What Progressive?

[Scrounger]

Looks like I'm going to be loading 9MM. I would like to get a progressive press for my pistol calibers but the only one I'm familiar with, the Dillon Square Deal, has gotten too expensive to buy. I hear good things about the Hornady press and also the Lee Classic Turret. Do they work well? How many rounds an hour can a lazy man turn out on one of these? Years ago on my dill Square Deal .45, I could do 250 to 300 an hour, about half of what they said they were capable of doing.

[Salmon-boy]

Here's my .02..

I've got a Lee Pro 1000, and for me, I can't beat the $160 spent, including the case collator (funnel). It's solid and once you get used to it, reasonably fast. If you're finicky about your charges, you might not like the differences in the Auto Disk powder measurement.

If I'm just hanging out, "playing the slots" I average somewhere between 100 to 200 per hour. I run cartridges through a Factory Crimp die afterwards, and I think the 3 stations of the Pro 1000 is it's only real drawback.

If you're used to a Dillion press, expect a big difference and some adjustment.

[Storydude]

Lee Loadmaster. Best (only)progressive for it's under 200 dollar price.

www.loadmastervideos.com

NEeds some tinkering to run correctly, but when adjusted right, it flat out performs.

[Scrounger]

I'm looking hard at the Classic Turret. No advocates for that one here?

[Baron von Trollwhack]

I use a hornady AP for 5.56 and find it fully satisfactory. Factory set up was perfect. I went through set up step by step, using Lee case lube (industrial water soluble wax) on every moving part that touched a case, including primer seating parts, and it's flawless in operation.

Getting a thousand of Hornady 30 caliber deer bullets free was nice too. BvT

[Esau]

I'm looking hard at the Classic Turret. No advocates for that one here?

I'm getting a casual hundred and fifty rounds per hour out of The Classic Turret. Although, I watch old movies while I re-load and double check things too much (still a nube). If the press/me operated flawlessly, we would do at least 250 an hour, but we never do Check these recent threads too:

http://www.castboolits.gunloads.com/...ad.php?t=61992

http://www.castboolits.gunloads.com/...ad.php?t=55485

[DaveInFloweryBranchGA]

Scrounger,

Answers to your questions within the quote below in red.

I hear good things about the Hornady press and also the Lee Classic Turret. Do they work well?

I've owned the Lee Classic Turret and I own a Hornady LnL. Both presses work extremely well. The only reason I sold the Lee was I had the Hornady and was no longer load small batches of milsurp rifle.

How many rounds an hour can a lazy man turn out on one of these?

On the Lee, my average was right at 200 an hour. I had mine tuned to the gills with all the bells and whistles and if I worked at it, I could hit 300/hour, but that was a lot of work. 200/hour, on the other hand, was no sweat.

With the Hornady, the only limiting factor has been the primer tubes. With that limitation, I can easily load 400 30.06 rifle cartridges per hour with ZERO strain while having myself a snack and piddling around. Buy a few extra of the primer pickup tubes and I'm sure you can hit a good bit more. But I'm too lazy to work any harder at it.

Years ago on my dill Square Deal .45, I could do 250 to 300 an hour, about half of what they said they were capable of doing.

The Hornady is not as fast as the Square Deal, but it is a heckuva lot more versatile. You use standard dies, have an awesome powder measure and if you use Lee dies, you can use a Lee Pro Auto Disk for pistol powders, leave them setup and have extremely quick caliber changeovers. Faster than my 550 back when I had it, much faster.

Some really sweet things I like about the Lee and the Hornady:

Extremely clean press, with the spent primer disposal system that gets rid of the spent primers and crud, routing them through a tube out of your way and out of the press, thereby preventing press filth and the associated wear/cleanup.

Easy, fast caliber changes.

Good primer systems, both very reliable when setup right.

Good powder measures, both handle pistol powders well and the Hornady also handles rifle powders (extruded) well.

Easy to adjust, once you've taken the time to tune and understand how the press operates. This should be done the first time you set it up.

An auto advance that doesn't sling powder on both.

Both have plenty of room for small hands.

The Lee is very sturdy and doesn't take up much bench real estate relative to some presses.

The Hornady is very sturdy and plenty of room for large hands.

The new Hornady EZject eliminated the one major issue with the Hornady. At this point, it's a pretty refined press.

The Hornady gives better runout on rifle cartridges than a 650.

The Hornady matches the Dillon powder measure with pistol powders, beats it with rifle powders.

I can think of more, but you can see I've been happy with both presses.

If you want boring reliability, durability and some free bullets, get the Hornady.

If you want affordability, boring reliability and simplicity, get the Lee.

Either way, it's a win/win situation.

Regards,

Dave

[dragonrider]

I have been loading 9 MM on a Lee Pro 1000 since they first came out, they are easy to work with, a few little quirks but are easily corrected. I have loaded a lot of rounds on it and replace parts here and there but overall it is a good press. I did have a loadmaster for a while, they're junk, enough said. I don't have or ever have used a Lee Classic turret but have heard nothing but good about it. It's on my want list and I don't think you would go wrong with one.

[Scrounger]

I'm getting a casual hundred and fifty rounds per hour out of The Classic Turret. Although, I watch old movies while I re-load and double check things too much (still a nube). If the press/me operated flawlessly, we would do at least 250 an hour, but we never do Check these recent threads too:

http://www.castboolits.gunloads.com/...ad.php?t=61992

http://www.castboolits.gunloads.com/...ad.php?t=55485

A hundred and fifty an hour would do me fine. A couple of more questions: Does it come with the powder measure and primer feeder or must they be bought separately? It says other die brands can be used, what about the powder drop, does that also require another Lee Die, if so, one for each caliber?

[Recluse]

I'm looking hard at the Classic Turret. No advocates for that one here?

Why I haven't picked one up (Lee Classic Turret) yet is beyond me. I keep promising myself I'm going to.

Got to pull the handle on one several weeks ago and it is SWEET. What a setup--and even moreso for the price!

Rugged, simple to use and the guy who let me stroke his Classic Turret said he can easily do 150 rounds per hour--or better, without breaking a sweat. That's not Dillon 650 production, but it's also a lot better than single stage production--which on a 9mm or .380ACP would drive me nuts.

Great press.

[AJ Peacock]

I borrowed and used the Hornady and it did fine for me (used single stage before that). But I ended up getting a Dillon 650 and it's a whole new ballgame. I could do 100-150/hr on the hornady pretty easy. If I push myself, I can do 900/hr with the 650. But the price point is just as far apart. I'm sure you'll be happy with either the Hornady or the Lee.

Good Luck,
AJ

[dolang1]

I recently bought a Classic Turret from Kemph Gun Shop.

Kemph Kit w/ Classic turret Press (select set of Lee dies)
Both upgrades (+$22.00) came to $199.95

I bought 3 extra turrets @ $9.95 came to $29.85

My total delivered price was $250.38

I love mine. Later Don

[angus6]

I recently bought a Classic Turret from Kemph Gun Shop.

Kemph Kit w/ Classic turret Press (select set of Lee dies)
Both upgrades (+$22.00) came to $199.95

I bought 3 extra turrets @ $9.95 came to $29.85

My total delivered price was $250.38

I love mine. Later Don

Kemph is the place to get a LCT, I can easily do 100 9mm in 17 mins on my LCT , it's about 3 mins a 100 slower the my SDB

[Lloyd Smale]

Ive allways been a dillon man and would never bad mouth them there that good. After my fire i needed a bunch of gear. I went with lnl progressives (3 of them) because with the free bullet offer they were about giving them away. If you factor in the 1000 free .30 cal bullet i got with each they cost me about a 100 bucks a piece. thats probably cheaper then what your going to pay for a lee and its 10 times the press. Its a no brainer to me. I was lucky enough to have dillon replace one of my presses a 550 for free and was sure glad about that. If the free bullet offer wasnt on the table the first press i would have bought would have been another 550. there not the fastest of the progressives but probably the most versitile press a handloader can own.

[smith52]

The Lee Classic Turret Presses are tried and true. I have two older Lee turret presses, before the had cast bases, one three hole and one four hole. I love them both, I double check all my powder charges and still manage to do 100 to 125 rounds an hour with brass that is already primed. Buy extra turrets for every set of dies you plan to use with that press so you can leave your dies set up for each caliber.

[DaveInFloweryBranchGA]

Scrounger,

Your answers in red below.

A hundred and fifty an hour would do me fine. A couple of more questions: Does it come with the powder measure and primer feeder or must they be bought separately?

The Lee does not come with a Lee Safety Prime or Powder measure in the box. Here are the ones I'd suggest buying:

Lee Safety Prime Kit, large and small primers
Lee Pro Auto Disk powder measure, one for each caliber you're reloading for, they're inexpensive, so spoil yourself and they work great with pistol powders.
Lee Pro Auto Disk Riser, one for each powder measure you buy
Lee 4 hole turret, one for each caliber you buy/have dies for
Lee Double Disk Kit
Lee Universal Charge Bar
Lee Micro Disk
Lee Deluxe die set for each caliber you want to reload for.

Why so much? It's inexpensive to buy all of it and by buying it at the git go, you'll have it ready when you want it and be glad you did. I was.

You can get all of this from Kempf's gun shop for next to nothing. Do a websearch and you can find them easily and they specialize in these kits. Note: DO get the upgraded items.

It says other die brands can be used, what about the powder drop, does that also require another Lee Die, if so, one for each caliber?

The Lee Pro Auto Disk requires the Lee powder through expander die to work in automatic mode.

All that said, if you buy the Hornady LnL and get the free bullets, you'll net out less than if you'd bought the Lee and the Hornady is more the equivalent of a Dillon 650.

Regards,

Dave

[Dan Cash]

550B and forget the rest. You will be money ahead in the long run, even iv you figure your leisure (reloading) time worth 25 cents an hour. Besides, It will load rifle too.

[Idaho Sharpshooter]

550 Dillon, plus one!!

the Lifetime Warranty is what makes it worth the price, along with the quality.

I own six SDBs and two 550s. Changing primer sizes makes the second one very worthwhile.

Rich
DRSS
In 13 days I will be firing a pair of serious big bore double rifles. The little one is a 700H&H.
The big one is a genuine 4Bore.

[Ed K]

Two thumbs up on the 550B. Had it for almost 20 years. Pretty good recommendation considering Dillon pulls no punches in calling me an "*******" in their Blue Press because I don't vote Republican.

[Bill*]

I can only speak of Lees Pro 1000, but I have loaded a fair bit on it in 5 pistol calibers and never had a serious problem. Simply works!!!