Looking for some advice on what to get next?

[Fire_Medic]

How's it going guys, I am looking to the more experienced around here for some advice. To make a long story short starting to get back on my feet from illness/handicap and think soon I will be able to go shoot again, however nothing like I use to in IDPA/USPA. I will be the young old timer now shooting a bolt action and messing with wheel guns.

I have a Redding Big Boss II new in the box that never made it to the bench before with some goodies from InlineFab that will be setup very soon for my 308 loads.

I want another press to crank out the 38 special and 357 magnum rounds through for now with some minor 9MM loading down the road, and plans to add either 45 colt or 44mag/special later on (maybe both).

A good buddy of mine raves about his Lee Pro 1K and you really can't beat the price @ Titan. However I see that maybe the Lee Classic Turret is a bit more popular and even less expensive?

I have been reloading since 2008, and loaded my fair share of ammo in the calibers I have shot. I started on a Dillon 550B, and later moved over to a Hornady LNL. I have also had experience loading on various 650's and 1050's during employment with a local company who makes ammo.

But I looking to change paces here, and won't be shooting the thousands of rounds per year like before my illness.

Finances aren't what they use to be so it is a factor to consider but In have never had an issue paying for good equipment/tools.

However, I guess in aging a bit mentally the last year and a half away from shooting, I have come back with a different point of view.

I really don't think I will need a 550B, and it is a great press, but with a Lee Pro 1K at it's price point, how much press do I really need to take care of my handgun reloading?

I have never used a turret but there's a couple that have caught my eye. Leaving the redding for the rifle ammo, what other press would you guys recommend in order to take care of my wheel gun loading needs? I will still need to get casting equipment too but that thread will go in it's appropriate place.

I want to be able to load the various pistol calibers, change calibers quick and easy, and not necessarily crank out like a 550, but more than what the single stage would allow.

So where does this leave me?

Also looking for a good scale and powder measure setup for loading the precision rifle stuff. I have a Dillon beam scale on hand if that helps.

I appreciate the help here with this.

Thanks
FM

[coloraydo]

Hey FM,

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?293942-For-sale-Lee-turret-press-w-5-tool-heads-amp-Pacific-Hornady-366-12-gauge-press

There's a Lee Turret Press with 5 three hole turrets on S/S, used, for $90.00.
Might be worth checking out.

[SSGOldfart]

You might want to look at the Square deal from Dillon set up for the 38/357,and a couple of Conversions like the 9mm and any other caliber you need. They Last a lifetime,great warranty to.

[lightman]

Glad to hear that you are on the road to recovery. I'll 2nd the motion on a Dillon. I finances will allow, its hard to go wrong with a Dillon and the way they support their product.

[ioon44]

Dillon has good resale value also.

[jmort]

The O/P had a 550 and indicates he is not going in that direction, but that never seems to be a bad choice. I have a Lee Classic Turret it is a winner all around, but I don't use the auto-index feature. There are many people happily using the Lee 1000 but the happiest Lee progressive users are willing to tinker and trouble shoot and they get good results. The only middle ground between a progressive and everything else, is the Lee Classic Cast with the auto-index engaged. The next step down, and it is a big step, is a turret press manually advanced by the user. Check out some YouTube videos.

[DaveInFloweryBranchGA]

Having owned a Lee Classic Cast Turret, that is the one I would buy were I in your shoes. It's easy to load 200 controlled, quality rounds an hour on that press if you set it up for fully automated operation. If you're the type that has worked on a factory manufacturing line before, you can reach speeds of 300/hour or more, but at that pace, it becomes a good bit of work. This is a very good press at a very good price. You will need to tune it a bit, but if you're mechanical, you'll find yourself doing that with any and all brands to get the best performance and feel. One really nice thing about the Classic Turret is the spent primer disposal that carries the primer filth away from the operation, keeping your press much cleaner and reducing wear due to dirt.

The Pro 1000 is based on Lee's older aluminum turret press and has 3 stations, so no room on press for a separate crimp die. They are also somewhat finicky, but can be made to run well with a bit of work. Once set up properly, they do crank out the ammo. But they do require someone who likes to tinker to keep them running well. Clean, lube and and check adjustments before a run of making ammo and you should have no real problems. Since they are not 4 station, I would not buy one because I absolutely prefer a separate crimp die because I can get a better crimp separate the seating from the crimp. If you are good with the seat/crimp dies and good at adjusting them, I see no reason not to buy this press. There is a lot of information out there on youtube and loadmastervideos.com on how to adjust the press and maintain it, so you would not be alone if you ran into trouble. It's biggest downfall is a lack of spent primer disposal that carries the filth away from the press.

The Dillon presses are a good option, but you're going to be spending more money. Their Square Deal has proprietary dies and tends to wear out to the point of needing to rebuilt if you reload enough rounds on it, but it's pretty quick. Resale value is good, but resale value on all presses are good these days, so that's a non-consideration. Their 550 is a simple press for the not-so mechanically inclined, but requires manual advance of the shell plate, something I personally despise doing. The 650 is fast, fully automate-able and it's only two downfalls are it's price and the lack of spent primer disposal.

