To turret or not to turret?

[44Blam]

I have always loaded with a single stage press.
But, I started shooting a few matches a month and I need to make a fair number of boolits.
I can reload about 100 rounds in 2-3 hours on a single stage, but I find that I'm shooting about 400-500 rounds / month from about 100-200 rounds/month...
It seems like I should be moving up to a turret to keep up...

What do ya'll do?

[M-Tecs]

I tend to collect presses. I currently have over 30. If I had to get rid of one my Lyman Turret would be the first to go. Last would be my Dillon 1050's second to last would be the Dillon 650's. Unlike most I don't have much love for the Dillon 550's. They are excellent presses I just never cared for the manual advance on the 550. I flat don't understand the allure of turret presses. That being said if I ever find a good deal on a Redding T-7 I may add it to the collection of presses I don't use. For single station I love my RCBS A2, RCBS A4 and Champion Press. I have given numerous single stage presses away to new loaders but the two Dillon 550's are the only ones that I have sold.

[Walks]

100rds in 2-3hrs ??

I think I can still load 100rds in 50minutes for Roll crimp and Seat together, and an hour for a fourth taper die.

And that includes using an RCBS Hand Priming Tool.

You have to get organized before you start. Get cases, bullets, powder, labels, boxes, primers all ready.

And I use a RCBS Little Dandy, so it's a quick check on the scale and it's Go.

And that was before the L-N-L Bushings for my RCBS RC.

[Gatch]

I'm shooting 300+ a week. I'd be forever loading with a single stage. I bought a dillon 650 and it's fantastic.

[Bookworm]

I can't speak to what you should do. However, I'm shooting several hundred rounds of various cartridges, similar to your consumption.

I was using a single stage, then went to two singles mounted side by side. That increased production a good bit. Then, Santa brought a Lee Classic Turret. That was a game changer. It vastly increased production. I don't know the numbers, I'm not trying to win a speed contest.
Later, I installed a reverse rotation kit, with a cartridge kicker, and that helped more than I thought it would.

Rifle rounds I still load on the single stage, I don't do high-volume rifle shooting.

If you want a reasonably priced turret, I can heartily recommend the LCT.

[OS OK]

The turret is an outstanding press to make up rounds to dial in a pistol or experiment with...it's fairly fast too when you get used to running it.

[Digger]

I can't speak to what you should do. However, I'm shooting several hundred rounds of various cartridges, similar to your consumption.

I was using a single stage, then went to two singles mounted side by side. That increased production a good bit. Then, Santa brought a Lee Classic Turret. That was a game changer. It vastly increased production. I don't know the numbers, I'm not trying to win a speed contest.
Later, I installed a reverse rotation kit, with a cartridge kicker, and that helped more than I thought it would.

Rifle rounds I still load on the single stage, I don't do high-volume rifle shooting.

If you want a reasonably priced turret, I can heartily recommend the LCT.

Another vote for the "turret" .... specifically the Lee Classic Cast Turret.
With this particular machine I started out in single stage steps ..very carefully , with that said , used it as a semi progressive ever since.
With my style of reloading/demand it has fulfilled all to this point very nicely.

[Rcmaveric]

I burn theough about 500 pistol and 300 rifle on average a month. It was tough and laborious to keep up on my single stage. Plus i work over time almost every day.

I tried to stream line it as much as possible and my hand press in tandum with the single stage helped.

For Christmas the wife got me the Lee classic turret and my mom got me the press stand. Golly did that make a difference. I can set it up on monday, then throughout the week just check the powder dropper and just pull the handle. I can easily keep up now. I have plans to get a Load Master next.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

[uscra112]

@M-Tecs: Glad to know someone else has a collection of presses they don't use! At least I haven't succumbed to the lure of Dillon, though. And I had one Lee that was so bad I tossed it in the dumpster. I use a Lyman Tru-Line Junior for assembling handgun rounds. Otherwise I'm happy using an old RCBS Junior single stage. Drop powder thru various measures including a Belding and Mull. For rifles I weight every charge. The rest of the press collection is just filling up shelf space.

You can tell that I don't shoot 300 rounds a week anymore.

