Lee Reloader Press reviews??

Suther

Suther

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Has anyone tried the Lee Reloader Press? Its the cheap one for like $40-45.

http://www.budgetshootersupply.ca/frame.cfm?ItemID=497&CategoryID=18

Any good? Do they work well for the price, or is this one of those "you get what you pay for" scenarios, where paying twice as much gets a much much better product? Has anyone broken one, or had it fall apart with use?

I really want to start reloading (technically I do already, with my 303 and a lee classic loader, but the hammer is loud, and the process is slow...) but I couldn't find any reviews of this press on here. So what say you? This press any good? It will be used primarily for 303 and 270, with some 30-06 and who knows what else on the side...
 
If you are easy with it shouldn't be any issues. My first press was a Challenge, and I never broke the linkage on it loading thousands of rounds. Don't crank on it when you over cam and should be fine....
 
I had one, broke the c right off the base. Its only cast aluminum. Now dont get me wrong. If all you are doing is pistol calibers, its more than enough for the job, but if you are into rifle calibers and have to really reef on it, they may not take the punishment of the cast iron. In my case, Lee was great, and replaced it but I just dont use it much other than for limited numbers of test rounds.
dB
 
daBear said:
I had one, broke the c right off the base. Its only cast aluminum. Now dont get me wrong. If all you are doing is pistol calibers, its more than enough for the job, but if you are into rifle calibers and have to really reef on it, they may not take the punishment of the cast iron. In my case, Lee was great, and replaced it but I just dont use it much other than for limited numbers of test rounds.
dB
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How did you have it mounted? I hear if they are not mounted solidly enough the can flex a bit which fatigues the metal?
 
Use to be able to get the classic cast for $99, now they are like $160. I've been using one of those since they came out. A good press will last forever.... I've broken dies with this press, it's solid.
 
I've been using Lee shotgun presses for over 40 years. The only ones I've ever had.
I currently have 12, 16, & 20 ga presses.

Like a previous poster says.............go easy on them and they do just fine.
Definitely not a high-volume machine, but works for me.
I have each of them mounted to a piece of 3/4" plywood that I can c-clamp to the bench
 
I've reloaded 6-7000 223 with one of these. And it was with LEE dies sizing once fired US military brass.
Don't be cheap with the lube, and don't use cheap lube.
 
i've had the press for 2-3 years now and loaded 10k + with it from 9mm to 500 mag and 223 rem to 8x56r. i have mine mounted to a 10" length of 2x4 which i then clamp to a desk. the 500mag is the toughest on it if i don't lube the brass. if you end up reloading more later on it would make a great decapper (if you cut a hole through your desk to drop the primers out of the body where they collect) press if you upgraded to an O press. If mine broke i would happily buy another one without question. once i get a proper bench built i will likely use it less since i will buy a lee classic cast for my rifle reloading.

i also use it for my cast bullet push through sizing dies and have sized .358 berry's plated bullets down to .329 in one pass with lube. It will be a massive improvement to the lee loader you have currently, but so would an O type press.
 
I just bought one and a LEE universal decapper. It is going to be my dedicated decapping station. Got this idea from an article in Handloader magazine. This way I can decap before tumbling and the primer detritus doesn't end up all over my "good" RCBS press. No primers on the floor either (RCBS are good presses but their primer catchers suck :)
 
i have been using a lee turret press for over 30 yrs no problems. i had a lee 1000 progressive press i hated it, i recently gave it away. priming system is junk
 
If I was brand new to all of this, I would probably just get the 50th anniversary kit, because it includes basically everything... But I've already bought a lot of the little pieces like deburr/chamfer tool, case length gauge/lock stud/cutter, a Lee Priming tool (Much Much MUCH better than using a hammer...lol) ect ect. I also have a digital scale that is supposed to be accurate to 0.2 grains, so that will at least get me out the gate (I know its not accurate enough for quality reloads, but its accurate enough to get started.)

I literally need just the press, dies, powder, and bullets, and away I go... And funds are very tight, I still haven't finished paying this semesters tuition, and the semester is almost half over. So the cheapest functional press is what I am after.

I think I will likely pull the trigger on this one very soon, seems its worth the $40-50 cost considering anything else is 3-4 times the price...
 
I found the Pros of this press are Portability, cost, and you can always use it with another press down the road.
Cons so far after 3 thousands rounds( 357,38special 9mm) the paint starting to flake and the wooden ball falls off sometimes not deal breaker for me though. Rifle cases could be a bit of a struggle with short handle and light weight altogether personally never done it before, Like other mentioned it can be done.
Https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dKw-oKhUD1c this method works great for this press!!

Drilled hole in the middle for primers to fall out.

My portable set up dinning room table :) http://imgur.com/df9Vu9v

cheers!

 
A Lee Reloader was my only press for my first 10 years as a home loader. I wasn't shooting that much through high school and university but it still loaded a few thousand rounds of .308, .223, .44 and .357 mag. When I gave it away to a newbie loader it was still in fine working shape.
 
I would be a little worried about that press depending on your 303. If you FL size a 303 they can require a bit of effort depending on the chamber. I think others have said it in a roundabout way, this works for low effort operations but if you want to get into centerfire rifle stuff at least get the Lee anniversary kit. Lots more value there and a much more durable press. I bought one and just jammed in their breech lock adapter for ordinary die rings.
 
oneadam12 said:
I would be a little worried about that press depending on your 303. If you FL size a 303 they can require a bit of effort depending on the chamber. I think others have said it in a roundabout way, this works for low effort operations but if you want to get into centerfire rifle stuff at least get the Lee anniversary kit. Lots more value there and a much more durable press. I bought one and just jammed in their breech lock adapter for ordinary die rings.
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Anniversary kit contains a lot of stuff I dont need and/or already have.

As for the 303, I will not be full-length sizing them unless they refuse to chamber. It'll be neck-sizing only for them for the most part. For the time being, I will probably just use my lee classic loader for sizing the 303 because it means I dont have to buy dies for it yet.

The 270 I had planned on full-length sizing, but only because Im poor and didn't want to buy the collet neck-sizing die yet. Its a hunting rifle, so I am not after 1000-yard accuracy or anything. I *might* end up getting the die set that has both the FL die and the collet neck-sizing die, but its not really in the budget right now.
 
Lots of companies make that very model. Small efficient and well worth the money spent. Some use it for just one purpose besides their main press.
 
I have the Anniversary Kit and I have the press mounted to a base consisting of two pieces of 3/4" plywood sandwiched together. I use 2 c-clamps to secure it to an old, heavy coffee table and it works great. No flex or movement at all. Only tip I recommend is to make sure to keep it well lubricated. It gets a little tight and chirpy if not oiled sufficiently.
 
Hitzy said:
Use to be able to get the classic cast for $99, now they are like $160. I've been using one of those since they came out. A good press will last forever.... I've broken dies with this press, it's solid.
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How did you manage to "break" a die? Do you mean you popped a Lee die apart? I'd like to see someone bust a normal sizing die, or seater lol.
 
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