Lyman vs RCBS vs Redding vs ### reloading kits? plz spend my $500!

prosper - i looked at the forester press - some interesting and time-saving features like 2-second die changes, a universal shell holder, etc. but it seems that all these features are aimed at the reloader who reloads for several different calibres on a larger scale.
by the end of the year i actually hope to have culled my centrefire rifle calibres down to 4, so i wont be doing so much die-changing, and this way i can get a whole rockchucker kit for less than the price of just the forester press. ill do some larger reloading runs for one caliber, then switch.

decided to order a caliper as well as im not sure how accurate mine is, its very old.
so far i have (with rough prices):

RCBS Rockchucker Supreme Kit (manual, press, measure, scale, etc) ($220)
LEE case trimmer cutter ($4), chamfer tool ($2), primer pocket cleaner ($1)
LEE Auto-Prime tool ($12)
RCBS basic Powder Trickler ($12)
Lyman Stainless Dial Caliper ($20)

Caliber dependant holders/dies:
DIES, full length for each caliber ($26)
LEE case trimmer guages/pilots for each caliber ($3.50)
LEE case trimmer cutter for each extra caliber (to save time changing the guides, theyre only $4)
LEE Auto-Prime tool bases for each caliber ($2)

total, with 2 calibers, about $340 - plus shipping and whatever Canada Customs decides to ding me with. is RCBS made in USA?

i think i will skimp on a case cleaner. i have a small 2l stainless steel keg, i can strap a jitterbug to it (i have a couple laying around) with a wad of 2-way tape and heavy duty zip ties and im set. all it is is a vibrating container.

if there is anything else ill need please let me know.
and THANK YOU all for helping me on this. looks like this is the kick in the ass i needed to get started on reloading.
ill look these over more tomorrow and order them later in the day, and when i get my reloading workshop set up ill post a pic :)





**edit:
interesting to note that im getting all this for $340 US +shipping, or $325 Canadian.
Lebaron sells just the RockChucker Supreme Kit for $380 Canadian.
thats a nice 200% price gouge on the Rockchucker Supreme Kit. have i mentioned i hate Canada sometimes?
 
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I thought you had $500 to spend? I find I'm MUCH better served with the RCBS 1500 chargemaster than a thrower and scale. And, just cause you've ony got a couple cartridges to load for now doesn't mean that'll always be the case.

I'm not a huge fan of 'settling' when buying equipment, as it's more expensive in the long run (when you decide to upgrade anyway and end up buying everything twice)
 
actually the main reason im not buying the electronic scale isnt so much the cost.
i like the idea that there is basically nothing that can ever go wrong with the manual scale, it will work without batteries or during a power failure or in a SHTF scenario where there is no power, or up at the cottage i dont need to run the generator for it. it can never break down, and i can hand it down to my kids.
time i have plenty of, and i dont shoot that many bullets, so i totally dont mind sitting down and taking an hour to fill a couple boxes of ammo.

same reason for the dial caliper, i suppose. if i take care of it it can never break down. in fact im already looking for a higher quality one, since it seems like one of the most important tools in the process. also seriously reconsidering the RCBS trimmer.
 
manbearpig said:
i think i will skimp on a case cleaner. i have a small 2l stainless steel keg, i can strap a jitterbug to it (i have a couple laying around) with a wad of 2-way tape and heavy duty zip ties and im set. all it is is a vibrating container.
Click to expand...

Tumblers cycle the brass in a waterfall type motion and are not just vibrated, they are actually tumbling the brass over and over through the media. Find someone who has one and see it for your self.

WSS sells the Frankford Arsenal ones for around $50 and they work well.
 
manbearpig said:
leetrimmerzy5.jpg


is this what you mean by the Lee trimmer, t-star?
so you order the cutter and lock stud, chamfer tool, and then guage/holder/pilot set for each caliber you want to reload for?

so $4.18 for the cutter/lock stud
$2.08 for chamfer tool, and then $3.48 for the kit for each caliber? am i reading that right?
Click to expand...

