Shot Show: RCBS 7 station Pro Chucker Progressive

GW Staar said:

And seating using a Gold Medal die is sooo easy...

Click to expand...

Yes the Gold Medal seaters are the cat's meow. Drop the bullet in and it aligns itself allowing the operator to do other things.

I resize and reload at different times so a 5 station press would seat my needs. Like Walkalong, I never have my L-N-L full of dies at one time.

My main interest in the Pro Chucker is hoping to get a smoother operation of the shell plate for tall, full of powder rifle cartridges. The Pro2000 snaps into the ball detent too harshly, spilling powder. The L-N-L shell plate operation is smoother but rifle cases do not line up well with dies. I am sure the latter would work better if I would use a new, un-kinked case retaining spring.

The Pro2000 with the APS system is the only press that I prime on but for me, it is still not trouble free. Operator problems are part of the issue.

I may have put some drag on the Pro2000 shell plate that smooths out its operation thanks to a suggestion from jmorris. I hope to load some soon to really test out my modification.

I am waiting on delivery of a Dillon BL550 (again, BL not RL) for loading rifle. I am hoping the manual index will allow smoother operation of the shell plate for preventing powder spillage. Of course, I am probably spoiled by the auto indexing presses.

By the time I get enough time on the Dillon, maybe I will see a Pro Chucker in the "aluminum". If I ever should invest in a Pro Chucker, the tube priming system will be removed and scrapped.

I had a thought of combing the best of both worlds. Why not deprime, lube and size on the pro2000 and then just feed primed brass through the pro-chucker?

I wonder if the advantages of the APS would overweight the hassle of handling brass twice????

Hmmm..... That would give me 12 stations in total to play with. Interesting to contemplate.

Hmmm... maybe even the 5 station version if not going to size/decap and prime on it. Of course, one could do the same thing with another die plate for the Pro 2000... but a new press is always tempting. I hate it when I get practical! Hmmmm....

Serious question about the future case feeder for the Pro Chucker. If one did want to size/decap and prime on the Pro 2000 and then finish up the Pro Chucker, would there be any danger in running primed cases through the case feeder and/or stacking them in the feeder tube? I have never used a case feeder, so I may be overthinking it.

I don't see how that would be any more dangerous then primers in the tube. Actually I can see it being a lot safer since you don't have the primers in direct contact like a tube primer system.

I am just thinking how I would make it work. I really want to see one "in the flesh" first.

Could one of these mech geniuses like jmorris make a 10 station press by mating 2 progressives together? Just have one machine feed the other.

Wow, what a poor design for any press much less one for 50 BMG.

How pertinent are catastrophic failures of other types of presses to a thread about a new progressive. Who uses that much force on a progressive? Should they?

So, to sum up here, the new RCBS press is crap because it is aluminum (like all the others). Is that about it? Seems like the RCBS guys smugly cranking away on their steel presses, that no one else seems to want enough to mention much on the forums, never stick their heads up at any other time.

Two questions:

1) What kind of force is really needed on these presses?

2) If a press did break, wouldn't it quickly be replaced under warranty?

Lastly, I would note that if presses were cast iron, that weight would be a game changer for logistics and would add to the cost and retail price. We already see that RCBS is very marginal in their progressive business.

My reloading class instructor was a real RCBS fanboy but didn't like progressives of any sort. Given their price list, I was put off by how uncompetitive they were. I was not at that time remotely prepared for what reloading would ultimately cost me. Now I am looking at the prospect of having 7 stations and liking it a whole lot.

Of course, a progressive shouldn't require the same force to operate as a .50 cal press, but hopefully the Pro Chucker has a little more meat on the bone than the 2 piece Hornady pictured above. Aluminum does seem to develop fatigue cracks more readily than cast iron. As far as weight goes, I routinely swap out my Pro 2000 and Redding T-7 in a modular bench mount. At 70, the exercise does me good.

