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v65magnafan

v65magnafan

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North of Toronto and South Carolina
My wife's boss' husband...

(Did I get that right?)

Yep. My wife's boss' husband, who's been hunting and collecting for years, has decided to lighten up on his old hobby and take up sailing.

So, he donated his reloading equipment to me.

Donated.

I am a lucky b******.

I got a quick look last week--couldn't take it home because I rode over on my m/c. But tonight, I'll take it home by car.

It's a Lee. I don't know which progressive it is. It's red. It's set up for .357 and .38, which is a good thing, because I'm buying his mint 686. He's also giving me bullets, casings, and some other stuff I haven't even seen.

So, you'll probably find me posting more here--with undoubtedly inane questions--so please be gentle.

First dumb question. I have a metal-frame and composite folding table, the type you can rent for business meetings or catering. Would this be stable enough to serve as a reloading table? I'd rather find out before I drill holes rather than after.
 
I doubt it very much!! Even the heavyone's I seen and carried seem to light for me!!

Great score on the equipment and the revolver!
 
I doubt it would be sturdy enough, there can be quite a bit of force involved, especially with some of the larger rifle rounds. My workbench is built out of 3/4" plywood and some 2x4's
 
v65magnafan said:
First dumb question. I have a metal-frame and composite folding table, the type you can rent for business meetings or catering. Would this be stable enough to serve as a reloading table? I'd rather find out before I drill holes rather than after.
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If you don't have the space, need to disassemble and will only load 38/357, think about mounting you reloader on a piece of wood (min 3/4" thick) and then clamping it to the table for the time being.Don't rush into this and think it through as you gain experience.

What year is your Magna BTW? How many times have you had the cams done and is Honda still honouring the 4 times max?
 
I am a lucky b******.
Click to expand...

yes you are. i think you got a good deal.

I just got my first house and bought a cheapie counter/table from walmart for 99$ comes with shelves and 2 doors. its aint heavy, but i did manage to fasten it to the wall with 2 screws and the drawer has some tools. doesnt budge. I drilled 3 holes and remove my press when i dont plan using it for a while, it doubles as a extra work table. I use a single stage lee and reload 38spl.

As long as you have a comfortable height, sturdy and can fix it to a wall , you should be fine.
 
Fall Guy said:
What year is your Magna BTW? How many times have you had the cams done and is Honda still honouring the 4 times max?
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I had a '83 V45 naver had the chocolate cam problem buy it with 38K and sold it with about 75K.. Wasn't religious about oil changes either.. Guess I was just lucky.. Well maybe not I did sell it! DOH!!!

As for the reloading bench... I've seen all sorts of things used (like an old school desk.. The guy slid the desk under a 2X4 that he'd anchored into the wall and he ran a 650.. Sorta low for my liking but it worked... I've got one on a workmate (wouldn't reccomend it of long term use though!)
 
Bikes and Bullets

Wow. So many issues!!!

First, the V65

My V65 is an '86 with 40,000k. The cams (knock wood) are perfect. The carbs are in sync. Everything is as it would be on a 1 or 2 year-old-bike.
I keep the revs over 3000, so oil circulation is adequate. I change the oil and filter 1X per season. I haven't changed the other fluids yet. I've changed the tires (Bridgestone Spitfires) once.

Some Honda V4's fry their cams, some don't. I don't have the oil mod. I think the cam problem might have to do with a bad mix of factory tolerances as much as oil circulation.

As far as I'm concerned, the Magna, with cruiser styling, superbike acceleration, standard comfort, comfortable room for a passenger, water cooling, six-speed tranny, hydraulic brakes and clutch, gear indicator, 10,000rpm red line, is the ideal bike for me.

And with the Cobra F1 mufflers, it sounds like a cross between a Harley and a Ducati on some kind of weird drug.

Now, reloading.

The reloader I just took home is a Lee Pro 1000. I know nothing about it, but the manual is included, along with some primers and bullets.

My wife looked at it and said that it probably would make delicious sausages.

My daughter said, "You mean you can make your own bullets?"

One box, for example, is Nosler .38 158gr. Hollow Points.

Also, are a couple of boxes of Saeco 388, sold by Breckenridge Sporting Guns, 6032 Yonge St. Ph. 226-5546. (Note no area code on the label. I've lived around here for almost forty years and I don't remember that store.)

I also have a bag of Match quality bullets by Bryan Marino in Wiarton, Ont.

The Lee is already bolted to a nice piece of hardwood. I shall bolt this to my metal and composition table and see how it functions. I'll be doing only handgun ammo for now.

Tomorrow, I'll buy some casings and some powder. Not sausage casings.

Thanks already for all the ideas.
 
Lee Pro-1000. Not the easiest to master but once you know its quirks, it works quite well.
Primer feeding is the biggest issue; ALWAYS keep your primer chute clean and lubricated (use pipe cleaners and Jig-A-Loo). Be careful NOT storing the press on the primer chute side. ALWAYS pay attention to the primers level; when the last ones clear the end of the tray, get the tray out and fill it full. Put a pointed object such as a pencil in the tray outlet to keep primers in place and put the tray back in its recess. Tap the tray on one side to shake it and make sure the primers are in place.
ALWAYS pay attention to PUSHING the press' lever to its stops down and UP. The primer enters the case in the last few millimeters at the end of the upstroke; if you don't complete the movement fully, you'll get rounds with high primers which are dangerous to use and to disassemble with an impact puller, too.
Get familiar with the SOUNDs of the cycling press; you'll develop a feeling of what the press normally sounds and when something goes wrong, you'll HEAR it.
The Lee Pro-1000 doesn't let your attention drop: you always have to be vigilant. It is an ideal press to learn to never take anything for granted...
Be careful and have fun.
PP.:)
 
I had my lee and RCBS presses mounted on square double-thick plywood boards. I would then screw down or C-clamp the press to a table, desktop or even a shooting bench. Surprisingly, it's very stable. Heed the warning about primer feeding. The Lee 1000 can be tempermental. Watch you powder very carefully. That press does not like flake powder (eg: Unique). I had it running fine, then no powder charge and then some over charges. Others have had great sucess with this press - I have not
 
For a reloading 'table' a good solid bench, attached to the wall or floor, works absolutely the best, but, lesser stuff can be used.
Mine, is an old heavy desk I bought for five bucks at auction. I put a 3/4 plywood top on that, and my press is bolted to a piece of 3/4 plate that I found in a scrap pile at work. I never moves. But, if I get a stuck case, sometimes the big desk does.
Just get a solid setup, it's worth it.
Of course if all you'll ever load is pistol, you likely will never need the really heavy setup.
 
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