Lee Ergo Prime

[beemer]

Has anyone tried one of Lee's Ergo Prime tools ? I have read a few reviews and some of them have not been good and some say fine. I assume it uses the same shell holder as the older ones.

I have the old Lee and always liked it but now it takes two thumbs and still hurts.

Dave

[jetinteriorguy]

I'm the oddball, I love mine. There is a bit of a technique involved, basically getting used to holding it at the right angle which is a fairly generous latitude and easy to get used to. Then just keep an eye on the chute that feeds the primers into the lifter and shake some primers in if its too low, also very easy to get used to. This tool has a very nice feel for how the primers are seating properly.

[tazman]

I'm the oddball, I love mine. There is a bit of a technique involved, basically getting used to holding it at the right angle which is a fairly generous latitude and easy to get used to. Then just keep an eye on the chute that feeds the primers into the lifter and shake some primers in if its too low, also very easy to get used to. This tool has a very nice feel for how the primers are seating properly.

What he said with one addition. The Ergo prime gives the user more leverage which makes it easier to complete the process. Much easier on the thumbs and fingers.
That said, I now do almost all my priming on the press using the safety prime.

[soldierbilly1]

Has anyone tried one of Lee's Ergo Prime tools ? I have read a few reviews and some of them have not been good and some say fine. I assume it uses the same shell holder as the older ones.

I have the old Lee and always liked it but now it takes two thumbs and still hurts.

Dave
I have every priming system known to man. Hah! The one I go to the most is the Lee ergo. Why? Simply because it is the easiest to load. I do not like loading tubes or strips ... and yes, I have used them both.
try it, you will like it. easiest one to use

bill boy

[VHoward]

The newest versions come with folding square primer trays. I think those ruined an otherwise good tool.

[Artful]

I have some older non-folding tray Ergo but still prefer the original round tray models

[frkelly74]

When I broke the handle on my original Lee prime tool which I really liked, I got the newer one with the square trays. I did not like it, It did not feed primers well and was just hard to work with. So then I tried the press mounted Lee priming outfit with the ski chute primer feeder. I did not like it either. There is too much length of feed tube for a primer to get crosswise in and it was a pain to clear. So then I got an ergo prime and it had the same feeding issues but you do get more power from the tool because of the way it is designed to crush a crosswise primer. I did not like it either. Now I have gone back to the press mounted priming system with the long tubes that came on my RCBS press when it was new. It is slow to load in the primers but is pretty trouble free when it is being used.

[engineer401]

I rarely use my ergo prime as I load mostly in my 550. The few times I used the ergo prime it worked fine. As previously stated, you have to keep the primers fed. I used to have an original Lee hand prime, with the exception of the tray, I like the ergo better overall.

[retread]

Has anyone tried one of Lee's Ergo Prime tools ? I have read a few reviews and some of them have not been good and some say fine. I assume it uses the same shell holder as the older ones.

I have the old Lee and always liked it but now it takes two thumbs and still hurts.

Dave

At 71 I have those same problems. I bought a Lee Bench Prime. It works well with little effort. The only thing I have noticed with it is you need to keep an eye on the primers. Occasionally a primer with enter the ram area on its side and if you don't catch it, it will screw things up. As long as I look as I put the shell into the holder and straighten the primer if it has tipped, everything works well. Sure is easy on the hands!

[Gillie Dog]

The few times I used the ergo prime it worked fine. As previously stated, you have to keep the primers fed. I used to have an original Lee hand prime, with the exception of the tray, I like the ergo better overall.

Yep, and I use the old round tray, works just fine.

GD

[EDG]

I got one of the earlier versions of the Ergo prime in a trade and tried it out a little while. For all the extra design and cost of tooling for the die castings I think it is a dud tool that will soon be gone. Lee just can't seem to design a tool that does not require to hold your mouth just right while maintaining the proper tool orientation to the force of gravity.

I will say this I have owned at least one and 4 or 5 of all Lee priming tools. I am still using the original tool with the ancient screw in shell holders that I bought about 1969. That original tool is fool proof.

