Messages

76

Star Reloaders / Re: Storage of Star Machine Heads

« on: December 08, 2009, 10:16:14 am »

I made up these stands for mine a while back.  Holds the tool head as well as the shell plate.

R Bruce!
Wow that's a wonderful idea.  I have a workshop so I can cobble up a few stands!  thanks for the pictures and I also agree that those machine heads are an impressive display.  You go the STAR Jones Baby!

Art in CT

77

Star Reloaders / Storage of Star Machine Heads

« on: December 07, 2009, 02:18:03 pm »

Hi Guys:
I have the need to store Star Machine Heads when they are not in use on one of my Stars.
I have five machine heads and 3 Star Universals.

Today I just lay them on the bench in a quiet area with their powder magazine tubes attached
and all the dies set up and ready to go.  I keep them covered with old pillow cases to keep dust off.

I was wondering if any of you have come up with an ingenious way to store not in
use machine heads?  Has anyone crafted a machine head stand?

All ears for good ideas...

78

Loading Data & Reloading Procedures / Re: Loading bar

« on: December 04, 2009, 03:45:41 pm »

W231 is the exact same powder as Hodgdon HP-38.   I have done extensive load testing with 9mm Luger and HP-38 loads.  My most accurate load is 4.5g of HP-38 with the Laser Cast (Oregon) 124g bullet which is a round nose it also works well with the SAECO #115 122g pointed round nose or the Hensley & Gibbs #7 124g rounded truncated cone flat base.  I use just a slight amount of taper crimp on these cast bullets.  The bullets I cast are somewhat softer 20:1 lead to tin than the Oregon Laser Cast bullets which are in the wheel weight hardness range or even a bit harder.

I was able to achieve .652" group sizes (average of 15+ groups) with 8 rounds in a S&W 952 Long Slide 6" from a Ransom Rest at 25 yards.  On that pistol, the first round is always out somewhere else as it is headspaced differently vs those subsequent rounds which are sent into the chamber with firing pressure and thus I always discounted that first round from my calculations.

So that said, 4.8g is not too hot but may not be as accurate as 4.5 so work you way up.

Folks here have suggested Rich Daniel's adjustable charge bar.  I have one of these installed on my 10mm S&W Star Machine Head.  It is a really great bar and Rich can fit you out with one.  However he makes this bar in a few sizes so you need to let him know the powder and the charge range so he can get you the correct bar that will suit your needs.

You adjust his bar with an allen head set screw that is accessable from the front of the Star, so you kind of screw in for a smaller charge and out for a larger charge.  I think you will like this bar especially for load development.  The setting does not wander at all from what I have experienced.

Also, get back to me with your load testing results in the 9mm or any further questions you may have.

Cheers

Art In CT

79

Loading Data & Reloading Procedures / Question: Amount of Taper Crimp for .45 ACP Bullseye Load?

« on: December 04, 2009, 10:14:51 am »

Hi Guys:

Pretty simple question....

How much taper crimp should I have adjusted in for .45 ACP in a light Bullseye Load.

I am loading with 4.1g of Hodgdon's CLAYs in Winchester brass with the large flash holes.

The bullet is a home cast .452 Star Lubrisized Hensley & Gibbs 200g Semi Wad Cutter Bevel Base from a #68 mold.

Currently, my taper crimp is set up to apply .470 to .471 taper crimp with .021 - .025 of the bullet shoulder above or exposed from the brass.  Variance of the shoulder probably due to brass length + or -

Now I have not done any testing with variance in taper crimp.  I do not experience any bullet movement
due to recoil with the current amount of taper crimp from recoil of the slide.  All works fine and am getting 100% feeding in both my .45 ACP pistols.

So if I start a taper crimp test process with my ransom rest... where should I start with the "most amount" of crimp and what should the increment of crimp be?

For example: start at .465" and increment by .002...  .467  .469  .471

Just so you know... my bullets are a 20:1 lead tin alloy with a BHN of 10.
All are sorted by weight within .2 grains.  I kind of worry that too much of a crimp will
deform the bullet.

So any input you may have regarding the taper crimp amount with a light bullseye load would be
greatly appreciated.

