Do you neck-turn hundreds of cases annually? Then you deserve this outstanding tool. This innovative neck-turning system is truly a game-changer. The 21st Century Shooting Powered Neck-Turning Lathe is quite simply the best system ever created for quickly and precisely uniforming (and reducing) the neckwall thickness of cartridge brass. We have the original manual 21st Century neck-turning lathe, and can attest that it works great. But with the new powered system you can turn necks faster and more efficiently, with less effort. This is like going from a stick shift to an automatic transmission. The cases feed very smoothly and the results are beautiful. Once you’ve tried the Powered Neck-Turning Lathe you won’t want to use anything else. Watch this video to see how it works:
Power is activated by the red button on the end of the blue, horizontal feed handle:
Click the Speaker Button on video frame to play with sound (audio).
The Powered Neck-Turning lathe is a modular system. Swing the bar from right to left to feed the case. The power head (with case holder) glides on stainless steel rails for smooth movement. This allows very precise feed rate. Power is supplied via a button that is built into the end of the feed handle. Push the red button to make the case spin. It’s as simple as that.
The folks at 21st Century Shooting explain why the system works so well: “The floating design of our Neck Turner and Case Driver allows the case mouth (bore) to run on the arbor absolutely concentric. This, therefore, allows the outside diameter to be turned concentric with the inside diameter.”
Here is another video that shows how the lathe system operates:
Click the Speaker Button on video frame to play with sound (audio).
Complete Powered Neck-Turning Lathe System
The powered neck-turning system comes with everything you need, starting at $679.00. This includes: Motor Assembly, Lathe Base, “L” bracket, Neck-Turning Tool, Cutter, Case Holder, Driver, Turning Arbor, Expander Die Body, and Expander Mandrel. 21st Century currently offers a choice of nine popular calibers: .17, .20, .22, .243 (6mm), .264 (6.5mm), .270, .284 (7mm), .30, and .33. The case holders are appropriately sized for the common rim sizes in that caliber. Choose either stainless arbor and mandrel or Titanium Nitride-coated arbor and mandrel (for $20 more). Some of the larger calibers cost a bit more.
Share the post "Power to the People — 21st Century Powered Neck-Turning Lathe"
if you turn your case-necks, here’s a tool from 21st Century Shooting that can can save time, and help you produce better, more consistent turned necks. 21st Century’s Neck-Turning Lathe system, introduced last spring, may revolutionize the way reloaders turn their case necks. Watch the video and you’ll see why. If you’re never turned cases before, you may become a convert after seeing how quickly and easily the new 21st Century Neck-Turning Lathe does the job.
The mini-lathe has unique fittings on the left and right sides that allow both the case-holder and the neck-turning tool to float. As a result this tool maintains near-perfect concentricity during the cut. 21st Century’s John Perkins explains: “The floating design of the neck turner and the case driver allows the case mouth (bore) to run on the arbor absolutely concentric, therefore allowing O.D. to be turned concentric with I.D. The tailstock creates a horizontal inline support for the base of the case. This also allows the operator to keep both hands on the power screw driver or drill, making it very easy to control the feed rate and to produce a very fine, turned finish.” Having the system float at both ends was key, according to John: “By allowing both the turner and the case to float, everything self-aligns. This maintains concentricity and allows the unit to work with very low torque.”
Neck-Turning Lathe is Fast Yet Precise
Using power from a drill or electric screwdriver, this tool will turn necks fast — in a matter of a few seconds. And it produces beautiful, smooth necks that are extremely uniform. Tests show that the lathe, used with the 21st Century Neck-Turning Tool, will hold 0.0002 (two ten-thousandths) neck wall tolerances. And it will do that time after time.
Turn Necks in a Single Pass
Using traditional hand-methods, turning case necks can be time-consuming and fatiguing. Many folks will experience hand pain or cramping after just a dozen cases. Watch the video, you’ll see how fast and easy neck-turning can be with the new mini-lathe. You get an exceptionally good cut in seconds. Very importantly, with this system, you may be able to switch from a double-pass cut, to a single-pass cut. Yes, even if you’re making a deep cut, we think there is a good chance you can turn all your necks in a single pass. That can cut your labor time in half!
Why does the 21st Century Neck-Turning Tool cut so well? First, the Neck-Turning Tool employs ultra-sharp carbide cutters that are custom-ground to fit the shoulder angle of your cartridge. This allows you to make a perfect cut extending down the shoulder 1/32 of an inch. Second, the system aligns the case neck on the arbor (mandrel) so well, and the cutter is so sharp, that very little torque is required. This allows the cutting process to go very smoothly. The case-holder is also unique — it features a O-ring so it holds the case firmly in place without marring or bending the case head. The tailstock case-holder adjusts to accommodate cases from 17 Fireball to a .416 Rigby.
More Case Prep Tools for Lathe in Future
In the near future 21st Century will offer additional case prep attachments for the new mini-lathe. 21st Century plans to provide bullet-pointing system and other options. These will all work with the same lathe “chassis”, and will run with power. John states: “This is a modular system, all parts interchange. So if you have an existing 21st Century Shooting Neck Turning Tool or Bracket, everything will fit.”
