I have two old style Lee hand primer tools that i still use, one for large and one for small primers. Also have a RCBS bench primer i bought a couple of years ago that i use if loading more than 20-40 cases. Haven't used the press mounted priming tool for 30+ years.
Ram Prime vs. Press Prime. vs Hand Prime Debate away!
- Thread starter bdb.hunting
- Start date
I was actually referring to the old vs. new hand held Lee priming tools. I think yours is considered a 'bench style' primer as it mounts rather than being hand held.
I also use both the old round and square/triangle trays on my Loadmasters but unlike you I have found the square/trianngle design to be less reliable than the old tound style. Loading the new design is also more of a pain.
I have heard many claim that a hand seating tool has better feel than a press and for that reason its just a better way to go, or so they say. I don't agree.
I have three or four different hand priming tools (Sinclair, 21st Century etc.) and I use each of them depending on circumstances, but only for simple convenience. I see no accuracy advantage to any of them over seating primers in my Rock Chucker press.
The trick is in knowing how to set up your primer seating tool in the press to de-leverage the cam to where you have the feel you are looking for.
Do not set the priming tool in your press to where the lever bottoms out when seating primers. Lower the seating die to a point where the cam no longer has maximum leverage, then you can feel the primer seat just fine.
A nice hand priming tool can be on the pricy side and you can certainly get by without one if you would rather not part with the cash.
If you just want a nice hand priming tool, my favorite is the 21st Century. It has a real nice feel in my hand and the adjustments are easy to make which is especially important when changing between cartridges.
I have three or four different hand priming tools (Sinclair, 21st Century etc.) and I use each of them depending on circumstances, but only for simple convenience. I see no accuracy advantage to any of them over seating primers in my Rock Chucker press.
The trick is in knowing how to set up your primer seating tool in the press to de-leverage the cam to where you have the feel you are looking for.
Do not set the priming tool in your press to where the lever bottoms out when seating primers. Lower the seating die to a point where the cam no longer has maximum leverage, then you can feel the primer seat just fine.
A nice hand priming tool can be on the pricy side and you can certainly get by without one if you would rather not part with the cash.
If you just want a nice hand priming tool, my favorite is the 21st Century. It has a real nice feel in my hand and the adjustments are easy to make which is especially important when changing between cartridges.
Last edited:
i don't think anyone is saying there is necessarily an accuracy advantage by hand vs. press priming but claiming that there is no advantage in being able to feel the primer seating is like saying there is no advantage to driving in a finishing nail with a standard hammer vs. a sledge hammer. You don't want to partially seat a primer nor do you want to crush it. It is just not logical that seating primers with a press that can generate hundreds of pounds of pressure (enough to form cases or swage bullets) can give you the same consistency or feel as priming with a tool that only generates a few dozen pounds of pressure.
Bigger is not always better.
50 years ago I loaded a single stage press and primed with it. Primers were in a tube.
When I changed over to a turret press and to some Dillons, I changed my process. All brass is sized in the turret (A single stage would work the same), then tumble cleaned and then hand primed.
I did this because I could never get 100% good results priming in the Dillon.
For 40 years I used the round lee Autoprime. Wore out several of them. The new style is crap so I bought a Frankford Arsenal hand primer and it works perfectly.
When I changed over to a turret press and to some Dillons, I changed my process. All brass is sized in the turret (A single stage would work the same), then tumble cleaned and then hand primed.
I did this because I could never get 100% good results priming in the Dillon.
For 40 years I used the round lee Autoprime. Wore out several of them. The new style is crap so I bought a Frankford Arsenal hand primer and it works perfectly.
You don't often hear this as a negative, but it's built like a tank!
6.5 shooter
CGN Regular
- Location
- Medicine Hat
RCBS automatic primer tool. I forgot to mention, that I do not use the RCBS primer tubes that came with the tool. I use Dillion tubes they work/feel much better then the supplied tubes. The only modification I had to do was, drill a small cross ways hole in the tube so my "hair pins" would hold the primers till the tube was in the holder then pull the pin and go to work.
Agreed. These work awesome.
You missed the point of my post and conveniently removed it from your quote.
I did not say there is no advantage to having feel. I'm saying you can have feel with the press if you understand the mechanics of the press and set your die correctly.
You are correct that if you set the primer seater so the lever reaches the point of maximum leverage you will have no sense of feel and you can crush the primer.
What you missed is the concept that you can set the die lower so the press does not reach the point where there is such a leverage advantage. Then you will have all the feel you need.
The lower you set the primer seating die in the press, the more force you will need to apply and the more sense of feel you will have.
