Best reloading Kit?

laker415 said:
If you read his posts you would see he wants to reload 45-70 and eventually 308. What would be the point of a dillon 550 when he is considering a lee starter kit?
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Likely larger than .308 but yeah im not talking high volumes for any type of cartridge I ever load. Im going to buy a SKS and surplus ammo to plink with, and a .22lr pistolto go to the range with. Reloading will just be for hunting/protection and eventually precision shooting ammo so not large quantities needed.

And I swear I have read somewhere that single stage presses are more accurate than those automatic repeating ones so I think I should stick with the single stage.
 
I won't get into the debate on progressive vs single stage for accuracy but yeah, it is a common conception that single stage is better at precision reloads with minimal variance between rounds.

For your needs a single stage is perfect. If one day you want to get into pistol or high volume rifle then look at a progressive. You will always have your single stage on the bench regardless of what you add

When I was shopping for my first kit I almost settled on the lee anniversary kit but decided it was worth it to me to get the rcbs. I am glad I did. I have some lee 45-70 dies that work fine but too often I read people complaining about the lee scale or powder measure. Not so much with the rcbs.
 
Im a big fan of redding... but not everyone has the kinda cash to get into their gear... the RCBS rock chucker supreme kit is outstanding for the money. There is nothing in that box your going to throw away because its crap.

I highly recommend spending the money on redding dies regardless of the kit you choose.... they are that much better.... ive used lee, rcbs, lyman, and redding... the redding dies are better built, better designed, have less runout. Are more consistent and have better accesories.
 
LordEvilPepper said:
Im a big fan of redding... but not everyone has the kinda cash to get into their gear... the RCBS rock chucker supreme kit is outstanding for the money. There is nothing in that box your going to throw away because its crap.

I highly recommend spending the money on redding dies regardless of the kit you choose.... they are that much better.... ive used lee, rcbs, lyman, and redding... the redding dies are better built, better designed, have less runout. Are more consistent and have better accesories.
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So all dies are interchangeable?
 
In the sense that they will thread into almost any press....yes. I agree redding is nice stuff at a hefty price. As nice as the redding dies are I am starting to lean towards forster dies for precision loads. They seem quite popular yielding good results and cost less than redding. There is a comparison online between redding and forster and the nod went to forster in terms of uniformity of rounds and less runout.
 
laker415 said:
If you read his posts you would see he wants to reload 45-70 and eventually 308. What would be the point of a dillon 550 when he is considering a lee starter kit?
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Gotcha..sorry I mentioned progressive.Even though I load 30-06,.303,.300 WM,30-30 ,.300 RUM and even .9mm,38/.357,.45 ACP,.44 Mag with my rickety ole' Dillon that nobody buys anyway f:P:
 
Nobody mentioned this but if you know any old shooters or hunters ask around you maybe able to pick up a used set for cheap. Most of these things don't wear out.
 
laker415 said:
Let us know what you decided on when you do
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I will, honestly im leaning towards the Lee kit only because then if I do slowly replace some parts with higher quality gear at least the initial purchase price is low so I didn't spend much on it.

What else do I need as far as equipment to load ammo?

Like say I buy the lee kit or the RCBS master kit other than dies for the size I need what else is required that isn't in the kits?
 
Dies and shell holders for the cartridges you are reloading for. Lee dies come with shell holders most other brands don't. If you are reloading crimped primer brass you would need a tool to deal with that. Its not to common except in military brass. Though I have seen some 223 with crimped primers.
I believe the kits have everything else.
 
I don't have any experience with any Lee stuff except for one set of dies.

I would advise against the Cabelas RCBS kit linked. There are quite a few expensive luxuries in that kit that are unnecessary for starting.

I would recommend an RCBS kit. Just not the one linked.

I was given an old press but purchased almost everything else new and I am capable of loading some very accurate ammunition without very many luxuries.

In my opinion you need a good:
- press/dies
- scale
- trimmer
- trickler

I do also have a good powder dispenser which is nice but I only use it to throw loads that are close and then trickle up.

If the Lee kit doesn't come with all of the above in decent quality (others say it is bad) then I would recommend you look at something else.
 
911alertme said:
I don't have any experience with any Lee stuff except for one set of dies.

I would advise against the Cabelas RCBS kit linked. There are quite a few expensive luxuries in that kit that are unnecessary for starting.

I would recommend an RCBS kit. Just not the one linked.

I was given an old press but purchased almost everything else new and I am capable of loading some very accurate ammunition without very many luxuries.

In my opinion you need a good:
- press/dies
- scale
- trimmer
- trickler

I do also have a good powder dispenser which is nice but I only use it to throw loads that are close and then trickle up.

If the Lee kit doesn't come with all of the above in decent quality (others say it is bad) then I would recommend you look at something else.
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I know a few people that started with the RCBS kit linked, and they are very pleased to have purchased that kit. Are the luxuries absolutely necessary, of course not, but many people, myself included certainly appreciate those luxuries. I went further yet, by purchasing the RCBS Universal Case Prep Tool, which greatly speeds up case preparation, and I certainly don't regret my purchase.
 
I personally wouldn't buy the RCBS kit because it has a lot of things in it I don't like and certain manufacturers make better(in my mind). If I was buying a kit I'd go with the lee b/c with either the lee or the rcbs kits I would end up spending a lot of money replacing things in both.
 
At this point if you are leaning towards the lee then just go for it. There was a link to a lee kit earlier in the thread for 115. Maybe you like all the equipment, maybe you don't. It's not a lot of money out of pocket to try reloading. Everyone has a preference for different gear so if you go this route you can make your own mind up about what you like and what you don't.
 
LouF said:
Gotcha..sorry I mentioned progressive.Even though I load 30-06,.303,.300 WM,30-30 ,.300 RUM and even .9mm,38/.357,.45 ACP,.44 Mag with my rickety ole' Dillon that nobody buys anyway f:P:
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I don't remember saying anything bad about dillon. I know they are popular and have a great reputation. I was commenting on the fact this guy asked about a good starter kit to load one caliber and you chime in and tell him to go right for a progressive. Seems a bit overkill in my opinion, but hey, you know best
 
I got to agree with laker415. If you buy a 150 kit and don't like something. You can upgrade or change it. The kit contains everything you need to do some reloads and who knows you might love everything about it. On the otherhand if you buy a 800 dollar kit and don't like something you will push that total over a 1k in short order.
 
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