th image shows the Herter's C press mounted and you can see the angle I'm talking about.

https://primercatchers.com/product/h...rimer-catcher/

that’s a neat device. yeah i’ll probably get that when i get the press.



so it looks like the press came in different colors. looks like the color of the press im getting is dark grey ? I might put a new coat of paint on it.


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[JonB_in_Glencoe]

I've owned brown ones. I've seen a photo of a red one, that was reported as original paint, I'm skeptical, but I could be wrong.
.
The photo you posted (dark grey) I suspect is a repaint (my opinion), because the pivot pin that holds the handle on, looks like it's painted, originally they were silver, maybe zinc or nickel plated or maybe unfinished? cuz I have seen rusty pins.

Personally, If you get it, I'd recommend cleaning it. If it has been "spray painted" over the original finish, you may be able to remove the outer paint while leaving the original finish intact. If I owned it, that'd be my preference. You may have other ideas, and that's fine.

[Wayne Smith]

i’m assuming he’s member. i’ll get a hold of him. thanks


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CH4D is a company - CH4D.com I believe. If you are not familiar with them check out their website, it is amazing.

[Reg]

Don’t sell that old Super Model 3 press short on anything. First off it’s about the strongest C frame press ever made with good leverage for about any reloading problem that should arise. The shell holders are not the “standard” shape but are out there. You can pay the high prices on fleabay or I have found them at gunshows for little or nothing. How many shell holders do you actually need anyway? Clearance? With the proper shell holder it has about the best clearance of any C frame press made. Priming? Keep one arm set up for large and another for small. They swap out in less than a minute or just use a hand primer for a better “feel” as most of us do anyway.
It is a brute as far as size goes but if you do forming operations it will be exactly what you want compared to any other C frame press on the market. Give it a fair try. You might be pleasantly surprised.

[michael.birdsley]

I met up with robert this morning and got the press home in my garage. this is one bad mama jama of a press. it puts my aluminum lee O press to shame. it’s probably worth $40 bucks in scrap iron haha. actually scrap is way down in price.

i believe the CH4D adapter will work for my .243, 6.5x55 sweed, 30-30, 450 and maybe 7.62x54R. 30/06 probably will need to get an actual herters shell holder.

next step will be to get it cleaned up. look like it has the original paint on it still








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[Dan Cash]

C&H also makes (made) a shell holder adaptor for these presses. You can make a slot in the adaptor with a die grinder which will permit the use of the press priming arm.

Regarding the reloaded .30-06 ammo, I would pull a half dozen cartridges down and weigh the charges. If the charge weights present no red flags, shoot them.

[michael.birdsley]

C&H also makes (made) a shell holder adaptor for these presses. You can make a slot in the adaptor with a die grinder which will permit the use of the press priming arm.

Regarding the reloaded .30-06 ammo, I would pull a half dozen cartridges down and weigh the charges. If the charge weights present no red flags, shoot them.

the issue with shooting them as is. the guy said he only neck sized the rounds for the rifle he had at the time.

I have a 760 remington 30-06 which is a pump.
that’s why i feel like i should probably re-size them. that and i was only going to shoot cast in the 760.


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[lotech]

My first press in 1965 was a Wells, same as a Herter's but with a different name. The shellholder situation should be easy to deal with. Despite a lack of compound leverage, these basic presses will do about anything you can do with a press that's much newer. Today's newschoolers and upgraders don't like old stuff and probably wouldn't use them, but these are good tools and I'd bet many of them still see regular use.

[michael.birdsley]

so just today I order the shell holder adapter from CH4D. I believe all the rounds that i currently load for should fit with the adapter. i could see how some of the longer rifle cases could be an issue. i will probably order that 3d printed primer catcher soon


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[Green Frog]

so just today I order the shell holder adapter from CH4D. I believe all the rounds that i currently load for should fit with the adapter. i could see how some of the longer rifle cases could be an issue. i will probably order that 3d printed primer catcher soon


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Unless you are going to load some super long cartridges, you should have all the room you need with your Herter's Super 3 press. You're not planning on doing any 45-110 or 50 BMG cases, are you?

Just to add some more fuel to the fire, there is also a Herter's Super U-3 press out there, with a body that sort of wraps around the back of the case, not just the strut of the C press. Probably overkill, but they sure do look cool!

Froggie

[michael.birdsley]

CH4D shipped the shell holder adapter and should be here saturday. I also ordered that plastic primer catch system. I know the colors original on the press but, i’m not crazy about the color. I may or may not change that.

i was able to get the spring working again on the primer arm with some penetrating oil. i’m going to take that primer arm off and put it up.


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