Lee crap

[senior]

'Boo, I'm no physics major but I do wonder how the force required to squeeze such thin brass back to size can be greater than the force required to strip the threads off a properly adjusted die. Logic dictates that either your set-up was wrong or the die was "modified" FWIW an old tradesman once told me "a bad worker always blames his tools" L.C. dies work very well for me in 30-06, 7 R.M. and 375 H&H, but hey mebbe I'm jest lucky.

X 2 I've been reloading a lot of years & LEE is one of the few brands I've never had a problem with Could be luck :shock: but I don't think so :wink:

 

[Claven2]

Lee is crap. Go for RCBS, they are a world apart.

Strange,

I have several dies each from these manufacturers:

Lyman
Lee
Hornady
RCBS
CH4D
Pacific
Dillon

And oddly, the ONLY malfunctions I've ever had were with RCBS dies :shock:

I've never been able to break a Lee die, but have sent three die sets back to RCBS. In their defence though, the RCBS warranty is truely awesome. In many cases, a digital photo being e-mailed to them is enough for them to mail out a replacement free of charge.

I don't know how your collet die was set up, but none of my Lee collets look like that :? You sure it was a collet die?

Also, the fact that it's used makes me wonder... :roll: With dies, I've often found there's a good reason why they're being sold...

 

[Six Star]

If there's one aspect of reloading that I've learned over the years, it's this:
If I feel any unusual resistance AT ALL when using using a press, STOP. There's always a reason that it's happening, and you must investigate what's causing the resistance and correct it.
Continue applying pressure (or even worse, adjust a die so that the resistance increases even more :roll: ) and something WILL break.

Guaranteed. :wink:

 

[Gun5tuff]

I agree with Savagefan: the die was set up wrong. I also stripped the threads off my 30-06 collet neck sizing die made by Lee using my Rockchucker press. If you phone Lee Precision, Inc. they will put a replacement cap into the mail at no charge and they will patiently explain the instructions that came with the collet die. The instructions read "Other brands of presses that toggle or snap over center at the end of the stroke provide no feel and can damage the collet neck sizing die if adjusted as above [i.e. until it contacts the shell holder, plus one turn more]. We suggest the die be screwed in until the die contacts the shell holder, plus 2 FULL TURNS. This will prevent the press from toggling over center and give the operator feel of the collet closing."

The Rockchucker press definitely toggles over!

Boo, I'm sorry that you nearly spilled your beer while using your collet die. Give Lee a call, I'm sure they will cheerfully send you a replacement at no charge. Then after you have it set up and sized a few rounds, let us know how it worked for you.