Reloading press which one is better

rooster22

rooster22

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I have been looking to buy reloading tools, and I am now getting down to decision time.

I've decided on the Hornaday L'N'L classic kit, or the Lee breech challenger kit. The price difference is about 200 bucks more for the Hornady kit.

I can start up for 162.oo for the lee kit , but is the quality there or will I need to uprade sooner than later with the lee? My research shows the hornady looks to be a nice setup. And I expect that unless upgrading to a progressive hornady should do the job for a very long time.

I have seen the progressive loaders, and they are definately cool, but being a newb to reloading I prefer to stick with a single stage for now.

So will the lee do the job or would I be better off spending the extra 200.00 on the hornady?

Looking for recommendations and second opinions before I buy, from those who have had expierence with either or, and or both. Thanks for reading. :bangHead:
 
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You know not what you ask:

flamesuit, check
helmet, check
Nomex gloves, check
Kevlar vests with plates, check
foxhole, check

I can see the blue army on the hill, the red army marching up the road and "other red" army digging in.
 
I use lee 50th cost with die and few othe bits is around $180
works fine and will pay for it's self after 500 loads (308), I guess it depends on how much you reload. I would start with lee and see how uget on, you don't want to spend to much, if you like reloading you can always get better press after the lee has paid for itself.
I was paying $21.99 for pmc 308, it's now cost me between $13-$14 for my ammo
and accuracy has improved
 
I would recommend a Lee Turret Press. Same as a single stage, but without having to swap dies in and out, you just turn the turret.
My .02$:)
 
Colin said:
You know not what you ask:

flamesuit, check
helmet, check
Nomex gloves, check
Kevlar vests with plates, check
foxhole, check

I can see the blue army on the hill, the red army marching up the road and "other red" army digging in.
Click to expand...

LoL - that was funny...

Member of the blue army here... ;)
 
If you buy a Lee, why don't you go just a tad higher and select the Classic Cast series? these presses are very strong and you can get them in single-stage or turret-type.
Progressives are different birds and are better bought as a stand-alone solution rather than a Rube Goldberg contraption to be installed later on a single stage (although some work quite well).
My $.02.
PP.
 
The orig. poster asked "What is the best press".....the answer is simple Forster Co-ax, save your coin and get the best!
 
After doing all of the research myself personally over the last week, I have looked at literally dozens of websites and articles about the different types of inexpensive presses to start out with, and I have discovered that the Lee Classic (cast arms)press is the way to go. Its a turret press so it will pump out the ammo about twice as fast as the single press, from what I have read everywere, and its supposed to be a great press thats worth the few extra bucks.

I always say to myself from personal experience that it saves myself money in the longrun, if you buy it right the first time.

Here is a nice article on the Lee Classic Press w w w.realguns.com/archives/122.htm There is 3 parts to the article with links at the bottom of the page.
 
rooster22 said:
You not know how to read?
Click to expand...


There has been a huge number of searchable posts and debates on this subject and they almost always end in a flame war between the roving bands of loyalists. I assumed that you innocently stepped into a battlefield unaware of the crap storm your question could unleash.


That being said I will never sell or give away my Lee turret press
 
I had the same choice to make a little while ago. I chose the Hornady and like it a lot. With the Hornady kit you get 500 free bullets mail in offer www.hornady.com/assets/files/promos/2011-get-loaded-form.pdf , which is worth ~$100+ depending on the bullets you choose.
 
I would go with the Lee kit, especially if you are not loading for really big cartridges. If you decide later to get a more heavy duty press, I would suggest the Lee Classic Cast. It is better than the Hornady, and only costs $127 or so. The advantage of the kit is it gives you everything you need to get started at a very good price. You may also decide later that you want a more substantial scale than the Lee. The Redding Model 2 is an excellent one, but wait and see. You may like the Lee. Stay away from digital unless you want to drop big bucks.
 
Hi Rooster

As you've mentioned "kits", its worth noting that these generally contain some throw away,,, "value added" ,,, junk. With one exception, Redding, all manufacturers seem to do this.

This doesn't answer your question directly but where kits are concerned, do an assessment of each component. It may affect your decision.

As to Colin's scurrilous and insulting assertion, which compromises CGN members' reputation for sobriety and dignity, all I can say is:

HORNADY !! HORNADY !! Rah Rah Rah ; The pox on Dillon !! Haw Haw Haw :D.
 
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I have the hornady LNL classic. It is a solid press, no issues and it has even been dropped once (ouch).

I didnt buy as a kit because if found that I didnt need all the components, and buying separately was a bit cheaper.

Just remember that you will have to buy die bushings for every die you plan to use (I use Lee carbide pistol dies), but once they are set up, they are really fast to change out and dont need adjustment each time. I couldnt even imagine adjusting dies each time I put them in a press, not to mention the time involved.

Dont have any other experience with any other press.
 
You can purchase the Lee 5oth anniv. kit for $124 taxes and shipping $154. IT WILL GET YOU STARTED. After you are up and running you can add stuff as you feel you need it. or should I say want it. The press that comes with the kit is the Lee breech lock challenger. It would be a greaty second press if you deside go to something else later.
 
@ rooster22

I just started reloading about 3 weeks ago... Good call on your side.. well worth it! I bought a LEE PRO 1000. Yes, it is progressive but honestly, not too hard to get used to it. You just have to be REALLY CAREFULL and TAKE YOUR TIME. It came as a kit and not too expensive (229$ +tx) After getting it, I found that I was missing some equipment.

I bought a casing collator, a scale, a GOOD REFERENCE BOOK and an inertia hammer. For about 300-350$ I have all that I need and I really enjoy it!

The press itself was not hard to set up. Quite easy actually. I never touched a press before buying mine and found a lot of good info on the web. If you ever buy one like this, PM me and I will send you some good and usefull links.

Enjoy and keep enjoying reloading!!!
 
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