Reloading Presses ?

[bk09]

I have no idea of the quality of it.... but....

the lee 50th anniversary single stage kit comes with just about everything ya might need, and goes for $90-$120 ? i think ?

cabella's has them too.

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Equipment ya don't like ....

The Hornady 38 special / 357 mag / 357 max three die set is... a tad annoying.  The bullet seater lacks any kind of crimp (not even taper).  So if ya bell the case mouth too much, you have to crimp everything.  I picked up a taper crimp die for cheap plated bullets and a roll / factory crimp die as well for the fancier bullets.  $10-$15 for each type of crimp die.  The Hornady dies not offering a crimp on seat in this particular set is REALLY annoying.  Otherwise, they're fine dies.  (Their 41mag dies do offer a roll crimp however).

The RCBS 40 s&w dies were almost too short for my press somehow.  They feel more loose than the hornady ones as well (they are NOT loose though).  I've produced thousands of rounds through them and they perform great though.  They're precise and function wonderfully, they're just "weird" in how they sit in my press for some reason.

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I've got an electric caliper set.  Batteries dying on those are really annoying.  I'm real tempted to pick up an analog dial based one.  If your eyes are troublesome, the digital might be a better idea though.

Some of the smaller hand tools (dechamfer/deburr, primer pocket etc) are.. a tad tedious.  I think Lyman makes an easy to grip screwdriver sized all in one set thing that is probably a lot more ergonomic.  I'll be picking up a powered case prep center when I get into rifle reloading... and will be using the hand tools as back up or whatever.  But -- yeah -- get something more ergonomic than tiny little things.

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I've got a Mec 600 or 650 jr simple 12ga shotshell press that seems alright, but I've not done much with it.  Then again, I don't load for trap / skeet.

My first press (only about a year ago) was that 50th anniversary breech lock package. I give the press 9.5/10 and think for the money the package costs I would pay that alone for the press, can't say enough about the breech lock system. However the powder dispenser and scale are complete junk and would rate them both 2/10, scale never holds its zero and dispenser jams with extruded gun powders and doesn't throw anything remotely consistent. I like the hand primer system since you can feel when it is seating properly and is easy to change from small primer tray to large primer tray and I give it 8/10. The chamfer/deburr tool is small and cramps up your fingers (especially after doing hundreds of rounds), but it does an ok job and I give it a 6/10.
After upgrading several things in this kit I love my setup.
Current setup:
Breech Lock Press
Lee Hand Primer
RCBS Chargemaster 1500 dispenser/scale combo
Lyman case prep set
Hornady M2 Tumbler
If I would start again I would buy everything separate. Chargemaster isn't necessary for a first time reloader but I'm glad I bought it early before I bought any other dispensers or scales so I feel no need to ever upgrade. The Lyman case prep tools save saved my hands a lot of aching and strongly advise getting some case prep tools that have comfortable handles. And for making brass nice and shiny I like my Hornady tumbler, to make sure you don't burn out a tumbler put it on a surface that allows it to get fresh air flow to the fan.

PS Lee's universal decapping die works great for depriming large amounts of brass of varying sizes, or when you don't want to go through the hassle of lubing cases and just want to clean the primer pockets

[Mudinyeri]

Here's a great primer (pun intended) from a good friend of mine on reloading inexpensively: http://pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=776404

[JimP]

The only thing I have that I did not like was the cheap aluminum press that came with my  Lee Challenger kit ....... they have since stopped selling that press, and replaced it with their Classic Cast Press ..... which is a good one, as I have used y brother's ......

[Chris Z]

I bought a Lee Turret Press which has worked for MANY rounds, and still gets use for occasional .223 and Revolver ammo.

Bought a Dillon 550 and Hands down runs circles around the Lee for reloading a good amount of ammo. The first time I was preparing for a big match and had to do 900 rounds on the Lee turret, was the last time!!!!!

If you have plenty of time and only loading 2k rounds a year, the inexpensive Lee Turret is good

[unfy]

Thought I'd throw this out there.