I never cared for the Auto prime and I don't like the way the Ergo prime fits my hand nor how the primers can get turned over. You have to keep your eyes on each and every primer to make sure it feeds to the top of the priming punch or you risk upside down and sideways primers.
This is not isolated to the Lee tools I have. I have an expensive K&M tool too and I don't much care for it though it is very adjustable for leverage at priming depth.

[No Blue]

I got one of the earlier versions of the Ergo prime in a trade and tried it out a little while. For all the extra design and cost of tooling for the die castings I think it is a dud tool that will soon be gone. Lee just can't seem to design a tool that does not require to hold your mouth just right while maintaining the proper tool orientation to the force of gravity.

I will say this I have owned at least one and 4 or 5 of all Lee priming tools. I am still using the original tool with the ancient screw in shell holders that I bought about 1969. That original tool is fool proof.

I never cared for the Auto prime and I don't like the way the Ergo prime fits my hand nor how the primers can get turned over. You have to keep your eyes on each and every primer to make sure it feeds to the top of the priming punch or you risk upside down and sideways primers.
This is not isolated to the Lee tools I have. I have an expensive K&M tool too and I don't much care for it though it is very adjustable for leverage at priming depth.

Figured out why you don't like Lee. It's not how you hold your mouth, it's how you hold your tongue in your mouth!!! There's a big difference.

Do it right and all the Lee tools work perfectly.

[beemer]

Thanks to all who responded, think I might try to get a look at one before I buy.

Dave

[Moonie]

Thanks to all who responded, think I might try to get a look at one before I buy.

Dave
If you ever get down to the Piedmont area of nc I'll let you try mine.

[blikseme300]

Beemer,

The Lee hand primers work well but as you mentioned they can hurt when used a lot. I used to use these exclusively but a few years ago my arthritis and CTS started to limit their use.

I then stared looking into alternates and after much research ordered the RCBS Automatic Bench Priming Tool. This tool works very well and fitted my needs perfectly without hurting my hands.

The common complaints about these tools are the shell holders and filling the tubes. I use RCBS shell holders without any trouble or issues but the Lee universals are hit and miss in my experience.

For filling the tubes I use a Frankfort Arsenal Vibra Prime. Some curse these tools but with a little effort and tweaking they work very well. It takes me about 15 seconds to fill the tray and feed a tube without any hand stresses. I use CCI primers exclusively as some other brands are hit and miss with feeding.

I know there are alternate ways to achieve the same end results but this has been my way to fit my requirements.

[byrd45900]

Im with VHoward ,I hate the folding tray.

[Echo]

I haven't used the modern Lee hand primer tools. They just look too fiddly to suit me. Still use the original type, have several set up for different cartridges. Sit watching the news and priming whatever. My arthritis (82 years) isn't so severe that it gives me any trouble. Love 'em...

[rondog]

I wish everybody would stop trying to invent the perfect piece of plastic junk and just go with ONE successful design made from metal and stick with it. "New! Improved!" Bah, usually neither.

[VHoward]

But if they stuck with what works, they wouldn't get to sell more tools. Why do you think they no longer make things to last anymore.

[jetinteriorguy]

I need to amend my post. I do love mine, but it's the older version with the square trays that work. I see they use the worthless folding trays now, IMO and experience they are junk. Now, when the folders first came out I tried them on my Loadmaster, and they were a total failure. Maybe they work better with the Ergo Prime, but I wouldn't try it based on my experience on my Loadmaster.

[jetinteriorguy]

Well, I really need to add to my posts. My Ergo Prime is now in the landfill. The lifter arm broke off on the small primer setup, and they don't have any replacements. But, the new adapter unit for the Auto prime will work so I figured I'd give it a try even though I hate the folding tray. Then while poking around on Amazon I found for only a couple bucks more I could just order the Auto Prime so I did. Good thing, the adapter for the folding tray worked pretty good and I was a happy camper. Then after loading maybe 20-30 small rifle primers in .223 the part of the Ergo Prime that holds the shell holder broke off. Now I'm using the Auto prime and it's not too bad. I'm not too keen on how the lever is shaped so I may just break down and get something that works better in my hands. It's between the RCBS Universal hand prime and the Lyman E-Zee hand prime. I'm leaning mostly toward the RCBS.