Lee die set - regular or deluxe? .30-06 recipe?

[lineofsight]

Having a look at the Lee site and a few others it looks like the deluxe includes a collet neck sizer as the crimp tool instead of the factory crimp. Who has used both and found what to be the difference? Lee suggests that the collet produces more accurate rounds but rounds require gentler handling...

Also, favourite .30-06 recipes? Looking for a couple low load ones for wife to transition from .22 to .30-06 and some for paper punching. Rifle is a Remy 700 SPS DM (eventually will replace stock with a Richards laminate or something similar).

Cheers.

 

[Epps Enfield]

I do not underrstand the requirement for gentler handling wih the neck sizer. There are some advantages of the collet neck sizer over a full length die. You do not have to lube with the neck sizer, and case life is improved. Usually there is less trimming involved when reloading. I use the neck sizer for all my bolt actions when I have fire formed brass - I really notice an improvement in accuracy with my Lee Enfields.

 

[H4831]

You should have no trouble getting a light load for your wife with the 30-06. I loaded mine with a very few grains of a pistol powder and let my six year old son shoot it. No recoil, so he could put the stock under his arm.
The old Lyman Handbook of Cast Bullets lists dozens and dozens of light loads for the 30-06, ranging from about 1500 fps up to about 2400 fps, with many different powders. Their maximum loads are called maximun not because of pressure, but because it is all the speed a cast alloy bullet, even the gas check ones, will stand before the pressure distorts them, making them very inaccurate.
If you PM me your email address I will send you a copy of the cast bullet 30-06 page.

 

[M77]

I use Lee dies and now buy only the Deluxe set, and a separate crimp die. I started out with the regular FL set (in 30-06) but since learned to spend the extra money. If you use brass from another rifle you got the FL die, or from your firearm you have the NK die. I don't set the collet to crimp, I use a separate crimp die, as it only cost's about $13.00. The less you work your brass (by neck sizing) the longer it's life will be.