Skip to main content
Welcome to our new website!

Lee 4-Hole Turret Press Indexing Tips / Troubleshooting

Press Indexing Tips / Troubleshooting

Lubricate the outside diameter of the Turret with 30 wt. motor oil, or something similar.

The nylon Square Ratchet that comes with the Turret Press is designed to properly index the press for 10s of thousands of rounds. This inexpensive part is made of nylon for two reasons with the first being that if the Index rod is operated against the proper rotation, the nylon will fail before any damage occurs to any other part. The second is that they are inexpensive to produce and purchase.

The ratchet enables the indexing without "tweaking" or adjustment. The Index Rod may be removed and replaced at will without affecting the timing of the press. The whisper thin material that forms a hinge on the Auto Index Clamp is there for ease of assembly at the factory. After installed on the press, it has no effect on the indexing of the press, whether the hinge is intact or not. In the unlikely event that your press was received and not indexing correctly, the Ratchet is not the reason and the issue is easily resolved by Turret Press Index Alignment.

Here is a video showing how to align the Turret - https://youtu.be/t9iPthaYPh4

The only reason the Ratchet would be damaged is from forcing the Index Tod against that Ratchet. This generally occurs when Turrets are removed with the Ram at the bottom of the stroke as the Ratchet is engaged during the down stroke. When removing Turrets, it is necessary to raise the Ram about an inch or so.

A problem can ultimately affect indexing if the Ratchet is excessively forced against the Index Rod, because the top portion of the Ram, designed to rotate for another reason, would do so under these circumstances. Then, even with the Ratchet replaced, the entire housing is off center.
The proper alignment of the housing on the Classic Turret Press, is completed by using the lever portion of the Priming Arm and aligning it with the two bumps on the base of the press.

The nylon housing that holds the Ratchet never needs to be opened other than to eventually replace the nylon Ratchet. Remove the Index Rod, then the housing by removing the horizontal Screw. Replace the Ratchet remembering to place the flange in the downward position and reattach the nylon housing. This housing does nothing more than contain the Ratchet. Do not over tighten the screw because the threads can be stripped.

Turret Press Help Videos available: http://leeprecision.com/Turret-Press-Help.html

 

Attachments  

Turret Press.pdf (1.96 MB)

Turret Press.pdf (1.96 MB)