[amustangrocks]

The other night I loaded a couple hundred of my .45acp rounds to use up the 500 everglades I bought (still have a hundred left), got 500 hundred Berrys coming this week and my press was dragging and making some noises. I didnt realize just how dirty it had got till I took it out in the garage and took some brake cleaner to it. Wow, smooth as silk again now. Looks good too!

Now, does anyone use any oil? like maybe a touch of Rem oil on and arbor?
The last time I de-primed a bunch of cases, there was a little ledge where the spent primers drop into the tube, and sometimes it would pile up and I had to stir it up to get them into the tube, so I took a big chamfer bit and tapered that flat spot. No more piling up now, they go down the tube like greased lightning.

Couple more planes flew into town today for that airshow next week. Made a couple passes over town. Cool stuff

 

[94win30wcf]

Today. why. well its danged near 100 and very humid. cleaned some guns too.

 

[amustangrocks]

Today. why. well its danged near 100 and very humid. cleaned some guns too.

We got the same weather, dang near 100 today. Rare for up here.

 

[OLSKOOL]

10, 20 years ago? I know I did before,,,,,,,,,,,

 

[kingstrider]

I clean my presses every so often and try to pay attention to anything weird. This is especially true with a progressive, more moving parts to break etc.

 

[444pistol]

It has been a while! Thanks, you just gave me another task for tomorrow. I've been doing inside"stuff" to beat the heat so to speak. Just got around to working up some loads today for the 32 special I bought from a fellow MO member. I'll try them in the morning when it's not so HOT.

 

[JACKTW]

100 today... UGH!

I use Corbin presses which are not cast but steel and much stronger for swaging bullets. A quick adjustment on the ram stroke setting and I can reload with it. I clean monthly whether it needs it or not. Mainly due to lube maintenance. I lube the needle bearings with PJ1 Blue Label chain lube, best stuff there is for the job. For everything else and the ram I use white lithium grease. A little goes a long ways.

Jack

 

[navajo]

Huh....I was unaware this was something I needed to do.
I used an old Lee press for 20 years and never cleaned it.
The new one I got is a RCBS and all I ever done is dab a little
oil on it and mount it properly to my bench.
I clean the spent primers off it....
I think some of y'all are like my Dad is...if there ain't nothing to
do he'll make work to do LOL.
But if mine was dragging I'd have to look into that too.

 

[flatsneck]

Once a month or so, I give it a wipe down and blowing off with some of those keyboard cleaning compressed air cans on all the hard to reach places.
A light wipe with either lithium grease or way oil on the moving parts, a dry wipe with a clean rag, and back in business..

Ive owned my current Rock Chucker for almost 20 years now, and I got it used at a yard sale. God knows how long or how many rounds it saw before I got hold of it, and it still runs flawlessly. I would say i'm well into the high side of 100's of thousands of rounds by now. only thing i ever did to it was a strip and fresh paint job as soon as i got it..it was tired and chipped. I wanted it looking better, and to make sure all the parts were there and everything worked.

If i get into an adventure of working a LOT of brass, I will give everything a very detailed exterior cleaning. Its hit or miss on that schedule. I always run any range pickup brass thru the SS media tumbler for 20-30 minutes before any goes thru the press just because I hate the gunk and goop cleanup, and want as little grit and debris going thru the press and dies as possible. Just picking up the primers that end up on the floor is bad enough..

 

[No1_49er]

I clean my press quite often. The worst debris seems to be primer dust .
Rather than use any wet type lube, I clean up with brake cleaner around all the moving points and the ram, then spray with Birchwood Casey Moly Lube 'Dry Film Lubricant'.
It's damn good stuff for slicking up all the lever actions too.

 

[Boobarzo]

I always clean around the piston,oil it and make sure it functions smoothly.

 

[Maineiac]

i clean the piston, lightly oil it, clean any gunpowder off, and put some lube on the pivot points. I also wipe it down with a little oil to keep the corrosion down.

 

[amustangrocks]

10, 20 years ago? I know I did before,,,,,,,,,,,

Haha, you have a good press. If you want I can take up a collection and we can get a can of cleaner to you in the mail
In theory, oil would collect the dirt, maybe the dry lube is the way to go, though Ive never thought much of it. I`m a good oil person myself.

 

[Scorpiusb]

The last time I double charged a case and spilled gunpowder around the ram... It dissolved in the thin coat of oil on the ram and turned into a glue like substance... Dang near froze it up...

 

[rob42049]

I keep all my reloading equipment cleaned,oiled where appropriate,and ready to go at any time. Clean tools are happy tools. If they need wiped down after use,they get it,right then.

Aries reloader.

 

[GasGuzzler]

The question was how often. For me it's an as needed ritual. Some gunpowder is very abrasive. Ever notice a fleck in the die threads can prevent the die from screwing in or case sensitive die not operate properly because a grain of powder is in the way?

OP did not ask but I use lighter fluid (naphtha) or mineral spirits to clean and Vaseline to lube mine. It doesn't attract dirt like oil and holds up to the heat much better.

 

[Travlin]

I bought my Herter's O frame press in 1969. I have pulled the ram out and wiped it down maybe half a dozen times. Remember as far as oil " a drop on the machine is better than a whole can on the floor".

 

[WiscoHunter]

I usually give it a quick wipe after reloading a batch, but never really cleaned it thoroughly. Guess that's a new task on the list now that I have time for it.

 

[L Pete]

I wipe mine down if I see stuff collecting around the ram, and I use Hoppes lube oil on the ram, and all pivot points, but that's all I do. I've loaded many thousands of rounds, and never had a problem with the Lee Classic Cast Turret press quite a few years ago now. I also have a RCBS Reloader Special 2 that I treat the same way, and nary a problem.

 

[Ret_Eng]

I lube and clean my Redding Big Boss II ram and pivot points once in awhile. The little Lee press that I use for pistol bullet seating only never gets dirty---it just keeps working.​