picking a Lee reloading kit???

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jim_wrench

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Central Alberta.
Looking for a reloading kit. Like what Lee brings to the table in terms of price but cannot seem to find any key differences them.
Considering the deluxe turret kit the breech lock challenger kit or the 4 hole turret press kit.

I maybe unload 20 rounds a year.(30-06)
But my wife unloaded 4 boxes since Christmas (.243) so figure for the increase in usage might as well load my own.

Looking to only reload maybe 200 rounds a year and not looking to spend a fortune to get set up. What do you guys recommend for a press kit. The price differs is like 30 bucks for the three. I just cannot find anything conclusive to be able to pick one over the other.

Thanks for any and all opinions.
 
For the limited amount you would be reloading I would recommend the breech lock kit second and the classic cast kit first.
 
The lee turret presses are good for pistol calibers, but I can't recommend them for rifle rounds. Get a single stage press for your rifle rounds. I think the lee kit is good value for the price.
 
Jim Wrench, I am new to reloading with presses and went the way of the Lee Breech Lock kit with the non cast press this past summer…so I am new to this as well so you may or may not take value this my post. I too like Lee’s approach and without a less expensive option to get my feet wet with I wouldn’t be reloading…so good on Lee.

We reload for hunting primarily with two 7mm-08 rifles for myself and my son for deer and are likely in the same volume of cartridge making as you have stated. We have spent time developing loads for a hunting bullet that didn’t meet expectations in the field and so the story goes on … and on… and on…

The kit itself has the reloading parts and pieces covered but what it doesn’t have is the measuring side in terms of case sizing and preparation. If you have a budget to keep within, like ourselves, the Lee kit has worked for us knowing that we’ll be spending some more on calipers, gauges, and other measurement/cleaning tools. From the limited experience we have, expenditures to date to have equaled and infact exceeded the amount paid for the kit itself for other tools. (From the outside looking in, the concept of reloading with primers and powders can seemed daunting with no experience. We spent on the extra’s because I didn’t have an experienced reloader to draw from so we purchased tools and accessories to audit our process to make sure we’re “good”. If you are beyond that in confidence already then terrific. )

For what it’s worth, the results from “rolling our own” has forever changed perspective on reloading because of the improved accuracy. For me it’s become addictive and I am now on the path to get the best accuracy and hunting bullet performance knowing the limitations of our hunting rifles. You may not have this concern going forward. That being said, from my limited experience, the kit provides a good foundation but we are spending more on other supplementary tools.

One thing I will mention is that this forum has a wealth of knowledgeable reloaders with essential information. Research here on posts for specific subjects can answer the questions you may have. It certainly has in our case. Responses may be terse or long so take each post as it comes but each post has a point. There are lots here willing to help out, and in our case, we are much better for it.

Regards
Ron R
 
snooker said:
The lee turret presses are good for pistol calibers, but I can't recommend them for rifle rounds. Get a single stage press for your rifle rounds. I think the lee kit is good value for the price.
Click to expand...

I'm with this guy...the turret presses are nice for a second press where you can set up you seaters, crimpers, neck sizers etc, but full length resizing rifle brass needs a good single stage press. I like just about everything Lee makes except their powder measures...Rcbs uniflow for rifle and Lyman 55 for pistol.
 
jim_wrench said:
Looking for a reloading kit. Like what Lee brings to the table in terms of price but cannot seem to find any key differences them.
Considering the deluxe turret kit the breech lock challenger kit or the 4 hole turret press kit.

I maybe unload 20 rounds a year.(30-06)
But my wife unloaded 4 boxes since Christmas (.243) so figure for the increase in usage might as well load my own.

Looking to only reload maybe 200 rounds a year and not looking to spend a fortune to get set up. What do you guys recommend for a press kit. The price differs is like 30 bucks for the three. I just cannot find anything conclusive to be able to pick one over the other.

Thanks for any and all opinions.
Click to expand...

The Lee Hand Press Kit sells for around $50 and takes ordinary 7/8" threaded dies, doesn't need to be bolted down, and can be carried in a briefcase.
For 200 rounds or so a year that's all you need.
My brother handloads 30 06 spr, 308 win, 35 rem, 45 70, 300 win mag among others with his.
 
Lee stuff that is good for rifle loading:
Classic Cast press is a tank, will last forever, what I use now.
Challenger press is decent, if you only load one or 2 calibers the "breech lock" is an OK idea, sucks for multiple calibers as it's just an added expense. Takes maybe 10 seconds to screw in a die....I think I can live with that.
Dies are good, priced well, easy to set up, easy to use.
Case length guage/trimmer/lock nut....all I used for 15 years, need one per caliber but they are cheap...Chuck it in a small hand drill and it's a quick convenient way to trim and chamfer. I bought a bench mounted trimmer this year because of a sale and it is a ####ty way to trim brass by comparison.
Hand prime tool is all I use, no issues.
Sizing lube is great.

