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| < 16ga. Ammunition & Reloading ~ Spolar shotshell reloading press ? |
| Spolar shotshell loading experience ? |
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| Some - very negative |
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| Total Votes : 41 |
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 Posted:
Sat Mar 14, 2009 5:38 pm
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Joined: 31 Dec 2008
Posts: 354
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Have checked out the Spolar shotshell reloading press website. Watched their videos. Read their testimonials.
What are the negatives ?
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| Posted:
Sat Mar 14, 2009 6:15 pm
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Member
Joined: 19 Dec 2007
Posts: 127
Location: Gold Bar. Wa.
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Cost  |
_________________
The only constant is change. |
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| Posted:
Sun Mar 15, 2009 6:44 am
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Joined: 09 Mar 2006
Posts: 39
Location: maryland
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| never used one, it is supposed to be a very upgraded P/W. Supposed to be the best there is. Look at www.trapshooters.com lots of threads there. |
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| Posted:
Wed Mar 18, 2009 8:48 pm
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Member
Joined: 01 Dec 2005
Posts: 1550
Location: Minnesota and Florida
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Last edited by MaximumSmoke on Fri Sep 17, 2010 6:02 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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| Posted:
Thu Mar 19, 2009 6:04 am
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Joined: 08 Mar 2007
Posts: 134
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have had one for 12ga for about a year. It came with the hydraulic option.
You have to make sure the primer system is full for reliable feeding of primers, otherwise bullet proof, fast and accurate.
most will critisize price but the time savings for me are worth it. It is the lexus of reloaders. there are cheaper, if you have all the time in the world those are great as well............... |
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| Posted:
Thu Mar 19, 2009 5:03 pm
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Member
Joined: 01 Dec 2005
Posts: 1550
Location: Minnesota and Florida
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Last edited by MaximumSmoke on Fri Sep 17, 2010 6:01 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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| Posted:
Thu Mar 19, 2009 5:17 pm
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Member
Joined: 01 Dec 2005
Posts: 1550
Location: Minnesota and Florida
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Last edited by MaximumSmoke on Fri Sep 17, 2010 6:00 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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| Posted:
Thu Mar 19, 2009 8:39 pm
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Joined: 06 Mar 2008
Posts: 596
Location: 17603
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Tony,
Have to disagree a bit with you on your P/W pricing;
800plus 12ga with a foot pedal electric assist : $1650
Complete gauge change, head, dies AND taper crimp $240@
You can get 16,20,28 & .410 for a total of FIVE gauges $980
Total = $2630 for FIVE gauges with electric drive.
Your Spolar may be the flashy Porsche,
the MEC corvette is still a Chevy.
The Ponsness is the Mercedes, beautifully built, mebbe not so pretty,
but built to last and last and last,,,,,,,,,,,,.
Buddy of mine has loaded over 500,000 rounds on his hydraulic 800.
He sent it back to the factory just last year, it was getting a little loose, they rebuilt the SAME machine and it's back in service. Same guy WORE out a MEC 650 I think it was, sent it back, and got called by the factory rep to say that they couldn't fix it. In all fairness they sent him a new one free of charge, but says a lot for the difference in engineering and build.
Lol, we can argue/discuss taper crimps next time around.
Cheers,
R*2 |
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| Posted:
Fri Mar 20, 2009 5:48 am
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Member
Joined: 07 Jan 2008
Posts: 348
Location: Missouri
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Keep this discussion going. I'm learning lots of good stuff from you guys.
I'm at that stage where I'm lusting after a hight quality progressive. The problem is what choice do I have with the 16 ga. for a top quality progressive reloader other than MEC? |
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| Posted:
Fri Mar 20, 2009 6:26 am
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Joined: 06 Mar 2008
Posts: 596
Location: 17603
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"a top quality progressive reloader other than MEC?"
Jim,
Ponsness Warren! www.reloaders.com
While not listed for the 800Plus, they will do one in 16ga.
Or dig around on Ebay, they surface regularly, mostly in 12ga. My recommendation is an 800cvt, (gauge convertible), or a 800b in 20ga.
Then get a head and dies for 16ga.
Like all progressives, they have their idiosyncracies, and I'm sure shootingsioux will chime in with the benefits of the MECs. Lots of talk over on shotgunworld.com about the relative merits of @ on the reloading forum.
Cheers,
R*2 |
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| Posted:
Fri Mar 20, 2009 10:18 am
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Member
Joined: 19 Dec 2007
Posts: 127
Location: Gold Bar. Wa.
