Lag bolt press down

[Dman]

I just recently got a Hornady LnL press last week and was about to mount it to the bench. It says to use 5/16" bolts with nuts and washers to the bench. I built the bench before I looked deep enough into the mounting of the press (yes, very dumb of me). The place where I'd like to put it has bracing and is probably a foot + deep to drill into and use a nut on the other side. Would lag bolts work here, or would they get loose too quick with the motion of the press?

Thanks.

 

[Nickle]

Lags will pull loose sooner or later.

 

[Dman]

That's what I was afraid of... I guess it's going to have to go on the side of the bench

 

[jkelly]

If your original choice was based on a reloading “plan”, or if you think that you will not be comfortable with where you are moving the press, you might want to rebuild the bench so that you can put the press where you want it. At little delay now could be worth it in the long run.

You don't want to be thinking every time you load how much better it would be in the original spot.


Respectfully,

jkelly

 

[BIG GUN]

I have some presses held by lagbolts with no problems. If you have the meat, use the largest and longest possible. You could also use a little apoxy.

 

[Gammon]

I have some presses held by lagbolts with no problems. If you have the meat, use the largest and longest possible. You could also use a little apoxy.

I have also used lag bolts with some success. The most important factor is the wood; soft pine doesn't hold lag bolts very well.

 

[Adam_MA]

2 of my presses had to go into areas where I could not put a nut and bolt in all of the mounting holes. I ended up using 3" deck screws in those holes. So far nothing has come lose.

I guess the question would be, will you have to use lag bolts in all the mounting holes? Maybe a picture of the problem would let us make suggestions as to alternatives as well...

 

[jshooter]

Maybe another way to go, I built my bench with a lip under the front edge (plans from a friend) and what I have done with my shotgun presses is mount them on a piece of plywood, router the top edge and counter sink the bolt heads on the bottom side, and use wood clamps to hold it down. Its easy to retighten, if neccasary, and it lets me clean my bench off to use it for other presses or working on a gun.

 

[RKG]

You can probably get away with lag "bolts" (more properly, lag "screws") if you install them properly.

1) Pick a size screw that will pass through the hole in the press's mounting flange, and is about 2-1/2 to 3 inches long.

2) Mock the press into its intended final position and carefully mark the hole positions on the bench. A centering punch is recommended.

3) Remove the press and drill properly sized pilot holes for the screw size and the type of wood involved. Pilot hole size can be derived from any number of fastener guides.

4) Vacuum out the pilot holes.

5) Remount the press. Before installing the screws, dip them in warm or hot water for a second. Drive the screws to the point of contact with the press flange. Then pretty carefully torque the screws to a couple of foot-pounds less than the final torque setting recommended in the fastener guide; do not over torque.

6) After a day or two, re-torque the screws to the recommended final torque setting.

Too big a pilot hole will obviously weaken the screws' engagement; not enough wood to make a firm contact with the thread grooves and lands.

Too small a pilot hole will cause the shaft of the screw to mangle the wood, with the same result.

The water will cause the wood to swell into the thread lands and grooves, making for a better and stronger contact.

 

[bpm990d]

I've had good luck with Lag bolts on a rock chucker, but I also use a little bit of stuff called Chair Lock that makes the wood swell a little bit. I think it gets dry in the basement during the winter and the wood that the press is bolted to shrinks.

B

 

[JimB]

don't use epoxy

DO NOT use epoxy, you will have one hell of a time getting them out.

JimB

 

[Dick]

I have a relatively new LnL AP that I had to use lag bolts on because of the way my bench is braced. I didn't jump through a lot of hoops, just got the largest diameter bolts that would fit through the holes in the press base and drilled the right size pilot holes in the bench. I've loaded several thousand rounds on it and have experienced no loosening of the lag bolts whatsoever.

 

[clerk.mvgc]

Assuming you used 2by or 4by stock to make the braces and or legs giving you trouble, you can use the appropriate size spade bit (1" is probably about right for 5/16) and bore a horizontal hole under the vertical mounting bolt hole, to the proper depth. Square the top of the hole with a chisel or utility knife and insert the nut and washer into the hole holding them with a box end wrench. Then install the mount screw turning it into the captive nut/washer (I'd use a nylon lock nut) and tighten it up. The hole should not effect the strength of the base to any great extent. Just my 2 cents worth, which with the price of copper may be worth 4 cents.