Which Reloading Kit???

[Guest rod locker]

With all the available kits out there which is the best quality for the money? Been looking hard at the RCBS Supreme Rock Chuckeer kit at Sportsmans Warehouse for around $320.00. Will be used to load handgun loads. Thanks for the help.

[Westwindmike]

Buy the Rock Chucker! You will never regret it. Even if you move on to a progressive later, the RC will still be there for those big rifle cases and small volume projects. Money well spent!

[USMCJG]

I would respectfully disagree with Westwindmike. The RCBS Rockchucker is now made in China, and apparently the quality has suffered for it based on many reviews I've seen. The new Rockchuckers I've seen in stores just don't seem to be built like they used to be. I like Redding and Forster nowadays. My Big Boss is a great press and it's supposedly 100% US made with US made equipment.

Edited December 28, 2011 by USMCJG

[dlm37015]

I would respectfully disagree with Westwindmike. The RCBS Rockchucker is now made in China, and apparently the quality has suffered for it based on many reviews I've seen. The new Rockchuckers I've seen in stores just don't seem to be built like they used to be. I like Redding and Forster nowadays. My Big Boss is a great press and it's supposedly 100% US made with US made equipment.

the castings are made in china along with some of the dies that why i use lyman single stage presses ans lee and redding dies.when rcbs was ran by fred hunnington it was second to none but atk the qwners now are a multimational company sa some of the manfactoring got shifted to china and as you say yhe quality has suffored

[Guest odfanatic]

For pistols only, skip single stage and buy a Dillon progressive in the beginning, about $100-150.00 more than an RCBS Rock chucker. A Dillon is just as easy to learn on and you'll never look back. I'll mail you my Dillon DVD instructional video to look at if you like. PM me. As you advance in skill, a RL-550B will serve almost all your needs. Their customer service is legendary.

If you need to buy a single stage press for specialty stuff later, that's fine. Dillon is about consistency and quantity.

[Guest CajunKen]

I recommend the Rock Chucker Press, but not the dies.

I have been reloading .38 /spl on my Rock Chucker for a couple of years with no problems, but I recently bought a 3 - Carbide Die Set for 380 Auto and I could not get a good finished product. To make a long story short, It turns out that RCBS was sending out .380 Die Sets with a .38/9mm expander Die. They replaced some then ran out. They hope to get a shipment in within the next 2 weeks. We'll see.

[Dolomite_supafly]

I reqally like RCBS dies but for the money Lee dies can't be beat.

I will also say Lee presses are good but not their aluminum challenger press.

As long as you get a cast iron press from Lee you are not going to have a single issue. Another great thing about Lee is they are cheaper in price but not in quality. They also have a 2 year no fault guarantee. I broke some stuff that was my muscle headed fault. I called them to buy new and they shipped me replacements for free. They have done this on several occassions.

I use a Lee Classic Cast with the Hornady Lock-N-Load conversion. It works amazingly well and once you have your dies set there is no need to cahnge them. I use this press for everything except 9mm for which I have a Lee 1000. It works good but not great for a progressive press.

Knowing what I know now I would still buy the Lee Classic Cast. It has been a wonderful press. It has a great used primer setup. The handle length and position is 100% adjustable which is a great feature. If you are only seating bullets there is no need to have a 18" handle throw, I shorten mine to about 8" to give me less work.

I would recommend a single stage before anything else for a beginner.

Dolomite

[Ajruger]

Dillon 550b, you definitely won't regret it.

[dlm37015]

i would buy a hornady lock n load progressive over a 550 its a true progressive and has better fetures i have both and for me the hornady is better

[Guest canebreaker]

Good to see you here DLM, it's been a while.

[MarkInNashville]

i would buy a hornady lock n load progressive over a 550 its a true progressive and has better fetures i have both and for me the hornady is better

Really David? Dang, I was all set to get a 550 (well when I get it, which is sorta low on my list right now, trying to buy a house). Can you ball park a price for me if I have everything I need now, as I am reloading pistol only, using a Rock Chucker (2). In fact everything I have is RCBS, if that matters.