Thanks So Much,
Art in CT

80

Star Reloaders / Re: posting images

« on: December 03, 2009, 09:48:13 am »

I have three of these powder drains attached to my machine heads.  M A Lewis makes them and they work swell.  M A is the original poster of the picture above.  This is a nice gizmo.  I use a foam ear plug as a stopper in the drain tube just to be on the safe side when getting ready to utilize the drain when the powder magazine is full.

I give this accessory by MA a big THUMBS UP!  

I also find the Moon Indexer and case flipper from Ray Brandes perhaps some of the best additions one can add to the Star Universal reloader.

Art

81

Star Reloaders / Re: manual

« on: September 25, 2009, 12:26:29 pm »

In my opinion, this site should or must have an area where a PDF scanned version of the manual(s), parts lists and old advertising(s) should be posted and downloadable.  Most scanner software creates either PDFs or Jpeg/Gifs which are suitable for posting...

Is there a possibility of doing this?

I am sure that there would be no copyright issues to deal with as there is/was no monitary gain involved and the information is in the public domain.

Is this a possibility for Star Reloaders to address and make the site more information rich?

82

Star Reloaders / Re: Cover for the Star Reloader?

« on: September 18, 2009, 03:14:16 pm »

You know, the small vacuum is a great idea.  I have a nice Manhattan that I use for my cars.  It is really powerful and I may put it to good use.  Thanks for that idea....

As for the cover,  If I did the Sack Up, should I leave a hole for the operating arm to poke thru in an uncovered manner...  or make a sleve for it so to speak? 

83

Star History / Re: Star Price History

« on: September 18, 2009, 03:09:45 pm »

Guys...  On Friday September 18, 2009 a nice Star Universal with 38 Cal Perfection dies and a taper crimp die has just sold for $1,925.00   I was in contact with the seller when it was first listed.  There were no tools (for example the primer deck nut wrench), no primer pick up tubes or any spare parts, springs bushings or charge bars being provided along with this reloader.  The reloader was very well cared for.  All parts that could be, were buffed and polished to a mirror finish. 

In my opinion, this sale sets an all time high water mark for a single Star Universal equipped with the most common tool head.   I suspect this may draw some other machines out of the closet.

To find this listing and the pictures it is item 250499235832 

The Ebay advanced search with the completed items check box will probably return this listing on ebay.

That has got to be ONE HAPPY SELLER.

The high price means that there was at least one other potential buyer who was willing to pay $1900 or there abouts.

Sheesh....

84

Star Reloaders / Re: Cover for the Star Reloader?

« on: September 15, 2009, 03:25:18 pm »

I think the Sack Up is a great Idea Diesel!  I have a few spares hanging around as I keep all my long guns in individual Sack Ups when in the safe.  I put a wide masking tape on the Sack Up with the name of the gun and caliber so I can quickly find the rifle.

I will have to pin up a pillow case and take an existing sack up to a seamstress friend of ours (my wife does not sew so swell  )  and see if she can convert a sack up into a Star Sack.

This should be rather interesting to explain what I need this for...  Oh Yah...

As for the plastic bags as a cover.  That may be a good idea in areas where the humidity is low. But here in Connecticut or anywhere along the coast or in river valleys, the humidity could become trapped inside the plastic bag and this would probably not be a wonderful thing.

As one other tip,  I always keep a can of DUST OFF handy with my Stars.  Dust Off is a can of compressed air.  A few blasts of Dust Off with a finger over the case in the powder station keeps the shell plate area nice and clean during reloading sessions.  Warning though.  Long Blasts of Dust Off make the metal quite cold and can cause condensation due to the cold.

Art

85

Star Reloaders / Re: New Dies

« on: September 14, 2009, 03:06:32 pm »

I just talked to Dave at CH 4D.  He made a run of Star Dies about one year ago, about 100 sets in various pistol sizes. They are all sold out according to his records. 

Dave said that he has so much work and backlog for his "standard" dies, that he does not expect to be able to make a run of Star Dies (or any other custom sized dies) for at least one year or more due to set up and tooling.

This news is current as of Sept. 14, 2009

However, if we keep asking him, he may be more willing to get this done soon rather than later....