Another good option to consider is the RCBS Pro 2000. It's an excellent press with spent primer disposal, but lacks a case feed option from RCBS. It's cast iron, heavy and boringly reliable. Going slow, you can make a lot of rounds easily on this press. They're on closeout right now four right at $400.00. Die plates and shell plates are very affordable. You will need to buy a big batch of primers with APS strips, but it comes with a strip loader, so you can reload the strips you have with other brands of primers.

Another option is the Lee Loadmaster. It's inexpensive as a kit, but does require a good bit of tuning from a polishing/finishing standpoint and a couple mods before it's ready to go. I bought one recently and have gone through most all the mods on the internet and have found it a great deal of fun to build as a "90% complete kit." I am seeing where it will be quite fast once I'm done with tuning/modifying it. It does require patience and the understanding that at the price point Lee offers it at, it has to be a kit, not a ready to go out of the box press. But if one is patient and has the mechanical aptitude to prep it, it will become a heckuva progressive press.

[Fire_Medic]

Having owned a Lee Classic Cast Turret, that is the one I would buy were I in your shoes. It's easy to load 200 controlled, quality rounds an hour on that press if you set it up for fully automated operation. If you're the type that has worked on a factory manufacturing line before, you can reach speeds of 300/hour or more, but at that pace, it becomes a good bit of work. This is a very good press at a very good price. You will need to tune it a bit, but if you're mechanical, you'll find yourself doing that with any and all brands to get the best performance and feel. One really nice thing about the Classic Turret is the spent primer disposal that carries the primer filth away from the operation, keeping your press much cleaner and reducing wear due to dirt.

The Pro 1000 is based on Lee's older aluminum turret press and has 3 stations, so no room on press for a separate crimp die. They are also somewhat finicky, but can be made to run well with a bit of work. Once set up properly, they do crank out the ammo. But they do require someone who likes to tinker to keep them running well. Clean, lube and and check adjustments before a run of making ammo and you should have no real problems. Since they are not 4 station, I would not buy one because I absolutely prefer a separate crimp die because I can get a better crimp separate the seating from the crimp. If you are good with the seat/crimp dies and good at adjusting them, I see no reason not to buy this press. There is a lot of information out there on youtube and loadmastervideos.com on how to adjust the press and maintain it, so you would not be alone if you ran into trouble. It's biggest downfall is a lack of spent primer disposal that carries the filth away from the press.

The Dillon presses are a good option, but you're going to be spending more money. Their Square Deal has proprietary dies and tends to wear out to the point of needing to rebuilt if you reload enough rounds on it, but it's pretty quick. Resale value is good, but resale value on all presses are good these days, so that's a non-consideration. Their 550 is a simple press for the not-so mechanically inclined, but requires manual advance of the shell plate, something I personally despise doing. The 650 is fast, fully automate-able and it's only two downfalls are it's price and the lack of spent primer disposal.

Another good option to consider is the RCBS Pro 2000. It's an excellent press with spent primer disposal, but lacks a case feed option from RCBS. It's cast iron, heavy and boringly reliable. Going slow, you can make a lot of rounds easily on this press. They're on closeout right now four right at $400.00. Die plates and shell plates are very affordable. You will need to buy a big batch of primers with APS strips, but it comes with a strip loader, so you can reload the strips you have with other brands of primers.

Another option is the Lee Loadmaster. It's inexpensive as a kit, but does require a good bit of tuning from a polishing/finishing standpoint and a couple mods before it's ready to go. I bought one recently and have gone through most all the mods on the internet and have found it a great deal of fun to build as a "90% complete kit." I am seeing where it will be quite fast once I'm done with tuning/modifying it. It does require patience and the understanding that at the price point Lee offers it at, it has to be a kit, not a ready to go out of the box press. But if one is patient and has the mechanical aptitude to prep it, it will become a heckuva progressive press.

Thank you very much for your feedback. I am interested to see what you have done with the load master lol. I also prefer the 4 station setups for the reasons you have mentioned. And I have to say after all my time around the different progressive presses, they all have tinkering needed regardless of brand and model.

What would your thoughts be between the LCT and the Lee LM?

As for my mechanical abilities, I would say they're average. I use to wrench on my own Harley's when health allowed me to still ride and work on one, exhaust swaps, cam swaps, ECM tuning, handlebar swaps, etc. I'm no mechanic or engineer, but I can follow directions and the age of youtube is just wonderful.

It's good to see you around again, we had talked in the past about the RCBS progressive press.

[jmort]

Here is everything you need to know about the Loadmasters.

www.loadmastervideos.com (http://www.loadmastervideos.com/)

[Vann]

I have a Dillon Square Deal ,550, Lee load master, Lee 4 hole turret, and several other press's. I use the Lee 4 hole turret more than all the others combined. Swap a turret head, and install the powder measure with the correct disc, dump some powder in it, fill the primer tray and install the correct primer arm. Very easy to do and less involved than changing over on the he Dillon's.