Some people have done some basic swaging (lead forming and make your own jackets) stuff on Rock Chuckers.  The older ones with the bigger ram seem to be darn near godly.

Not too sure if I'd trust doing any of that really high pressure swaging stuff on anything other than a Rock Chucker (or custom press for it).

[dukduk]

i want to get into reloading but it seems overwhelming

[unfy]

i want to get into reloading but it seems overwhelming

There are several of us who reload if that's not obvious, and most reloaders tend to be quite friendly.  I'm sure any one of us would gladly discuss the details.

Also, youtube has A LOT of videos on it.  I particularly like ammosmith's videos.

I did a fair bit of reading and watching a lot of videos for about 2 weeks before getting into it.  Watched a lot of the 'neat' videos where people were doing some unorthodox things.  Videos where people where talking about loading match grade ammo.  Annnnnddd I watched lots of the "how to set up your press" videos.  Stuff that'd talk about assembly, basic info about dies, how to seat/calibrate/position/whatever dies, etc.

Ya just break it down into it's subsequent parts.

Similarly, I'm sure you know what a wrench is.  A socket set.  That there are SAE and metric sizes. Hammers, philips head and flat head screw drivers, etc.  Reloaders have their own set of tools and such... that's all.

If you have an eye for detail, some patience and wisdom of safety, the desire, a place to do it in (i actually do my reloading in a spare bedroom - and i live alone), and some spare $$$ ... it's not terribly difficult to get into.

[Mudinyeri]

i want to get into reloading but it seems overwhelming

Read the information at the link I posted on the first page.  It's a great primer from a guy who is a licensed ammunition manufacturer.

[kozball]

BRAIN FREEZE 

Question for you guys with the progressives. If you wanted to do some "match grade" type stuff, could you only use 1 or 2 stations and kind of use it as a single press?

Really looking hard at the Hornady LNL AP, mostly cause it has 5 stations and it's from Nbraski. 
And it gets good reviews except for the primer feed issues that some people complain about.

Thanks for all the info, Koz

[unfy]

Dan W and I were discussing the feasibility of single staging it on progressive presses on first page

I've not had any problems doing single stage like actions on my press, just put the die in question in an easy to get to spot.

Looking at my LNL AP, getting the auto index mechanism / plate / star thing off looks like it'd be a real PITA.

Lets see, for match grade press operations you'll neck size & decap the old primer, seat the primer, and seat the bullet on the press.

Optionally, you might seat the primer by hand.

If you really wanted to single stage those operations, putting the appropriate die in the last position would give you single stage like operation.


The only real draw back I can maybe see is that progressive presses tend to hold shells in the plate by a spring.  Shell holders on the single stage give a much more positive lock feel.  If this matters at all, I dunno.

NOTE: I HAVE NOT DONE MATCH GRADE AMMO ON MY LNL AP

[JimP]

i want to get into reloading but it seems overwhelming

It is easier than driving- no time pressure.  You just break everything down to it's simplest steps, and do them one at a time, carefully.  Simple.

[unfy]

As noted in the copper plating thread, stuff came in for casting bullets.  Included in my order was a Lee Sizing Die.

These have a punch you install into the shell plate holder or similar of single stage presses.  The punch is what pushes the lead through the die.

I am not sure if I have an easy way to install this punch into my Hornady LNL AP.  Dunno if the shell plate holder thing will handle it or not.  Will update tonight how it handles.

Sooo... this is in reference to pro/con of progressive or single stage presses.

Also fun to note... with the indexing system of the LNL AP looking difficult to disable.... I will possibly be having to reposition the punch every bullet, or possibly not letting the ram fall all the way back down so it doesn't constantly index.

edit: this means pressing a bullet through the die, leaving the handle in the down position, getting next bullet ready, lowering ram only slightly, position bullet, push new one back through the die.

[00BUCK]

Keep in mind - reloading will not save you any money if you are like most reloaders - you will just be able to shoot more with the money you spend. It is addicting! And you will likely not stick with your original setup, adding and changing tools and equipment as you become more proficient at it. Not saying it is a bad thing - just saying if you are doing this to SAVE money - you probably won't.

