Spin Doctor hull conditioning tool

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The Spin Doctor's special shape, when combined with heat generated by friction, gently recondition damaged hulls. Some hulls have a very strong "memory" and will maintain only a partly opened crimp after being fired. Sometimes, hull will be damaged in the press during the crimping process. Sometimes you just want to start with a fresh crimping surface.

The Spin Doctor saves expensive hulls and returns factory-sharp crimps.

Spin Doctor Instructions for use:
The Spin Doctor is a bit that installs into the chuck of almost any 3/8" or larger electric drill. Cinch it down as you would any ordinary drill bit. No need to over-tighten. A regular old hand drill works as well as anything else.

Insert the Spin Doctor tool into the crimp end of a fired (empty) shotgun hull. Start drill rotating and apply gentle downward pressure to the drill and Spin Doctor tool. You will find that the hull can be held by hand, but it is much preferable to have it secured for conditioning with a hull vise.

Run the drill with minimal downward force. Use the friction and very light pressure to "iron" out the crimp’s memory. Excessive force will not make the tool work more quickly, but rather will be counter-productive. Practice with a few really old hulls and get the "feel" for the right combination of pressure and friction-generated heat.

Remove the tool when the hull is shaped to your preference.

The time necessary for conditioning varies, but the following table will be a good place to start:

Insertion of components crimp opened fully 2-5 seconds

General reconditioning Prepare for better fold crimping 5 seconds

Repair botched crimp Remove excess fold(s) 5-7 seconds

Prepare for roll crimp Perfectly smooth walls without creases 10-15 seconds

Crimp Memory and Reconditioning with the Spin Doctor:
When a hull is folded over to hold its contents that area is referred to as a crimp. There are three basic crimps used on modern shotshells: Fold crimps look like with pie shaped wedges, with either six or eight wedges and there is a roll crimp, where a card wad is secured over the shot charge by the rolled down edges of the hull itself. The creased area of fold crimps, much like a fold in a piece of paper, is more likely to accept a bend than another area of the same hull. However, if a hull has a crease at a wrong place, that crease might manifest as a botched asymmetrical crimp, leaking pellets and buffer or ruining the load altogether. It is important for loads to have a proper crimp as the powder burns at a high rate of speed, using compression initially offered by the crimp, as an ingredient for sustained and complete combustion.

Creases, particularly those outside the crimp’s, may need to be smoothed out before a hull can be recrimped again with all the folds in the proper places, offering a smooth, symmetrical appearance when viewed from the top.

The Spin Doctor, designed to recondition the crimp area of most shotgun hulls, prepares them for reloading and recrimping. A gentle combination of friction-generated heat and pressure from the tapered wall ease creases out of plastic hulls. Many hulls that would otherwise have to be discarded can be reconditioned with a perfect crimp.

Roll Crimp preparation with the Spin Doctor:
Generally, we recommend using only new hulls for roll crimping. However, with proper application of the
Spin Doctor tool, some once-fired, fold crimped hulls will accept a roll crimp. A longer application of the tool will completely iron out creases which would otherwise hamper roll crimping.

Seasoning:
The Spin Doctor gets better with age!
The little bits that adhere to the tool will actually help create necessary heat for smoothing out plastic hulls. Polishing it is a waste of time. Ordinary use of the Spin Doctor will keep it in tip-top condition.

Always wear safety glasses when working with power tools.

Caution: Wear eye protection.
Caution: Tool may become hot after extended use.

Information links:

Roll crimping info link
Hull Vise info link