Looking at getting into reloading... not sure what to look for.

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thepolinator

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Hey all,
I have decided to get into reloading. I have not purchased anything at this point, but doing some shopping I realize that I have no idea what I should be looking for in a press. Should I be looking for a single stage press or a progressive. I am currently looking at buying an RCBS press. Money is a factor, so I was considering something like the RCBS Partner Press, or the Rock Chucker in a single stage or the turret press as an option if I go the progressive route. Should I start with a single stage for now or just go straight to a progressive? Would you recommend me getting the press and all other reloading tools separately, or buying a kit and then getting the dies that I require?
Thanks in advance for your imput.
 
I am not going to recommend any presses at this point....I am quite biased btw...

What I will suggest, is that you purchase 3 different reloading manuals....read them cover to cover....then come back here and ask your questions.

Just my opinion.

Hope this helps!
 
Are you interested in cranking out tons of moderately cheap, moderately accurate rounds?

Or are you interested in carefully preparing (probably) slightly more expensive rounds (but still cheaper and better than factory) that are optimized for precision and consistency?

If the former, progressive is the way to go. If the latter, single stage.

Do you want to reload for pistol or rifle? Do you shoot high volume rifle (lots of semi-auto plinking) or are you hunting and target shooting and looking for maximal power, accuracy and consistency?

Progressive lend themselves more toward pistol and other high-volume work, whereas single-stage presses are generally more precise and consistent.

Do have a lot of space and a lot of money? Progressives are generally a lot bigger and far more expensive.

Are you mechanically inclined? Progressives need a fair bit of setup to get going, and seem to require adjustment from time to time to troubleshoot and maintain. Single-stage presses are far slower and 'low-tech', but setup generally consists of bolting it to a bench and screwing in your dies.

The common wisdom, though, is to start on a single stage press. Just getting a progressive set up and running smoothly is a chore. And a single stage press, with a proper workflow, forces you to do things manually and learn to be safe and consistent from the get-go. I'm still fairly new to this, and that's the route I was advised to take and what I did. I'll probably start reloading 9mm pretty soon, and I'll do that on a single stage even though I know it's going to be way slower than on a progressive.
 
It depends on what type of ammo you are going to reload. Rifle ammo, go with a single stage press. If it is pistol ammo, go to a turret press. They will work like a single stage or can be auto indexing.
A single stage will make you crazy if you reload pistol ammo after about 10 minutes.
I recommend a kit when you buy as you get more for your money. Individual items always add up to more.
Watch some videos on Youtube before you buy.
I stock Lee & Hornady single stage kits & Lee turret presses.

Regards, Henry
 
Start with a couple of manuals and get a thorough understanding of what you are about to do. Done properly it is a great pasttime and hobby. Done improperly, well it is what I like to call a 'self correcting mistake'. Not something to take lightly.
dB
 
start with a couple of reloading manuals first as others have said, but it all depends on what you plan to reload and what kind of shooting you plan to do with said reloads.
 
Start by learning what is reloading and basic tools used.

Then build a game plan on what you want to reload, volume, and level of precision desired.

THEN worry about the parts. It will be pretty straightforward once you have your goals organised.

I have a PDF of the stuff I use for precision rifle shooting. If interested, Email me. It covers most manfs and highlights stuff I feel is good value. No one company makes everything I want to use. Not everything out there is worth the money

Jerry
 
I will give you my opinion and it's just that MY opinion.

If you have never reloaded before and want to try it out to see if you will enjoy it, or are limited in funds, I would start out with an inexpensive setup and go from there.

I started out nearly 4 years ago using a Lee 50th Anniversary kit for $80.00 U.S. Plus a set of dies.
I realized that I enjoyed reloading and I had bought several thousands of dollars of reloading gear since.
I now have a full progressive setup including bullet feeders and case feeders, automatic case trimmers, Chargemasters and an annealing machine, die sets that cost upwards of $300 but for some reason I still use that little Lee press more than any other on my bench.

Don't let people tell you that you need expensive equipment to make accurate ammo.


Buy the Anniversary kit, a set of Lee dies, a reloading block and a decent digital scale and try it out.
 
I started with a good single and moved on from there.. you learn every step in detail that way and how to fix problems before you produce with speed and volume..
 
One thing I would suggest is a book called ABCs of Reloading. It's been through a number of editions; any of the more recent ones are fine. It's a general introduction to all aspects of reloading. Unlike the reloading manuals - which you will definitely need - ABCs is light on 'recipes' but IMHO better at the introduction. Read that through and most of your questions will be answered.

