I don't know how long bullet feeders have been around, but I remember watching an operation (back in the 1970s) by a man who reloaded .38 Special practice ammo for a number of police departments in the San Diego area. He powered his Star reloaders with, I think, washing machine motors and transmissions, with micro-switches everywhere in case there was a jam. He filled incredibly long tubes with primers, cases, powder, etc., flipped a switch and went off to do something else. I watched as one Star produced a couple hundred rounds without a hitch. (He had hung an M1 Garand clip so that as a round was ejected, it pinged. If he didn't hear a pin, he'd check if there was a problem or if he just had to add more components.)
He had done something similar with a couple Star lubricators. I seem to remember that the cast bullets were lubed as they came out of the tube (so he didn't periodically have to put a lubed bullet back through the die), but I can't remember what the setup looked like. Again, I watched as a large number were processed without a single hitch.
It probably helped that he had worked at Star for many years.
I bought a Star reloader from him. (I don't know what the model was. I think it was the Universal and came with the Hulme(?) indexer.) He had modified it to use standard 7/8 dies. Unfortunately, finances got tight some years ago and I sold it (and my BMW motorcycle). Hindsight being 20/20, I should have tightened my belt somewhere else. I have a Dillon 650 now, and it does a fine job. But it is not the poetry of beautifully-machined steel that a Star is. I'd love to get another one and keep it set up for .45ACP.
Cheers,
Richard
