Lee Pro 100 Guru - advice wanted

bushwhacker

bushwhacker

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I picked up a Lee Pro 100 turret press at a gun show. Bought the 4 die set to change from 38Sp to 9mm. Some things I found along the way. Despite the instructions not saying so, the Z-bar needs to be the bent version for 9mm. Made one which is working OK. The main problem I am having is with the primer feed. If it misses and you don't notice, you get the works bunged up with powder. I have already discovered that there are two ways to insert the spring on the case sensor and only one way works. What happens, is that sometimes the primer punch doesn't drop down to let the next primer feed in. If you wiggle the case sensor with your finger, sometimes that does it, sometimes you have to slightly rotate the shell plate back and forth. I have played with adjusting the zero adjust screw. I notice that the case sensor shows signs of wear where it contacts the cartridge case. I intend to get a replacement case sensor, but wonder if there are any other parts it would be wise to replace at the same time. It would be nice to load cartridges without having to peer in at the primer feed every time to see if a primer has fed to the top of the primer punch.
Bill
 
That is probably the most common problem with the Pro 1000. Others may have better fixes for you but I found that placing a few washers under the mounting bolts at the rear, tipping the press slightly forward, greatly assisted. Also keeping the primer trough full helped solve it. Admittedly, after making the mods and still being suspicious of the priming system, I no longer rely on their method. I prefer to go off-press and hand prime as I prefer the feel. The press has worked well but we all change and so does the equipment needs. The press has served me well as I estimate over 300K rounds loaded with it in 25yrs, and having replaced almost every part as least once due to wear.
dB
 
Reloaded 400 rds 9mm last night on my pro 1000, so all the wiggling and adjusting is still fresh in my mind.

These things make my life easier:
- ensure that the primer feed chute is full, never let the primer tray be empty
- watch the chute when you gently pull past the case sensor to see that the primers advance, if it doesn't obiously advance, there is no primer on the punch
- One sideways or missed primer derails the whole process. Stop, poke, pry and dislodge the missed primer.
- Keep a source of compressed air handy. I have a compresser nearby but you can also use that canned air stuff. Blow out the primer feed any time you see ONE flake anywhere.
- Adjust zero as soon as you can't feel the primer easily slide home. I advance slightly and at the bottom adjust the zero adjustment screw clockwise gently until the shell plate advances/clicks into place. On my Lee Fiddle-bugger-1000 I look to see where the primer punch is located in the shell plate hole and advance the screw ONLY IF IT IS NOT centered. The extra 3/4 turn advances the shellplate too far on my unit.
- Check to see that advancing the shell plate by hand hasn't backed off or loosened the threaded connection to the spindle.

Don't be afraid to disassemble it again and clean it out entirely.
Good luck, sorry for your woes.
 
one thing i've seen done and intend to do at some point to my 3 pro 1k's is put a small vibrator (insert jokes here) on the primer tray/chute to keep a constant flow of primers. the other thing i've contemplated is putting a longer chute to keep more pressure on primers for better feeding. i have also put some washer under the back mounting hole to keep the primers feeding better. they should have made a square primer tray instead of a round one where primers can bunch up and get stuck, but maybe they tried that and it didn't work as good.
 
That's funny, my tray doesn't feed above 100 primers + 20 for gravity in the chute.

When my sensor stops working properly, I get a primer delivered even if there's no case.
 
That's funny, my tray doesn't feed above 100 primers + 20 for gravity in the chute.

When my sensor stops working properly, I get a primer delivered even if there's no case.
 
bushwhacker said:
I think that means your sensor spring is installed backwards.
Click to expand...

I've been postponing a look at that part of the press for a loong while, but now I'm curious so it will probably happen, thanks. My bet is on some grains of powder stuck in the mechanism :).
 
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