hornady lnl ap woes

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Super_Chicken

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Hey guys, I've been using my hornady lnl ap to make hundreds of .45acp and 9mm rounds and I've run into a few problems while doing so.

The one consistent problem I found was the powder thrower consistently throwing a wide range of powder. For 45 I was using IMR 700-x and the powder thrower was throwing a range from 3.5-4.2 gr. It's a stick like powder so I kind of attributed it to that.

For 9mm I got Hodgdon's HS-6 and its more a disc type powder. But it still throws charges from 6.3-6.6gr. Not as wide a spread but definitely stayed more consistent over the duration of loading rounds. But I'm not sure if that's still to large a span for the powder thrower to have?

The reason it concerns me is because I find if I get the odd round that doesn't have enough powder the slide doesn't have enough force to eject and grab the next round. (stovepipes the ejected casing).

And now as I was loading 300 9mm the other night it seems something has gone on with the primer device. As I pull the handle down and the primer catcher slides back on the rail, it no longer goes back far enough to grab the next primer from the tube. So I have to manually grab it and pull it back further to have it grab the next primer.

Any tips on how to fix these two problems will be greatly appreciated. :D
 
I would contact Hornady directly. They will likely diagnose your problem and send you parts if you need them for the primer feed. As far as the powder goes...maybe they just don't meter very well in that measure.
 
Did you degrease the power thrower when you first setup the LNL AP?

Apparently if the powder thrower is not degreased properly it may cause issues similar to what you are describing.
 
2Bad4u said:
Did you degrease the power thrower when you first setup the LNL AP?

Apparently if the powder thrower is not degreased properly it may cause issues similar to what you are describing.
Click to expand...

Yea, when I first got the press, I made sure to take the power thrower apart, clean and wipe it all down. I did it again when I switched from making 45 over to 9mm.
 
For the inconsistencies, I changed to a micrometer gauge to set the powder grains. Way nicer to dial in and stays in place. Also, make sure you are using the the baffle in the powder tube.

For the primer slide, make sure the slide is clean and LIGHTLY lube it. Once you have done that, you can adjust the guide rod by loosening the nut on the bottom of the press. Mine was out of adjustment and a little bent when I got it. Since I have adjusted it, I have loaded excess 1000 rounds without issues.
 
gommee said:
For the inconsistencies, I changed to a micrometer gauge to set the powder grains. Way nicer to dial in and stays in place. Also, make sure you are using the the baffle in the powder tube.

For the primer slide, make sure the slide is clean and LIGHTLY lube it. Once you have done that, you can adjust the guide rod by loosening the nut on the bottom of the press. Mine was out of adjustment and a little bent when I got it. Since I have adjusted it, I have loaded excess 1000 rounds without issues.
Click to expand...

I tried adjusting the screw at the top. I figured the nut at the bottom couldn't play a huge roll in adjustment. I'll definitely look into that tonight.

I'll also check out the high road and see what tips they have. I am using the powder baffle that came with the kit.
 
make sure you're using the pistol rotor, not the rifle rotor, i was having problems making small adjustments in the beginning and didn't realize i was using the wrong rotor. Also, like Gommee said, i was having problems with the slide not going back far enough to pick up another primer. Just adjust the rod and center the hole under the tube and tighten it up.
 
+1 with what everyone said about cleaning ... I used Hornady one shot dry lube for cleaning and haven't had any issues with powder throw. I've been very consistent with my .40 loads being +/- 0.1 gr all the time. I use HS6 and VV N320 and haven't had a problem with either.

As for the primer shuttle, the little plastic piece on mine broke (just snapped one day where the rod goes into the plastic part). Hornady sent me a new one out right away, along with the rod, which came out of alignment and bent at the same time. Installed those and no problems since. Also +1 on the nut adjustments as the new one seemed to take some fiddling with to get working perfectly. Make sure that the shuttle and the slide are both cleaned with a tiny bit of lube. One shot again does a good job there.
 
Super_Chicken said:
I tried adjusting the screw at the top. I figured the nut at the bottom couldn't play a huge roll in adjustment. I'll definitely look into that tonight.

I'll also check out the high road and see what tips they have. I am using the powder baffle that came with the kit.
Click to expand...


The screw at the top doesn't do much. The nut on the bottom is the key.

