Lee reloading eqpmnt?

With regard to presses, for decades I had used a Rockchucker and a few years ago gave it to a buddy. It worked fine, no mechanical problems at all.
Trouble is the opening was too small to size and load 45- 3 1/4 Sharps and altogether too small for 50 BMG.
Now I have a Lee Classic Cast and an RCBS Ammomaster for the big stuff, a Forster Co-Ax, a C-H 3 station, and a Dillon 550B for everything else.
All work very well, each one has its good points, and each has its faults.
They are all well made and have proven reliable for my requirements....
 
my hands on 2 cents bout lee products:

awesome pricing on rare to find caliber dies. Best pricing actually something like 20$ for lee vs 50$ for RCBS.

only other product I have used is the reloader's press (paid about 25$NIB from natchez shooting supplies) and I use it only as a 5th station to my dillon 550b. The only thing it will do correctly is crimping pistol cartridges. I've tried it for other applications and it just wouldn't step up. I have absolutely no mechanical advantage the arm is wobly even when the nuts are tightened post-factory setting. But it is good for the purpose I got it for. I tried to resize 45acp brass to 400CorBon dies (normal process) on this press and I've had none of them within neck & shoulder spec.

They make good product though, but you always get what you pay for
 
charles.emond said:
The only thing it will do correctly is crimping pistol cartridges. I've tried it for other applications and it just wouldn't step up. I have absolutely no mechanical advantage the arm is wobly even when the nuts are tightened post-factory setting. But it is good for the purpose I got it for. I tried to resize 45acp brass to 400CorBon dies (normal process) on this press and I've had none of them within neck & shoulder spec.

They make good product though, but you always get what you pay for
Click to expand...

Not to bash Lee products...but that doesn't sound like a good product. Maybe they make good dies...:confused:
 
Quigley said:
Not to bash Lee products...but that doesn't sound like a good product. Maybe they make good dies...:confused:
Click to expand...

The press he is referring to is a really cheap "C" press that is really only intended for lubing/sizing cast bullets and other light duty chores. I have one, it came free with the Lee reloading manual (or maybe the other way around), anyway the combo deal was about $20.

reloader.jpg


The Lee Classic Cast press is a completly different animal, and actually designed to size and reload 50 BMG. A lot of people use it for that purpose, as it is about 1/3 the cost of RCBS, Hornady 50 BMG presses with dies.
 
I have done a little over 4000 rounds of 9mm in my Lee Single Stage press in the last 18 months.

Perfect Powder Measure works fine.
Scale works fine.
Dies work fine.
On press primer works fine.

Best $150 I have spent in a while.

Definitely getting a progressive in the future though.
 
RUPZUK said:
Did you clean the gun somewhere in this 1500 rounds or did you just shoot it from brand to brand until it jammed up ?
If you never cleaned it, its kinda hard to blame the ammo or the gun IMO.
A lot of gunk can get built up over time.
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Yes, I clean guns after avery range session and oil them.
 
I spoke to some old time reloaders before i got into it. I asked them about starting out with a cheap kit vs. others.

One of the fellows told me : "no man is rich enough to buy cheap"

A good phrase to live by...apply it to reloading or anything else.

Buy once and save money.

edit: I do own some lee stuff and its not all junk, could never figure out why they had no lock ring on their dies, the set I have works but I prefer something I can adjust and lock.
 
SandRoad said:
The press he is referring to is a really cheap "C" press that is really only intended for lubing/sizing cast bullets and other light duty chores. I have one, it came free with the Lee reloading manual (or maybe the other way around), anyway the combo deal was about $20.

reloader.jpg


.
Click to expand...

lol. I use that little guy to reload for my 9.3x62mm. It ain't pretty, but it it works.
 
the funny thign with this press is that, if you are resizing, the spent primers goes into the press frame, only way to retrieve them is to un-mount the press unless you dont have it mounted to a table, or block the hole in the frame and have the primers fall on the ground :(
 
I started reloading with Lee equipment back in '86. Bought a Challenger 2001 press, and it served me well. I think they are good products that will get a person going with reloading on a limited budget. I eventually bought a Redding Boss press about 14yrs ago after the cast linkage broke on the Lee. I still use the Redding as my only rifle press today. If I was the OP, I would buy a Lee Classic Cast press and a RCBS balance beam scale (the RCBS 505 is what I started with). I don't like the Lee scale.

Hope this helps
 
Pathfinder said:
I spoke to some old time reloaders before i got into it. I asked them about starting out with a cheap kit vs. others.

One of the fellows told me : "no man is rich enough to buy cheap"

A good phrase to live by...apply it to reloading or anything else.

Buy once and save money.

edit: I do own some lee stuff and its not all junk, could never figure out why they had no lock ring on their dies, the set I have works but I prefer something I can adjust and lock.
Click to expand...

smartest advice so far....
 
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