Dies - Lee vs RCBS

Magnum_Tom

Magnum_Tom

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After my recent problem with jamming a 300WinMag case in my Lee FL sizing / depriming die, it was quicker for me to replace the whole die with an RCBS die than to replace the bent pin in the Lee die.

I just sized and deprimed 150 cases and I'm starting to like the green kool-aid!

The Lee dies for the smaller cases are fine and as most guys will say, they're great bang for the buck. But for the 300 Win Mag the Lee die was a royal PITA. Each case was hard to size and took a lot of effort and force. Use too much lube and it would accumulate quickly inside on the pin and then the pin would disengage. I would have to double wrench the collet about every 10 cases and torque it down hard! But still the pin would disengage. But I persevered comfrotable in the knowledge that that release is by design and was saving me from bending the pin every 10 rounds.

I just ran 150 cases throug the RCBS die and it is like night and day. SMOOTH!!! This thing is smooth as silk compared to the Lee. I did the 150 cases with no wrenches, no fighting the die, no constant die maintenance etc in about the same time as I'd have gotten 20 cases done in the Lee die.

For a couple of bucks more, the RCBS dies are definitely worth it.
 
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I'm glad to hear it worked out for you. I have been very happy with the RCBS dies I own.
 
I reload 300wm with lee deluxe die set. Absolutely no issues. VERY smooth. Either you're doing it wrong (tm) or you have a defective die.
 
Magnum_Tom said:
After my recent problem with jamming a 300WinMag case in my Lee FL sizing / depriming die, it was quicker for me to replace the whole die with an RCBS die than to replace the bent pin in the Lee die.

I just sized and deprimed 150 cases and I'm starting to like the green kool-aid!

The Lee dies for the smaller cases are fine and as most guys will say, they're great bang for the buck. But for the 300 Win Mag the Lee die was a royal PITA. Each case was hard to size and took a lot of effort and force. Use too much lube and it would accumulate quickly inside on the pin and then the pin would disengage. I would have to double wrench the collet about every 10 cases and torque it down hard! But still the pin would disengage. But I persevered comfrotable in the knowledge that that release is by design and was saving me from bending the pin every 10 rounds.

I just ran 150 cases throug the RCBS die and it is like night and die. SMOOTH!!! This thing is smooth as silk compared to the Lee. I did the 150 cases with no wrenches, no fighting the die, no constant die maintenance etc in about the same time as I'd have gotten 20 cases done in the Lee die.

For a couple of bucks more, the RCBS dies are definitely worth it.
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I use the Lee collet dies for every calibre I can get them for. No lube to mess around with, no getting stuck and makes nice straight ammo. I use the univeral decapping die on everything, then use the collet die. Seems to be the best solution for me.
 
Lee is junk. Period.

Magnum_Tom said:
After my recent problem with jamming a 300WinMag case in my Lee FL sizing / depriming die, it was quicker for me to replace the whole die with an RCBS die than to replace the bent pin in the Lee die.

I just sized and deprimed 150 cases and I'm starting to like the green kool-aid!

The Lee dies for the smaller cases are fine and as most guys will say, they're great bang for the buck. But for the 300 Win Mag the Lee die was a royal PITA. Each case was hard to size and took a lot of effort and force. Use too much lube and it would accumulate quickly inside on the pin and then the pin would disengage. I would have to double wrench the collet about every 10 cases and torque it down hard! But still the pin would disengage. But I persevered comfrotable in the knowledge that that release is by design and was saving me from bending the pin every 10 rounds.

I just ran 150 cases throug the RCBS die and it is like night and day. SMOOTH!!! This thing is smooth as silk compared to the Lee. I did the 150 cases with no wrenches, no fighting the die, no constant die maintenance etc in about the same time as I'd have gotten 20 cases done in the Lee die.

For a couple of bucks more, the RCBS dies are definitely worth it.
Click to expand...
 
I dislike RCBS stuff in general, and despise their dies in particular. Whose bright idea was it to require a complete set of tools to make even the simplest adjustment? You need a wrench and screwdriver to change bullet seating depth? Seriously?

I've had more bad quality equipment go back to the factory from Hornady than anyone else. Lee has been more than good to me over the years.
 
I'm 50/50 right down the middle on RCBS. I really like some of their equipment such as hand priming tools, Trim mate case prep center and Rockchucker press. Other stuff from them, such as their powder thrower, case trimmer and some hand tools are fit for the garbage.

I have never tried their dies, so I cannot comment.

BattleRife said:
I dislike RCBS stuff in general, and despise their dies in particular. Whose bright idea was it to require a complete set of tools to make even the simplest adjustment? You need a wrench and screwdriver to change bullet seating depth? Seriously?

I've had more bad quality equipment go back to the factory from Hornady than anyone else. Lee has been more than good to me over the years.
Click to expand...
 
