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Messages - fc60

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1
Star History / Re: No more Star Greasers....
« on: March 02, 2024, 08:15:37 pm »
What about dies, is there someone who makes dies for the Star sizers?

Greetings,

Original Star dies are made of Tool Steel, hardened, outside ground, inside honed, and the leade polished.

Not to mention the holes on the side to grease the bullet....

Also note the profile of the entry hole of the die. It is a slightly larger diameter followed by a taper.

They look simple; but, are a precision tool.

Lots of folks are making dies made on a lathe with no heat treat.

Only a small piece of grit will scratch/score the inside of the die and your bullets will now have a scratch on the outside.

If you mistakenly press a slightly oversize die (the 0.7500" diameter) into your press, all your original Star dies may start to leak lube at the top and bottom because the hole in the Greaser was swaged larger in diameter.

Machining a die properly is not difficult; yet, it is time consuming to do right. Especially one die at a time. Doing ten identical dies would make it less tedious.

I do not envy your quest for aftermarket dies.

Cheers,

Dave


2
Star History / No more Star Greasers....
« on: February 09, 2024, 08:34:15 pm »
Greetings,

When Star of San Diego closed, Magma Engineering purchased the Greaser tooling and parts.

I have now learned that two weeks from today, 09FEB2024, the assets of Magma Engineering will be auctioned off.

Mr. Clausing said that sourcing of castings and other material along with not being able to find skilled conventional Machinists led to his decision to close shop.

No one has come forward to purchase the company.

So, if you want a Star Greaser, now is the time to buy.

Hopefully, we will not see Star Greasers of Communist China on the horizon.

Good news, taken care of, the Greasers will outlast the owner.

Cheers,

Dave

3
Star Reloaders / Re: Glass Powder Hopper
« on: February 01, 2024, 11:44:19 am »
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I have not used mine yet. I need to trim the cut off slide so it fits the machine.

What other issues should I watch for?

Cheers,

Dave

4
Star Reloaders / Re: Glass Powder Hopper
« on: January 24, 2024, 01:42:21 pm »
Greetings,

I was able to cut the thread to the proper Star Tapered 9/16-27.

So, I install it on my machine and, grrrrr, when you push the slide in to stop the powder and try to unscrew the hopper the slide is too long and binds on the tool head.

So sad. A nicely machined part that does not work.

Cheers,

Dave

5
Star Reloaders / Re: Glass Powder Hopper
« on: January 11, 2024, 07:59:27 pm »
Greetings,

Good point. I believe Star would not endorse shut off devices on the hopper.

For me, I would be lost without a hopper with a shutoff.

I am constantly changing powders and weights to support my testing needs.

Cheers,

Dave

6
Star Reloaders / Glass Powder Hopper
« on: January 11, 2024, 04:15:15 pm »
Greetings,

I purchased a new Glass Powder Hopper with shutoff slide via eBay.

Very nicely machined.

However, the mounting thread is WRONG.

As supplied, it is a 9/16-27 STRAIGHT thread and does not fit the powder housing correctly.

I notified the Seller; but, no response.

I plan to chuck the offending part in my lathe and machine the CORRECT TAPERED THREAD when it warms up a bit.

Cheers,

Dave

7
Loading Data & Reloading Procedures / Re: Cam over
« on: December 05, 2023, 07:59:10 pm »
Greetings,

With 7/8-14 dies and bottle neck rifle cases, "camming over" ensures the case is forced into the die for proper head space.

The Star is designed for Pistol cases and, as such, camming over is not needed nor desired.

If the face of the Carbide sizing die contacts the shell plate and you "cam it over" you risk fracturing the Carbide ring.

To adjust the Carbide Sizing die, back it off and cycle the press down where it is at "bottom dead center". Hold the handle with one hand and screw the die down until it just touches the shell plate. Nip the lock nut to hold the die in position and cycle the press fully to ensure that the die is not being forced into the shell plate.

Cheers,

Dave

8
Greetings,

The extra die is likely the Taper Crimp die.

The 3/8" mounting post is the early version.

Cheers,

Dave

9
Stars Want to Sell/Want to Buy / Re: FOR SALE --- Star Universal Loader
« on: September 21, 2023, 04:48:31 pm »
Greetings,

Updated text to include "45 ACP".

Cheers,

Dave

10
Greetings,

A fellow shooter no longer participates and wants to sell his Star Loader.

45 ACP.

It was purchased new from Star in 1971.

In 1984, it was placed in a box and forgotten about until a few weeks ago.

I have had many Star presses pass through my hands and this one is a close to new condition as I have ever seen.

The loader has a LifeTyme Carbide sizing die, a bullet seater with a nose punch for a swaged Lead SWC, and a Taper Crimp die.

Both large and small pistol primer feed and pickup tubes are include. Along with the primer punches and punch installation tool.

Asking price is $600.00 and the buyer pays actual shipping from ZIP 98385. I will likely ship it UPS unless there is a more cost effective route.

Cheers,

Dave

11
Star Reloaders / Re: Adjusting case tabs
« on: June 25, 2023, 12:45:39 pm »
Greetings,

Personally, I rotate the shell plate half way out of index.

The Shell Straps should now point to the index hole in the plate.

Back off the upper set screw about two turns.

Now, tighten the Filister Head screw at the bottom until it just touches the shell plate.

Next, tighten the upper set screw just enough so that the shell plate turns freely.

Gently is the key word here.

Repeat for the other two straps.

Last, insert a shell casing and check for movement and alignment.

Cheers,

Dave

12
Star Lubricator & Resizers / Re: Star Luber gaskets
« on: June 04, 2023, 11:32:30 am »
Greetings Lindy,

Been watching this post.

When is your next trip to Home Depot?

Cheers,

Dave

13
Star Lubricator & Resizers / Re: Star Luber gaskets
« on: May 11, 2023, 01:36:43 pm »
Greetings,

The only "gasket" I know of is the #107 Hycar Washer.

Magma redesigned it and it is now a machined piece of plastic.

I was never able to find the source of the original Hycar Washers.

They resemble "cup seals"; but, again, I was not able to find the right size.

Cheers,

Dave

14
Greetings 6String,

When cleaning your Universal, note the orientation of the cam that seats the primer. It is located inside the base.

It is not symmetrical.

Mark it carefully prior to removal for cleaning.

Cheers,

Dave

15
Greetings,

The easiest way is to take an unused powder bar and machine the hole to 0.500".

Then, buy some 0.500" (1/2) brass rod.

Now, bore a hole and part off the newly machine bushing.

Part off slightly long and sand it to the proper length with 220 grit wet/dry paper.

I stamp the side of the bushing with the volume in cubic centimeters.

Research Richard Lee's method of Volume Measured Density (VMD).

Cheers,

Dave

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