This is a guide on how to get started using a lee loader classic. I find there is basically no information on getting started using this great budget product. This all was all gathered from my many hours of research and experience of actually doing it.
I am also going to say that this is not the way to reload mass quantities of ammo. If you are a hunter or a plinker (like me) this will be ideal because it is a good side hobby that will have you saving money on ammo. It is quite easy to sit down and make 50 cartridges that will be plenty safe and capable of hunting or smacking a gong from 300 meters away.
In this example I will be reloading 30-06 Springfield however the process is exactly the same with every cartridge.
Is reloading actually cost effective? Yes, if you do it right. I am not going to go into great detail on cost because each caliber will cost different in different locations. Reloading ammo will cost about 40% less then store bought ammo after you break even. I buy all the cheapest components every time which puts put me able to reload 30-06 for .70 cents a shot. At the time of writing this the cheapest 30-06 ammo I could find at Cabela’s is $1.20 a shot.
To start off you will obviously need to buy your components and tools. Buy the tools first then the components, I will explain why in just a moment.
This is the Lee Loader Classic kit that you will need, it’s about 40 bucks. Don’t get it confused with the dies that go into an actually press. The packaging is similar.
You will also need these tools to prepare your brass. The middle one is bought in two pieces that you then screw together. Alternatively you can buy the fancy and expensive case prep machines but this option is about 20 bucks.
You will then need to get a set of calipers. Don’t buy the Cabela’s ones for 60 bucks. I got mine at Canadian tire for 20 bucks and they are exactly the same except blue. Also buy a non-metal hammer.
Now that you have the tools, look at the back of the paper that comes in your kit. Pick the bullet type you want to use then go back to the store and buy that bullet and the powder it says to use. Buy some primers too.
If you can’t find the powder listed for the bullet you want to use or it is ridiculously expensive go buy the Modern Reloading book by Richard Lee and the Lee Dipper set. The two are probably 30 bucks combined and then you can actually reload multiple caliber s this way. They look like this.
As for brass just keep whatever factory ammo you have been using. Some people will say brass is free this way. You can also pick it up off the ground at ranges if it is in good shape which I will go over later. If you buy brass in the store the cheapest stuff is fine.
Just buy whatever primers you want. I just ask for the cheapest ones. The 1000 meter precision shooters will say the primer makes a difference but for hunting or plinking people, you won’t know the difference. I am using CCI. Pay attention to that paper because it tells you which ones to get. For 30-06 you use large rifle primers
For the bullets I am using 150gr soft point made Hornady. Don’t expect to pay 41 dollars, the price on these fluctuates. 30-06 uses a .308” diameter bullets so don’t just buy it because it says 30 cal.
Now that you have all your tools let’s get started making cartridges.
Inspect your brass. If it is brand new it’s good to go assuming it’s not mangled or missing portions. If you are reusing fired brass just make sure it not cracked, badly bent or dented. Here is a good brass, it’s a little dirty but I will go over that right away
Now look at this one. It’s not totally round but its close enough. This can still be used.
As for cleaning make sure all the sand or mud is off it. Then you will see fired brass will get dirty from firing. It does not have to be spotless to work but the cleaner it is the more reliably it will feed and keep your gun clean. I did not bother cleaning the brass above and reloaded it. Below is a clean enough brass with the product I use. I got it at Canadian Tire
Now that your brass is in good enough shape to use, we now have to de-prime it. Put the brass in the little holder and use the pin looking tool to push out the primer. Tap the pin looking tool, you won’t have to hit it very hard. This step will also round out the brass. The used primer is now garbage
Next is to measure the length of the brass to make sure it’s not too long. Brass stretches when you shoot it. Use your calipers and make sure it is below the max that is listed on the paper. Zero you calipers often, they can get wonky sometimes. As you can see the paper says the maximum brass length is 63.35mm. My brass is 63.25mm so it’s good to go. Yes you can use non metric if you were born before 1990.
If your brass is too long take the two part tool. The stick part that is marked 30/06 is a guide and not to be used as measure regardless of what the package may tell you. Give it some spins and whittle down the brass. It probably won’t take much so don’t go overboard. You a running sharp steal over brass in an attempt to take down less than a millimetre
Next you have to clean out the primer pocket. Use the bigger end for large rifle primers and scrap out all the carbon that’s in there. Some primers are dirty than others.
Then take the chamfer tool and give it a couple spins inside and out. It just smooths out the brass which will remove any potential burs, makes the bullet seat easier and in theory helps with feeding.
Next is sizing, put the brass in the stainless steel body. Using a non-metal hammer hit the brass to force it into the steel body. It only fits one way. Pound the brass in so that it is flush with the bottom of the body. You have just neck sized your brass. Since you only necked sized your brass it may not fit in any other rifle but the one you fired the brass from. Depending on the cartridge it may be difficult to pound in. 303 British can almost be done by hand but 30-06 needs a table and a decent swing of the hammer. I use a 4x4 post as a pounding post so I don’t vibrate everything off the table while hammering.