The 21st Century Neck-Turning Lathe costs $245.00, complete with Neck-Turning Tool ($85.00 value) and one case-holder driver. The Neck-Turning Tool comes with a carbide cutter with user choice of shoulder angle (Arbors and Mandrels are sold separately). Perkins recommends using the Neck-Turning Lathe with power, but it will also work with an optional hand crank. NOTE: Currently the Neck-Turning Lathe works ONLY with the 21st Century Neck-Turner. It will not work with K&M, Sinclair, or Forster tools. But that’s not a real drawback because the 21st Century tool is certainly one of the best on the market today. You can purchase the Neck-Turning Lathe (complete with Neck-Turner and Case-Holder) through the 21st Century website, or call (260) 273-9909.
Disclosure: 21st Century Shooting advertises with AccurateShooter.com.
Share the post "Neck-Turning Lathe from 21st Century Shooting"
When neck-turning cases, it’s a good idea to extend the cut slightly below the neck-shoulder junction. This helps keep neck tension more uniform after repeated firings, by preventing a build-up of brass where the neck meets the shoulder. One of our Forum members, Craig from Ireland, a self-declared “neck-turning novice”, was having some problems turning brass for his 20 Tactical cases. He was correctly attempting to continue the cut slightly past the neck-shoulder junction, but he was concerned that brass was being removed too far down the shoulder.
Craig writes: “Everywhere I have read about neck turning, [it says] you need to cut slightly into the neck/shoulder junction to stop doughnutting. I completely understand this but I cant seem to get my neck-turning tool set-up to just touch the neck/shoulder junction. It either just doesn’t touch [the shoulder] or cuts nearly the whole shoulder and that just looks very messy. No matter how I adjust the mandrel to set how far down the neck it cuts, it either doesn’t touch it or it cuts far too much. I think it may relate to the bevel on the cutter in my neck-turning tool…”
Looking at Craig’s pictures, we’d agree that he didn’t need to cut so far down into the shoulder. There is a simple solution for this situation. Craig is using a neck-turning tool with a rather shallow cutter bevel angle. This 20-degree angle is set up as “universal geometry” that will work with any shoulder angle. Unfortunately, as you work the cutter down the neck, a shallow angled-cutter tip such as this will remove brass fairly far down. You only want to extend the cut about 1/32 of an inch past the neck-shoulder junction. This is enough to eliminate brass build-up at the base of the neck that can cause doughnuts to form.
The answer here is simply to use a cutter tip with a wider angle — 30 to 40 degrees. The cutter for the K&M neck-turning tool (above) has a shorter bevel that better matches a 30° shoulder. There is also a 40° tip available. PMA Tool and 21st Century Shooting also offer carbide cutters with a variety of bevel angles to exactly match your case shoulder angle*. WalkerTexasRanger reports: “I went to a 40-degree cutter head just to address this same issue, and I have been much happier with the results. The 40-degree heads are available from Sinclair Int’l for $15 or so.” Forum Member CBonner concurs: “I had the same problem with my 7WSM… The 40-degree cutter was the answer.” Below is Sinclair’s 40° Cutter for its NT-series neck-turning tools. Item NT3140, this 40° Cutter sells for $14.99. For the same price, Sinclair also sells the conventional 30° Cutter, item NT3100.
Al Nyhus has another clever solution: “The best way I’ve found to get around this problem is to get an extra shell holder and face it off .020-.025 and then run the cases into the sizing die. This will push the shoulder back .020-.025. Then you neck turn down to the ‘new’ neck/shoulder junction and simply stop there. Fireforming the cases by seating the bullets hard into the lands will blow the shoulder forward and the extra neck length you turned by having the shoulder set back will now be blended perfectly into the shoulder. The results are a case that perfectly fits the chamber and zero donuts.”
Even with the very best cartridge brass, you can achieve the most consistent neck-wall thickness with precision case-neck turning. This can be done slowly with hand-tools (such as a K&M Tool), but powered neck turning can produce superb results in a fraction of the time. For today’s Saturday Showcase we feature the excellent 21st Century Power Neck-Turning Lathe and the state-of-the-art AUTODOD machine from F-Class Products. In addition, we show how neck turning can be done using a vertical milling machine fitted with a neck-turner. And to start off, we offer a Keith Glasscock video that analyzes when it makes sense to turn necks, considering the demands of your particular shooting disciplines.
To Turn or NOT to Turn — Wisdom from Keith Glasscock
In this video, top F-Class Shooter and Wind Coach Keith Glasscock discusses the process of turning case necks. Neck-turning may be mandatory if you have a chamber with reduced-diameter neck dimensions. With a standard chamber you may still want to do a minimal neck-turn to make your brass more consistent or to increase clearance. On the other hand, high-quality brass, such as Lapua, may perform exceptionally well right out of the box. Keith explains how to determine whether you need to turn your brass for your discipline, and explains procedures that help you achieve great results.