yep, that's the one i use, the chamfer tool is universal, so you only need1, but i bought case cutters/lockstuds for EACH cliber i reload as they're reatively cheap and you don't have to dismount them to change calibers-i do 223, 308 and 338 win mag- you're still nowhere near the price of one of those lathe types with all the pilots
 
you're getting VERY well set up for reloading- way back when i started before LEE came along, the reloading tool manufacturers were basically rcbs, redding, lyman, and a couple of others- and they felt they had the right to "stick it to you' as far as pricing went
when i was loading single rounds( before lee brought out his turret press = the "short" one
i i had a set up like this- lyman 32oo tumbler( i got a deal on the big fellow )
then a media seperator- mine was an ice cream bucket with holes in the bottom that you shook until the cases were left and the media was in another bucket
lube pad- an uninked pad i got from stationary supplies and lanolin from the drug store
press and dies
lee case trimmers
powder scale for the intial weighing of charge
redding powder measure
then a towel to remove the case lube
you wonder why no caliper- well i did have one that i got from an tool supply outfit-you want one that measures in thous. , but i found it REDUNDANT with
the lee trimmers- they're already set to factory specs
after a while , however, i got rid of the single stage and went to a lee turret
got a powder measure that trips with the mouth of the case, and things really started to speed up
if i were to do it again, i still think i'd put in a SECOND press in the line( a cheap one, as you only use it for bullet seating) with a second shellholder
so it would go like this
tumbler, media seperator( rcbs makes an excellent one which i still use) lube station( either spray or pad- i prefer spray- with a tray) then your press with decapper/sizer, then primer( either your hand primer or the one on the press- i like the one on the rcbs as it's simple and stright forward - the lee is either the hand auto prime(which it makes sense to do batch priming)or mounted to the press as an accessory- you're getting an rcbs, so i'd just use the one on the press, then your powder measure ( which you've already set up using your scale) and then back to your press for the final bullet seating- it was at this point i decided that having a SECOND cheap press made more sense as i didn't have to screw/unscrew the dies and made more of an "assembly" line if you will, then a towel to wipe off the finished round
you will notice that there's also no trickler- i've never needed one as i've always got within +-.1 grain with just the adjustment from the micrometer/block/ whatever on the measure- that's close enough for hunting/and what else i do
i had to replace the scale i originally had( a ohaus 505) as it fell one day and broke the beam- it was pot metal - so now i have 2 just in case
the other thing you want to consider is WHERE you want to set up- someplace with NO draft, for at least setting your scale, because wind WILL influence your scale
 
Sounds like you are going to end up with a great setup, especially to start with.

For a caliper, just get one of the (better) Princess Auto, CTC or similar electronic ones, that have a resolution of 0.0005", for less than $20 on sale .

The electronic ones work by reading an imbeded strip on the bar and are in fact very accurate. For what you are doing, paying more does not get you any more usable accuracy.
 
i understand from looking at the press and the dies that the case is forced into the die to be resized, which also pushes out the old primer. i grasp the case cleaning/lubricating bit, the case trimming part, the deburring/chamfering, the powder weighing and measuring, etc. but im confused about exactly how primer and bullet seating is done.

you mention adding a second press just for seating bullets -- is it just one more pull on the press, or is there a significant changeover time from resizing cases to seating bullets? is the standard die set used for seating the bullet or do i also have to buy some sortof bullet seating dies?
ie: do i have to change something over between every single case? or do the cases sit there primed and filled with powder in a tray waiting to have their bullets seated? neither sounds like an ideal situation.

since bullet seating doesnt require a heavy duty press, would there be a significant time savings if i bought one of the cheap, small 'beginner' presses from LEE or something and set that up to seat bullets like you say? would i need to buy a second complete set of dies to do this? (would get progressively more expensive, since each new caliber now would cost about $50-60 total in extra dies/parts)


either your hand primer or the one on the press- i like the one on the rcbs as it's simple and stright forward
///
or mounted to the press as an accessory- you're getting an rcbs, so i'd just use the one on the press
Click to expand...
so does the RCBS Cockchucker kit include some sortof tool to seat the primers or do you have to buy one as an add-on to the main press?
 
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what i told you is what works for me- your mileage may vary- when you get your dies, you will notice a pin/stem in the middle- it's this pin/stem( called a decapper) forced through the flash hole, that deprimes or decaps the case-
when you prime, there's a punch that comes up and places a new primer in that hole and seats it under pressure- this is all VERY ELEMENTARY and READING THE MANUAL or doing a SEARCH ON RELOADING with your search engine on the internet would have answered all these questions
2 your dies are tyically a 2 die set and include BOTH a SIZING die and a SEATING die- they may or MAY NOT include a shellholder- what i'm suggesting is that you place the SEATING die with ANOTHER shellholder
in a SECOND PRESS, you see , you've got a "flow " going- tumble, lube, resize. prime, powder, and now you have to undo your sizing die and replace it with a seating die to finish the sequence- with a second press and die already at the end of the line , you don't have to- i found it piddling and slow to have to screw/unscrew- what some do is do like 20/50 cases at a time , but one operation- ie resize 50 cases, then prime 50 cases- it's the powder charging station where your loading blocks come in if you're doing "batch" reloading
and yes, any cheap press would do for that part of the operation- personally, i'd still go with the "o" style,
 
manbearpig said:
i understand from looking at the press and the dies that the case is forced into the die to be resized, which also pushes out the old primer. i grasp the case cleaning/lubricating bit, the case trimming part, the deburring/chamfering, the powder weighing and measuring, etc. but im confused about exactly how primer and bullet seating is done.