86

Loading Data & Reloading Procedures / Re: 9 mm cases in the "Freeloader"

« on: September 12, 2009, 05:31:48 pm »

Hi Ron:

You may want to make the hole(s) thru which the cases drop through a wee bit smaller.  A hole punch and a clear coffee can lid made of plastic (with the rim trimmed off) would be the ticket.  I saw a YouTube video by a guy who fixed this problem using the above.  I think he was using a case reloader from Lee called a Loadmaster.   He showed a step by step process for the fix.  The was getting 3 wrong ways per tube and by making the drop hole a wee bit smaller he eliminated that issue.

If you go to YouTube and do a search on ...  Lee Loadmaster 9mm Case Collator Modification
the you will find this great video...  The guy does a super job of showing the problem and the fix....

This may help you...

Art

87

Star Reloaders / Cover for the Star Reloader?

« on: September 11, 2009, 09:42:49 am »

Hi Gang:
What are you guys doing to cover your Star reloaders when they are not in use?
At present, I drape an old pillow case over my Stars.
This keeps dust from my workshop out of the mechanism.

Your thoughts on what you all are doing in this regard would be appreciated.

Thanks In Advance!

ArtInCT

88

Star Reloaders / Re: Star with attachments

« on: September 07, 2009, 06:29:07 am »

Hi Tony:
Thanks for that Picture... gosh the attachments sure do look complex.  It looks like there may be an indexer, some sort of case kicker and certainly a shell collator and loader, yes?  Is there a bullet feeder or placer as well that puts the bullet upon the charged case?

89

Star Reloaders / Re: Random Thoughts on the Star Powder Tube Magazine

« on: September 04, 2009, 07:01:42 am »

Art,  I think there is some confusion about just what each of us is calling a baffle.   The Universal machine that I sold to you has its original factory baffle, the aluminum disk above the brass base.  Star did not offer any other baffle to my knowledge.

Bruce

Oh Jeepers!  before going any further I need to explain.  I am color blind.  And I really cannot tell or differentiate fine or subtle color / hue differences.   Bruce, You are correct Sir.   It appears that all of my Stars (including the 45ACP I got from you) do indeed have an ALUMINUM baffle situated directly atop the threaded brass magazine end.  So all of mine have a baffle.

However I posit that the location of the baffle as described may not be as effective as it could be IF it were located about 1 inch or more away or above the threaded brass magazine end thus providing a larger reservior of powder.   

90

Star Reloaders / Re: Random Thoughts on the Star Powder Tube Magazine

« on: September 04, 2009, 06:53:22 am »

Wow, great testing work on your part Bruce!
  
You are right that the powder when freshly poured into a magazine needs to settle.
Gently tapping the magazine with your finger, from top to bottom a few times will help accomplish this settling I would imagine.

Also, it has been my experience that when doing tests like this, that weighing aggregated throws help at the expense of understanding throw to throw variance.

For instance, do ten or more powder throws and weight the total sum of the ten throws.
So if you are aiming at 2.7 grains of something after ten throws you should have dispensed 27 grains (2.7 x 10)  This method is a little less fussy.  Also, by doing only one measurement vs. 10 you may eliminate weight error variance imposed by the scale which over 10 or more throws can add up.  It may be 6 of 1 or half a dozen of the other...  but it is easier.  On the other hand, the understanding of throw to throw variance is important to some extent in understanding the effect of using the Star reloader and how a specific behavior may have a correlation on outcome.
Again I think speed, overall smoothness and cadence may have an effect on outcome.  Also the condition of the cam bumps on the powder cam and how the charge bar vibrates on them (spring tension comes into play here) is a factor, how much I do not know....   

I applaud your work and data.  So thanks so much on that effort!

I wonder how varying machine operational speed has as an effect on throw weight?  I suspect that the vibration of the charge bar on the detents is very important to outcome.  The hypothesis being that a slowly operated cycle may not produce much charge bar vibration and the charge will be less settled.

Slightly changing the subject to that of how do I retrofit baffles into my baffle free powder magazines...

To retrofit my two plastic powder magazines with a baffle, I will be asking a machinist friend of mine to fashion a conical baffle out of aluminum (on a lathe) to a slightly less inside diameter than that of the tube.  I will ask him to cut a few slight recess grooves, much like those on a auto cylinder for rings.  Then using an appropriate sized rubber O ring(s) to fit the grooves it should make for a nice fit.  The trick will be to find O rings of the right size.