Lee Loader for Loading PP

[brstevns]

Was thinking about getting a 303 British Lee Loader to load PP loads. Will it work?

[pdawg_shooter]

Not sure what you are asking here. If you are talking about the pound them in loader then I would say, not so much. No provision for expanding the neck or belling the case mouth.

[brstevns]

Yes that is the one. The Old Lee Hand Loader Kit.

[Maven]

Actually, the older Lee Loaders (black cardboard box) came with a neck expander. However, those tools are designed to load jacketed bullets, not CB's, and thus may not be able to seat a CB greater than .311" - .312" in diameter.

[brstevns]

Have a old kit, but have not tried it with PP. My bore is .314 on my 303 British

[pdawg_shooter]

I think maybe your groove diameter may be .314, your bore is probably .303 or .304.

[45 2.1]

Whether you can or not depends entirely on what your neck is sized to, what patched diameter boolit you intend to load, how big the boolit bore size in the die and how smooth the entry into the case neck is. I've done it easily in some of their dies and not at all in others.

[303Guy]

One shouldn't need to size the neck for paper patching and I would tend to think the Lee Loader is unsuitable for paper patch loading. Fine for fitting someone else's fired cases to your rifle for the first firing but then a suitable expander would be needed to open the neck to accept the patched boolit.

[brstevns]

I think maybe your groove diameter may be .314, your bore is probably .303 or .304.

OOPS! You are correct Sir. Fingers typing faster then my brain works!

[brstevns]

One shouldn't need to size the neck for paper patching and I would tend to think the Lee Loader is unsuitable for paper patch loading. Fine for fitting someone else's fired cases to your rifle for the first firing but then a suitable expander would be needed to open the neck to accept the patched boolit.

I understand what you are saying. Do the Patched bullets want to slip from the cases when firing? The rest in the clip I am talking about.

[barrabruce]

For your interst I use a lee whack'em die but for thurdy turdy. I size the neck and use a tapered rod with a handle on it to expand the necks out for either cast or pp bullets. It works well enough for me.
A flat filed on the rod prevents it getting stuck by suction in the primed case.

To seat the pp I use a lee deburrer tool and just twist in the projo by hand. I fianl lentgh seat to depth with the lee loader by pressing down on it.
No need to whack'em at all.

Ohh I tend to aneal my necks as it makes it easier.
I like it 'cos it was 300 deg in the shed the other day and I sat out on the back and loaded in the shade.
Plus 1 for the lee system is mine fits into a soft specticle case and goes with me gun plus a bit of other stuff.

O.k. after doing 200 + cases with a vise type full lentgh sizer and re expanding the necks by hand I'll conseed that a press may have a few advantages over basic hand tools but most was new to me range brass. And I tend to have loose primer pockets before I have to sesize brass again more than once.

YMMV
Hope it helps
barra

[303Guy]

Do the Patched bullets want to slip from the cases when firing? The rest in the clip I am talking about.Yes, the patch holds fast. I use a soft paper (printer paper) and roll the patched boolit on my lube pad which puts just enough STP lube on the paper to allow seating. The lube quickly dissipates in the paper and the paper then grips the case mouth. So there is an ideal fit to achieve this. The boolit gets started in the mouth by hand just like barrabruce says and is finish seated in the press. There is a very small expansion of the neck in this process but only the paper gets compressed, not the boolit core.