[unfy]

Keep in mind - reloading will not save you any money if you are like most reloaders - you will just be able to shoot more with the money you spend. It is addicting! And you will likely not stick with your original setup, adding and changing tools and equipment as you become more proficient at it. Not saying it is a bad thing - just saying if you are doing this to SAVE money - you probably won't.

Sage advice and all too true.

I started out as a way of just saving money... but ended up going to the range several times a week, shooting 100+ rounds a trip.... rather than going once a week or every other week.  I've been sick for much of this year and haven't shot much... but I'm starting to feel better and getting that *itch*.

Also note the little bit of money I'm spending on copper plating in the other thread.  It's a fun hobby!

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You *can* save money by reloading.... you're just all too likely to shoot more instead .

[kozball]

Keep in mind - reloading will not save you any money if you are like most reloaders - you will just be able to shoot more with the money you spend. It is addicting! And you will likely not stick with your original setup, adding and changing tools and equipment as you become more proficient at it. Not saying it is a bad thing - just saying if you are doing this to SAVE money - you probably won't.

At this point for me, it is more of the "Guy Thing"    of just being able to do it and pass some knowlege on to my son. For the amount of rounds that I may reload, I don't think I will ever save money after you figure in the cost of all the equipment that still needs to be purchased.
And, factory ammo in 9mm and 40cal can still be bought fairly cheap compared to FMJ bullets and needed supplies.

Currently checking out the Redding and RCBS turrets. Might be more versitile and solid to used for pistol and rifle loads. Still doing research.

Thanks again for all the info. Koz

[unfy]

Punch for sizing die doesn't fit under shell plate of my LNL.  grrrrrr.

[JimP]

For the amount of rounds that I may reload, I don't think I will ever save money after you figure in the cost of all the equipment that still needs to be purchased.

It has been awhile since I ran the numbers, but I once figured out that it would take the savings on 300 reloads vs. buying 300 rounds of Winchester factory ammo in  .270 Win to pay for a Lee 50th anniversary kit and dies....... I don't know about you, but I have at times fired 300 rounds in a weekend (killing prairie dogs is good practice with your deer rifle!).

[kozball]

JimP. Ya see that my problem is that I am sooooo new to the shooting scene that my pricing comparision is being done with 40cal 180gr FMJ. The rifle stuff is pretty thin in my safe, Just the cheap ol 30-30 Marlin, and 1 of those nasty black things in 5.56 and some foreign POS that bangs 7.62R. So until I come up with a 338 Lapua or 7mm Mag, my savings just aren't that important, YET.

This was the 1st year that I went deer hunting, ever. Shot 2 deer on 2 shots at about 50 yards combined. The ol 30-30 did good with cheap store bought soft points.

Now with that said, it would be nice to be able to do anything I want on just 1 press. But a single stage would be sooooo slow for pistol but perfect for rifle, and the progressive would be great for pistol but questionable for rifle. So, that is why I guess alot of people have more than 1 press.

And for you guys with the progresives. What is it about them that doesn't seem right for rifle ammo?  Read some stuff about looseness in the heads when trying to do 4-5 actions at once, or that they just don't feel solid enough that people are concerned about the consistency of the load. Too much size checking cause they just don't trust the consistency. But isn't size checking a normal thing especially for quality rifle loads? So, Is it a feel thing or are they just not heavy enough?

thanks again, Koz

[Toster]

If you are anything like me, you will end up with a Single stage for the more "precise" loads (anything that you really care about accuracy in).  Then you will also get the L-N-L for the more "high volume" loads.  I went all Hornady with my setup (except the MEC shotgun reloaders). 

On the single stage it works really nicely to learn the steps.  I hand clean each piece of brass (rifle, non high volume ones) size, trim them all, chamfer and deburr, clean the primer pocket (in and out) then run them back through to prime.  Set up the electronic scale that auto dispenses, plug in my charge load, and I can seat the bullet in about the time the RCBS dispenser drops another charge (within .01 grains!) Keeps everything to the nats ass.  No I don’t get AS anal as some of the benchrest shooters, but most of my accurate guns will shoot dimes at 100 yds or less…  (not bad for a 270)  I would never want to sit down and so any real volume of handgun or just fun rounds at a single stage!!!

