The MEC presses are by far most popular. Reasonable price & they work without a lot of fuss and adjustment. The single stage MEC 650 Jr. is very reliable and easy to use. Not much trouble getting 200 rounds an hour out of one. At about 4-1/2 times the cost, I load about 500 rounds an hour on a Ponsness-Warren progressive loader. Unless you're regularly shooting 30 or 40
flats a year, with a big supply of once fired empties on hand, I don't really believe a progressive press is cost-effective, and would say as well, that unless you're burning up 15 to 20 flats or more a year of target or lead hunting rounds, that even a single stage press is worthwhile.
After 40 years of shotshell loading (and I still load the vast majority of my target loads) I don't believe loading steel or non-tox waterfowl loads to be worth the effort. You can save a couple of bucks a box on lead hunting loads, however.
I load 2-3/4" , 1-1/4 oz. 1330 fps lead #6's for instance, for about $ 6.50 box. By buying in bulk quantities, my 7/8 oz. and
1 oz. target loads are about $ 4.75 a box, but may come down a little with the recent lowering of lead market costs.