[Guest odfanatic]

Alcon, I have heard of more than one reloader preferring to seat new primers by hand separately, and then continuing the loads on a progressive machine in order to have assurance the new primers were seated to standard.

In a gun store I frequent a fellow raised an excellent point about the Dillon 550... The priming action on this machine is the only action that occurs during that step of pushing the handle forward. This is important because it allows the operator to feel the primer seating correctly, thus avoiding crushed, improperly seated or even skipped primers. Some progressive reloading machines seat the primer while performing other actions, at the same time, thus denying the user any reference point indicating the primer was seated to standard. Just another point of view leaning in favor of this particular Dillon machine...

[Guest FroggyOne2]

I feel that as progressive presses go, the best route to go is with the Dillon, customer support is top notch, the ease of change over from one caliber to another is simple and repeatable.. John Whidden even makes tool heads for the Dillon 550B and 650 presses that allow your dies to float so that you can make even more concentric ammo on your progressive press.. you can not do that with the other brands..

[Guest nicemac]

Alcon, I have heard of more than one reloader preferring to seat new primers by hand separately, and then continuing the loads on a progressive machine in order to have assurance the new primers were seated to standard.

In a gun store I frequent a fellow raised an excellent point about the Dillon 550... The priming action on this machine is the only action that occurs during that step of pushing the handle forward. This is important because it allows the operator to feel the primer seating correctly, thus avoiding crushed, improperly seated or even skipped primers. Some progressive reloading machines seat the primer while performing other actions, at the same time, thus denying the user any reference point indicating the primer was seated to standard. Just another point of view leaning in favor of this particular Dillon machine...

The Hornady LNL works similarly. The primer is seated "after" the downstroke. You can feel it go in.

When you buy a Hornady press you get 500 free bullets, when you buy their dies (or some other accessories), you get a rebate for 100 free bullets. You do not have to get bullets in the caliber of the dies purchased. That can make the cost of their dies almost nothing…

[Jonnin]

I would avoid the kits, they seem to have a lot of things you do not need and miss some that you will, in general. The smaller kits that just have the press and press accessories are ok, but you want to avoid the kits that claim to have everything you "need" with junky scales and calipers and funnels and such included -- these items are often substandard, and you may soon find yourself buying replacements.

I really love my lee turret press. It can be used as a single stage or it can go from used brass to live round without leaving the press depending on what needs doing. I have trouble recommending a single stage after having used this, but it does cost more.

[Dolomite_supafly]

These are all available at Midway Usa. They normally have coupons online so you can save money as well.

lee-perfect-powder-measure

lee-auto-prime-hand-priming-tool-shellholder-package-of-11

frankford-arsenal-micro-reloading-electronic-powder-scale-750-grain-capacity

lee-auto-prime-hand-priming-tool

lyman-electronic-scale-powder-funnel-pan

lee-classic-cast-breech-lock-single-stage-press

hornady-lock-n-load-press-and-die-conversion-bushing-kit

hornady-electronic-caliper-6-stainless-steel

This is what it would minimally take to load. You would still need to buy the particular dies you need as well as bullets, primers and powder. I suggest the primers and powder be purchased locally. I would also suggest buying jacketed bullets in the begining, they are easier to deal with than cast. Cast bullets add another facet to reloading.

People are going to say the Lee stuff is crap but I have used all these items for a few years now without a single issue. For the money the Perfect Powder Measure can't be beat.

I prefer a electronic over a balance beam. Balance beams take a lot longer to settle than an electronic.

No need to tumble your brass to clean them. Get some Lemishine at Walmart. Add a table spoon to some water and soak your brass for 24 hours. Every time you walk by give them a shake to aggitate them. Rinse them and let dry. Brass will be very clean and useable.

This setup may not be as fast as a progressive but it allows you to learn the machanics of it.

Or you could wait for the next show and get what you need from David, DLM37015 on here. He has everythig you could want or need to reload.

$177 as is on the list above

Dolomite

Edit:

Here are a few things to do to save money at the cost of convienence

You could do away with the conversion bushings if you don't mind setting up your dies each time. I find it hard to make identical ammunition when I have to set the dies up each time.