21st Century Innovation Powered Neck-Turning Lathe
The 21st Century Innovation Power Neck-Turning Lathe is a superb system for quickly and precisely uniforming the neckwall thickness of cartridge brass. With this powered system you can turn necks faster and more efficiently, with less effort. The cases feed very smoothly and the results are beautiful. Power is activated by the red button on the end of the blue, horizontal feed handle
The Powered Neck-Turning Lathe is a modular system. Swing the bar from right to left to feed the case. The power head (with case holder) glides on stainless steel rails for smooth movement. This allows very precise feed rate. Power is supplied via a button that is built into the end of the feed handle. Push the red button to make the case spin. It’s as simple as that. NOTE: The 21st Century Power Neck-Turning Lathe has been updated — the frame and motor are now flat black in color.
Here is another video that shows how the lathe system operates:
AUTODOD Power Neck-Turner from Black Machine
Bryan Blake of F-Class Products has created an ultra-precise and speedy neck-turning machine, the AUTODOD. This employs twin precision cutter tips to turn case necks inside and out quickly and efficiently, with superior precision. The advanced AUTODOD Neck Turning Machine holds cases securely in a precision-machined spindle attached to an electric motor. Twin blades move precisely during the cutting process, milling the necks inside and out. The turned necks come out perfect every time, with the shoulders trimmed exactly (with doughnut removed) as well. If you turn hundreds of cases during a shooting season, you may want to consider getting an AUTODOD from F-Class Products. Below is a video from F-Class John Showing the AUTODOD Machine in action.
Neck-Turning Cases with a Milling Machine
Our friend Erik Cortina figured out how to turn his match cartridge case-necks using his milling machine. Erik told us: “While in Raton [a while back], Mid Tompkins told me that he turns his brass on milling machine. He said he could do about 500 in two hours, so I decided to try it.” Erik fitted a Don Nielson “Pumpkin” neck-turner to the mill, and he used a modified 21st Century case holder to secure the brass. As you can see from this video, Erik was very successful with the process. The tool spins at 1500 rpm, turning Lapua 6.5-284 cases that have been necked up to 7mm.
It’s hard to argue with Erik’s results. Here are his turned Lapua cases, which have neck-wall thickness consistent to two ten-thousandths of an inch.
Neck-Turning Lubricants for Turner Mandrels
For Neck-Turning, Try STP Blend or Assembly Lube
For hand neck-turning, a variety of lubricants can work well on the outside of the necks. You will also want to lube the mandrel which runs inside the case. There are many options for lubing the neck-turning tool mandrel while turning case necks. Some folks use a blend of STP® Oil Treatment and Mobil 1 lube. Chuckw2 reports: “Try STP and Mobile 1 Synthetic oil in a 50/50 mixture. Very slick, you will need to tumble your cases after turning.” STP is a very thick lubricant, that flows and clings almost like honey. Jason reports the STP blend comes off easily in an ultra-sound bath, using a bit of detergent. At many retailers, STP is also available in a convenient 7-ounce tube, so you don’t have to buy a large bottle.
Another even cheaper option is assembly lubricant. For turning his case necks, RStreich uses assembly lube from an auto parts store. He notes: “The brand I have is reddish in color and kind of sticky like honey. It’s far better than the Imperial die wax I was using before.” There are a variety of types, both with and without moly additive, and you can select the viscosity you prefer if you sample a few brands. Be sure to clean out any lube residue from the inside of your necks when you have completed your neck-turning.
Share the post "Saturday at the Movies: Advanced Neck-Turning Videos"
When neck-turning cases, it’s a good idea to extend the cut slightly below the neck-shoulder junction. This helps keep neck tension more uniform after repeated firings, by preventing a build-up of brass where the neck meets the shoulder. One of our Forum members, Craig from Ireland, a self-declared “neck-turning novice”, was having some problems turning brass for his 20 Tactical cases. He was correctly attempting to continue the cut slightly past the neck-shoulder junction, but he was concerned that brass was being removed too far down the shoulder.
Craig writes: “Everywhere I have read about neck turning, [it says] you need to cut slightly into the neck/shoulder junction to stop doughnutting. I completely understand this but I cant seem to get my neck-turning tool set-up to just touch the neck/shoulder junction. It either just doesn’t touch [the shoulder] or cuts nearly the whole shoulder and that just looks very messy. No matter how I adjust the mandrel to set how far down the neck it cuts, it either doesn’t touch it or it cuts far too much. I think it may relate to the bevel on the cutter in my neck-turning tool…”
Looking at Craig’s pictures, we’d agree that he didn’t need to cut so far down into the shoulder. There is a simple solution for this situation. Craig is using a neck-turning tool with a rather shallow cutter bevel angle. This 20-degree angle is set up as “universal geometry” that will work with any shoulder angle. Unfortunately, as you work the cutter down the neck, a shallow angled-cutter tip such as this will remove brass fairly far down. You only want to extend the cut about 1/32 of an inch past the neck-shoulder junction. This is enough to eliminate brass build-up at the base of the neck that can cause doughnuts to form.
