Low Cost Crimp Reamer

[Siskiyou]

Recently necchi put a Lyman small primer reamer without a handle up on Play Forward.  I said, “I’ll Take it” and now it is mine.  I have not been loading brass with crimped small primers, but the other day my son-in-law (SIL) was using the pistol press while waiting a turn at the rifle press.  He was resizing and de-capping a bunch of 9mm brass.  I believe most of it has crimped primers.

After receiving the reamer I started looking for a way to use it.  “necchi” had included a picture of the device he used to hold the case while reaming out the crimp.  Modifying his idea a little, I cut a short chuck off a Douglas Fir 2x4, trimmed it to fit a vice that goes on my drill press table.  I drilled a hole approximately the diameter of a 9MM case.  Using my skill saw I cut a line from one edge, centering the hole and about ¾ of the board.  Just before the end of the cut and I put two wood screws in to allow flexing but to keep the device from snapping off.

To put a case in the holder I slip the end of a screwdriver about a quarter inch into the slot.  This allows me to get the case in the hole and I do the same to remove the case.  I needed to index the vice to the reamer and the case.  The easy way is to have the reamer in the primer hole of a standard case and then move the vice and the block around until they are lined up.  I use C-clamps to hold the vice in place and shut the vice to close the gap in the block and hold the case.

While it is slow to begin with I think the pace will pickup.

The goal is to get the job done and save a few bucks.  I have had the drill press for many years and it was paid for the day I brought it home.



Before this I was looking for a Hornady small primer reamer and it was out stock.  Necchi’s timing is great.

[OR-E-Gun Bill]

I like your idea Siskiyou!
One of my recent rainy day projects is making homemade Snap Caps for the different calibers I have. I was trying to come up with a jig for holding the brass cases for drilling out the primer pockets to fit the pencil erasers ( an idea, that I think came from Tim {Quickdtoo} ). Your wood jig will be perfect for my project.
Thanks for sharing your simple idea. And thanks to Necchi for his part in this.

Bill

EDIT: Then the fog cleared and I remembered where the idea came from...
http://www.gboreloaded.com/forums/index.php/topic,100346.msg1098264510.html#msg1098264510
The FAQ's that Tim saves so others can learn.

[mdi]

Well thought out set-up. If I were do it again (and I did several hundred) I'd just hold the case in my hand and press it up into the reamer (I used a countersink) for a second or two, it doesn't take much.

[necchi]

 This is the idea I had, I can't hang onto those litte cases either.
It's a flat piece of cedar with a .375 (3/4) " hole drilled using a drill press so it's straight. And that's the pocket reamer Siskiyou now has. I had trouble because I just chucked it in a hand drill to do the pockets, but I didn't keep the drill straight and some of the pockets got drilled a little sideways,,making loose pockets,
 The wedge cut in the wood block allows me to sqeeze a bit to hold it, then release to exchange for another case. The bolt and fender washers where added because the darn thing split,,should have thought of that before I squeezed.
I purchased the RCBS pocet reamer that is more like a countersink, put it in a drill press then used my wood clamp to hold each one up to the reamer,,worked well.

[ShadowMover]

Would it work to put the reamer in a block of wood in the vise, and then put a wooden dowel the inside diameter of the case into the drill press? The straight sided pistol cases could slide right onto the dowel, be pushed against the reamer and removed without even shutting off the drill press. You might have to turn a dowel to fit, or shim it with thin paper or tape.

[Siskiyou]

It just might work.  It goes against all the safety training I have had from shop to the job.  As I grow older and the brain more addle most likely I would de-cap a thumb nail on a better day.
 I like the idea if the press is shut-off, I can recall a long ago accident in a high school shop where a student got drilled.  I do not recall the circumstances.   I would not allow my SIL or other guest use the press without shutting down between cases, too much liability.

I have a good supply of un-crimped commercial 9MM so I am setting this up to help my son-in-law.  I do reamer a fair number of 7.62 NATO and G.I. 30-06.  I am considering getting a Large Primer Reamer that will fit the drill chuck and creating a jig to hold those cases.  I have been using a hand Lyman large primer crimp remover for a bout forty years it works, but it is interesting to explorer new methods.