Idcurrie said:
I reload 300wm with lee deluxe die set. Absolutely no issues. VERY smooth. Either you're doing it wrong (tm) or you have a defective die.
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It could be it was defective. But the cases were coming out perfectly sized. I originally thought it was hard because of the case size as the 300 WinMag was the largest size I'm reloading. Then I noticed some brass was harder than others. But the last batch I started was requiring Herculean effort and by the 4th case the case rim ripped off and the case was jammed. This was documented in another thread.

I wasn't trying to to start a "Lee Sucks - RCBS Rules" kind of thread but these threads tend to do that. But my experience here was that the Lee die in this case was extremely difficult to use while the RCBS die is very smooth - smoother in fact than even my smaller rifle Lee FL Sizing dies.

And while it's true that you don't need tools for the Lee bullet seater, you definitely need them for the Sizing die. Each batch of 50 cases will see you using 2 wrenches at least twice in that batch. Maybe if their pressure release holes weren't covered by the bushing they'd be smoother.
 
I have had very good luck with my RCBS dies and other reloading equipment. I've had 2 cases stuck in resizing dies over the years, both of them happened in Lee dies. Most likely operator error, and not very likely the dies fault.
I do like the Lee bullet seating dies, that have the "guide" to carry the bullet up.
 
Here is my take on Lee dies. I love my 308 collet neck die. I get my best handloads concentricity and accuracy wise when I use that collet for de-prime and neck sizing my 308 win cases....even better than my Redding Match neck dies. I'll use a Redding die for seating though. The metal Lee uses to make their dies is cheaper. They will start to show signs of rust quickly if you don't store them properly. I have Redding, RCBS, and Forster and like them all for specific roles. I use RCBS and Forster dies for 338 Lapua and RCBS for 45/70. I'm using Lee dies for 44 Mag and they work just fine. All my semi-auto pistol is now going through dillon dies but prior to that I used Lee for 45acp and 9mm and had no issues with them.
 
I have a lot of RCBS dies as well as Bonanza, Lyman and Lee. One Lee size die i wont use again. I`m thinking if you had that much trouble with the Lee size die it may have been defective, it happens to every manufacturer.
 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Idcurrie View Post
I reload 300wm with lee deluxe die set. Absolutely no issues. VERY smooth. Either you're doing it wrong (tm) or you have a defective die.

Magnum_Tom said:
It could be it was defective. But the cases were coming out perfectly sized. I originally thought it was hard because of the case size as the 300 WinMag was the largest size I'm reloading. Then I noticed some brass was harder than others. But the last batch I started was requiring Herculean effort and by the 4th case the case rim ripped off and the case was jammed. This was documented in another thread.
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Without trying to start a war... Just the fact that your ramming a piece of brass into a FL Die with "Herculean effort" :eek: shows a lack of either reloading skills or understanding to me! You should have deducted by then either a defective die or something wrong in your procedure.
 
I'm guessing not lubing the inside of the case mouth.

I'm unsure how the pin would ever be made to come out. I've loaded hundreds of rounds with mine with iut the pin ever moving....

Maybe if there was no lube on the inside of the case mouth....
 
I own a mix of both Lee and RCBS. I LOVE RCBS equipment like the Chargemaster and Hand Primer but I use a Lee Classic Turret Press for loading. I have both RCBS and Lee dies and I agree, I will use a Lee collet die wherever I can. For calibres I choose to use a different size expander in (such as a .312 on my 7.62 x 54R) I use the RCBS.

Both have their ups and downs. Mix it up and see which brand works best for you, if you are anything like me you will find that it will become a mix of both.
 
Idcurrie said:
I'm guessing not lubing the inside of the case mouth.

I'm unsure how the pin would ever be made to come out. I've loaded hundreds of rounds with mine with iut the pin ever moving....

Maybe if there was no lube on the inside of the case mouth....
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Sounds like it to me too. Not enough lube in the right places. A lesson for life in general :D
 
With the exception of the collet neck sizing die, LEE is well down my list of "favorites"
I like Forster and Redding, with RCBS also figuring in the mix at #3.
If I am loading competition ammo, then inline dies and presses get the nod.[L.E.Wilson]
I own a Co-Ax press and an older Rockchucker...they are flawless for my purposes.
Regards, Eagleye.
 
Why can't we get through a week without one of these types of threads? "Lee vs. RCBS", RCBS vs. Redding" "Dillon is the best", "LEE & RCBS is junk!"

I mean there is ton's of threads already. Does anyone know how to use the search function?

Yes Lee is cheap, so is RCBS if you compare it to Redding dies!

All have merits and issue's. Read what has already been written several time before and make your decision. I for one have a mix of Red, Green, & Dillon blue, and they all work and do what I need them to do.

Can we please move on on these types of threads............
 
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