The answer here is simply to use a cutter tip with a wider angle — 30 to 40 degrees. The cutter for the K&M neck-turning tool (above) has a shorter bevel that better matches a 30° shoulder. There is also a 40° tip available. PMA Tool and 21st Century Shooting also offer carbide cutters with a variety of bevel angles to exactly match your case shoulder angle*. WalkerTexasRanger reports: “I went to a 40-degree cutter head just to address this same issue, and I have been much happier with the results. The 40-degree heads are available from Sinclair Int’l for $15 or so.” Forum Member CBonner concurs: “I had the same problem with my 7WSM… The 40-degree cutter was the answer.” Below is Sinclair’s 40° Cutter for its NT-series neck-turning tools. Item NT3140, this 40° Cutter sells for $14.99. For the same price, Sinclair also sells the conventional 30° Cutter, item NT3100.
Al Nyhus has another clever solution: “The best way I’ve found to get around this problem is to get an extra shell holder and face it off .020-.025 and then run the cases into the sizing die. This will push the shoulder back .020-.025. Then you neck turn down to the ‘new’ neck/shoulder junction and simply stop there. Fireforming the cases by seating the bullets hard into the lands will blow the shoulder forward and the extra neck length you turned by having the shoulder set back will now be blended perfectly into the shoulder. The results are a case that perfectly fits the chamber and zero donuts.”
When neck-turning cases, it’s a good idea to extend the cut slightly below the neck-shoulder junction. This helps keep neck tension more uniform after repeated firings, by preventing a build-up of brass where the neck meets the shoulder. One of our Forum members, Craig from Ireland, a self-declared “neck-turning novice”, was having some problems turning brass for his 20 Tactical cases. He was correctly attempting to continue the cut slightly past the neck-shoulder junction, but he was concerned that brass was being removed too far down the shoulder.
Craig writes: “Everywhere I have read about neck turning, [it says] you need to cut slightly into the neck/shoulder junction to stop doughnutting. I completely understand this but I cant seem to get my neck-turning tool set-up to just touch the neck/shoulder junction. It either just doesn’t touch [the shoulder] or cuts nearly the whole shoulder and that just looks very messy. No matter how I adjust the mandrel to set how far down the neck it cuts, it either doesn’t touch it or it cuts far too much. I think it may relate to the bevel on the cutter in my neck-turning tool…”
Looking at Craig’s pictures, we’d agree that he didn’t need to cut so far down into the shoulder. There is a simple solution for this situation. Craig is using a neck-turning tool with a rather shallow cutter bevel angle. This 20-degree angle is set up as “universal geometry” that will work with any shoulder angle. Unfortunately, as you work the cutter down the neck, a shallow angled-cutter tip such as this will remove brass fairly far down. You only want to extend the cut about 1/32 of an inch past the neck-shoulder junction. This is enough to eliminate brass build-up at the base of the neck that can cause doughnuts to form.
The answer here is simply to use a cutter tip with a wider angle — 30 to 40 degrees. The cutter for the K&M neck-turning tool (above) has a shorter bevel that better matches a 30° shoulder. There is also a 40° tip available. PMA Tool and 21st Century Shooting also offer carbide cutters with a variety of bevel angles to exactly match your case shoulder angle*. WalkerTexasRanger reports: “I went to a 40-degree cutter head just to address this same issue, and I have been much happier with the results. The 40-degree heads are available from Sinclair Int’l for $15 or so.” Forum Member CBonner concurs: “I had the same problem with my 7WSM… The 40-degree cutter was the answer.” Below is Sinclair’s 40° Cutter for its NT-series neck-turning tools. Item NT3140, this 40° Cutter sells for $14.99. For the same price, Sinclair also sells the conventional 30° Cutter, item NT3100.
Al Nyhus has another clever solution: “The best way I’ve found to get around this problem is to get an extra shell holder and face it off .020-.025 and then run the cases into the sizing die. This will push the shoulder back .020-.025. Then you neck turn down to the ‘new’ neck/shoulder junction and simply stop there. Fireforming the cases by seating the bullets hard into the lands will blow the shoulder forward and the extra neck length you turned by having the shoulder set back will now be blended perfectly into the shoulder. The results are a case that perfectly fits the chamber and zero donuts.”
* 21st Century sells carbide cutters in: 15, 17, 20, 21.5, 23, 25, 28, 30, 35, 40, 46 and 50 degrees. PMA Tool sells carbide cutters in: 20, 23, 30, and 40 degrees, plus other angles by special order.
Share the post "Neck-Turning TIP — Use Optimal Cutter Angle for Best Results"
When neck-turning cases, it’s a good idea to extend the cut slightly below the neck-shoulder junction. This helps keep neck tension more uniform after repeated firings, by preventing a build-up of brass where the neck meets the shoulder. One of our Forum members, Craig from Ireland, a self-declared “neck-turning novice”, was having some problems turning brass for his 20 Tactical cases. He was correctly attempting to continue the cut slightly past the neck-shoulder junction, but he was concerned that brass was being removed too far down the shoulder.
