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[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Tuning a Uniflow powder measure (Page 1 of 2)
Posted: 9/30/2012 10:38:45 AM EDT
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Picked up a Uniflo PM at the funshow last weekend for $15. It looked like it sat unused for years and the handle worked stiffly. Right price, looked like a project and came with the box. Dissembled ready to clean all the parts. This is an old measure with a clear heavy hopper. New hoppers are green.  Close up of some of the rust. Used the soft wire wheel on the right and had eye protection on.  Everything cleaned up. Inside of PM body I used a hand wire brush and 500 grit wet/dry sandpaper on the inside where the drum moves in the body. Didn't remove any metal, just a light buffing. These parts do not contact powder and I wiped them down with CLP. These parts do contact powder, so no oil. I use paste wax.  Nice coat of wax, wiped on with a clean cloth. Let dry and buff off. I've been using this wax for years to lube/tune my PM's. The wax does not effect the powder. The whole inside of the PM body was also coated with wax, let dry and wiped out. All parts coated, ready for assembly. Drum is inserted into body and stem is dropped into hopper. Then nut threads on and tightened. I reversed the drum and kept going. Finished. eta, removed most of the pics. |
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Knew I would forget something. Home Depot has the minwax for $10 a can.
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Quoted:
You would be amazed how much difference in the smoothness a coat of wax makes in the operation of the measure. Like oiling it without the oil. eta, added link in second post for where to buy the Minwax. I polished all the bare metal on my UniFlow with Flitz and a Dremel, but I'm thinking I may want to wax it for the smoother operation as I do process stick powders through it(IMR 3031, 4895, 4198) |
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Quoted: Very nice! You've rehabed at least eleventy of these right? I think I remember another one that you did a year or so back. Correct the other one in the last pic. Had 3 Redding PM's, sold one of those to a person I mentored. I have to give $30 for those, very expensive.  Still have my Hornady PM I've had since '97. And some Dillon's. I do have some great funshows to go to in this area.
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Quoted:
Quoted:
Very nice! You've rehabed at least eleventy of these right? I think I remember another one that you did a year or so back. Correct the other one in the last pic. Had 3 Redding PM's, sold one of those to a person I mentored. I have to give $30 for those, very expensive. Still have my Hornady PM I've had since '97. And some Dillon's. I do have some great funshows to go to in this area. Quite a collection of powder measures you've worked with there. I really wish we had good gunshows here. |
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Quoted:
nice pics... you might add a baffle to the powder hopper.... I am cheap and ended up making my own. I used the templates from Here and used tin snips on the bottom part of an Altoids tin, works so well I made extras for future Uniflows I come across at great prices. |
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Quoted: Quoted: nice pics... you might add a baffle to the powder hopper.... I am cheap and ended up making my own. I used the templates from Here and used tin snips on the bottom part of an Altoids tin, works so well I made extras for future Uniflows I come across at great prices. An older thread of mine where I made a baffle for a Redding PM. http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_6_42/309666_Redding_PM_baffle_and_mods__Lots_of_pics_.html |
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I bought my RCBS Rock Chucker II Master Reloading kit over two decades ago, along with the Piggyback II conversion unit soon thereafter. The PB2 is still going strong to to this day, even though I now also use several Dillon 550Bs and a Dillon S1050 as well. The powder baffle is also from RCBS. BTW, dryflash, I really like that metal drop tube which screws into the bottom of the Uniflow powder measure; I wish RCBS had retained those rather than the cheaper plastic versions... any chance <removed> WTB is not allowed in threads dryflash3 from your funshow find (I really do have a need for it, which I'd be glad to explain via PM)? Something like that should be in an IM message. dryflash3
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In getting ready to load some pistol ammunition, I decided to make sure my Hornady LnL measure was up to snuff. It was not I found a bunch of Unique still in it, between the hopper, metering rotor and drop tube. And the hopper came off pretty easily - not sure if I'm happy with that.
I'm going to give this measure the full treatment, along with my RCBS Uniflow that came with my Rock Chucker loading kit in 1980; it was a birthday present from my wife.  Gotta get some paste wax though. Unless Turtle Wax will work... I have some of that right now.
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Here is the polishing that I did to my LnL measure:
Before. 
LnL powder measure by zweitakt250, on Flickr After. 
LnL powder measure by zweitakt250, on Flickr 
LnL powder measure by zweitakt250, on Flickr Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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Turtle Wax didn't seem to work. Instead, I got my paraffin block out and hand-waxed all the inner moving parts. I started with my Hornady LnL powder measure, which is set up with a case-activated powder drop linkage and powder-through expanders. As I said, I'm getting ready to start a loading project, so I figured I'd start tuning with the measure I'm going to use.