you mention adding a second press just for seating bullets -- is it just one more pull on the press, or is there a significant changeover time from resizing cases to seating bullets? is the standard die set used for seating the bullet or do i also have to buy some sortof bullet seating dies?
ie: do i have to change something over between every single case? or do the cases sit there primed and filled with powder in a tray waiting to have their bullets seated? neither sounds like an ideal situation.

since bullet seating doesnt require a heavy duty press, would there be a significant time savings if i bought one of the cheap, small 'beginner' presses from LEE or something and set that up to seat bullets like you say? would i need to buy a second complete set of dies to do this? (would get progressively more expensive, since each new caliber now would cost about $50-60 total in extra dies/parts)



so does the RCBS Cockchucker kit include some sortof tool to seat the primers or do you have to buy one as an add-on to the main press?
Click to expand...

if you look at the list of components in your rO ckchucker kut, you'll see AUTOMATIC PRIMER FEED ,and related components in the list
the bullet seating is done by the ram forcing the bullet into the case as it moves upward in the seating phase- ie when you seat the bullet, you place the bullet into the case mouth and then pull the arm down, causing the ram to raise against the die and seat the bullet
 
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t-star said:
this is all VERY ELEMENTARY and READING THE MANUAL or doing a SEARCH ON RELOADING with your search engine on the internet would have answered all these questions
Click to expand...

*sigh*
seeing as i do not reload yet, i do not have a reloading manual. i could buy one now locally, but with the retarded canadian prices it would cost me as much as ordering a press from the states would, so its money out the window.
searching for how-tos on reloading you get a bunch of results telling you what to do with your reloading equipment - which i do not have.
like this: w ww.gunnersden.com/index.htm.rifle-cartridge-reloading.html
half of that makes no sense to me because i have no idea what he is talking about, there are no photos, and i do not have the equipment or manual in front of me.

i realise i am probably being annoying with some of these questions but i am trying to figure out exactly what equipment i need to order - so i would rather ask the questions in advance, figure out what everything does and make sure i order everything that i need, THEN i can sit down, read the manual, and learn to reload.
this is being shipped from the states and i would rather order everything at once than get everything set up, realise i am missing some integral tool for the reloading process, and have to wait several weeks and pay another massive shipping fee to get it.

originally i assumed that if i ordered a 'reloading kit', then i would automatically have everything i needed. apparently not, however, since most of these kits lack a case trimmer, caliper, etc. so again i am just trying to make sure i get everything i need -- you shouldnt assume that i havent looked this up on Google already: but to someone who doesnt have the equipment in front of them, or a manual, a 'reloading tutorial' with no photos is nearly useless.

your dies are typically a 2 die set and include BOTH a SIZING die and a SEATING die- they may or MAY NOT include a shellholder- what i'm suggesting is that you place the SEATING die with ANOTHER shellholder
Click to expand...

thanks, this is what i wanted to know - that theres a bullet seating die and a sizing die in each set of dies.
the shellholders are pretty cheap and will work for multiple cartridges so i could get a complete set of .30-06 and .308 (or .243, .270, etc) dies and end up with an extra shellholder that can be used in a second cheap press with the bullet seating die.
so i guess i will be ordering a cheap press in addition to the rockchucker.

would something like a LEE reloading press, for $20 be OK? are all brands of dies/holders universally compatible with all presses - so if i buy a set of RCBS dies theyll work with the LEE press, and vice versa?
leepresspy3.jpg


people seem to universally recommend the O style press, but for seating bullets wouldnt a cheap C style press be sufficient, and also allow easier access/visibility?
 
t-star said:
if you look at the list of components in your rOckchucker kit, you'll see AUTOMATIC PRIMER FEED ,and related components in the list the bullet seating is done by the ram forcing the bullet into the case as it moves upward in the seating phase- ie when you seat the bullet, you place the bullet into the case mouth and then pull the arm down, causing the ram to raise against the die and seat the bullet
Click to expand...