Craig writes: “Everywhere I have read about neck turning, [it says] you need to cut slightly into the neck/shoulder junction to stop doughnutting. I completely understand this but I cant seem to get my neck-turning tool set-up to just touch the neck/shoulder junction. It either just doesn’t touch [the shoulder] or cuts nearly the whole shoulder and that just looks very messy. No matter how I adjust the mandrel to set how far down the neck it cuts, it either doesn’t touch it or it cuts far too much. I think it may relate to the bevel on the cutter in my neck-turning tool…”
Looking at Craig’s pictures, we’d agree that he didn’t need to cut so far down into the shoulder. There is a simple solution for this situation. Craig is using a neck-turning tool with a rather shallow cutter bevel angle. This 20-degree angle is set up as “universal geometry” that will work with any shoulder angle. Unfortunately, as you work the cutter down the neck, a shallow angled-cutter tip such as this will remove brass fairly far down. You only want to extend the cut about 1/32 of an inch past the neck-shoulder junction. This is enough to eliminate brass build-up at the base of the neck that can cause doughnuts to form.
The answer here is simply to use a cutter tip with a wider angle — 30 to 40 degrees. The cutter for the K&M neck-turning tool (above) has a shorter bevel that better matches a 30° shoulder. There is also a 40° tip available. PMA Tool and 21st Century Shooting also offer carbide cutters with a variety of bevel angles to exactly match your case shoulder angle*. WalkerTexasRanger reports: “I went to a 40-degree cutter head just to address this same issue, and I have been much happier with the results. The 40-degree heads are available from Sinclair Int’l for $15 or so.” Forum Member CBonner concurs: “I had the same problem with my 7WSM… The 40-degree cutter was the answer.” Below is Sinclair’s 40° Cutter for its NT-series neck-turning tools. Item NT3140, this 40° Cutter sells for $14.99. For the same price, Sinclair also sells the conventional 30° Cutter, item NT3100.
Al Nyhus has another clever solution: “The best way I’ve found to get around this problem is to get an extra shell holder and face it off .020-.025 and then run the cases into the sizing die. This will push the shoulder back .020-.025. Then you neck turn down to the ‘new’ neck/shoulder junction and simply stop there. Fireforming the cases by seating the bullets hard into the lands will blow the shoulder forward and the extra neck length you turned by having the shoulder set back will now be blended perfectly into the shoulder. The results are a case that perfectly fits the chamber and zero donuts.”
* 21st Century sells carbide cutters in: 15, 17, 20, 21.5, 23, 25, 28, 30, 35, 40, and 46 degrees. PMA Tool sells carbide cutters in: 17.5, 20, 21.5, 23, 25, 28, 30, and 40 degrees, plus special short-neck cutters.
Share the post "TECH TIP: Turn Case-Necks Better with Optimal Cutter Angle"
Here’s the super-speedy way to turn case-necks. Our friend Erik Cortina figured out how to turn his match cartridge case-necks using his milling machine. Erik told us: “While in Raton [a while back], Mid Tompkins told me that he turns his brass on milling machine. He said he could do about 500 in two hours, so I decided to try it.”
Erik fitted a Don Nielson “Pumpkin” neck-turner to the mill, and he used a modified 21st Century case holder to secure the brass. As you can see from this video, Erik was very successful with the process. The tool spins at 1500 rpm, turning Lapua 6.5-284 cases that have been necked up to 7mm.
Video Shows Eric Cortina Neck-Turning Cases with Milling Machine:
Cartridge Brass: Lapua 6.5-284 necked up to 7mm
Lubricant: Lithium grease inside and outside of neck
Neck-Turner: Nielson Pumpkin running at 1500 RPM
It’s hard to argue with Erik’s results. Here are his turned Lapua cases, which have neck-wall thickness consistent to two ten-thousandths of an inch. Think you could do better turning manually?
Some of Erik’s Facebook friends had questions about this process:
Q: Who makes the shell-holder?
Erik Cortina: I did! The shell-holder you can get from 21st Century. I Tig-welded a punch as a handle.
Q: I love the idea of working smarter not harder! Any galling issues? What are your mitigation techniques?
Erik Cortina: No issues. I use lithium grease in spray can. Makes a foam that I dip necks into.
Q: Shouldn’t either the case or the cutter be floating to allow most precise neck turning?
Erik Cortina: Up until [I tried this] I believed the same thing. I was going to build a floating case holder but decided to try rigid setup on a few cases before I built it. Results were great. Neck thickness doesn’t vary more than .0002″, which is same as when I was doing it with floating case holder on the lathe.
Q: Any problems with the Pumpkin changing the cut as it heats up?
Erik Cortina: No — there were no issues with that.
NOTE: Erik Cortina is a very skilled machinist who custom-crafted fittings used for this process. This kind of neck-turning with a milling machine may not be for the everyday hand-loader!
Nielson “Pumpkin” Neck-Turner
The circular orange cutting fixture on Erik’s Milling Machine is a Don Nielson “Pumpkin” neck-turning tool. Don designed this tool to be used by hand or with power. The Pumpkin boasts an eccentric mandrel that allows the cut to be adjusted easily in precise .0001″ increments. Benchresters like this as it allows for very precise control of cut depth and neck-wall thickness.
