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Thread: My DIY Bullet Feeder

  1. #1
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    Cool My DIY Bullet Feeder

    Ha! In a self satisfied way.

    I was looking at a popular bullet feeder to glue onto my 650 as I want to produce as many rounds with as little effort and as quickly as possible. I reload to shoot [cheaply], I do not shoot to reload.

    Well in all my surfing I stumbled across a widget called the Crimson Bullet Collator, apparently no longer made. It was ostensibly a parts kit that allowed you to build a bullet collator which looked remarkably similar to a popular version being sold.

    So, I thought to myself, if someone can build an Ike@ parts kit bullet feeder then why can't I? So I started with a few cardboard templates, bought some HDPE plastic and got out the router.

    This is [hopefully] the final prototype. IT WORKS. The bullet plate turns, the slider plate thingy pushes upside down bullets out, the flipper thing flips them and the hole to drop them into the tube is in the right place.

    I need some more HDPE and I should have a fully functional shiny one dropping bullets into primered, powder filled cases by next week. And no, I did not want to build one out of an old L*we's bucket.

    The big questions: How much? Answer: I should have 2 fully functioning ones for just about around $140 including all the protoyping costs.

    Worth it? Answer: I enjoy building things and solving problems and now I can make one of these anytime.

    Last edited by Chuteur; 05-22-2017 at 07:36 PM.

  2. #2
    Site Supporter SeriousStudent's Avatar
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    Very, very cool. There is nothing quite as satisfying as designing and completing one's own solution.

    I have been trying to decide between a Dillon 650 with a Mr Bullet Feeder and a 1050. So this is very relevant to my searches.

  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by SeriousStudent View Post
    Very, very cool. There is nothing quite as satisfying as designing and completing one's own solution.

    I have been trying to decide between a Dillon 650 with a Mr Bullet Feeder and a 1050. So this is very relevant to my searches.
    I have a 650.......I am getting a 1050 in the next couple of months. I should have got a 1050 in the first place if I had considered the issue fully.

    With the 650 I have invested in two different primer pocket swager widgets which attach in place of the primer seating fitment. Neither of them functions satisfactorily, one not at all, both are effectively as useful as smelly dog poop. Further, with the 650 for any action not directly intended of the press originally you have to run through two cycles with the cases. The first to do case prep (primer pocket swaging), the second to perform the reloading.........effectively more than doubling your production time due to having to change out components.

    The 1050 accommodates case prep during it's one cycle, the built in primer pocket swager functions magnificently meaning no hickeys with crimped primer pockets.

    I cannot recommend a 1050 to you, that is for you to decide. However, just to make it clear, I shall be selling my 650 when I get around to it as pfaffing around with crimped primers, stopping production, wasting primers and chewing up decapping pins is getting tedious.

    As to the bullet feeder: Watch this space. When it is fully 110% I will gladly share my design with all and sundry, anyone with access to (or who has a friend with) a bench drill, router, with some bits and a screwdriver should be able to knock one out for under $100.
    Last edited by Chuteur; 05-22-2017 at 09:26 PM.

  4. #4
    Bless you ! This is of strong interest.

  5. #5
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    Jul 2015
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    Northern Utah
    I have been on the fence for months about getting a Mr. Bullet Feeder for my 650. No doubt it is a quality addition, but I just haven't been able to justify the rather large cost for something that I don't think will speed me up enough to justify it. I have seen people making their own feeders, but haven't really considered trying it myself. Very well done, glad to see your success!

  6. #6
    Member SecondsCount's Avatar
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    Feb 2011
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    Utah, USA
    That is pretty sweet!

    I have a dozen of the little 12V gearmotors to run one and have considered making my own.
    -Seconds Count. Misses Don't-

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by SecondsCount View Post
    That is pretty sweet!

    I have a dozen of the little 12V gearmotors to run one and have considered making my own.
    You've saved an extra $15.00 already.

    I have spent the odd hour here and there over about the last three weeks putting it all together based on a video of the popular bullet feeder and the assembly instructions for the Crimson Collator - if I rushed it would be crap, so I have taken my time. Should be tickety boo by next week.

    I will admit to having had a Hornady bullet dropper die laying around for a while so I have not had to buy one of those.

  8. #8
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    This is fitted to the press with a bodged method of using 1x2 and a couple of brackets to establish the best angle to make sure bullets travel around the plate correctly, hit the flippers correctly and drop down the chute.

    I ran a thousand 124gr 9mm through it and had 4 drop upside down - I think I know what the problem is. The run speed is around 3 minutes for 100 bullets which I think can be improved a bit too - but that works out at about 2000 an hour cyclic rate without allowing for top up time and primer refill time.

