Broken Dillon XL650 indexer return spring

As I posted yesterday the indexer return spring (item 22) on my Dillon XL650 reloading press broke. Here is a picture of the two pieces:

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From looking at the larger piece with the naked eye I originally thought it might have been worn then broke. After I found the second piece and looked at them closely and together I decided it probably was a defective spring.

If someone has a different opinion I’m willing to listen.

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10 thoughts on “Broken Dillon XL650 indexer return spring

  1. My guess, it looks like a fatigue failure. Check for something similar in a good hardware store. Buy several.

  2. A Dillon 650? You should just call Dillon to get another one. I have broken other parts on my 650 and they were replaced at no cost to me. Can’t say enough good things about my Dillon press and their support.

    • Their website says they are very busy now with a typical call wait time of one hour. The spring broke when they were closed and I just wanted the issue resolved. Plus, if it is a common issue I wanted spares.

  3. At this point in time? The horror! I think it’s a short spring isn’t it? Otherwise you could just reform the hook with one of the coils, and live with the extra tension?
    Or multi wrapped rubber bands? If your attachment posts are long enough to accommodate them? Maybe something HD rubber from auto parts? Old brake spring parts?

  4. As Richie says, it looks like metal fatigue to me. The point is a high stress point, being bent a small fraction every time you change the tension on that spring.

    Measure the length of the spring, the size of the wire, the size of the outside diameter and go to any of the places that sells springs and you can order on line from companies that will deliver 1 to 100,000 to you in a couple of days. McMaster-Carr comes to mind as a good first place to check.

    • I looked at McMaster-Carr. I found a couple different springs that would probably work even though they are a little bit different. The prices were almost exactly the same as as the price for the “factory original” spring from Dillon. I thought the shipping from Dillon was outrageous ($8.95) and was going to compare with McMaster-Carr. But their website wouldn’t let me see the shipping price unless I actually placed the order.

      • Doesn’t McMaster-Carr have a minimum order? That may wipe out any shipping gains. It’s been quite a while since I ordered from them.

  5. Does the spring swing or rotate around its mounting point? If so, that adds a bending force if it can’t slide on that surface. Check that surface for defects from wear. Dress the surface, and apply a heavy grease to the mounting areas (both mounting points). Check those loops on your new springs to see if there are dings/dents that will add to the problem.

    • Rotates. And that is the point where I figured I needed to add lubrication.

      Thanks. That makes a lot of sense.

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