Now on the L-N-L, every pull of the leaver, I get a bullet! I mostly do my handgun stuff on my LNL.  I don’t worry about trimming (generally), and the drop charge with the pistol insert is pretty darn accurate.  I make sure to drop 10 loads, and each load has to be “on” for the charge weight before I even start reloading.  Pretty darn fast, and you can get a lot of rounds loaded in a fairly short amount of time.  I have done 223, on it, but only my AR rounds that might get to MOA on a good day.

As for the shotgun stuff.  Well I shoot A LOT of 12,20,and 28 so there was no way I was going to use a single stage, or even a hand indexing one.  I currently run MEC 9000 G’s

I think you will really need to decide on what your budget is, how much shooting, and what type of shooting you want to do.  I think that every press has it’s pros, and con’s.  Overall I am pretty happy with my setups.  Hornady made a change on the LNL about 2 years ago on how they kick out the bullet, and it is MUCH better.  Mine will fling a round across the basement every now and again.  Just like my MEC’s will sometimes not do something just so, and drop lead/powder all over.  It’s not the end of the world just a mess.

[unfy]

JimP. Ya see that my problem is that I am sooooo new to the shooting scene that my pricing comparision is being done with 40cal 180gr FMJ. The rifle stuff is pretty thin in my safe, Just the cheap ol 30-30 Marlin, and 1 of those nasty black things in 5.56 and some foreign POS that bangs 7.62R. So until I come up with a 338 Lapua or 7mm Mag, my savings just aren't that important, YET.

With missouri lead or some other commercially bought lead (reloadersauction.com or something) - I end up paying ~$6-$7 per box of 50 .40s&w (lead + primer + powder, bought in relative bulk).  I believe with Berry's plated I ended up at $12 per box of 50 ?

This was the 1st year that I went deer hunting, ever. Shot 2 deer on 2 shots at about 50 yards combined. The ol 30-30 did good with cheap store bought soft points.

30-30 makes a fine deer rifle .  It definitely is underrated these days when you compare it along it's intended use. That's a debate for another thread tho hehehe.

Now with that said, it would be nice to be able to do anything I want on just 1 press. But a single stage would be sooooo slow for pistol but perfect for rifle, and the progressive would be great for pistol but questionable for rifle. So, that is why I guess alot of people have more than 1 press.

If approached with an assembly line mentality (prep ALL the cases, prep ALL the powder charges, seat ALL of the bullets)... it's not terribly slow.  Particularly if ya get a volumetric powder charger / thrower.  Ya get a rhythm down and quickly mull through the process.  You won't produce 800 rounds an hour like ya can on a fully decked out progressive, but.... do you really need to produce 800 rounds an hour ?

And for you guys with the progresives. What is it about them that doesn't seem right for rifle ammo?  Read some stuff about looseness in the heads when trying to do 4-5 actions at once, or that they just don't feel solid enough that people are concerned about the consistency of the load. Too much size checking cause they just don't trust the consistency. But isn't size checking a normal thing especially for quality rifle loads? So, Is it a feel thing or are they just not heavy enough?

The Hornady LNL is a heavy machine.  Things generally feel very tight and... well.. heavy.  The only things relating to the press itself that I might have a complaint with concerning rifle ammo would be that there isn't a "sure lock" feel of the brass in the shell plate (vs a single stage shell holder), and the fact that the dies are in some quick release style bushings.  These are probably non-issues though... I've not had problems yet.  And the only die that i've seen move in the press is the powder thrower (which doesn't require precision placement in the press anyway... and just give it a nudge every 20-25 rounds and it's all good).


Much of what Toster had to say is good advice as well.


Koz - where do you live ?  Do you also mind if we ask what your budget is ?

My apartment is a disaster and not accepting company at the moment, but there might be some other reloaders around here that might give you some hands on stuff with the different machines.