You could also do away with the powder pan and just weigh the powder in the casing. You just need to make sure to zero out the scale for each casing because they all weigh differently.

You could also dip out the powder and not use the Perfect Powder Measure but that is a very slow going process.

The Press has a priming tool on it but that is also another slow going process. You are also ted to your press to prime cases. With the hand primers you can watch TV while priming cases.

Edited January 17, 2012 by Dolomite_supafly

[Jonnin]

Most people seem to recommend the hand primer over the press, but most (all?) single stage presses will prime the case on the down-stroke from the sizing die. I do not find this to be all that slow, but you need a way to get the primers into the cup on the press efficiently or it would be very slow. I have a dispenser that works great for this job and prefer the press to the hand tool as the hand primer makes my hand cramp after only a short while.

[Guest Lester Weevils]

I gravitated to hand priming tool and hand decapping because I was unhappy with inconsistent seating in the progressive press. And it can be done in the living room like shucking peas so doesn't waste time I wouldn't be wasting anyway.

But the saner solution-- Be more selective about what kind of brass one is willing to reload, and not be too cheap to simply discard cases you know ain't likely to prime easy.

[Dolomite_supafly]

I gravitated to hand priming tool and hand decapping because I was unhappy with inconsistent seating in the progressive press. And it can be done in the living room like shucking peas so doesn't waste time I wouldn't be wasting anyway.

But the saner solution-- Be more selective about what kind of brass one is willing to reload, and not be too cheap to simply discard cases you know ain't likely to prime easy.

+1

I do this with crimped brass. I toss them into a container for a later date. I never worry about using them as long as I have a supply of easily primed brass.

Don't be afraid to toss out all questionable brass either. If something doesn't look right then ask until you get the hang of it. After that it is better to err on the side of caution.

Dolomite

[Guest nicemac]

I bought a Dillon Super Swage 600. All brass primes easy now…

[Guest Huntaholic]

For mass produced ammo such as in the case of most handguns, the progressive stuff is fine. However, when it comes to my rifles, I use only a single stage press and I weigh EVERY single charge on a balance beam scale. Is it slower? Of course. Is it more accurate? ABSOLUTLEY! My kids went together one CHristmas and bought me an electronic scale. I dont like it. I can fool the electronic scale both ways, light and heavy by as much as 5 individual grains of powder. If you give it time to balance out, you cant do that with a beam scale. Ive been running the same RCBS stuff I got almost 20 years ago, I cant speak for their quality now, but the stuff Ive got is top notch. If you end up going the single stage route, whatever brand you decide on, be sure to get an "O" frame press.

[Guest Huntaholic]

Hmmm. Just saw some replies on here about brass priming easy, if my brass primes to what I consider "easy" it gets tossed! In fact, the primer pockets getting too big are the first signs of worn out brass with my 300 ultra!

[Rickey]

For rifles I use a Lee classic cast and for my pistol ammo I use a Dillon 550B.

At the IDPA world Championship Match there equipment survey they listed the reloading presses here's the list

Dillon # 185

Hornady # 9

Lee # 6

Lyman # 1

RCBS # 9

Redding #1

[R_Bert]

For rifles I use a Lee classic cast and for my pistol ammo I use a Dillon 550B.

At the IDPA world Championship Match there equipment survey they listed the reloading presses here's the list

Dillon # 185

Hornady # 9

Lee # 6

Lyman # 1

RCBS # 9

Redding #1

Curious, If you know, who won the match, and who were the runners up ? (and what were they using?)

[Guest Lester Weevils]

Hmmm. Just saw some replies on here about brass priming easy, if my brass primes to what I consider "easy" it gets tossed! In fact, the primer pockets getting too big are the first signs of worn out brass with my 300 ultra!

That is a good point. I only do pistol and would worry if a primer just slips in with no resistance. Hard-priming to me are the cases where I have to squash the snot out of them, and still end up with a high primer or a crazy mangled primer. I figger if I torque the snot out of enough primers to get them to seat then one of these days a primer will go off. Not the end of the world, but still...