I agree with just about everything said above. You need to consider budget, you need to consider what you are reloading and what sort of throughput you need and you need to consider ancillary issues like space, legal storage of propellents and primers, etc.

I have an Excel spreadsheet for savings per round, payoff times, etc which might be useful. PM me with your email address for a copy.
 
As suggested, you need to figure out how much ammo you're going to shoot and if it's just rifle or pistol also.

I'm on a budget with a young family and I don't shoot as much for the time being. I was nervous to go progressive right off the bat so I went single stage. I'm happy I did! It's slower but I feel that I am now comfortable enough in my knowledge to go progressive.

Do read some manuals. I have the Lyman, the Hornady, the Lee and the ABC's. And watch videos on Youtube. There's a ton of good ones.

Good luck sorting it out, be safe and have fun! Reloading is a great and rewarding hobby.
 
I have said it before, but do yourself a big favor and start with the rockchucker supreme reloading kit. Not the cheapest kit out there ($500 ish), but you will save yourself some money in the long run because you won't be replacing anything. One of the best single stage presses out there, and it comes with a good manual too. I say single stage because I believe progressive is not for the beginner, although feel free to contest me on that one.
 
MetalMike said:
I have said it before, but do yourself a big favor and start with the rockchucker supreme reloading kit. Not the cheapest kit out there ($500 ish), but you will save yourself some money in the long run because you won't be replacing anything. One of the best single stage presses out there, and it comes with a good manual too. I say single stage because I believe progressive is not for the beginner, although feel free to contest me on that one.
Click to expand...

i contest you on the SS vs progressive :) you can do everything on a progressive in single stage to learn, then once you feel up to it start cranking the rounds out.

also the lee classic cast press is a much better bang for the buck, however the rcbs kit is a better choice if you want to buy it all in one shot vs buying separate.
 
I started with a Lee Loader in 1968 and upgraded after I got out of the military in 1973, I bought a Rockchucker press and it is the only press I have today and its still going strong.

At times I thought about a progressive press, but in my opinion you will get the best accuracy with a single stage press. And if you need that much ammo then stay up late reloading and call in sick before you go to bed.:D

Learn and read on how to setup your dies to reduce runout. More reloaded ammunition is loaded with excess runout for the simple reason the decapping stem is locked down off center than any other reason.

What I'm getting at is you don't need the best and most expensive reloading equipment, and just know how to get the most from what you have. Meaning spending more won't increase your accuracy if you don't know how to set up your dies.

Below is a Forster full length resizing die, look at the location of the expander button on the spindle, the expander button enters the neck of the case while the case neck is still inside the neck of the die. The spindle lock nut has a rubber washer under it and this allows the spindle/expander button to "float" and self center.

Sizer_Die_01_zpseda5968c.gif


You can move any make/brand die spindle upward and copy the Forster design. Lee lock rings which you can buy have rubber o-rings on the bottom and will allow the die to float and self center in the press when just finger tight.
And if you use Redding competition shell holders the shell holder will always make hard contact with the bottom of the die.(press camover) This removes any slop or alignment errors the press may have in the sizing operation.
No matter what you read, full length resizing with a standard factory rifle will give you the best accuracy.

Below is a full length resized cartridge in a rifles chamber, the base of the case is supported by the bolt face and by the bullet in the chambers throat. The cartidge case walls and neck do not contact the chamber walls, meaning full length resizing eliminates any case misalignment problems with the bore. This in turn lessons the effects of neck runout and improves "YOUR" reloaded ammo.

chamber-neck-diagram-with-cartridge2x_zps7395df40.jpg


Bottom line, my old Rockchucker press is still going strong and with a few simple tricks to reduce runout and spending less money I'm still in the game and haven't spent a fortune on reloading equipment by reading about what really counts.

These two web sights below have a wealth of information on reloading. But just remember these websites are geared toward custom rifle and much of what the do tweaking their brass has very little effect a stock factory and factory size chambers. As an example you would be nuts to neck turn brass for a Winchester 30-30 rifle but the tips you read below will help you make better ammunition.

Accurateshooter.com
http://www.accurateshooter.com/

The Rifleman's Journal
Index of Articles
http://riflemansjournal.########.com/p/articles-index.html

NOTE: you will find the rubber o-ring tricks at both websites, and at the Riflemans journal you will find a humorous quote by the late competitive shooter Jim Hall of Sierra bullets who always full length resized his cases.
"I get the best accuracy when my cases fit the chamber like a rat turd in a violin case"

My favorite saying below.

"All the information in the world is written in books and all you have to do is read".

And after over 47 years of reloading the biggest problem new reloaders have is not reading the front part of their reloading manuals and absorbing all the information.
 
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