CH- 4 station press

[Bones507]

Greetings Boys !
I was told about this press on another board and checked it out and it looks good from what im seeing. I was wondering if anyone here has it or used it. I load on a single stage rock chucker and have just started casting with a friend of mine and i dont want a progressive, just dont feel the need for one. This press is in the same category as a turret but instead of moving the turret, you move the case from station to station.
Anyway, take a look and tell me your thoughts if its no trouble.
Thanks
http://www.ch4d.com/

 

[islander]

Have no experience with the 444 but have read several opinions on different forums, everyone agrees they are solid presses but there was one fellow who stated that the toolhead does flex if you are full-sizing a large case on any of the three forward positions, because the guide rods are centered on the rear position only. So heavy work goes on the rear, single position. Seems to me like an engineering error to not have the two guide rods at least centered on the toolhead to minimize flexure. Also the toolhead I understand is aluminum not steel. I just purchased on ebay the same press however it's the original 111 with only one position, can't wait to try it out.

 

[Cherokee]

I have been using the CH 4 position press for many years. However, all case sizing is done on an RCBS press. I only use the front 3 positions, and usually only the left and right. Center front is used for expanding cases, thats all. Left position is for bullet seating, right position for crimping. The press speeds up my non-progressive loading vs a single stage especially since I always crimp in a separate die. What islander said is true about the aluminum toolhead & flex.

 

[Sam Johnson]

Bones,, I have been using the CH 444 for over 30 years and love it, no problems of any kind. The large .340 mag brass are easy to resize. The rear station has the little container to catch spent primers so I think the design was to resize on the rear station. Go for , a good solid press.

 

[islander]

Cherokee I see in your photo the press is bolted to a block of wood, is that just sitting on the bench or is it through bolted to the bench? I'm hoping this type of press will work without bolting to the bench, so it can moved out of the way when not in use.

 

[Rick Courtright]

Seems to me like an engineering error to not have the two guide rods at least centered on the toolhead to minimize flexure.

Hi,

I'm not going to say the toolhead DOESN'T flex, but a buddy of mine and I sat around w/ some cocktail napkins, a couple of pencils and a decent calculator one time talking about this. He's a metals kinda guy, and his math skills exceed mine by quite a bit.

What we figured out is it's pretty unlikely the flex is in the tool itself, even w/ a fairly light press like the Lee Challenger we actually measured while we were fiddling about. Unless you're trying to size a large case and forgot to lube it, the forces you're working w/ just aren't THAT great.

Instead, it's probably more likely there's flex or movement in whatever the press is mounted on that the operator's feeling. My presses are mounted on three sheets of 3/4" thick wood (2 1/4" total.) The press is bolted thru the top piece, which is then bolted thru the bottom two. As solid as it "seems" (I can start to pick up the front of the bench w/ the press handle), I can "bend" that combo enough to measure w/ a straight edge and feeler gauges.

So, while flex in a press IS possible, I wouldn't worry about the reports too much.

Of course, YMMV...

Rick C

 

[Bones507]

Well thanks for the replies and the info guys. I will probably wind up getting it as i load almsot exclusively for handgun, save my .223
Thing is i have no experience with a turret and i was wondering if you have your powder hopper in one of the stations and youre lifting that turret constantly, i would think the hopper might loosen up and you might wind up with some inconsistent charges.
Now this is just some thoughts that were going thru my mind, i didnt read this anywhere. I just kind of liked the idea of moving the case from station to station instead of the whole top piece. Now i did read somewhere that quality control on some of these turrets has gone down a bit, HOW TRUE this is , i dont know. But it made me look into alternate things, this new press being one of them.

 

[Cherokee]

islander - The press is bolted to the bench thru the block of wood, which was just to raise the press up a little. I don't think you can get away w/o bolting it down, but you could use c-clamps like I did for some years.