Nielson Neck Turner with carbide mandrel. Photo Courtesy Butch’s Reloading.
Share the post "Neck-Turning Brass with Milling Machine — High-Speed Solution"
Here’s the super-speedy way to turn case-necks. Our friend Erik Cortina figured out how to turn his match cartridge case-necks using his milling machine. Erik told us: “While in Raton, Mid Tompkins told me that he turns his brass on milling machine. He said he could do about 500 in two hours, so I decided to try it.”
Erik fitted a Don Nielson “Pumpkin” neck-turner to the mill, and he used a modified 21st Century case holder to secure the brass. As you can see from this video, Erik was very successful with the process. The tool spins at 1500 rpm, turning Lapua 6.5-284 cases that have been necked up to 7mm.
Video Shows Erik Cortina Neck-Turning Cases with Milling Machine:
Cartridge Brass: Lapua 6.5-284 necked up to 7mm
Lubricant: Lithium grease inside and outside of neck
Neck-Turner: Nielson Pumpkin running at 1500 RPM
It’s hard to argue with Erik’s results. Here are his turned Lapua cases, which have neck-wall thickness consistent to two ten-thousandths of an inch. Think you could do better turning manually?
Some of Erik’s Facebook friends had questions about this process:
Q: Who makes the shell-holder?
Erik Cortina: I did! The shell-holder you can get from 21st Century. I Tig-welded a punch as a handle.
Q: I love the idea of working smarter not harder! Any galling issues? What are your mitigation techniques?
Erik Cortina: No issues. I use lithium grease in spray can. Makes a foam that I dip necks into.
Q: Shouldn’t either the case or the cutter be floating to allow most precise neck turning?
Erik Cortina: Up until [I tried this] I believed the same thing. I was going to build a floating case holder but decided to try rigid setup on a few cases before I built it. Results were great. Neck thickness doesn’t vary more than .0002″, which is same as when I was doing it with floating case holder on the lathe.
Q: Any problems with the Pumpkin changing the cut as it heats up?
Erik Cortina: No — there were no issues with that.
NOTE: Erik Cortina is a very skilled machinist who custom-crafted fittings used for this process. This kind of neck-turning with a milling machine may not be for the everyday hand-loader!
Nielson “Pumpkin” Neck-Turner
The circular orange cutting fixture on Erik’s Milling Machine is a Don Nielson “Pumpkin” neck-turning tool. Don designed this tool to be used by hand or with power. The Pumpkin boasts an eccentric mandrel that allows the cut to be adjusted easily in precise .0001″ increments. Benchresters like this as it allows for very precise control of cut depth and neck-wall thickness.
Jason C., commenting on Erik’s YouTube video stated: “I have a couple of those too. Nothing cuts like a Pumpkin. [Don Nielson] made the best cutter tool ever.” These are still available if you ask around. The photo shows Don with a case-holder mounted to a power assembly. A talented machinist and tool-maker, Don has also been a successful short- and long-range benchrest shooter, who has won NBRSA 600-Yard Championships. CLICK HERE to read about Don’s success with the 6.5×47 Lapua.
Nielson Neck Turner with carbide mandrel. Photo Courtesy Butch’s Reloading.
Share the post "Neck-Turning Brass on Milling Machine with Erik Cortina"
Becigneul Case Turning Motor, by German Salazar
Although there have been a variety of similar devices and ‘case lathes’ offered for sale in the past, they’ve been priced fairly high. Paul’s unit is reasonably priced ($220.00) and built like a tank. The motor turns at about 180 rpm which is just right for neck turning. What’s really nice is that the motor has enough torque to hold its speed throughout the whole operation and a/c power to run all day long!
The unit’s design is fairly straight-forward: a surplus electric motor turns a Forster case-holding collet. Paul makes a nice knurled collar to open and close the collet.Power is controlled by a household type wall switch attached to a long cabe. The whole assembly is mounted on a nice hardwood base.
Video of Paul Becigneul’s Case Turning Motor in Use
In operation, it works very well. The collet has enough clamping power to hold the case after a quick hand-tightening, no wrench is needed (although you can use one if you are so inclined). A quarter turn of the collar opens the collet and a quick turn of the wrist tightens it back up. As with any powered case neck turning device, the case wobbles a bit as it turns. This doesn’t matter a bit as the turning cutter is held in your hand (which is free to move) and the cutter’s arbor is the actual alignment device. The wobble is the same or less than what I had using a power screwdriver with a K&M holder.
For more information, email Paul Becigneul via: pbike4466 [at] directv.net. In 2012, the basic unit cost $220.00 each collet was $10 and shipping is $20 to most U.S. locations.
Editor’s Comment: In the video, Paul uniforms case flash-holes with a Lyman tool (from the inside) and then uniforms primer pockets (from the outside) with a K&M tool. While we do believe that flash-holes should be inspected to ensure there are no obstructions or flakes blocking the hole, we have not found that flash-hole or primer-pocket uniforming produced measurable improvements in accuracy with Lapua 6mmBR brass. In fact, in our tests using a manual K&M flash-hole uniformer, ES/SD actually got worse after the flash-holes were “uniformed”.
