Quick fun project: My new strong mount

[tacdriver]

My reloading table is somewhat low, so a long time ago I had ordered a strong mount for my Dillon Square deal press. The strong mount gave me the height I needed and It works just fine.

Anyway I recently ordered a RL550 press from Dillon, while ordering I figured I would get a Strong mount for the new unit...well maybe not...

The mount was $59.95 shipped... I don’t remember paying that for my Square deal mount 14 years ago, and dang I like the added height for the table I work on but heck call me cheap I thought that a bit much.

So long story short I made my own out of some scrap 1/8 sheet metal I had lying around my garage. The whole project from cut to weld, clean and then paint took less than an hour.

Can"t wait till the unit arrives... I'll drill the holes, mount it and get this puppy up and running

Oh and I’ll use the savings to buy some more powder

Here’s some pic’s enjoy!

 

[FrankTank83]

great work! No need to pay inflated prices, I'm sure yours will last as long as you do!

 

[quake]

Wow that turned out really nice! I wish I could weld/fabricate like that.

I'm surprised you didn't paint it Dillon blue though?

 

[Vince49]

Looks great!

 

[dfranks]

I was thinking of doing the same thing myself. Break out the mig welder and have some fun. Great job on yours!

 

[mac45]

Nicely done!

 

[tacdriver]

Thanks for all the kind words!

I'm was jazzed with the finished product but most of all the savings... not that I'm cheap but heck I can use the money for more stuff from our hobby.

I can't wait till the press gets here my FAL's are hungry

 

[bronko]

Any chance you would want to share the dimensions you used for those of us that would like to do this as well?

And does this build leave room on the right side to mount the finished round tray bracket? Or room in the back for toolholder?

 

[tacdriver]

bronko,
Here's a pretty rough drawing of the unit's measurements

As for the mounts' I believe the answer is yes, I had tried to copy the SQD mount somewhat adding size to the top plate to accommodation the larger press 's footprint. My intention is to make a bullet tray and add that on (I did that on my SQD), however, the angle of the side plates and such are the same. Hope that helps!

-Mike

 

[bob_dolemite]

Very nice! I'd like to do something like this for a single stage and this is very helpful. Thanks for sharing.

 

[tacdriver]

The finished product is up and running!

The press arrived a week ago, the honey do list was low so I put it together over the weekend. Installed it on the mount, I had to add a small 2"x 2" square piece of metal so as to use the cartridge ejection chute they provide you for bench mounts, that took 5 min's to make up and screw onto the mount.

All in all it came out pretty good, and I'm happy with the results... used the savings to buy some more IMR 3031 powder

...300 rounds of .308 168SMK under her belt without a hitch. Now If I can find some 55 or 62 gr 223 bullets I''d see how she would hold up on endurance LOL

Here's some pic's it's the one on the right.

 

[! twitty]

How thick is the metal and are all the angles welded or actually bent?

 

[10mm Snack Pack]

Nice looking professional job! It's always nice to save some money ,and do a better job than what you can buy.

 

[tacdriver]

1/8th sheet steel, weld on the angles

If I had a metal break I could of bent the feet rather then cut and fab them up Unfortunately I didn't have a brake on hand, so I just cut and welded the feet on the sides, it took less then five mins to make & weld them so no real loss overall.

 

[Leo]

It pays to have a skill set that includes metal fabrication. Good Job!

 

[! twitty]

1/8th sheet steel, weld on the angles

If I had a metal break I could of bent the feet rather then cut and fab them up Unfortunately I didn't have a brake on hand, so I just cut and welded the feet on the sides, it took less then five mins to make & weld them so no real loss overall.

The 1/8th is strong enough?

 

[tacdriver]

thanks for the kind words fellas. Regarding your question, yes sir it's strong, same thickness as the one made by Dillon, this one is just welded not bolted together like theirs is.

Oh my kid asked the same thing when I was done cleaning the welds up just before I painted it, my demo for him was I put it on the floor and jumped up on it, granted I only weigh 190 but she held up with no issues

 

[Slawburger]

Looks very nice, you did a fine job.

 

[! twitty]

thanks for the kind words fellas. Regarding your question, yes sir it's strong, same thickness as the one made by Dillon, this one is just welded not bolted together like theirs is.

Oh my kid asked the same thing when I was done cleaning the welds up just before I painted it, my demo for him was I put it on the floor and jumped up on it, granted I only weigh 190 but she held up with no issues

Awesome, thanks for the quick responses. It looks great! I think I might take a stab at making one depending on the cost of buying some 1/8th sheet. Thanks

 

[tacdriver]

I think I might take a stab at making one depending on the cost of buying some 1/8th sheet. Thanks

! twitty,

quick couple of questions,

- Do you have a welder?
- Do have a grinder for cleaning up welds?
- Do you have a drill to drill the holes to mount it?
- Do you have a spray paint can?

If you answered "yes" to all the above, PM me your address, I scrounged up some 1/8th and made what's in the picture this morning.

If you can use it great, if not, no worries, I have a bud down the street who take it for scrap.

-Mike