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3/20/2015 6:41:39 PM EDT

I have an SDB that I have loaded many thousands of rounds of .45acp on. Not long ago it started feeling like it was crunching on the downstroke and I had primers seating sideways or upside down.
I cleaned it and lightly lubed the underside of the shell plate bolt head. I also lightly lubed the bolt holding the roller on the primer mechanism.
While I had it apart I also swapped out the plastic tip on the primer tube and set the primer cup to the correct height.
While I was looking up the height of the primer cup I read about someone having a problem with the shell plate jerking and spilling powder. Dillon suggested adjusting the screw that controls the index lever. I watched my shellplate and it jerkeg into position also, meaning the detent ball was finishing the positioning of the shell plate. I adjusted it so it didn't jerk.
My question is- how sensitive is the adjustment on that screw? Is it good enough to just turn it until the jerking stops, or is there a measurement I need to make to get it right?

I loaded 100 rounds after I did the maintenance and it is a lot smoother. I just don't know I need to fine tune it.
3/20/2015 10:12:24 PM EDT
[#1]

Second question- how can I tell if the index lever is worn enough to be changed? I have a spare if needed.
3/20/2015 11:26:43 PM EDT
[#2]
Any time I had primer issues it was always some powder I had spilled and a few powder granules were jamming up the primer mechanism.



Cleaning it always fixed my problem.




I have never had the problem in your post.
3/20/2015 11:38:34 PM EDT
[#3]

I also noticed drag marks scratched on the bottom of the shell plate. I don't know if that is normal wear or not.
3/20/2015 11:48:00 PM EDT
[#4]

Quote History
Quoted:




I also noticed drag marks scratched on the bottom of the shell plate. I don't know if that is normal wear or not.
View Quote
If where the ball rides on shellplate, normal.

 



It's a good thing to keep well greased.




I use the lube in the Dillon maintenance kit.
3/21/2015 12:03:50 AM EDT
[#5]
The crunch felt like a primer had fallen into the mechanism somewhere- I had that happen once a long time ago, but the press was clear when I checked it. After I cleaned a lubed it and adjusted the index lever it was smooth with the priming mechanism removed from the press. When I installed the priming part it had the crunch feel and was hard to pull the handle. Cleaning and greasing the roller wheel on the primer slide cured that for some reason.
I think it was just time for cleaning and adjustments.

The marks on the bottom of the shellplate are straight lines and may be where the detent ball is.

After all this smoothed the press operation it makes me wonder how smooth it is supposed to be. The index lever adjustment eliminated the click and jerk when the shellplate rotated. I am just not sure how critical that adjustment it. The height of the primer cup is set to 1.410", but I couldn't find anything precise on the index adjustment.

Here is a link to the tech support article about the click. Mine had the same thing except my primer cup was aligned properly.

Primer feed issues and click

3/21/2015 12:09:45 AM EDT
[#6]
The primer mechanism does have a hole for a "loose" primer to fall out of in case it gets loose in the mechanism.
3/21/2015 10:55:53 PM EDT
[#7]

I loaded 300 rounds with no problems- other than a screw falling out with 50 rounds to finish. I had to look at the exploded parts diagram to figure out where it came from. The screw held the roller onto the powder slider.
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