Keep in mind also that many deburring tools for 0.059 (PPC-size) flash-holes actually over-cut substantially, reaming the holes to as wide as 0.068″. The Lapua PPC/BR flash hole is spec’d at 1.5mm, which works out to 0.059055″. Most of the PPC/BR flash-hole uniforming tools on the market use a 1/16″ bit which is nominally 0.0625″, but these often run oversize — up to 0.067″. If you like to uniform your primer pockets, be our guest (this can be useful with lesser-quality brass). But before pocket-uniforming dozens of cases, you might do a comparison test (by shooting uniformed vs. un-uniformed ammo) to see whether this operation actually improves accuracy with the brass you are using.
Share the post "Gear Review: Paul Becigneul Case Turning Motor and Collet"
Neck-Turning: I found that a 1/2 inch Dewalt drill with a keyless chuck will hold many caliber cases without an adapter. Just place the case in the chuck and twist it hand tight. Does the same work as a $250 case lathe. When neck-turning cases, you can hold the drill in one hand and the neck-turning tool in the other. But it’s much more efficient if you clamp the 1/2″ drill in a vise (with some carpet for padding). Then it’s very easy to control the turning speed and add/remove cartridge brass.
Powder Measures: If you’re throwing powder charges in the fall or winter and have problems with bridging or sticking powder, use a ground wire. This will help reduce static charge that causes clinging and clumping. I have a 25-foot piece of real small wire with alligator clips on each end. It’s that long so I can run it down the hall to a water pipe. Use the wire tie from a bread bag to hold it in a small roll to put in the range box. When using it at the range use a 6″ nail from the co-op or Lowe’s / Home Depot and just push it into the ground.
Share the post "Reloading Tips: Neck-Turning and Powder Measures"
Happy Thanksgiving folks. Major gun and optics makers, tool crafters, and large outdoor gear vendors are offering great bargains for Black Friday week. Expect discounts from 10% to 30% on a wide range of quality products.
While some sales are set for Friday, November 24th only, most of the featured Black Friday Sales have already started. And some of these promotions run through Cyber Monday (11/27/2023). Find other sales at Gun.Deals.
Most of the showcased vendors offer discounts on a large inventory selection — in some cases, everything in stock is discounted 10%, 15%, 20% or more. For other sellers, only specific items are on sale, so we’ve identified those particular deals. In addition to the ten sellers showcased below, Brownells is offering big Discount Code savings on nearly all products. Get 15% OFF your Brownells orders with Code BF15.
Come back tomorrow for Part Two of our Black Friday Sales Showcase!
21st Century Innovation 20% Off One-Day Sale
21st Century Innovation makes some of the very best tools and hardware for precision handloaders. 21st Century’s Arbor Presses, Neck-turning lathes, Concentricity Gauges, and other tools rank at the very top. And now you can get these superb products at a huge 20% discount. Virtually all 21st Century hardware (except the Hybrid-X Shooting Rest) will be 20% OFF for ONE DAY ONLY, Friday November 23, 2023. Use Coupon Code 20BFRI2023 at checkout to save 20%.
Annealing Made Perfect (AMP) — $200 Off MK II Black Friday Sale
AMP Annealers are the most advanced annealing system on the planet. With such high demand for these products, you’ll rarely see a discount on AMP Annealing machines. But this year, for Black Friday, AMP will offer a U.S. $200.00 discount on the advanced MK II (MK2) Annealer “while stocks last”. AMP will will run a countdown clock which will hit zero at 12:00 noon USA Pacific time / 3.00 pm USA Eastern on Thursday, November 23rd (Thanksgiving day 2023). At that point, AMP MK II Annealers will be added to stock at $1,395.00, a $200 discount off regular $1,595.00 price. NOTE: This sale is limited “while stocks last”.
F-Class Products Black Friday Sale
The biggest F-Class Products (FCP) sale ever conducted is happening this week. Sale items include the new Paragon actions, 7 FCP Bundle Kit, two in-stock F-TR complete rifles ready to go, and much more! Save 10% off sitewide with discount code BLACKFRIDAY.
Graf’s Black Friday Promotions and Savings
If you need ammo, bullets, powder, or primers, head over to Grafs.com this week. Graf’s is running a series of promotions. For example you can get 7 lbs. of tumbling media for FREE with a $200 purchase of the excellent Peterson brass. In addition, you can get FREE Hazmat if you buy $150 or more of powder and/or primers. Note: The Free Hazmat offer ends Saturday 11/25/2023 at 11:59 pm CT.
Palmetto State Armory Black Friday Sale
Need an AR Upper/Lower or a carry pistol? Then definitely check out the Black Friday Sale at Palmetto State Armory. Save 20% or more on AR components, handguns, optics, accessories and more. There are also excellent deals on ammunition, such as CCI Blazer 9mm for just $13.99/box.
