Starting to reload - input wanted
- Thread starter Dazbog
- Start date
The classic turret is a great press to start out with. I have other presses now but my first was a Lee turret and I still use it regularly after 30 years.
If you eventually start shooting large volume you might want a progressive, press in the future but you still need a smaller press for loading other calibers or small batches of test loads. If you ever decide you don't want to keep it, there are always new reloaders looking for used eqmt... but you probably won't ever want to sell it.
If you eventually start shooting large volume you might want a progressive, press in the future but you still need a smaller press for loading other calibers or small batches of test loads. If you ever decide you don't want to keep it, there are always new reloaders looking for used eqmt... but you probably won't ever want to sell it.
OP - You have some good advice on this thread. A few points to expand on what's been said...
- Make sure that you get the Lee Classic Cast Turret Press not the aluminum one.
- The bullets that you have chosen are fine however the weight differences may have you looking at 2 powders rather than just 1. I suggest Varget for the 77 grain and 4198 or H335 for the 53 grain. Typically a slower powder will perform better and get greater velocities as your bullets get heavier for a given calibre.
- I've tried to get the Lee to load 223 in auto-index mode but there is too much variation in powder loads for my needs. The new auto-drum powder feeder may perform better although I haven't tried it. Depending on the brass prep routine you settle upon, it may be just as fast to use the Turret press as a single stage. The Lee Perfect powder measure is quite good with extruded powders (+/- 0.2 grains in my experience) and can be a real time saver (versus weighing each charge) when loading bulk rounds for the AR.
- The Lee scale really sucks. Avoid it like the plague.
- You will need something to trim your rifle brass. The Lee trim kits work OK if you use a drill press or hand drill. Look for a powered option, you won't regret it.
- Make sure that you get the Lee Classic Cast Turret Press not the aluminum one.
- The bullets that you have chosen are fine however the weight differences may have you looking at 2 powders rather than just 1. I suggest Varget for the 77 grain and 4198 or H335 for the 53 grain. Typically a slower powder will perform better and get greater velocities as your bullets get heavier for a given calibre.
- I've tried to get the Lee to load 223 in auto-index mode but there is too much variation in powder loads for my needs. The new auto-drum powder feeder may perform better although I haven't tried it. Depending on the brass prep routine you settle upon, it may be just as fast to use the Turret press as a single stage. The Lee Perfect powder measure is quite good with extruded powders (+/- 0.2 grains in my experience) and can be a real time saver (versus weighing each charge) when loading bulk rounds for the AR.
- The Lee scale really sucks. Avoid it like the plague.
- You will need something to trim your rifle brass. The Lee trim kits work OK if you use a drill press or hand drill. Look for a powered option, you won't regret it.
- Location
- sudbury, ontario
Eh I did the same as your going to do..... bought the lee cause of the price ..... piece of sh$t just wait you'll see you will buy this buy that and in the end you be over what the Dillon would of costed you
There is a Dillon for sale on the ee right now
Eh buy something good ... buy it once cry once
Talk to people and ask if you can try it out .... in your neck of the woods
There is a Dillon for sale on the ee right now
Eh buy something good ... buy it once cry once
Talk to people and ask if you can try it out .... in your neck of the woods
The lee classic cast turret is probably a good bet for the money that will serve you well all life. Even if you scale up to a dillon progressive eventually, you will still use the turret for rifle or other things.
I personally have:
cheap lee single stage. I started with that, and now I use it to deprime, size lead bullets, etc.
lee loadmaster for small trial batches of cast 9mm(bought it initially for 223/9, but it's an annoyance to load a ton of ammo on it.
forster co-ax for precision rifle
xl650 with casefeeder for volume 223/9mm. Seriously, if you want to reload any volume of ammo, you need an xl650, and the 1050 is even better, but was too much money for my needs. The 650 does the job quite well. It just gets annoying/tiring to "push" the damn handle in to prime and push the case in the shellplate when you are reloading a few hundred cases at a time. Would require much less effort to just cycle the handle on a 1050, but it was 1000$ more. Also, the swage on the 1050 is a time saver for 223.
But it's like 1000$ more and 400$ more per calibre change, so in the end, the 650 is the reasonable option.
I personally have:
cheap lee single stage. I started with that, and now I use it to deprime, size lead bullets, etc.
lee loadmaster for small trial batches of cast 9mm(bought it initially for 223/9, but it's an annoyance to load a ton of ammo on it.
forster co-ax for precision rifle
xl650 with casefeeder for volume 223/9mm. Seriously, if you want to reload any volume of ammo, you need an xl650, and the 1050 is even better, but was too much money for my needs. The 650 does the job quite well. It just gets annoying/tiring to "push" the damn handle in to prime and push the case in the shellplate when you are reloading a few hundred cases at a time. Would require much less effort to just cycle the handle on a 1050, but it was 1000$ more. Also, the swage on the 1050 is a time saver for 223.
But it's like 1000$ more and 400$ more per calibre change, so in the end, the 650 is the reasonable option.
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Is 9mm the only pistol calibre you're thinking of? Or are you like me, and suspect you'll end-up reloading 4 or 5 before all that long? 
If you're only doing one pistol calibre, get a Dillon Square Deal - it's only available in the more popular pistol calibres and it comes set-up out of the box; you can change calibres on the Square Deal but it involves dismantling the head, and it's a pain. 9mm is a finicky calibre to reload for; sizing must be right or it'll hang in the chamber during loading and lock the gun up (says the voice of experience) - really frustrating. "BEEP! Bang! "Err... $hit$hit$hit - not again..."" Get a case gauge when you start reloading 9mm - you can thank me later.
If you're feeding an AR or picking-up range brass, you'll need a real solid and strong press for doing full-length resizing; cast iron is the way to go. And yeah they're all guaranteed, but that just means your trick aluminium press is gonna' be sitting there broken waiting for its free replacement on that weekend you had earmarked for a giant pre-match reloading session.
Powders - Varget has reloading data down to 35gr bullets in 223, my standard 223 load is 25.0gr Varget, 55gr BTFMJ for just under 3,000 fps; but Varget does not meter well in a standard charge thrower - none of your rod powders do. And primers - I swear by CCI, if only because the box is so much smaller than the Federal box, I can stow a lot more primers in the old red tool box I use as a primer lock-up.
If you're only doing one pistol calibre, get a Dillon Square Deal - it's only available in the more popular pistol calibres and it comes set-up out of the box; you can change calibres on the Square Deal but it involves dismantling the head, and it's a pain. 9mm is a finicky calibre to reload for; sizing must be right or it'll hang in the chamber during loading and lock the gun up (says the voice of experience) - really frustrating. "BEEP! Bang! "Err... $hit$hit$hit - not again..."" Get a case gauge when you start reloading 9mm - you can thank me later.
If you're feeding an AR or picking-up range brass, you'll need a real solid and strong press for doing full-length resizing; cast iron is the way to go. And yeah they're all guaranteed, but that just means your trick aluminium press is gonna' be sitting there broken waiting for its free replacement on that weekend you had earmarked for a giant pre-match reloading session.
Powders - Varget has reloading data down to 35gr bullets in 223, my standard 223 load is 25.0gr Varget, 55gr BTFMJ for just under 3,000 fps; but Varget does not meter well in a standard charge thrower - none of your rod powders do. And primers - I swear by CCI, if only because the box is so much smaller than the Federal box, I can stow a lot more primers in the old red tool box I use as a primer lock-up.