actually the automatic primer feed is below the rockchucker kit, as a separate item for $22.09... this is why i was asking about the primer seating.
so do i need to order that $22.09 'Automatic Primer Feed Combo' as well as the Rockchucker Kit? theres also a primer plug & sleeve, universal primer arm, etc. ive been asking if i need to order these as well.
rcbsve7.jpg
 
manbearpig said:
*sigh*
seeing as i do not reload yet, i do not have a reloading manual. i could buy one now locally, but with the retarded canadian prices it would cost me as much as ordering a press from the states would, so its money out the window.
searching for how-tos on reloading you get a bunch of results telling you what to do with your reloading equipment - which i do not have.
like this: w ww.gunnersden.com/index.htm.rifle-cartridge-reloading.html
half of that makes no sense to me because i have no idea what he is talking about, there are no photos, and i do not have the equipment or manual in front of me.

i realise i am probably being annoying with some of these questions but i am trying to figure out exactly what equipment i need to order - so i would rather ask the questions in advance, figure out what everything does and make sure i order everything that i need, THEN i can sit down, read the manual, and learn to reload.
this is being shipped from the states and i would rather order everything at once than get everything set up, realise i am missing some integral tool for the reloading process, and have to wait several weeks and pay another massive shipping fee to get it.

originally i assumed that if i ordered a 'reloading kit', then i would automatically have everything i needed. apparently not, however, since most of these kits lack a case trimmer, caliper, etc. so again i am just trying to make sure i get everything i need -- you shouldnt assume that i havent looked this up on Google already: but to someone who doesnt have the equipment in front of them, or a manual, a 'reloading tutorial' with no photos is nearly useless.



thanks, this is what i wanted to know - that theres a bullet seating die and a sizing die in each set of dies.
the shellholders are pretty cheap and will work for multiple cartridges so i could get a complete set of .30-06 and .308 (or .243, .270, etc) dies and end up with an extra shellholder that can be used in a second cheap press with the bullet seating die.
so i guess i will be ordering a cheap press in addition to the rockchucker.

would something like a LEE reloading press, for $20 be OK? are all brands of dies/holders universally compatible with all presses - so if i buy a set of RCBS dies theyll work with the LEE press, and vice versa?
leepresspy3.jpg


people seem to universally recommend the O style press, but for seating bullets wouldnt a cheap C style press be sufficient, and also allow easier access/visibility?
Click to expand...
yes, everybody's dies fit everybody elses- they're all 7/8x14 , the exception of dillon square deal
2 it's just a matter of feeling, but i'd still go with the 0 ring press- the c MIGHT BE ALRIGHT, but there's also the option with both presses being o, that if something goes south on one, you still have the other- what's not being mentioned is that if YOU BUY LEE DIES you get the shellholder withthe dies- i've had to buy that with the lyman and the rcbs -
 
yea, i see what you mean- the way they present their combo is confusing -they'd lose me on that point alone- but i'm a lee man now as well as dillon

i'm probably going to get a lot of flack for this, but this is the way i'd set up my bench
lyman tumbler
rcbs media seperator
case trimmer
lube station
press( with sizing die)- the heavy duty press
primer station
powder station
press with seating die- the cheap light duty one
towel to take off lube
rcbs i guess has taken out the priming mech and priced it seperately- it used to be included with the old jr and pardner presses- if that's the case, you need the primer catcher too as you don't want the spent ones dropping into the ram and on the floor- on mine it was just a funny shaped cup
 
it isnt listed here but its visible in the photo - the kit apparently includes the hand priming tool.
im looking over at cabelas and it lists the same kit (checked the part number), as having:

# RC Supreme Press
# 5-0-5 Powder Scale
# Uniflow™ Powder Measure
# Speer No. 13 Reloading Manual
# Hand Priming Tool
# Hex Key Set
# Case Loading Block
# Case Lube Kit
# Powder Funnel and Deburring Tool.
 
a little further digging should have brought you to the association- national reloading manufacturers assocaition- for some reason it won't link but i can get it through yahoo search- anyway, it's got pictures and a pretty good explaination
http://www.reload-nrma.com/metallic.html
 
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thanks.

here is a page showing the available LEE dies, since several people have suggested these instead of the RCBS ones. ive highlighted the calibres id initially be interested in in yellow. am i correct to assume that the blue column ones are what i should order? or should i be looking at the Pacesetter dies?
it lists that the Deluxe Rifle Die set comes with:
neck-sizing die
dead-length bullet setter
full-length sizing die
& shellholder
what about the 7.62 russian? there is no listing in that column.
leediespq1.jpg


if i am ordering something for a caliber that has a duplicate base, like .308 and .30-06, can i buy just the cheap 'RGB dies' (says it has the 2-die set only).

here is what it says about the different types of die sets:
leedies2rr3.jpg
 
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quick question -
if i order a second small LEE press, is it worth it to spend the extra $5 and get the combo with the LEE reloading manual? i will already have the SPEER reloading manual with the rockchucker kit. is the second manual redundant, or can you never have too many manuals?
 
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