Now we are going to prime the brass. Start with putting a primer in the smoking pipe looking tool.
Put the body with the brass in it over the pipe then put the metal rod into the brass and tap the metal rod with a non-metal hammer. It won’t be that hard. This may seem dangerous but the pipe is measured out and spring loaded to do this job. I have never had a primer go off but I wear safety glasses any way. This is the same process as a press expect it’s done in one swift motion instead of a slow push of a press. The primer should be flush with the brass.
Now we are going to put gun powder into the brass. If you are using the 3.7cc dipper that came with the kit make the corresponding powder flush with the top of the dipper. A credit card will make sure its level or you can just eye ball it. A tiny bit extra or less won’t cause a problem. If you bought the book and dipper set use whatever dipper to whatever powder you bought. The picture shows too low of powder because I did not want to make a mess while taking a picture. I also put it back on the de-priming holder so that the primer is not sitting on the table. It probably won’t go off since primers are not super sensitive but why risk it?
Sometimes the powder will cling to the walls like this. Just tap the outside and the powder will fall in. Some powder is worse than others for this. I put my powder into a small Rubbermaid while reloading because I hand does not fit into a bottle of powder.
Now we seat the bullet. You will notice the threads and nut on the stainless steel body. Start it off high up. Then drop the bullet in and use the pipe to push it into the brass. Adjust the nut so that when the pipe is pushed all the way down the puts the bullet into place. This will take some trial and error but you should only have to do it once as long as you use the same bullets every time. Keep in mind that the cartridge will probably fall out of the sizing part when you do this so the de-priming holder is a good idea.
The last thing to do is measure again to make sure it is not too long. As you can see 84.84mm is the maximum overall length so don’t exceed that. 80.47mm is just fine.
As for too short well if you think the bullet is in too far it probably is. You know how a bullet is supposed to look. If it is in too far or you made a mistake and forgot to put powder in or something like that,(we all do it) then get a bullet puller for 20 bucks.
You cartridge is fully loaded and ready to go. Seem like a lot of work? Using a press is the same process except you pull a lever instead of swinging a hammer.
For storing your new tools I recommend a SKS ammo box that you probably have any way. Everything fits inside and now your reloading tools are portable for the zombie apocalypse or more realistically making loads at the range.
I am also going to say that this is not the way to reload mass quantities of ammo. If you are a hunter or a plinker (like me) this will be ideal because it is a good side hobby that will have you saving money on ammo. It is quite easy to sit down and make 50 cartridges that will be plenty safe and capable of hunting or smacking a gong from 300 meters away.
In this example I will be reloading 30-06 Springfield however the process is exactly the same with every cartridge.
Is reloading actually cost effective? Yes, if you do it right. I am not going to go into great detail on cost because each caliber will cost different in different locations. Reloading ammo will cost about 40% less then store bought ammo after you break even. I buy all the cheapest components every time which puts put me able to reload 30-06 for .70 cents a shot. At the time of writing this the cheapest 30-06 ammo I could find at Cabela’s is $1.20 a shot.
To start off you will obviously need to buy your components and tools. Buy the tools first then the components, I will explain why in just a moment.
This is the Lee Loader Classic kit that you will need, it’s about 40 bucks. Don’t get it confused with the dies that go into an actually press. The packaging is similar.
You will also need these tools to prepare your brass. The middle one is bought in two pieces that you then screw together. Alternatively you can buy the fancy and expensive case prep machines but this option is about 20 bucks.
You will then need to get a set of calipers. Don’t buy the Cabela’s ones for 60 bucks. I got mine at Canadian tire for 20 bucks and they are exactly the same except blue. Also buy a non-metal hammer.
Now that you have the tools, look at the back of the paper that comes in your kit. Pick the bullet type you want to use then go back to the store and buy that bullet and the powder it says to use. Buy some primers too.
If you can’t find the powder listed for the bullet you want to use or it is ridiculously expensive go buy the Modern Reloading book by Richard Lee and the Lee Dipper set. The two are probably 30 bucks combined and then you can actually reload multiple caliber s this way. They look like this.
As for brass just keep whatever factory ammo you have been using. Some people will say brass is free this way. You can also pick it up off the ground at ranges if it is in good shape which I will go over later. If you buy brass in the store the cheapest stuff is fine.
Just buy whatever primers you want. I just ask for the cheapest ones. The 1000 meter precision shooters will say the primer makes a difference but for hunting or plinking people, you won’t know the difference. I am using CCI. Pay attention to that paper because it tells you which ones to get. For 30-06 you use large rifle primers
For the bullets I am using 150gr soft point made Hornady. Don’t expect to pay 41 dollars, the price on these fluctuates. 30-06 uses a .308” diameter bullets so don’t just buy it because it says 30 cal.
