Wilson seater troubles

J

jo191145

Guest
I have a used Wilson 30BR SS micrometer seater. My first and only arbor die.

Darn seating stem seems to be in full jam mode. Can't muscle it either up, down, left or right.
No apparent rust or corrosion.
I was able to move it down slightly with some hammer taps. Was hoping it would pop free. No luck.

I'd really rather not continue with the hammer. I doubt hammer is anywhere in the instructions.

The dies functioning seems simple enough to determine even when not functioning.

I sincerely doubt oil would help. Its locked really tight.

Could it be old grease? Perhaps heat?

Something else I'm missing?

I'm assuming the seater stem/plug should pull out of the top of the die when disassembled?
If I could get it out I could fix it. Help.
 
Joe,
I had this exact same issue this past week after two years of use. I have a custom die and it has a screw down the the center of the top that I was able to gain some leverage on and twist it enough to loosen it.
Maybe try some PB brake blaster down the bottom/opening of the seater chamber and see if it doesn't penetrate and loosen the stem?
I was not able to find the use of the hammer in the instructions provided with my seater. I could have sworn I saw it there, though :)

Speaking of heat - would heating it up or cooling it down help out?
Mike
 
Here is one fix

I had a friend come to me with the exact same issue. He had the die for 6 years with moderate use. I put the die into a ultrasonic bath filled with penetrating oil. After an hour in the bath I pulled the stem out with my fingers.
Andy.
 
Thanks for the reply Mike.
Its soaking in WD-40 now. Good chance I'll be rewriting the instructions that did'nt come with this thing:D
Nice to know the old 1 pc Savage toolkit (hammer) will still get some use with these shiney expensive guns too.
The stem is setup for a flat blade screw driver. Not budging at all.

Fairly confident if I can tap it down enough to loosen it I can work it back up rotationally very slowly.
Some lapping compound may have to enter the fray at some point. 0005" tolerances or not.

If not I'll heat it.
If not I'll burn it.
Theres always the Redding. Takes a lickin and keeps on tickin.

I'm just amazed its locked up that tight.
 
Thanks for the ideas folks. Crisis solved!!!

I quess I have little patience for such matters. Cro Magnon all the way
Hammer down and still tight.
Had to hammer it out also. The trick is to grab a rod that won't mar the plug.

There was definately some black gunk inside reminisent of the La Brea type tar they use on military ammo.
Some oil and 0000 wool on the stem.
Oil and .30 cal bore brush on the interior.
Still a little bindy. I was right about the tolerances between the two. Could'nt get my lapping compound between the two surfaces.
JB and oil did the rest in a minute.
Cleaned it up good and gave the stem a coat of lug grease.
All is functioning as intended.

Gotta say thats one tuff die if I can't ruin it.

Heat probably would have been the correct approach.
But as a Cro Magnon I'm bound by historical precedence. Rocks before fire.:rolleyes:
 
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hmm Not sure if theres a method to my madness or just a madness to my method.
 
The next time it sticks or if it sticks again I'd stand the die on its head and pour some Kroil into the open bottom end of it. Walk away for awhile then see if it loosens up any. Kroil really does creep, and it's pretty effective at cleaning out some kinds of gunk. When I was younger and more impatient I followed my father's advice to never force a part, but use a bigger hammer. A good way to break things as I've discovered to my dismay a few times.
 
Don't like it

glp said:
Ah, the ol hammer touch die adjustment routine!
Click to expand...

I have never been a practitioner of forcing or thumping anything. That's why I used the oil in the ultra sonic. As they say patience is a virtue.
Andy.
 
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