Guess I'll go back to driving in finishing nails with my sledge hammer.
- Location
- Western Manitoba
Maybe is two different "on press" priming systems being thought of - looking at my RCBS RockChucker press - is no die used at all to prime cases - just priming arm and shell holder on the ram - is no adjustment possible without re-drilling holes in priming arm to shorten it?? Was about same on a single leverage RCBS press that I used to have.
Must be a different shell holder to be used with a die to seat primers? I am not familiar with that system.
Must be a different shell holder to be used with a die to seat primers? I am not familiar with that system.
- Location
- Western Manitoba
The "priming on press" system as I think RCBS meant it to be used?? - is no die involved.
Priming arm on the press, a shell holder on the ram holding a 30-06 case - no die involved.
Place primer in the "cup" on top of priming arm - is various ways - one by one, or using "auto prime" system. Then run ram up, press primer arm into slot on ram, then back down to seat primer up through the shell holder- is no adjustment that I can figure out??
I am sure it would work fine to set a lubed brass in shell holder - up into sizing die that punches out the primer, then reseat a fresh primer and carry on to next case. I prefer to re-prime as a separate step - just fussy that I like to look at or clean out primer pocket holes before I seat a fresh primer.
Priming arm on the press, a shell holder on the ram holding a 30-06 case - no die involved.
Place primer in the "cup" on top of priming arm - is various ways - one by one, or using "auto prime" system. Then run ram up, press primer arm into slot on ram, then back down to seat primer up through the shell holder- is no adjustment that I can figure out??
I am sure it would work fine to set a lubed brass in shell holder - up into sizing die that punches out the primer, then reseat a fresh primer and carry on to next case. I prefer to re-prime as a separate step - just fussy that I like to look at or clean out primer pocket holes before I seat a fresh primer.
Attachments
Last edited:
I did the on press forster co-axe for a few weeks. A single primer at a time. While it worked, it is slow compared to any bench model. My forster bench model works great, and been seating 100's now for the last 3 months.
With no shell holder for me to worry about for the press, I did not want to start worrying about holders for a priming unit. The bench model takes less than a minute to set up to a different caliber, and away I go, priming 50 more cases in a few minutes with tube feed. Takes less than 30 seconds to dump primers in the tray and load the feeder.
Now, some may suggest there is more of a science to primer seating, and if I was F-class, I would agree. If you thought so as well you would own a Primal Rights primer seater and be looking down at the rest of us. Almost like the hand held users look down at us with the bench mount seaters.
With no shell holder for me to worry about for the press, I did not want to start worrying about holders for a priming unit. The bench model takes less than a minute to set up to a different caliber, and away I go, priming 50 more cases in a few minutes with tube feed. Takes less than 30 seconds to dump primers in the tray and load the feeder.
Now, some may suggest there is more of a science to primer seating, and if I was F-class, I would agree. If you thought so as well you would own a Primal Rights primer seater and be looking down at the rest of us. Almost like the hand held users look down at us with the bench mount seaters.
- Location
- Western Manitoba
Bench Mount primer tools - this is the one that I use - I am quite okay with it - comes with magazine tubes for both Large and Small primer, also Push Rods for both Large and Small size. I sort the primers on an elderly "Blair" brand primer flipper - end up picking up 100 primers in that magazine tube, and install those primers - one case at a time. A 30-06 case shown - held in place with an RCBS shell holder - same one used on my RCBS press - if I am reloading a cartridge, then I have the shell holder size for the press and therefore also for this priming tool - not an issue for most, but is 23 different reloading die sets here - gets to be a commotion and some dollars involved if primer tool, case trimmer, press, etc. all want a different shell holder. Brought to a dead stop if you need one for that tool, and do not have it.
Attachments
Any thing beats priming tubes. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh!
Lee auto prime II has always got it done for me,
[video]https://one.nbstatic.fr/uploaded/20220606/9232801/00001_Lee-Auto-Prime-II-Ref-90107.jpg[/video]
as long as you’re not cranking on the handle like you’re jacking up a car you can feel the primer bottom out nicely. But I’d probably switch to a hand priming tool by all the reports here, If I ever wear it out which is not likely to happen.
Lee auto prime II has always got it done for me,
[video]https://one.nbstatic.fr/uploaded/20220606/9232801/00001_Lee-Auto-Prime-II-Ref-90107.jpg[/video]
as long as you’re not cranking on the handle like you’re jacking up a car you can feel the primer bottom out nicely. But I’d probably switch to a hand priming tool by all the reports here, If I ever wear it out which is not likely to happen.
Last edited:
