How do you organize your shell holders?

[Budzilla 19]

In the die box. Then spares in a box to play hide and seek later for that odd caliber! Just me, though.

[beemer]

Where did you find my shell holder box, I been looking for it for a couple days. Is the one for my 25-20 still in there?

[pete501]

RCBS Shell Holder Rack as they intended. Reference chart pulls out.

[AlHunt]

Each die set has a shell holder in the box. A couple of calibers I have multiple die sets and each set pretty much has it's own shell holder.

[lightman]

I use an RCBS rack like Pete 501 pictured. I have a separate shell holder for my custom barreled rifles that stays in the die box. Before I bought that RCBS rack I had a block of wood cut to fit a plastic drawer that had wooden studs made from dowels.

[uscra112]

The ones I need regularly are stuck to the press with a magnet. The rest jumbled in a box.

[georgerkahn]

Help I'm trapped in a shell-holder hide-n-seek nightmare! J/K LOL

Attachment 297223

Seems like every time I get ready to perform a task on my reloading press I'm hunting through my pile of shell-holders. I have buddies that buy a matching shell holder for each die set & keep it with the dies in the storage box. If they load .30-06, .270, .308, .243 they have 4 #3 shell holders. Everyone does things a little different . I usually de-cap as a separate step which usually involves various calibers that get tumbled clean together before sizing. I use a universal decapping die & I may do a few .223, a few .30-06, a few .45-70, etc. Also, I like top loading bullet seaters so I use extensions that may be used for multiple calibers. I think RCBS use to sell a shell holder rack but I haven't seen one lately. How do you reloader with a lot of calibers store & organize your shell holders?

I, also, endured spending too much time to locate the shell-holder I desired. My first challenge was to make a sheet listing the 'holders I possess. After 50+ years of reloading -- I gathered a few. (I attached a photo) Then -- how to have them quickly locate-able? Mostly vis auction site starting with the letter "e" I picked up Lyman Shell-holder Assortment boxes. Using a Brother QL-500 label maker, I have the 'holders in each box labeled. One added note which may or may nor be germane, is of my 'holders where I have multiple (Yes -- in addition to press use, I need one for the RCBS Primer tool, one for each press for different operations) I colour the ONE shell-holder I use in the main reloading press -- generally with a blue Sharpie for quick identification. I'm kind of OCD re my loaded product -- 'specially with issues like concentricity/runout -- and I have noted there often is a difference with different (same brand!) holders.
geo

[dale2242]

A piece of 1X2 with 1/4" dowels drilled and glued in a line.
I put them in numerical order and mark the shell holder number is written below them.
This rack sits on the bench behind my press.
I made an easy-to- read chart of which dies the shell holders fit.
An easy 30 minute wood working project and no more hunting for shell holders

[Noah Zark]

I used to keep the shell holders in the die boxes, but after acquiring more die sets using the same shell holder, and getting a Lee primer tool and shell holders for it, I bought two ginormous hinged key rings and keep them in numerical order on the rings, one for reloading shell holders and one for Lee primer tool shell holders:



The rings reside on hooks screwed into the inside of the cabinet door where all the die sets and Lee prime tools are stored. Pasted to the inside of the door are Lyman, RCBS, and Lee shell holder charts for quick reference.

Noah

[John Guedry]

I must be in the minority here I just keep them the box with the dies. But then I don't have a whole bunch of different dies.

[elk hunter]

RCBS Shell Holder Rack as they intended. Reference chart pulls out.

I made a similar rack from plywood and finish nails and it hangs on the backboard of my reloading bench. I put the RCBS number of the shell holder above each of them and the caliber it is most used for below. I also label each die box with correct shell holder number.

I currently have right at 100 different caliber die sets. A special few have the correct shell holder in the box. But at the current RCBS price of $8.45 each the cost to have one in each box would be excessive.

[jmorris]

I often keep them with the dies. More common diameters (work for a number of calibers) I might keep more handy. A 45acp/30-06 family shell holders are all over the place (already in tools or presses) in my reloading room. Others like .22 Hornet, 45-70, etc. that are oddballs just stay with the die set, so I don’t have to search for them when I need them.

[414gates]

One inch pine, 8 inches by 8.

Drill holes in a grid at a 30 degree or so angle, and put a piece of dowel in long enough to hold the shellholder.

Angled dowel keeps the shellholders from falling off when the board is mounted on a wall, or on a cupboard door.

Bamboo chopsticks made good dowel material, and you can cut to length by snipping with wire cutters.

[Kraschenbirn]

Hi...
I buy a shell holder for each die set snd keep it in the die storage box with the die set.
Always know where it is, never have to search for it.

+1 Life's too short to waste time looking for a missing shell holder when you only need to load a couple dozen rounds to test fire a new load.

Bill

[Harter66]

Plano or like flat tackle boxes .
I have some 45 die sets , I load things like 45 Colts ,S&W , AR , ACP , and Raptor , 1 cal 4 cases 5 shell holders , if I kept them in the die boxes the ACP dies would have 3 as would the 45 S&W sets .

Then there's the 308/06'/Mauser mess with brass that won't fit this or that shell holder out of that rifle .... I won't even try to explain 7.7&6.5 Japanese cases and options .

So yeah the 8×10×1" adjustable slot tackle boxes are in nearly herd numbers on my bench to accommodate not just shell holders , but misc spare die parts , H&I dies , top punches , shotshell loader bushings , etc .
The ones I bought from the cheap seats were like $1.25 each and have 20 slots but also have adjustable dividers . I write on the lid of the shell holder box over each compartment what that holder(s) fit and it matters less that RCBS , Lee , Lyman , Herters and Pacific didn't use the same numbers . I to used to be vexed by grabbing a #3 for the 06' clan only to find it was the #3 for 30-30 now for about $10 I don't have to hunt for that .311/.312 expander ball and rod that is shared with 30-30/308/06' nor the .318 shared with 32 Rem and 7.7 Japanese because they are in the little box slot or in the dies I used last . 4 slots for decapping pins covers them all . 2 long slots keeps the Ram Prime parts in order and at hand , another reason I don't have the shell holders in the die boxes .

There's one just for the trimmer parts ......I have a trim pro , Dad's Herters , and a recently purchased Forster that will eventually be set up for neck turning . There's a dozen shell holders , 18 pilots , 4 reamers , spare cutters , 3 collets , and some Lee stuff that I don't need but don't want to get rid of yet .

The boxes occupy about the same space as 4 of the hard bound manuals and it's pretty hard to spill them getting them out .

[GhostHawk]

I have one set of Lee shell holders that stay in there little green box.

All other shell holders live in the die box they fit.

[Froogal]

I buy the die sets that have the shell holder included. Keep it all together in the original box.

[jmorris]

The co-ax keeps it pretty simple.

[Green Frog]

My life is complicated by the need for shell holders in the Lyman J series and Lee screw-in shell holders for the original priming tool. Oh yeah, there’s also the ones for my Herters press(es) to contend with. I mostly deal with this by leaving dedicated tools set up for a specific cartridge or family, such as a Lee primer tool set up semi-permanently for the 32 S&W->327 cases I load, another for 9mm, etc. and a very obscure one that fits 44-40 and the odd 40-90 Ballard. It’s a lot easier to keep separate tools set up than trying to remember where shell holders went!

Then there’s the old Lyman All American turret press that has been set up so long with 32 revolver dies and a J-9 SH that I’m not sure it would come off! . Yes, my reloading regimen (including shell holder arrangement) is “organized” chaos that makes no sense to anyone but me.

Froggie

[CaptREDD]

Seems like a Co-Ax press is the better solution to multible shell-holders confusion....as well as being the *best* single-station press.



REDD