Area 419 Black Friday and Cyber Monday Sales
Area419 is running a great extended Black Friday Promo for the next few days. You’ll find significant discounts on most Area 419 products, including tools, scope mounts, muzzle brakes, and Arcalock products. In addition, the superb Area419 Zero Press goes on sale 11/27/2023, and a variety of reloading products will be discounted for Cyber Monday.
Precision Reloading Early Black Friday Sale
Precision Reloading has been running an early Black Friday Sale, with items discounted starting Monday, 11/20/23. New items are added daily through 11/27/2023. Some of the hot deals are: Berger Bullets and Ammo, Hornady Products (including tools, dies, ammo), and Starline Brass. With the full Black Friday Sale, for orders over $79.00, you can get 10% Off Sitewide with code BLACK23. That code should work through 11/26/23 at 11:59 pm.
EuroOptic — 10% Off Black Friday Nightforce Sale
This week you can save big bucks on Nightforce scopes which are rarely discounted this much. With the EuroOptic Black Friday Sale you save 10% on Nightforce NX8 and ATACR scopes. This 10% discount can be worth $175 to $395 in savings! In addition, EuroOptic is offering some sales tax rebates.
Weatherby 15% Off Rifles, 20% Off Ammo, 15-25% Off Gear
Right now, through an extended Black Friday Sale, Weatherby is running its “biggest rifle discount of the year”, with 15% Off Weatherby Mark V and Vanguard rifles. Plus ammunition and and brass is discounted 20%. In addition, Weatherby is offering up to 25% off accessories, hunting gear, clothing, gun cases, and other products sold through the Weatherby online store.
Springfield Armory 20% Off Black Friday Week Sale
You can save 20% sitewide now at the Springfield Armory online store. NOTE: Springfield Armory rifles and handguns are NOT sold direct through the website, so this sale applies to AR Uppers, airguns, pistol slide assemblies, optics, magazines, holsters, apparel, and other accessories.
Share the post "Black Friday 2023 Sales and Discounts — Part One"
Turn Necks in a Single Pass
Why does the 21st Century Neck-Turning Tool cut so well? First, the Neck-Turning Tool employs ultra-sharp carbide cutters that are custom-ground to fit the shoulder angle of your cartridge. This allows you to make a perfect cut extending down the shoulder 1/32 of an inch. Second, the system aligns the case neck on the arbor (mandrel) so well, and the cutter is so sharp, that very little torque is required. This allows the cutting process to go very smoothly. The case-holder is also unique — it features a O-ring so it holds the case firmly in place without marring or bending the case head. The tailstock case-holder adjusts to accommodate cases from 17 Fireball to a .416 Rigby.
When neck-turning cases, it’s a good idea to extend the cut slightly below the neck-shoulder junction. This helps keep neck tension more uniform after repeated firings, by preventing a build-up of brass where the neck meets the shoulder. One of our Forum members, Craig from Ireland, a self-declared “neck-turning novice”, was having some problems turning brass for his 20 Tactical cases. He was correctly attempting to continue the cut slightly past the neck-shoulder junction, but he was concerned that brass was being removed too far down the shoulder.
For Neck-Turning, Try STP Blend or Assembly Lube
Another even cheaper option is assembly lubricant. For turning his case necks, RStreich uses assembly lube from an auto parts store. He notes: “The brand I have is reddish in color and kind of sticky like honey. It’s far better than the Imperial die wax I was using before.” There are a variety of types, both with and without moly additive, and you can select the viscosity you prefer if you sample a few brands. Be sure to clean out any lube residue from the inside of your necks when you have completed your neck-turning.
When neck-turning cases, it’s a good idea to extend the cut slightly below the neck-shoulder junction. This helps keep neck tension more uniform after repeated firings, by preventing a build-up of brass where the neck meets the shoulder. One of our Forum members, Craig from Ireland, a self-declared “neck-turning novice”, was having some problems turning brass for his 20 Tactical cases. He was correctly attempting to continue the cut slightly past the neck-shoulder junction, but he was concerned that brass was being removed too far down the shoulder.
The circular orange cutting fixture on Erik’s Milling Machine is a Don Nielson “Pumpkin” neck-turning tool. Don designed this tool to be used by hand or with power. The Pumpkin boasts an eccentric mandrel that allows the cut to be adjusted easily in precise .0001″ increments. Benchresters like this as it allows for very precise control of cut depth and neck-wall thickness. 
Neck-Turning: I found that a 1/2 inch Dewalt drill with a keyless chuck will hold many caliber cases without an adapter. Just place the case in the chuck and twist it hand tight. Does the same work as a $250 case lathe. When neck-turning cases, you can hold the drill in one hand and the neck-turning tool in the other. But it’s much more efficient if you clamp the 1/2″ drill in a vise (with some carpet for padding). Then it’s very easy to control the turning speed and add/remove cartridge brass.
Happy Thanksgiving folks. Major gun and optics makers, tool crafters, and large outdoor gear vendors are offering great bargains for Black Friday week. Expect discounts from 10% to 30% on a wide range of quality products.
