Recommendation For My First Reloader

Personally, I own a Redding Boss Single Stage Press, which replaced my simple cast iron single toggle RCBS JR3 of many years.
It was more expensive than the Rock Chucker, but better I think.
Having said that, the RCBS Rock Chucker is a great press and has been for many years.

Were I to buy another new press, without cost or ease of availability considerations, it would be the Redding Big Boss 2, which is an improved and larger version of the Boss.

I don't think that you could go wrong with any of these compound leverage presses, as well as the Lee Classic Cast, though it does use a tubular handle instead of a solid steel one.

But, the RCBS package deal is an excellent choice, all things considered.
 
WestDrifter said:
Thats a fantastic deal.
Hope this isnt a silly question, but would this kit be suitable for primarily various handgun loads, or would a progressive or turret set-up make more sense....aside from the obvious time factor for loading several hundred rounds?
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If you are wondering if the Rock Chucker is weaker and primarily suited to handgun loading, then no it isn't.

It's a strong compound leverage cast iron press designed for loading rifle cartridges, including some magnum cartridges, and will easily handle any pistol or revolver cartridge as well.

Turret and progressive presses would not be stronger or more suitable for rifle cartridges.

They would just allow more production in less time.
 
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The Redding Big Boss is a favourite of mine as well, if we're talking single stage presses. You really can't go wrong with a Big Boss, Rock Chucker or Foster Co-Ax in that respect. All are extremely beefy, well built and will still be going strong many generations hence. That said, as much as I love RCBS, the Redding T-7 remains the king of the turret presses. For those looking for a decent compromise between a single stage and a progressive, a turret press makes sense.
 
X-man said:
The Redding Big Boss is a favourite of mine as well, if we're talking single stage presses. You really can't go wrong with a Big Boss, Rock Chucker or Foster Co-Ax in that respect. All are extremely beefy, well built and will still be going strong many generations hence. That said, as much as I love RCBS, the Redding T-7 remains the king of the turret presses. For those looking for a decent compromise between a single stage and a progressive, a turret press makes sense.
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It is certainly the strongest, beefiest, and best quality turret press out there.
 
Codyg14 said:
What about the lee breech lock hand press?

I like the idea of trying reloading for my 300 savage instead of spending $50 a box.

Seems like it might be a cheap way to give it a try for the box or two a year I shoot
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Full-Length resizing rifle brass with this press would prove frustrating, I think.
Also, it has no means of priming, requiring a separate hand priming tool or the ram prime that Lee sells.
Alone, at Wholesale it's about $60.00. With the ram-prime included, it's about $80.00.

On the other hand, the Lee Challenger press sells for about $120.00 and includes priming arms for on-press priming.
Some people shy away from any press because they live in an apartment, or don't have room for a dedicated reloading bench.
However, by simply bolting the press to the end of a couple of pieces of 3/4" plywood glued and laminated to form a 1 1/2" board measuring 7" wide and maybe 4' long, you could easily use 6" C-clamps to fasten the press to a table temporarily.
You could store your reloading supplies in a kitchen cupboard or in a box, and stash the press and supplies under a bed or in a closet.

The only thing is to counter-bore the mount holes from below, use washers, and bolt upward from below to keep the bolt heads flush to the board.

You could also bolt the press to a 1 1/2" laminated plywood base maybe 10" X 6" and use a 6" C clamp on either side of the press to fasten it to a table, if the table top is fairly rigid and thick enough.
That would certainly be more compact to store.
 
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Codyg14 said:
What about the lee breech lock hand press?

I like the idea of trying reloading for my 300 savage instead of spending $50 a box.

Seems like it might be a cheap way to give it a try for the box or two a year I shoot
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It's actually a great little press and I can full length resize 375 H&H brass with it. It's handy enough to put in a small toolbox with some dies and a scale and take to the range for load development right there. Also good for doing most of the reloading steps watching tv. The kit comes with a funnel, case lube and the ram prime kit. Add a set of dies and powder handling of some sort and you can bang out ammo almost anywhere. It can pinch your fingers bad though if you get too exuberant closing it! I've had a few blood blisters resizing 9mm in front of the tv. You can actually get a pretty fast pace going! It's my "winter press" as my reloading room is an unheated shed ( too small!)
 
sawzall said:
It's actually a great little press and I can full length resize 375 H&H brass with it. It's handy enough to put in a small toolbox with some dies and a scale and take to the range for load development right there. Also good for doing most of the reloading steps watching tv. The kit comes with a funnel, case lube and the ram prime kit. Add a set of dies and powder handling of some sort and you can bang out ammo almost anywhere. It can pinch your fingers bad though if you get too exuberant closing it! I've had a few blood blisters resizing 9mm in front of the tv. You can actually get a pretty fast pace going! It's my "winter press" as my reloading room is an unheated shed ( too small!)
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You can full-length resize .375 H7H brass with almost any press, with varying degrees of force.