Forgot about the rifle rotor, good catch (I changed mine when I first cleaned it). Rifle rotor with the pistol adjuster would throw inconsistent loads.

Again, a LITTLE lube on the shuttle. It will stick with out it.
 
As others have stated for the powder measure make sure you're using the pistol rotor assembly and that everything is degreased.

I can get 0.1gr accuracy with W231, Varget, TiteGroup and Vhitavuori N320.

As for your primer slide not going far back enough loosen the screw at the top of the guide wire and move the plastic rearwards for more travel.
 
Thanks again guys for all the tips.

I managed to fix the primer rail by physically bending it back a bit. Seems to operate smoothly. I tried unscrewing the nut at the bottom but I'm not sure what it does. (I couldn't pull the rod out from the base of the press, even with the top part of the rod unscrewed). I also tried loosening the screw at the top and pulling the plastic rearwards and it wouldn't go back far enough. Bending seems to have fixed the problem though.

As for the dry shot, I actually picked up a can with the press to clean and degrease everything before starting. I made sure to switch over to the small pistol rotor that came with the kit. (I only have a large and small pistol rotor, no rifle one??) I'll post of pic of the one I have tomorrow.
 
Super_Chicken said:
Thanks again guys for all the tips.

I managed to fix the primer rail by physically bending it back a bit. Seems to operate smoothly. I tried unscrewing the nut at the bottom but I'm not sure what it does. (I couldn't pull the rod out from the base of the press, even with the top part of the rod unscrewed). I also tried loosening the screw at the top and pulling the plastic rearwards and it wouldn't go back far enough. Bending seems to have fixed the problem though.

As for the dry shot, I actually picked up a can with the press to clean and degrease everything before starting. I made sure to switch over to the small pistol rotor that came with the kit. (I only have a large and small pistol rotor, no rifle one??) I'll post of pic of the one I have tomorrow.
Click to expand...

You should have 2 rotors. Small one is for pistol and large one is for rifle. You should have also received 2 powder adjustment inserts. One is for pistol and one for rifle. Each fitting into the proper rotor.
The lower nut allows you to adjust the movement of the primer shuttle. Yes, you may have had to slightly bend it to get the shuttle properly moving. Mine was bent in shipping as well.
 
Super_Chicken said:
Thanks again guys for all the tips.

I managed to fix the primer rail by physically bending it back a bit. Seems to operate smoothly. I tried unscrewing the nut at the bottom but I'm not sure what it does. (I couldn't pull the rod out from the base of the press, even with the top part of the rod unscrewed). I also tried loosening the screw at the top and pulling the plastic rearwards and it wouldn't go back far enough. Bending seems to have fixed the problem though.

As for the dry shot, I actually picked up a can with the press to clean and degrease everything before starting. I made sure to switch over to the small pistol rotor that came with the kit. (I only have a large and small pistol rotor, no rifle one??) I'll post of pic of the one I have tomorrow.
Click to expand...

Exactly what happened with mine when the plastic part broke ... pain in the butt ... Hornady was good for replacement though, so no worries .. if you call them up they should be able to ship you out new parts
 
I have the same problem , I cant get tightgroup to meater ,My LNL dident come with a baffle or the pistol roter so I ordered them and they are on there way , I hope that fixs the problem
 
Here are the pics as promised:

the press:
RichmondHill-20110516-00378.jpg


The rotor inside the press is the small pistol rotor.
RichmondHill-20110516-00384.jpg


A better look at what I think is the rifle rotor: (large pistol rotor?)
RichmondHill-20110516-00386.jpg
 
BCboy said:
I have the same problem , I cant get tightgroup to meater ,My LNL dident come with a baffle or the pistol roter so I ordered them and they are on there way , I hope that fixs the problem
Click to expand...

I use Titegroup as well and have consistent loads. Try using the micrometer insert. I changed it right at the start.

ht tp://www.hornady.com/store/Pistol-Micrometer-For-New-Rotor-1-Each/

For extremely precise measurements, the Micrometer Pistol Insert allows you to make and monitor incremental changes and return to previous settings.

*In order to use this insert, you must have the Pistol Rotor and Standard Metering Insert, Item #050128.

Details
Item Number 050129
Weight 0.30 lbs
Price: $36.45

This is right off the Hornady site. My buddy was having the same problem and changed to the micrometer and now his loads are better.
 
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