How do you organize your dies?

Noel

Noel

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When I built my bench 16 years ago I never would have believed it if you told me I'd have this many dies stacked on my bench.:redface:

Most of them are RCBS but because of a couple odd ball calibres there are three sets of Lee in there and also a couple Hornady.

How do you arrange your dies when you need them all the time? I was thinking of making and oversized cartridge block like you use for holding your cases but that may not be the best. Build in a lazy Susan????? :p

Maybe I need an Oak machinists chest.

Can a guy get empty RCBS boxes and end the suffering of unstackable crap die boxes?

Your experiences with too many dies are appreciated.:wave:
 
Maybe you could use some type of metal shelf and thread each hole to fit a die, then they wouldn't fall off or get dumped on the floor.:confused:

Even a piece of aluminum angle, say 2 or 3' long, 3 inch wide.
 
Maybe it is just time for a bigger bench too. right now the table is 2 feet deep and 5 wide, but the available space I have is only 14 inches wide and the depth of a die box, say six inches.......
 
I use an old chest of drawers that will need to do until I can find another sturdy filing cabinet.

I load for a lot of different cartridges, and probably the best thing I did was put together an inventory in Excel. I got sick of buying die sets that I already had.... I have other inventories for bullets, brass, molds, powder and guns of course.
 
DirtyOldSix said:
If you have too many dies to put in a cabinet drawer, that means you have a lot of guns! You are a lucky man, you dont have a problem!
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Yes, certainly not a bad problem to have. In Canada we presently have relatively far fewer restictions than almost every other country, but there are many forces at play to change that.

The concern I have with the Chest of Drawers is not space, it's the ability to hold the weight of the dies (they are much heavier than clothes). The worst are the bullets, and I've had one drawer collapse under the weight.
 
Andy said:
I use an old chest of drawers that will need to do until I can find another sturdy filing cabinet.

I load for a lot of different cartridges, and probably the best thing I did was put together an inventory in Excel. I got sick of buying die sets that I already had.... I have other inventories for bullets, brass, molds, powder and guns of course.
Click to expand...


Holy crap!:eek: I use a semi antique record player cabinet for holding my brass and such but I only have 25 to 30 sets of dies to contend with. Andy, if I am ever out that way I may have to swing by to see your set up.:D

I'd like to have it set up so the dies are always accesible when seated at the press. Kept an inventory of powder and components for awhile but in a moments glance I know what I have left as compared to your big set up there.
 
i have a heavy built desk and my dies are in the side drawers. i use a turret press so all my dies are mounted in individual turrets and in plastic containers ready to use.
 
Mine are pretty much all in the same bulding.... but I hope to change that soon. I am planning on using the 8'x24' cistern in my new (old) house. I read this thread with interest, and I hope some pics of the various setups will appear. :p:p
 
kjohn said:
I hope some pics of the various setups will appear. :p:p
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Me too!:) I like to have them at arms reach for making obsolete cases. Sometimes you need several dies to reshape a case. Instead of having three or four dies boxes all over the bench Brad's rack idea would be very helpful for quick access.:cool:

One of those misc hardware organizers might work too if they had drawers big enough. Generally they are cheese and break to easy though.
 
what about a nice mechanics toolbox? should be sturdy enough, might be expensive finding one big enough. I want pic's too I am just designing my room right now:D
 
well if i was rich enough to have that problem..i would make a nice stand to hold them all..
im thinking of about 3/4 plywood..then make up a shelf system the same idea as the racks to hold c-roms..
just custom each slot in the rack to hold the box,s that your dies are in:)
 
fogducker said:
well if i was rich enough to have that problem..i would make a nice stand to hold them all..
im thinking of about 3/4 plywood..then make up a shelf system the same idea as the racks to hold c-roms..
just custom each slot in the rack to hold the box,s that your dies are in:)
Click to expand...


I was thinking that way too, but with a fat chunk of Oak and the dies not in their box. They are in my basement so there should be no issue with having them out that I can think of. :)

A guy could either counter bore holes into the wood for the die to drop into or you could get real fancy and take two or three empty cases that match the die and fasten them to the wood. That would take the guess work out of which die goes where.
As long as it is a fired case the expander ball of the sizer case would easily slide through. The die would rest on the top edge of the fired case leaving clearance for the decapping pin and the rest of the die from getting stuck on the case.

Make space for three dies per row and you could always rearrange them as time goes on. This may be worth persuing. Not the easiest route but a fun one.
 
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Noel said:
I was thinking that way too, but with a fat chunk of Oak and the dies not in their box. They are in my basement so there should be no issue with having them out that I can think of. :)

A guy could either counter bore holes into the wood for the die to drop into or you could get real fancy and take two or three empty cases that match the die and fasten them to the wood. That would take the guess work out of which die goes where.
As long as it is a fired case the expander ball of the sizer case would easily slide through. The die would rest on the top edge of the fired case leaving clearance for the decapping pin and the rest of the die from getting stuck on the case.

Make space for three dies per row and you could always rearrange them as time goes on. This may be worth persuing. Not the easiest route but a fun one.
Click to expand...


now this is a winning design:dancingbanana:post pics when and if you build one:wave:..
oh ya..dont toss out the boxes the dies came in,as you might have to sell a set and you will need a box to mail them in;)
 
fogducker said:
now this is a winning design:dancingbanana:post pics when and if you build one:wave:..
oh ya..dont toss out the boxes the dies came in,as you might have to sell a set and you will need a box to mail them in;)
Click to expand...


I think I should have named this thread how do you organize your reload bench. With LeftyM77's mention of working on his room and me trying to develop my hobby room a whole new desk or bench may be a good idea.:)
Of course I would have to build a bench to work at that may be sectional so I can use one end for the little gunsmith type jobs or for big reload sessions.

Will try to come up with something for the die block still. It seems so handy I have to give it a try.:D
 
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