Still, a bench-mounted press, even a temporarily mounted one, is preferable.
 
I personally have 3 presses. Started out with the Lee Anniversary kit; it has everything, although a bit lighter grade than RCBS. Understatement there RCBS is heavy duty, heavy gear. Which is great for experienced reloader's who are ready to set up and never move the gear.
I have a travel press; believe it or not, an Old reclined Pacific. Because it is travel, it's aluminum and I went with the Lee gear because it was affordable, light ( travel ) & familiar to me.
I never have understood the hate some folks have for Lee gear, it does the job. It's got some innovative features, when I had to buy a BIG press for 577 and 375...I went with Lee again.
I can afford RCBS, Redding or the others...truth be told I like the lighter weight Lee stuff.
Don't shoot enough to justify a progressive unit...that would change your choice. 3 gun or IPSC, progressive might be your choice.
In an apartment, keep it small. Is your landlord gonna be cool with it? A smaller press and gear, you can put it away in half hour.
My father was an RCBS man, bought him a nice RCBS scale for Xmas...could throw that sucker through a car windshield! Why so much weight, do folks figure it'll work better because it's heavy?
OP, you lot's of info here...quite varied. Let us know how it works out & what you decide on...just for fun.
Good luck and stay safe
Tok
 
I agree that overbuilding a press doesn't necessarily add anything to it functionally. People can tend to be impressed by how beefy a press is, saying things like "it will last for generations", Personally I could care less what a press does once I don't need it. And I'm not inclined to pay a premium just to have an over built press. Old Russian saying, "Better is the enemy of good enough". I also agree that Lee has some great features, and for millions has offered cost effective products. I'm impressed with some of the ingenuity they use to accomplish this.

On the other hand, I shoot a 416 Ruger even though I don't hunt anymore. Have handguns in 30-06 and 338. None of which there is a need for. So most of us have areas in which we choose to go excessive, just because we can. Nothing wrong with that either. For some it's cars, entertainment centers, etc. And for some its reloading equipment.

But for the new reloader, you don't need to go excessive in order to make quality, accurate ammo. Unless of course you just want to. Either way it opens up a great hobby all its own, and allows you options for ammo that you can't get any other way.

Have fun.
 
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Lonesome Donkey said:
You can full-length resize .375 H7H brass with almost any press, with varying degrees of force.

Still, a bench-mounted press, even a temporarily mounted one, is preferable.
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Well, I can say with certainty it's my most used press out of the 11 I own. It's just so darned convenient. I would never discourage anyone from buying one. Far better than a Lee Loader imo. You said above you "think" it would be frustrating full length resizing rifle cases... this just isn't so. You obviously missed my point. I'm guessing you don't have one and have never used one.
 
The Lee handpress is an excellent item. Take it outside, side in a lawnchair and have at it. Much nicer than sitting in a basement.
 
I agree that the Lee Hand Press is quite usable. They can give your arms a bit of a workout, but certainly give you portability. Definitely would appeal to the minimalists amongst us.
 
sawzall said:
Well, I can say with certainty it's my most used press out of the 11 I own. It's just so darned convenient. I would never discourage anyone from buying one. Far better than a Lee Loader imo. You said above you "think" it would be frustrating full length resizing rifle cases... this just isn't so. You obviously missed my point. I'm guessing you don't have one and have never used one.
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I did not miss your point.
I did use a Lee hand press belonging to a friend to load a couple of boxes of .30-30 on one occasion.
It worked okay, but compared to a bench-mounted press I found it awkward to use, and I was not motivated to buy one.
I certainly had reservations about using it for heavier rifle cases.
But then, I really have no need to reload at the range or in hotel rooms or in the field.

I find it very odd that you would choose to use the Lee hand press the most, if you own 10 other presses which are presumably bench-mounted.
I think that most reloaders would find that a little odd as well.

So, IMHO, unless maximum portability is your objective, a Challenger press with the temporary clamp-to-table mount that I described would work better, be nearly as inexpensive, and quite easy to store out of sight.
For those that do need this high degree of portability however, it is certainly a better option than a Lee Loader.

But, to each his own.
As a shooter and hand loader of some 45 years experience, these are my opinions.
Take them or leave them as you choose
 
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Fargone4sure said:
I agree that the Lee Hand Press is quite usable. They can give your arms a bit of a workout, but certainly give you portability. Definitely would appeal to the minimalists amongst us.
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The key phrase being "They give your hands a bit of a workout", meaning that a Lee hand press is not as easy to use as a bench-mounted reloading press.

Certainly, I would agree that it's a good pack tool if you really need that much portability, or you just don't want to buy even an inexpensive aluminum press like the Challenger and make up a clamp-on base for it.

