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Old February 27, 2011, 05:42 AM   #9
Doc Hoy
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Join Date: October 24, 2008
Location: Naples, Fl
Posts: 5,440
Meatsaw

You are correct in determing bullet size based upon your own observations. You have to be happy with what you shoot.

As regards the press, I am speaking of a device as you describe, which you can use to start and seat the ball on top of the powder/wad.

Cylinder comes out of the revolver and into the press. This permits two things.

1) In taking the cylinder out of the revolver, it becomes very natural to look into that chambers. I often find "stuff" in the chambers that I remove before loading.

2) All of the force required to load is applied to the press and not to the arbor or frame of the revolver.

For a long time, I did not use a press. I rested on the premise that the revolvers were designed to load with a lever, hence there should be no problem loading with a lever. But then, revolvers are designed to be fired too. Where do all these loose arbors come from? (That is a rhetorical question.)

Then I reasoned it out one day a coupla years ago. I talked to a physics professor who I am acquainted with and we reasoned (It is a fairly simple calculation that does not take a Physics professor) that the actual tension on the arbor during loading can be very high (I think I remember calculating as much as 350 pounds. That is like hanging a 327 engine block from the end of the arbor.) So I figured, "Why bother?"

My comment was not intended to start a discussion on the various presses, only to plant the seed. There are all kinds of presses out there but my thought is....don't go cheap. If you are handy you can make one.
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