Now that you have all your tools let’s get started making cartridges.
Inspect your brass. If it is brand new it’s good to go assuming it’s not mangled or missing portions. If you are reusing fired brass just make sure it not cracked, badly bent or dented. Here is a good brass, it’s a little dirty but I will go over that right away
Now look at this one. It’s not totally round but its close enough. This can still be used.
As for cleaning make sure all the sand or mud is off it. Then you will see fired brass will get dirty from firing. It does not have to be spotless to work but the cleaner it is the more reliably it will feed and keep your gun clean. I did not bother cleaning the brass above and reloaded it. Below is a clean enough brass with the product I use. I got it at Canadian Tire
Now that your brass is in good enough shape to use, we now have to de-prime it. Put the brass in the little holder and use the pin looking tool to push out the primer. Tap the pin looking tool, you won’t have to hit it very hard. This step will also round out the brass. The used primer is now garbage
Next is to measure the length of the brass to make sure it’s not too long. Brass stretches when you shoot it. Use your calipers and make sure it is below the max that is listed on the paper. Zero you calipers often, they can get wonky sometimes. As you can see the paper says the maximum brass length is 63.35mm. My brass is 63.25mm so it’s good to go. Yes you can use non metric if you were born before 1990.
If your brass is too long take the two part tool. The stick part that is marked 30/06 is a guide and not to be used as measure regardless of what the package may tell you. Give it some spins and whittle down the brass. It probably won’t take much so don’t go overboard. You a running sharp steal over brass in an attempt to take down less than a millimetre
Next you have to clean out the primer pocket. Use the bigger end for large rifle primers and scrap out all the carbon that’s in there. Some primers are dirty than others.
Then take the chamfer tool and give it a couple spins inside and out. It just smooths out the brass which will remove any potential burs, makes the bullet seat easier and in theory helps with feeding.
Next is sizing, put the brass in the stainless steel body. Using a non-metal hammer hit the brass to force it into the steel body. It only fits one way. Pound the brass in so that it is flush with the bottom of the body. You have just neck sized your brass. Since you only necked sized your brass it may not fit in any other rifle but the one you fired the brass from. Depending on the cartridge it may be difficult to pound in. 303 British can almost be done by hand but 30-06 needs a table and a decent swing of the hammer. I use a 4x4 post as a pounding post so I don’t vibrate everything off the table while hammering.
Now we are going to prime the brass. Start with putting a primer in the smoking pipe looking tool.
Put the body with the brass in it over the pipe then put the metal rod into the brass and tap the metal rod with a non-metal hammer. It won’t be that hard. This may seem dangerous but the pipe is measured out and spring loaded to do this job. I have never had a primer go off but I wear safety glasses any way. This is the same process as a press expect it’s done in one swift motion instead of a slow push of a press. The primer should be flush with the brass.
Now we are going to put gun powder into the brass. If you are using the 3.7cc dipper that came with the kit make the corresponding powder flush with the top of the dipper. A credit card will make sure its level or you can just eye ball it. A tiny bit extra or less won’t cause a problem. If you bought the book and dipper set use whatever dipper to whatever powder you bought. The picture shows too low of powder because I did not want to make a mess while taking a picture. I also put it back on the de-priming holder so that the primer is not sitting on the table. It probably won’t go off since primers are not super sensitive but why risk it?
Sometimes the powder will cling to the walls like this. Just tap the outside and the powder will fall in. Some powder is worse than others for this. I put my powder into a small Rubbermaid while reloading because I hand does not fit into a bottle of powder.
Now we seat the bullet. You will notice the threads and nut on the stainless steel body. Start it off high up. Then drop the bullet in and use the pipe to push it into the brass. Adjust the nut so that when the pipe is pushed all the way down the puts the bullet into place. This will take some trial and error but you should only have to do it once as long as you use the same bullets every time. Keep in mind that the cartridge will probably fall out of the sizing part when you do this so the de-priming holder is a good idea.
The last thing to do is measure again to make sure it is not too long. As you can see 84.84mm is the maximum overall length so don’t exceed that. 80.47mm is just fine.
As for too short well if you think the bullet is in too far it probably is. You know how a bullet is supposed to look. If it is in too far or you made a mistake and forgot to put powder in or something like that,(we all do it) then get a bullet puller for 20 bucks.
You cartridge is fully loaded and ready to go. Seem like a lot of work? Using a press is the same process except you pull a lever instead of swinging a hammer.
For storing your new tools I recommend a SKS ammo box that you probably have any way. Everything fits inside and now your reloading tools are portable for the zombie apocalypse or more realistically making loads at the range.
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