If your reloading needs are limited to a couple of boxes of one rifle cartridges per year for hunting, then the Lee hand press would work fine.
 
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i will be purchasing the RCBS supreme deluxe kit from cabelas.

it has the case trimmer, hand primer and chargemaster included. buy once cry once, and if i decide to reload high volume, i will buy a second press to fulfill the need for that.
 
MiG25 said:
The Lee handpress is an excellent item. Take it outside, side in a lawnchair and have at it. Much nicer than sitting in a basement.
Click to expand...

To each his own.
I reload sitting down, using a comfortable chair, listening to the radio.
With a bench, or even a kitchen table with your press clamped to it, you have all of your supplies within easy reach.
You enjoy the advantage of being able to use one hand to place and guide bullets into the die, since you can operate the press with one hand.

Using the Lee hand press is somewhat like having to perform workshop tasks without a vise.
You can get it done, but even a light vise and bench is much more solid, and acts as a third hand.
 
DiabeticKripple said:
i will be purchasing the RCBS supreme deluxe kit from cabelas.

it has the case trimmer, hand primer and chargemaster included. buy once cry once, and if i decide to reload high volume, i will buy a second press to fulfill the need for that.
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The Chargemaster is an excellent machine. One piece of equipment I would never want to go without.
 
Fargone4sure said:
I agree that overbuilding a press doesn't necessarily add anything to it functionally. People can tend to be impressed by how beefy a press is, saying things like "it will last for generations", Personally I could care less what a press does once I don't need it. And I'm not inclined to pay a premium just to have an over built press. Old Russian saying, "Better is the enemy of good enough". I also agree that Lee has some great features, and for millions has offered cost effective products. I'm impressed with some of the ingenuity they use to accomplish this.

On the other hand, I shoot a 416 Ruger even though I don't hunt anymore. Have handguns in 30-06 and 338. None of which there is a need for. So most of us have areas in which we choose to go excessive, just because we can. Nothing wrong with that either. For some it's cars, entertainment centers, etc. And for some its reloading equipment.

But for the new reloader, you don't need to go excessive in order to make quality, accurate ammo. Unless of course you just want to. Either way it opens up a great hobby all its own, and allows you options for ammo that you can't get any other way.

Have fun.
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I own an RCBS JR3 press that I bought in 1973.
It's cast iron, and built to last, but not over-built.
While it doesn't use compound leverage, like a Rock Chucker, it's easy to resize even large rifle cases with.
The other day, I took it apart, cleaned it, buffed the steel, lubed it, and put it back together.
Interestingly, I noticed that there wasn't any noticeable play in the toggle or the ram running in it's bore.
So, it's ready to go for another 40 years of service.
I won't live that long, but since I do still need it, it will last me until I die.
Money well spent, I think, considering that it will end up serving me well for 60 years.

If you compare the Cabela's price of a Lee Challenger press at about $120.00 (aluminum) and a Lee Classic Cast press (cast iron) at $190.00, the difference is only $70.00.

They will both get the job done, but the Classic Cast will probably outlast two of the Challenger presses.

Considering what you will spend on guns, ammunition, gas to the range, components for reloading, hunting trips , etc., why would you worry about that extra $70.00?

Unless money is really tight, or you just don't reload much at all, the cast iron press is just plain and simple common sense.
And, the weight of something that you will bolt to a bench is irrelevant.
 
Long time listener, first time reloader!
The RCBS Rockchucker Supreme Kit has been an awesome start up kit! The only thing I added was dies, a $9.99 digital caliper from Can Tire on special, and some Lee case trimmers (cheap and work great.) The rest has been learning and reading the Lyman manual. About $500 to get started, the results are great. I'm not too worried about speed. I am interested in the Lee turret press, looks like it might save some hassle changing from sizing to seating die.
Have fun!
 
Lonesome Donkey said:
If you compare the Cabela's price of a Lee Challenger press at about $120.00 (aluminum) and a Lee Classic Cast press (cast iron) at $190.00, the difference is only $70.00.

They will both get the job done, but the Classic Cast will probably outlast two of the Challenger presses.

Considering what you will spend on guns, ammunition, gas to the range, components for reloading, hunting trips , etc., why would you worry about that extra $70.00?
.
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Agreed, I personally would definitely go for the Classic Cast rather than the Challenger. Money well spent. The Challenger may well be fine for relatively light use, but with the prices being so close it only makes sense to go with the better unit. But for me I would spend a little extra and start with the Classic Turret, and skip the single stage altogether.

There is a middle ground for sure where you can get a good solid press (such as the Classic Cast) without going to the expense of something like the Forster Coax. The Coax is a great piece of equipment, but perhaps a bit more than lots of reloaders will need.
 
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