Lee stuff I found not so good:
Powder thrower....fine for ball, inconsistent for extruded, buy something better, they are not much money and a good one makes loading more enjoyable.
Scale....used it for a while, not the most accurate adjustmemts, small and dinky, takes a long time to settle when weighing a load, buy something better but stay with a balance beam as they are more accurate then cheap digital ones.
Chamfer tool sucks.
Primer pocket cleaner sucks.
 
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snooker said:
The lee turret presses are good for pistol calibers, but I can't recommend them for rifle rounds. Get a single stage press for your rifle rounds. I think the lee kit is good value for the price.
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^^this^^. Single stage for rifle and take your time to inspect the cases to ensure they have the correct powder charge.
 
snooker said:
The lee turret presses are good for pistol calibers, but I can't recommend them for rifle rounds. Get a single stage press for your rifle rounds. I think the lee kit is good value for the price.
Click to expand...

freezer filler said:
I'm with this guy...the turret presses are nice for a second press where you can set up you seaters, crimpers, neck sizers etc, but full length resizing rifle brass needs a good single stage press. I like just about everything Lee makes except their powder measures...Rcbs uniflow for rifle and Lyman 55 for pistol.
Click to expand...

But here were you are wrong. You remove the auto index rod ( simple as removing the plate and lifting up on the rod ) and you got a single stage press that all you need to do is turn it to the next stage you want. No more switching dies. Which is the biggest pain on a single stage press.
 
There are some bargains in Lee tools, but I would recommend a compound leverage RCBS press. Buy used if you want to save money on it. I would also recommend a better powder scale than comes in a Lee reloading kit.
Some things are not a good idea to cheap out on.
 
OkayShooter said:
But here were you are wrong. You remove the auto index rod ( simple as removing the plate and lifting up on the rod ) and you got a single stage press that all you need to do is turn it to the next stage you want. No more switching dies. Which is the biggest pain on a single stage press.
Click to expand...

I also reload pistol and rifle on a Lee Classic Turret. The only press I own now... If you decide on a Lee turret get the classic and not the cheaper one
 
Wow. Thanks for all the feedback so fast. I kinda figured they must have been a pretty good set up and you guys just reiterated that for me. I'm going to be ordering online today so thanks a lot for all your input. Wonder if it's even worth it to get the kit or not. Just buy the press and then a different scale and powder measure if there not as user friendly.
 
jim_wrench said:
Wow. Thanks for all the feedback so fast. I kinda figured they must have been a pretty good set up and you guys just reiterated that for me. I'm going to be ordering online today so thanks a lot for all your input. Wonder if it's even worth it to get the kit or not. Just buy the press and then a different scale and powder measure if there not as user friendly.
Click to expand...

I never used the auto disk or auto primers, or their scales. Cases I always hand primed. Scales I used a RCBS digital.
 
jim_wrench said:
Wow. Thanks for all the feedback so fast. I kinda figured they must have been a pretty good set up and you guys just reiterated that for me. I'm going to be ordering online today so thanks a lot for all your input. Wonder if it's even worth it to get the kit or not. Just buy the press and then a different scale and powder measure if there not as user friendly.
Click to expand...

I'd go with just the press and buy the other components separately. Most of the information above reflects my experience as well except that I find the Lee Perfect Powder measure quite good for short stick powders (like Varget). I've had poor experience with chunkier powders like IMR 3031 and eventually got myself an RCBS Chargemaster (pricey but you get a good electronic scale as well as a powder trickler).
 
OkayShooter said:
But here were you are wrong. You remove the auto index rod ( simple as removing the plate and lifting up on the rod ) and you got a single stage press that all you need to do is turn it to the next stage you want. No more switching dies. Which is the biggest pain on a single stage press.
Click to expand...

And extra turrets are $19. Set up all your calibers once.

First thing I did was remove the index rod. The Lee Classic Cast Turret Press is pretty darn great.
 
OkayShooter said:
But here were you are wrong. You remove the auto index rod ( simple as removing the plate and lifting up on the rod ) and you got a single stage press that all you need to do is turn it to the next stage you want. No more switching dies. Which is the biggest pain on a single stage press.
Click to expand...

There's just a little too much play in the turrets for rifle, for me anyway. They're great for pistol!
 
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