Mr. Bullet Feeder Gen II on the Mark 7 Apex 10
Welcome back to Jim's Armory. In this one, Jim installs the Mr. Bullet Feeder Gen II from Double Alpha Academy onto his Mark 7 Apex 10, along with two companion accessories: a toolhead LED lighting system and an overhead mirror for keeping an eye on collator supply levels. The goal is to take his reloading setup to the next level of automation by getting the bullet drop process running hands-free. As always, Jim documents the real experience — good, bad, and the mistakes included — rather than a polished factory tutorial.
Unboxing: More Than Expected Opening the box, Jim finds more parts than anticipated: a manual, the collator assembly, the dropper assembly, a powder funnel/case flare die, a drop spring, a power supply that doubles as a remote speed control, a hardware and mounting kit, US and European power cords, and an additional powder funnel piece machined specifically for Dillon presses. Since he's running a dedicated case flare die already and has enough stations on his press, Jim doesn't need that Dillon-specific funnel piece. He also notes the box includes spare bearings for the dropper in case any get lost.
Mounting the Collator Rather than using the degree-marked bracket hardware included in the box — meant for presses without a dedicated mount — Jim discovers the Apex 10 already has a bracket and bolt in place specifically for the Mr. Bullet Feeder. Mounting still isn't entirely smooth: wiring gets in the way, one bolt has to be removed just to fit a new one in, and there's no clear reference in the manual for the correct mounting angle. Hardware ends up being a 7/32 hex paired with a half-inch nut, flat washer, and star washer.
Installing the Dropper and Tuning the Flare The dropper assembly separates for installation more easily than the manual's diagram suggested. Jim explains that the dropper is spring-loaded — bearings move out of the way to release a single bullet at a time — and that it threads into the press like a die, adjusted until the bearings let loose plus about a quarter turn further.
Pro-Tip: Case flare matters more than it seems. Flare a case just enough to accept the bullet, not more. Too much flare lets the bullet tip to either side instead of seating itself; a properly flared case combined with the bullet's own drop weight is enough to seat it correctly.
Output Spring Tube and Wiring The output spring connects the collator to the dropper tube via a small set screw. Jim initially leaves the tube long and lets it dangle into a bucket while wiring up the switch and power supply, since polarity on the wiring doesn't matter for this part. Powering it on, he confirms the switch properly stops the collator from rotating once bullets pile up.
Cutting the Spring and Fixing Upside-Down Bullets This turns out to be the most involved part of the install. Jim finds the spring is initially too long, creating a "bullet trap" where bullets stack up and get stuck instead of feeding — so he trims it down in small increments, threading it back on and testing each time. He also runs into bullets landing upside down, which he traces to a set of steps inside the collator: bullets are supposed to ride up the steps and get flipped by a ramp, but improperly seated bullets were riding the stairs without flipping and later dropping in reversed. Adjusting the mechanism so only correctly oriented bullets can advance solves the problem.
Pro-Tip: If you're setting up the same Mr. Bullet Feeder/Mark 7 combo, Jim found trimming the output spring by about four coils' worth (he cut a bit over three and a half and suggests going to four) works well and can save you some trial and error.
First Live Runs: A Few Rookie Mistakes Jim's first attempt at running the press with everything hooked up ends in a double powder charge and a mess — he later realizes he'd left the primer follower out after running low, which meant the primer alarm never tripped. After cleaning up and building a mental "pre-flight checklist" (primers loaded, follower in place, powder check seated, plenty of components on hand), his second attempt goes more smoothly, though he still deals with a primer detonating at the priming station after landing upside down, along with a case feed station needing a slight adjustment.
Installing the Mirror and Toolhead LED Light For the collator mirror, Jim clamps the mounting hardware in place and works through trial and error to find a position that lets him see collator levels without climbing a ladder, while keeping it out of the way of his dumping bucket.
The toolhead LED light proves more involved than expected — with no included instructions, Jim discovers the whole toolhead has to come off the press to mount it. He removes the toolhead, cleans the mounting surface with alcohol so the adhesive backing sticks, and gets the LED unit attached before reinstalling the toolhead and powder measure. He notes the controller and power cord stay with the machine, but the LED unit itself is tied to that specific toolhead — so running lighting on multiple toolheads would mean buying multiple LED units.
Final Thoughts By the end of the session, Jim has the Mr. Bullet Feeder Gen II feeding reliably, the collator mirror positioned for easy monitoring, and the toolhead LED wired in for better visibility during operation. He managed a run of about 50 rounds without a mistake off-camera, though naturally the moment the camera came on, a few hiccups appeared. Overall, he's happy with the progress on automating the bullet drop process.
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