Hi Guys,every once in a while as I'm reloading my AA's,a couple of them will not crimp down or the crimp will slowly pop up.I end up setting them aside and running them through the last stage of my Mec 600 Super a few times to recrimp them. I'm priming with Wolf's,18.5 gr of Amer, Sel. and claybuster CB-1100, 1oz. of #8.Any suggestions?
Little too much stuff inside. Shorten the shot cup a little bit. You will get a ton of notes saying not to use AA. I have loaded tons of them and will continue. There was a time with the new hull that Winchester had a problem and they fixed it--as far as I'm concerned anyway--. One thing I would say about the new hull, even from Winchester sometimes they will have a small hole in the middle. I saw on this page, and it works, that old and new hulls will not load equally well with the same settings. Lower the crimp starter to where the crimp almost touches instead of a hole about as big as a pencil as you usually do. Then crimp the a little deeper than usual and you can make a new AA look better than a new shell.
Hope this helps--shoot well1
How old is the reloader? I had this problem with my Grabber and no matter how much adjusting I did it kept coming back. I called MEC and they said to check the joints where the handle meets the press basicly the knuckle joint. When I took out the bolts the holes were elongated to point of oval. When I replaced the handle and other parts the problem went away. So it may not be just a simple adjustment. And yes all I load is AA shells new or old.
If it's an occasional problem with the new version of the AA hull and your components are right on the edge of fitting the hull capacity the wad may be setting on the top edge of the plastic base wad. This would raise the wad just enough that the crimp isn't deep enough to keep the shell closed. This would account for the problem being intermittent. If you think this may be the problem, try increasing the wad seating pressure a bit.
Call Mec and have them run you through it. They have some great people out there and are pretty knowledgeable about their products. It's better than pulling out what little hair you have left and spending hours trying everything under the sun. American Select is a little denser than some of the popular powders used in target loads. There are some that are even more dense and changing to one of those might help solve your problem, but a few simple adjustments or part replacements might get you there with the powder you are already using. I've loaded several loads that would be similar to the one you are, without any trouble. Are there any wrinkles or folds on the sides of the tubes? Anything that would suggest that the hull is being crushed in one of the final stations? That would be a good thing to note before making a call.
I've loaded a 100,00+ of AA's on my Dillon. I use 21 gr. of green dot and a AA wad. On the pre-crimp (do Mec's have them?) crimp about 60% in before the final crimp. You won't have any holes. Better yet, buy a Dillon and solve your problems.
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