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New "Pew" collator/feeder

Darren Wright

Darren Wright

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Springfield, Missouri
I've been in the process of setting up the new presses that Dad picked up this winter and needed a few accessories for storing dies and such. Found lots of holder designs are available on Thingiverse for this, but also came across this collator/feeder that someone posted.

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2504314
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EO8HuW9l8MQ

I started printing up the main body for one of the recommended motors Sunday night. It finished in the early hours today, about 27+ hours total.
2018-05-15 08.01.16.jpg

I also printed up a collator plate last night and will print some for other size of calibers I have too after I get some of the other pieces made and things assembled.
2018-05-15 08.01.06.jpg

This design uses a feeder die from Mr. Bullet Feeder and can use a few other parts from that design, but I'm sure it could be adapted to the RCBS or Hornady feeder dies as well. There is a feed tube to print that uses either a mechanical or light beam switch to trigger on/off the feeder motor when supply in the tube decrease or has filled. Someone has even come up with an inverter to flip the bullets nose down for running through a sizing press.

Cost for this build should be just under $100. A retail version runs in about the $500 range and up.
 
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I finally got a coupler that I've been waiting on to extend the motor shaft and drill for a "T" for driving the collator plate.
2018-05-18 20.05.03.jpg

I did a quick wire up to test out the motor.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Inethit9tE

Then a quick test to see if it's going to work.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=temzEl_mReQ

As you can see at the end I had a few bullets coming out of the collator on top, that is due to me not having the right ramp plate on there. I'm still trying to figure out which one I do need for these smaller bullets. However, it worked really well when it was working. Part of the issue was me also trying to hold the ramp plate in position and the feeder body at the right angle.

I also printed up the tube/switch housings and adapters for the springs to connect to. I'm just using some cheap tube bending springs that I picked up at Menards. These will transfer the bullets from the collator to the switch housings they are connected to. One is for 9mm, the other for .223 bullets.
2018-05-18 20.54.22.jpg 2018-05-18 20.54.32.jpg 2018-05-18 20.54.39.jpg

There is also a motor controller to add on this yet to slow down the motor. It's a 10 rpm motor, but I plan to run it at about 3 - 5 rpm.
 
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Dad stopped over after dinner to check out the new reloading bench. I brought out the bullet feeder to show him and he asked where I bought all the plastic parts at. He looked quite in disbelief when I told him that I printed them all.

Also got the hanging bracket printed overnight, it's in two parts and is joined with a 3/8" rod. Each part has some screw sets in it to hold position on the rod so that the feeder's angle can be adjusted. The bracket just hangs over the casing collators body.
2018-05-20 20.10.30.jpg
 
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My Lee press has some case feeder tubes on it that I have to fill up manually, I came across a design for using the little bullet feeder I printed as a case collator also. I wasn't sure how well it would work, so I printed up the plate and tested out some 9mm cases with it. Sure enough it works flawlessly and the cases drop head first every single time. So I went ahead and printed up another bullet feeder body and pieces for it. Total cost is about $30

I also came up with a little better shaft coupler for the motor to turn the plate. The brass coupler is drilled for M3 set screws, but on the plate end I ran a M3 x 25 screw through and cut the head off, then added some blue locktite to hold it in place. I did have to end up drilling out the hole in the base for the shaft to about 1/2" to clear the set screws that were holding the coupler to the shaft on that end.
20190227_211443.jpg 20190227_212612.jpg 20190227_213547.jpg 20190227_213629.jpg

Here is a demo of the collator running.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vj8MR93N-Ko

I'm finishing up some other 3D printed parts and waiting on the tube spring for connecting to the press.
 
On a side note for the pew, pew, pew folks on the site. I did have a couple of boxes of these, but not the bad lot number (printed on the inside flap of the box)

Recall.jpg
 
Thanks for the heads-up, Ted. I haven't shot any .38 Special in a long time, but I'll check my stock and see if the recall applies to any of it.
 
Thanks guys, I cant wait to see what the future brings for this kind if technology, only a couple years back I'd be trying to make one of these from PVC pipe and wood. Now its imagine, Google, and print...lol

Ted thanks for the info on the recall, I'll check my stock too.

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk
 
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