My Hornady measure - a near identical twin of the Uniflow - has enough "texture" in the finish of parts like the rotor and body that rubbing wax into them seemed to work really well. I used ScotchBrite pads to polish the inside of the measure body and the outside of the rotor, and the moving powder drop tube and expander insert. but I may take it apart again and use a felt wheel for something smoother. I didn't polish the inside of the hopper, not yet, anyway. I'm trying to decide just how to go about getting the bottom of the hopper smooth, and what to do to it afterward - wax, leave bare, etc. I'll tear into my Uniflow measure later, once I get things worked out with the Hornady. |
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I find the speed you pull the lever up then down matters most. I can throw Varget to within .05 grain if I go at a steady slower speed and give it a slight bump at the top stroke. This doesn't change much from a full hopper to the last throw.
Only thing that throws it off is a kernal crunching. No way around that but sometimes pushing the lever a little sideways towards the measure through the strokes keeps it to a minimum. |
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Quoted:
I find the speed you pull the lever up then down matters most. I can throw Varget to within .05 grain if I go at a steady slower speed and give it a slight bump at the top stroke. This doesn't change much from a full hopper to the last throw. Only thing that throws it off is a kernal crunching. No way around that but sometimes pushing the lever a little sideways towards the measure through the strokes keeps it to a minimum. I agree that consistency with use of the powder measure is essential. It's easier to be consistent with the measure when the measure moves smoothly. There's also the complication for some of us that a progressive press moves the powder measure at the speed it does; smoothing out the measure's operation helps keep that under control. PS: while we were out grabbing a few things at the store, I stopped at Home Depot and got a tin of Johnson Paste Wax. Some time soon I'll tear down the Hornady measure, strip off the paraffin, and use the Johnson's on it instead. That should help get rid of the flakes of wax all over the place... 
Dryflash, I've seen (elsewhere) people mentioning that they waxed the inside or outside of the hopper to reduce static. I can't find anything solid about whether paste wax really does that. Any insight? |
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Quoted:
Don't know. I always use dryer sheets for static control. Never waxed exterior either. I can't find any real references for the "wax the hopper" thing now. Maybe I'm remembering two different things at the same time. I decided to start with my Uniflow instead of taking the Hornady measure apart again - I'd already reassembled it with the case activated linkage, which is a PITA to put on and to take off. Dremel is my friend...but I need to find drums with finer than 120 grit. You Eight Ring used something like a soft wheel with sandpaper on it that you then put your steel wool on for your tutorial...I wonder if I can make that sort of thing work with a Dremel (as I lack similar, larger tools). Edit: Oops, it was Eight Ring, not Dryflash that used multiple abrasives to clean out his measure: a cone wire brush with steel wool around it to drive abrasive paper... Yeah, that's gonna be the ticket, since I can't find Dremel bits that will last long enough to do what I need. I now have a very shiny, but not smooth, Uniflow hopper base. 
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Quoted:
Or just use graphite. Quoted:
Quoted:
You would be amazed how much difference in the smoothness a coat of wax makes in the operation of the measure. Like oiling it without the oil. eta, added link in second post for where to buy the Minwax. Or just use graphite. I asked about graphite the other day on another post and didn't hear feedback. I've used it on my Uniflow for quite awhile, but I can't for the life of me recall where I read about that method. Before every powder drop session, I run a little of the same graphite powder through the drum numerous times. Seems to keep the powder from sticking and hanging in the chute...not to mention making the throw very smooth and easy. Allegedly it has no interaction with the powder as long as reasonable care is taken to clear all the visible graphite. I also do the dryer sheet deal as dryflash mentioned. |
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I use graphite if dryer sheets aern't able to remove static. Wax works much better to coat and lube the inside of your PM. The Redding PM I'm using right now had the wax treatment about 3 years ago. Only needed graphite once with a 1 pound of powder that had very bad static and the powder flakes stuck to the side of the hopper. I put a little graphite on a small brush (acid brush) and ran it around the inside of the hopper. Static gone. |
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That picture of the Johnson Wax tin took me back to Air Force tech school. We made the dorm floors shine great, and it lasted and lasted through a totally and thoroughly UNauthorized process: After applying the wax with a buffer, we applied heat...usually by actually lighting parts of the waxed areas on fire! Then we buffed it to a shine with an old blanket under the buffer pad. Easy, really effective, and kinda fun.
The point: I'm about to clean my Hornady Lock N Load powder measure. It's a very close cousin of the Uniflow measure. I'm going to reapply the wax after warming up the parts with my heat gun. I think the heat will help the wax settle into the tiny surface texture features (machine marks, etc.) and build what could be thought of as a base coat of wax. When it's all cooled, I'll apply a second coat cold, then warm it up a bit, followed by buffing after it's cooled. To me the crucial areas to wax are around the metering rotor (for smooth movement) and the "funnel" section that feeds to the metering rotor. The body of the measure above that will benefit, but you really need to ensure the funnel gets a good coat of wax to smooth out powder flow. I wonder if wax will do anything to the plastic hopper...it's a LOT easier to find and cheaper than any of the "anti static plastic cleaner and polish" products I've seen. |
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Pics are dead.