A cast iron progressive outfit in a box might not be a big hit with shipping or retail personnel. It is going to cost more to ship. Pallet loads will be smaller, etc., all the way back the supply chain. Just sayin'.

I think Dillons are on solid bases aren't they?

Click to expand...

Sometime over the last 30 years they changed the design on the SD frame because the new ones have an extra gusset vs just going out flat. I imagine people had to have broken a few at some point.

I guess the reasion I shrug my shoulders at what a press is made out of is because I have never broken a part on any of them in 30 years where material would have made a positive difference (I don't think a cast iron primer oraface tip would be a good idea).

That said I do know some people that could break an anvil with a rubber mallet.

GW Staar said:

Catastrophic failures are not fun. The no fault warranties of many players in the reloading business are wonderful, but they don't prevent the down time, change of plans, and other unpleasant results of the failure. I just prefer not to have one in the first place. Personal thing, I guess....and I don't care who manufactures the failed equipment.

Click to expand...

I agree. It is probably best to let some other folks "smoke" test the press first so that RCBS can tweak the casting if necessary.

I also agree with jmorris, I would not be surprised that some of the failures are due to some folks trying to power through some high resistance they encounter (don't force it, get a bigger hammer syndrome).

Pertinent? Since this new line is the very first line of "high end" presses in RCBS's history to change to Aluminum from cast iron, I think it's worthwhile to discuss material performance.

Click to expand...

You could say that, but when the discussion gets drawn out, it seems more like whining...like complaining about how "they don't make 'em like they used to", and on the gun side ...trigger locks, MIM parts, changes in bluing methods, casting methods, finishes, hand fitting, et al. Message received...moving on.

If everyone else's press is aluminum and popular, it is hard to get too excited about a new press that is - oh my gawd! - aluminum.

Hey guys, I'm looking to get a progressive press after years of using SS. I like the idea if the APS system, so I emailed RCBS about my fears of the APS no longer being available. Here is the answer I received.

Hello, I am a huge fan if your products due to your great customer support. That said, I am looking to get a progressive press after more than 20 years of reloading with single stage presses. I really like the concept of the APS, system for primer feed, but noticed you have dropped that on your new Pro Chucker presses. My questions for you are:
1: How long will the Pro 2000 be supported?
2: Is APS obsolete? I think it's a great system, but will it be discontinued?
3 I can't see this happening, but will APS be available on the new presses?

Thank you.

ANSWER BELOW:

THE PRO WILL BE PHASED OUT AT THE END OF THIS YEAR BUT WILL BE SUPPORTED FOR PROBABLY 25 YEARS. THE APS IS NOT OBSOLETE JUST NOT ON THE PROGRESSIVES, AND THEY PROBABLY WILL NOT BE RETROFITTED.


Thank you for choosing RCBS
Have a great day
RCBS Tech/LM

So RCBS dumps another progressive press. Even though this one works great. I guess it was not selling and was not profitable. I hope I can find a N.I.B. Pro 2000 when the start dumping them, just for a spare.

I find the "supporting for 25 years" hard to believe.

I'm thinking about getting one because I like the APS system. I'm on the fence though. It's either a pro 2000 hornady LNL or a pro chucker. I agree that supporting it for 25 years is probably not accurate.

I find the "supporting for 25 years" hard to believe.

Click to expand...

It might not be so hard to believe if you included the qualifier "probably".

Folks sometimes complain how Dillon hasn't made any substantial improvements to certain machines over the years but I lie the fact that my 30 year old Dillon's not only still have parts available but the fact that they are also still free.

no parts are "free" you pay for them in the original retail price. Lee's prices are much cheaper, one of the reasons is you only have a 2 year warranty.

The 25 years thing is feasible.

When I talked to Kent at shot show, they still had green machines they were pulling off parts from for customers (well until they threw them out when Kent went on vacation, he said he was upset). God knows how long ago those things were discontinued.