I think LEE DIES ARE GREAT. Sound off on your experiences.
- Thread starter sgt.rock
- Start date
I load 9, 40, 38 Spec. and 357 Mag. Lee is my first and only loader, I have the turret press and once set up it works well. I have nothing to compare it to but the system works great. I didn't like the scale at all though, once I got a digital scale my speed went way up.
I too dealt with their customer service and found them awesome.
I too dealt with their customer service and found them awesome.
- Location
- Somewhere on the Hudson Bay Coast
I like some of Lee's products; the factory crimp dies for example are a great idea, particularly the handgun cartridge version that resizes the case and ensures easy chambering, as was the original version of their hand primer which allowed you to adjust the primer seating depth by means of a threaded shell holder. Too bad they discontinued that one. I liked their small C press which was great for light duty use like priming and seating bullets, but this is supposed to be about dies so I'll try to stay focused. I also like Lee's Universal Neck Expander, which has saved me the expense of purchasing a number of cartridge specific M dies. I'm less enamored with Lee's full length sizing die, mostly due to the friction retention of the decapping rod, and the lack of any convenient means of changing the sizing button or replacing decapping pins. I've never tried the collet die, but from everything I've heard its excellent, as some of Lee's other products have proven to be. I prefer the solid retaining nuts provided by RCBS and Redding to to Lee's "O" ring style, but I prefer the Lee style to the older split style of ring that RCBS used to use, and which I've swapped out on the sets that had them.
Armored Metal
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- The People's Republik of Kébekistan
With only one year of reloading experience under my belt, I can say that my reloads are more acurate than factory ammo and they go bang every time. LEE dies work for me 
I have no doubt on it, I think that reloading mostly 44 Magnum with no lubrication on the casings (carbide dies and straight walled cartridge) has taken it's toll on the linkage of mine.
That said, LP was always helpful with the replacement, offered the two first for free (+ shipping), had to pay for the third one.
I guess I don't care. I don't doubt that Lee dies could be used by commercial ammo remanufacturers. I just don't think it's significant or proves anything one way or the other.
I read that in one of their reloading manual's.
I like the fact that when you buy a Lee die set, you can get a complete deal. Dies, shellholder, dipper (rarely use them as they require proving for each caliber, but I've used a dipper on occasion )complete dimensions of the cartridge , everything you need to get reloading.
As I started with Lee, I forget that the other better brands don't provide this deal. Get a set of ***** dies home and...no shellholder?! WTF.
I have a travel reloader so the lighter components also are welcome.
I like Lee, they do the job
As I started with Lee, I forget that the other better brands don't provide this deal. Get a set of ***** dies home and...no shellholder?! WTF.
I have a travel reloader so the lighter components also are welcome.
I like Lee, they do the job
Very good value! I'm sure they have helped many people get into reloading, including me, for about half the price of the higher end stuff. Lee also provides many oddball calibers in their catalog for normal prices(.455webley and .303savage come to mind). When others either don't carry those dies or charge a hefty premium for the special run dies. Lee has been helping the little guy make ammo for a very long time and wish them all the best carrying on that legacy. They also have a very good customer support too!
I know that they are junk, I bought a set of Lee 45-70 dies and when I looked at my reloaded ammo I could plainly see that the bullets were seated off set to one side in the brass. I have been reloading for over 30 years and have never seen this before, I replaced them with a set of Redding dies and the problem is gone, totally concentric ammo.
I'm new to reloading.
I bought a set of. 308 lee dies and I think its awesome that you get everything with them but I found the bullet seating die was a bit loose and would cause my oal length to fluctuate. Not a big deal for hunting or plinking rounds but I wanted something much more precise so I bought rcbs competition. 308 dies and I'm really happy with them. I'll also say when I bought my comp dies I also picked up another set of Lee dies in. 223, i m not too concerned with precision. 223 as im shooting put of an ar and tavor.
so my opinion is if you're just plinking or hunting go for it, but if you want something with very tight tolerances get a much higher quality set.
I bought a set of. 308 lee dies and I think its awesome that you get everything with them but I found the bullet seating die was a bit loose and would cause my oal length to fluctuate. Not a big deal for hunting or plinking rounds but I wanted something much more precise so I bought rcbs competition. 308 dies and I'm really happy with them. I'll also say when I bought my comp dies I also picked up another set of Lee dies in. 223, i m not too concerned with precision. 223 as im shooting put of an ar and tavor.
so my opinion is if you're just plinking or hunting go for it, but if you want something with very tight tolerances get a much higher quality set.
There isn't a company out there that doesn't have some poor quality slip through occasionally. I've had quality issues on RCBS, Lyman, and more. By your standards they are all junk too. If you're old enough to be reloading for 30 years then i'd expect you are a bit smarter than that by now.
BTW, lots of dies from RCBS, Redding, etc will seat 45-70 bullets offset - that's because the seater stem doesn't match the bullet nose profile. That's an operator error, not a reloading die problem. 45-70 is especially prone to that because of the different bullet types - flat nose and round nose bullets are commonly used - it's hard for a seater to work really well on both.
Lee dies aren't the best on the market but they are decent value for money. I think Lee pistol dies are as good as anything made at double the price. I wouldn't say that about their rifle dies but considering the price it's hard to fault them.
Trust me I know how to set up dies for different bullet profiles, oh great all knowing reloading guru. In the mountain of dies I do own the Lee dies are the only ones that I would say are junk. I only wish I could be as smart as you.
Trust me I know how to set up dies for different bullet profiles, oh great all knowing reloading guru. In the mountain of dies I do own the Lee dies are the only ones that I would say are junk. I only wish I could be as smart as you.
I'm giving lessons if you want to stop by. I offer a senior's discount for pensioners if it would help out.
I'm giving lessons if you want to stop by. I offer a senior's discount for pensioners if it would help out.
Thanks, but I don't need to take any steps backwards.
I bought a lee collet die set for my 260 rem and it has given me the lowest run out of any other dies I have used including redding competition bushing dies. It is the roughest looking die of all the ones I own which include the redding , rcbs and hornady. But so far it has worked the best out of all of them. Probably never buy a redding again.