At least I think so anyways.

[DaveInFloweryBranchGA]

FM, In red, as you've seen me do many times in the past.


I am interested to see what you have done with the load master lol. I also prefer the 4 station setups for the reasons you have mentioned. And I have to say after all my time around the different progressive presses, they all have tinkering needed regardless of brand and model. Yes, they do, they're all just miniature ammunition manufacturing machines without a motor. Even the most expensive one is cheap compared to anything in industry.

What would your thoughts be between the LCT and the Lee LM? The LCT is going to require stoning of manufacturing burrs, smoothing of sharp edges, lapping of the powder measure and it's disks, careful initial adjustment and assembly, then just keep it clean and and operate it correctly using full strokes so you don't damage anything. I suggest fully automating everything, including buying and using the safety prime. You will need to "tweak" the safety prime mount most likely and possibly remove plastic mold flashing, but once done and adjusted right the first time, it becomes a clean, lube and use press. Die changes are inexpensive, quick and easy. Uses standard shell holders that come with the die sets. Remove red cap, put end of vinyl primer disposal tube into coffee can and that's addressed. Everything happens right in front of you, so QC manufacturing is easy. TIP: If you adjust the auto turret advance to be quick with an empty shell plate and let the turret just barely lock in, almost going past the mark, adding the dies to the turret will slow it down enough that when you operate the press quickly, the turret will lock in perfectly. Most do not do this correctly and get a press that maxes out at around 200/hour production. Fully automating the press as it was designed to do gets you above 200 and increases reloading enjoyment a good bit while reducing manual labor.

The Loadmaster should be considered a 90% complete kit. New ones bought during quiet gun buying times will still need all the tuning stuff I mentioned for the LCT above intially. Watch all the youtube videos, a young man nick named Conatus posted the best video on adjusting the carrier and the timing/advance bar. Others show how to polish shell plates, etc. They were my greatest help. It is critical to mount this on a very stable bench and I strongly suggest making a copy of or buying a Mike's Reloading Bench "shake brake" as well as a Harbor Freight cargo bar to aid in stabilization. I spent the money and sent a new carrier and both primer system sizes off to Mike's Reloading Bench for mods. Based on what I got back from him, it's worth the cost and should eliminate any and all primer issues with the press. Modifying your turrets and case feeder parts per his website suggestions is a good idea, eliminates a lot of issues for feeding pistol cases. Go ahead and order the size case feeder and primer system your kit doesn't have when you order your press as well as an extra turret or so, depending on your needs. But before you do, look at his mods for the turrets on his website and consider buying at least one of the turrets he makes for your longer range ammo making. As for mods, here's what I've added or am adding: Spent primer disposal going off the press, shake brake, tweaked case pusher to accomodate rimmed cases, modded all turrets per Mike's Reloading Bench instructions on his website, added AA case collator, but will add home made motorized case feeder soon, modified case feeder system to prevent case tilting with rifle cases, to include case support and retaining spring loaded hook, added LED lights off of ebay, bought cheap from china, Magic Mike's primer feed mods done by him. Right now, it advances accurately and smooth as any progressive I've owned. Shell plate rotation is fast and press is best operated with a quick motion that is slowed down at top and bottom of stroke.

Note: The LCT is a four position turret and the Loadmaster is a five station progressive. The LCT has ability to have semi-automated priming on press that's very quick, powder through expansion of cases, automated powder drop, auto rotation of dies, separate seating/priming and spent primer disposal through the ram to a waste receptacle. The Loadmaster is a five station auto case advance progressive, so less cranking of handle to produce a cartridge, fully automated priming on press that's fast, powder through expansion of cases, automated powder drop w/safety feature, automated case feeder, bullet feeder possible to add as well, making the press very fast and saving on arthritic hands.

As for my mechanical abilities, I would say they're average. I use to wrench on my own Harley's when health allowed me to still ride and work on one, exhaust swaps, cam swaps, ECM tuning, handlebar swaps, etc. I'm no mechanic or engineer, but I can follow directions and the age of youtube is just wonderful.

Sounds to me like you can handle the Loadmaster tuning/adjustments. The biggest thing is patience to start and a willingness to look at the press as a kit that you can have fun finishing assembly. That's how I approached what I'm doing and i've not been in any hurry at all about reloading on the press, as I want it right before I try to reload on the press.

It's good to see you around again, we had talked in the past about the RCBS progressive press.

Thank you, I come and go depending on the demands of my business and my own health. I'm aging and have psoriatal arthritis and one other, to be named later type in my lower back. I also have a nasal drip cough my standard ENT not a surgical ENT can resolve for me, but a top of the line pulmonologist tells me it's not my lungs, just post nasal drip. So I'm taking allergy shots and hoping for the best. We lease this house and I'm debating on moving, though after this spring, we may just buy a house, though I hate the thought of being back in the miseries again.:)

[Fire_Medic]

Thanks much for the reply Dave, sent you a PM.