Main points; Take apart PM, wipe all parts that will touch powder clean with alcohol on a clean rag. Let dry. Including the hopper. Apply paste wax, let dry and wipe off. Reassemble and marvel how much smother the PM moves. If you don't have a baffle, get one and use it. No the wax won't effect the powder. Link to wax in first couple of posts. Use good technique when throwing charges, which means same force and speed for every throw. Do not hesitate or pause during a throw. The other part of good technique is settle the powder by tapping the hopper with your fingers after filling. Notice the level dropped about a half inch. Every time you adjust the drop resettle the powder by throwing 3 charges into the pan and returning them to the hopper. With a tuned PM and good technique ball powder measures exact, flake powder + or - .1 gr. Extruded is harder to do, but + or - .2 gr is possible. No substitute for practice, but I have had beginners loading for their first time measuring ball powder exact with about 5 minutes of practice. |
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Quoted:
Picked up a Uniflo PM at the funshow last weekend for $15. It looked like it sat unused for years and the handle worked stiffly. Right price, looked like a project and came with the box. Dissembled ready to clean all the parts. This is an old measure with a clear heavy hopper. New hoppers are green.  Close up of some of the rust. Used the soft wire wheel on the right and had eye protection on.  Everything cleaned up. Inside of PM body I used a hand wire brush and 500 grit wet/dry sandpaper on the inside where the drum moves in the body. Didn't remove any metal, just a light buffing. These parts do not contact powder and I wiped them down with CLP. These parts do contact powder, so no oil. I use paste wax.  Nice coat of wax, wiped on with a clean cloth. Let dry and buff off. I've been using this wax for years to lube/tune my PM's. The wax does not effect the powder. The whole inside of the PM body was also coated with wax, let dry and wiped out. All parts coated, ready for assembly. Drum is inserted into body and stem is dropped into hopper. Then nut threads on and tightened. I reversed the drum and kept going. Finished. eta, removed most of the pics. |
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Quoted:
I am cheap and ended up making my own. I used the templates from Here and used tin snips on the bottom part of an Altoids tin, works so well I made extras for future Uniflows I come across at great prices. Quoted:
Quoted:
nice pics... you might add a baffle to the powder hopper.... |
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Thanks for this thread and the associated links that include your copious amounts of input dryflash !!
I had cleaned and polished my Redding PM a month or so ago. Used brake cleaner and acetone to clean the components after polishing with a polishing wheel on a dremel tool and some 0000 steel wool. I was wondering how to preserve the metal w/o using oil. I'll get some Minwax and give it a coat. Made a baffle out of SS shim stock. Throws still aren't where I'd like them to be. A little over 0.2gr variance with IMR4895. |
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Quoted:
Thanks for this thread and the associated links that include your copious amounts of input dryflash !! I had cleaned and polished my Redding PM a month or so ago. Used brake cleaner and acetone to clean the components after polishing with a polishing wheel on a dremel tool and some 0000 steel wool. I was wondering how to preserve the metal w/o using oil. I'll get some Minwax and give it a coat. Made a baffle out of SS shim stock. Throws still aren't where I'd like them to be. A little over 0.2gr variance with IMR4895. Same motion, speed, power every throw. When working with extruded powder, always "power through" anytime the PM cuts the powder. Don't stop when it cuts, keep pressure on the handle until you are at the end of the throw. |
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I have a Uniflow that I got in a package deal a few years ago. It needs a good rehab like you did but I can't figure out how to get the hopper off without breaking it. Doesn't look like it has threads inside.
It has the green plastic hopper, no set screw holding it...how does it come off ? |
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Quoted:
I have a Uniflow that I got in a package deal a few years ago. It needs a good rehab like you did but I can't figure out how to get the hopper off without breaking it. Doesn't look like it has threads inside. It has the green plastic hopper, no set screw holding it...how does it come off ? You just need a rag wrapped around a screwdriver to clean it, then apply the wax, wipe wax off when it's dry. Different rags at each step, alcohol to clean. |
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Quoted:
I have a Uniflow that I got in a package deal a few years ago. It needs a good rehab like you did but I can't figure out how to get the hopper off without breaking it. Doesn't look like it has threads inside. It has the green plastic hopper, no set screw holding it...how does it come off ?  RCBS® FAQ: Remove and Replace a Uniflow™ Powder Measure Hopper |
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Quoted:
I replaced a hopper on mine that was caked with old powder. RCBS has a video on it.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5EF_aPMj6sY
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[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Tuning a Uniflow powder measure (Page 1 of 2)
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