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Yo R*2,
While I'm a confirmed P/W guy and pretty much agree with you I don't think they offer 16 gauge tooling for the 800 loaders 
Roi |
_________________
The only constant is change. |
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| Posted:
Fri Mar 20, 2009 11:12 am
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Member
Joined: 12 Mar 2005
Posts: 6535
Location: massachusetts
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| mtjim wrote: |
Keep this discussion going. I'm learning lots of good stuff from you guys.
I'm at that stage where I'm lusting after a hight quality progressive. The problem is what choice do I have with the 16 ga. for a top quality progressive reloader other than MEC?
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I would not worry about it Jim. The MEC grabber is a well made progressive reloader and is versitile and user friendly at the same time IMO. Once you start adding in the extra "goodies" like automatic advance etc. you simply complicate things to the point that resetting the machine for different componants is more ticklish. Correcting a mistake without cycling it through and creating a mess is also trickier.
Most PW fans I know are trap shooters who never swap out the load they use. They just crank them out by the thousands for years without changing anything. It is a great machine for this purpose. The biggest advantage the PW has is the die that encases the shell. This feature does help prevent collapsing a hull. However, a mistake must be cycled through and can prove to be messy.
Lets face it, we all screw up, even PW and Spolar owners. Spilled shot or powder will foul up any machine. the MEC is easier to clean up and faster to get back into action than just about any other progessive press I know of. I particularly like my Grabbers because I can prevent the mess by quickly and easily pulling and dumping a messed up shell. I can them restart the process with very little trouble or time spent and no shot or powder spilled. Breaka part. No problem. Replacement parts are fairly inexpensive and are a 1-800 number phone call away. MEC customer service is tops in my book. I've used their services often enough over the last three decades. I've yet to be disappointed or not dealt with fairly and politely.
Resetting A MEC for different componants is also easy once you learn how. Learning how to set up and use any progressive press has a learning curve. The MEC is easy to master IMO.
Plus, I can easily buy three Grabbers for one PW or Spolar. I Reload all five standard domestic gauges. I have at least one Grabber for all of them. My oldest is an old 76 series and is the first progessive press I ever owned. It is a 12 gauge unit that was the Orange County Trap and Skeet club press. It was rebuilt by MEC and sold to me for short money in 1980. I still have it, still use it, and it has never failed me once. It has probably produced at least a 1/4 to a 1/2 million rounds all total and is just as smooth and reliable as it ever was. It seems to have gotten slicker to use every year since.
The MEC Grabber is lighter and more portable than any other progessive model yuou can name. I mount all mine on the rear half of a 9X12 inch piece of 3/4" plywood and C-clamp the machine in place to the front of my reloading bench as needed. The plywood board serves as a shoe that stabilizes the machine perfectly. I Can shuffle machines around easily and quickly this way. Reloading a different load or gauge is a snap. The PW or Spolar must be bolted in place and is not easy to move. They weigh a ton and take up more space to boot.
So it is mostly a matter of which press will fill your needs best. I do not have anything bad to say about the PW or Spolar. They are far stronger built than they need to be and will last forever, especially for a high volume one gauge shooter. However, the MEC Grabber does a fine job as well and is more convenient to buy, to use and to deploy for a multi-gauge, multi load kind of guy like me. |
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| Posted:
Fri Mar 20, 2009 4:08 pm
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Joined: 06 Mar 2008
Posts: 596
Location: 17603
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| 510wells wrote: |
Yo R*2,
While I'm a confirmed P/W guy and pretty much agree with you I don't think they offer 16 gauge tooling for the 800 loaders :(
Roi
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Did a complete set for me when I asked,
they'll also make me a custom set of short 16ga dies for 65mm/2 9/16" hulls.
There's enough adjustment on the crimp stations to accomadate it with just a die change, $200.
Cheers,
R*2 |
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| Posted:
Fri Mar 20, 2009 5:36 pm
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Member
Joined: 01 Dec 2005
Posts: 1550
Location: Minnesota and Florida
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Last edited by MaximumSmoke on Fri Sep 17, 2010 6:00 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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| Posted:
Fri Mar 20, 2009 5:50 pm
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Member
Joined: 15 Apr 2007
Posts: 9463
Location: Amarillo, Texas
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Hello All,
You KNOW by now I am of the older generation 
I load on old Texan M presses, 12, 16, 20, 28, and 410 when lots of ammo is wanted.
Hard to find now in 16 gauge, but my, my what a treasure to use.
Anyone use on this site use TEXAN presses?
Enjoy the day
Mike |
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