    The magicness....

    View My Video
    Last edited by Chuteur; 05-24-2017 at 08:21 PM.

  9. #9
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    Nice!!



    Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

  10. #10
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    CHUTEURS BULLET COLLATOR BUILD

    Firstly, to mis-quote Douglas Adam’s: Don’t Panic [if you flock up]. What could possibly go wrong that can’t be fixed? Also, I am not telling you what to do, or providing instructions, I am telling you what I did
    First I did some drawing, made some cardboard templates, bought some supplies, made a router table from ¾ inch ply, cut 3 plastic discs, cut a plastic sheet, drilled some holes and did some screwing. Simple.

    MATERIALS I USED:

    1 – 24” x 48” sheet of ¾ “ ply (HD or L’s)
    1 - 6” drainage pipe section
    1 - Black Boltaron Sheet (like kydex, but allegedly stronger) 0.080" 12 X 24 P1 Finish Made in USA $12.39 (am@zon)
    1 - Seaboard High Density Polyethylene Sheet, Matte Finish, 1/4" Thick, 12" Length x 36" Width, Black $16.43 (@mazon)
    1 - Seaboard High Density Polyethylene Sheet, Matte Finish, 1/2" Thick, 12" Length x 24" Width, Black $21.98(@mazon)
    1 - uxcell DC 12V 6RPM 6mm Shaft High Torque Turbine Worm Geared Motor $15.25(@mazon)
    1 - Pixnor 6V 12V 24V 28V 3A 80W DC Motor Speed Controller (PWM) Speed Adjustable Reversible Switch… $8.45(@mazon)
    1 - Pitsco Education 39079 Tetrix MAX Motor Hub (Pack of 2) $11.11 (@mazon)
    1 - sweeper spring 11/32” x 2 3/8” x .035”” (L*we’s, hanging up in the hardware section)
    1 - feedtube spring 9/16” outside measurement $4.99 (L*wes, hanging up in the hardware section)
    4 - M3 x ½” screws for the motor
    1 - 110V to 12V DC transformer, I had a box full of old phone and laptops power supplys – you will know someone who does too.
    1 - Clear plastic 9/16th tubing. Available online from fish tank supplier type company for a couple of $. I shall probably need a couple of sizes of tube to cope with 9mm and 5.56mm.
    1 - Insert male adapter ½” (like a grey screw in widget to push a hose pipe onto, in the plumbing section (L*we’s) less than 50c.
    1 - microswitch.
    Some wire.
    Assorted screws, nuts and washers and other bits and bob’s found in and around the shed, stolen from neighbours or borrowed from work.
    Note: The materials allowed me to make one complete working bullet collator body, and enough left over to make another excluding the electrics. This was limited by the quantity of Boltaron used for the sidewall of the collator – knowing how it goes together now I have enough HDPE to make about another couple. So, if you have a friend who wants one get together and reduce the cost.
    Disclosure: I already owned a Hornady bullet dropper die. Can’t drop bullets without a dropper die. Less than $30 on eb@y.

    THE BUILD

    Step 1. I made a router table out of the ¾” ply. This acted as the dedicated work area for the project allowing me to make holes, draw and generally abuse the surface of the router table. I have a router and a trimmer, but no router table. Youtube was my friend here:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDHt2NQHKSI

    Step 2. Rather than rough engineering it out of the expensive plastic to start I made some carboard templates. The width/diameter of the collator was dependent on the size of drainpipe I had acquired to use as a mold/form for the boltaron. The drainpipe was around 6 1/8” in diameter. That being the case I made the base of the collator template disc 6 1/8” with the flipper extension of the base out at 8”. Basically you draw an 8” circle with a 6 1/8” circle inside it.

    I divided the 6 1/8” circle into 4 equal parts (quarter it). Marked where each point of the quarters touched the out edge of the 6 1/8” circle. Then drew a box connecting the four points so that I had a square inside the circle. Then continued two of the lines out to the 8” circle, cut out the 8” circle and then removed 3 of the 6” – 8” sections to leave a sticky out bit.

    Look at the picture.

    I made two discs for the base as there needs to be some cutting out for motor and electronics placement and with a simple workshop router steered by a numpty I could not do CNC quality machining. By planning on two discs to be placed one on top of the other I could make all the cutouts and then put a nice flat piece on top for the rotor disc to run on.

    Hmmmm! Sorry Pic Upload Fail. I will try again later
    Last edited by Chuteur; 05-28-2017 at 11:42 AM.

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