[Hossfly]

I like the 650 for cranking out 9mm, was slow with lubed boolits, lube would clog the seating die. Switched to power coat and all is well.

[NSB]

Have two Dillon, one Redding turret, and an RCBS single stage. I use the turret almost exclusively. It's not the fastest, and it's only real advantage over the single stage is not having to change the dies. But, it still makes enough ammo for me to meet my needs and it never "acts up". I like the Dillons, but only for making one dedicated load for one caliber (for me). Using a good powder measure and hand primer, I don't find the turret to be much of a disadvantage if any. Using bullet boards to hold the cases as I change operations it all goes pretty fast. Just my two cents.

[Camper64]

Another vote for the "turret" .... specifically the Lee Classic Cast Turret.
With this particular machine I started out in single stage steps ..very carefully , with that said , used it as a semi progressive ever since.
With my style of reloading/demand it has fulfilled all to this point very nicely.

Exactly what I did. You can crank out about 150 per hour without any custom automation (shell ejection). I do use the Auto Drum Powder Measure.

[alamogunr]

I didn't vote because I've got all three and use all three. I started with the RCBS RC and it was all I used for years. Bought a used Dillon 550 and tooled up for 9mm, .38/.357, .40, .45. Don't see the need for any more. Recently bought a Redding turret, mostly, for the convenience of separate seat & crimp. Also got an extra turret when I figure out what rifle cartridges I will be loading more often.

[frkelly74]

I have not succumbed to turrets syndrome as of yet. I will size & deprime a bunch of brass and then bell and prime the same brass and eventually charge and seat bullets on my single stage.

[BigAlofPa.]

Im spoiled by my lee classic turret. I put my brass in a bowel my primers (i prime on the press) in a shallow dish and my bullets in a bowel. I have them placed in order of the loading process. My powder drop is mounted to a powder though die. I never timed myself. But it don't take long to knock out rounds. I do 50 and then take a break. Then run 50 more.

[ukrifleman]

I would recommend the Lee classic turret.

I can crank out around 150/hour of 45 Colt/44-40 with the indexing rod installed and a Lee auto disk powder measure mounted on the turret.

For rifle rounds, I remove the indexing rod and use the press as a single stage.

Even as a single stage, it is so quick to just rotate the drum onto the next die and changing die sets takes seconds when they are installed in their own turrets.

A great press for the money.

ukrifleman

[RogerDat]

Lee classic turret is very productive. I pull the index rod when I want to do single stage work on say rifle rounds. Or use the press to do a single operation on a batch of brass. This and a single stage for trimming and push through sizer work for me.

I showed a friend the set up and worked with him to load up a box of 9mm for his own use. He bought a LCT for himself shortly after. However being retired he does have more free time for the range and it didn't take him long before he bought the Lee progressive press and set that up for 9mm. He found that shooting the 9mm on Monday, Thursday, and Saturday he was struggling to keep up with a turret, a progressive did speed up his reloading to his satisfaction.

Progressive seems to work well for folks that need high volume in a limited number of calibers. Turret is more cost effective for doing several calibers at a faster production rate than single stage but slower than a progressive. LCT is I think the best middle option, not too hot, not too cold, but just right.

[jmort]

Like some others, I have a lot of presses. All have advantages and disadvantages.
I like my
550s
A2s
Big Max
Classic Cast Turrets
Etc.
If I had to have only one, it would be the Classic Cast Turret
I have never tried a 650 or 1050, but I will always prime off the press
So they will never make sense, but only a fully progressive loader will crank out more than 200 rounds an hour.
I will endure the deprivation as best as I can

[waco]

I use all three.
Dillon 550
Lyman All American 8
RCBS Rock Chucker

[tazman]

Lee Classic Cast Turret with the Pro Auto Disk powder measure. I prime on the press. I can get 150 rounds an hour doing handgun or 223 rifle easily.
For larger rifle calibers I switch it to single stage.
Caliber changes are easily done in just a couple of minutes. You set up a turret with the dies the first time and you are ready to go with a turret change and primer change after that.
I currently have turrets set up for 9mm, 38 special, 357 mag, 40 S&W, and 45ACP in handgun with turrets for 223, 243, 308 and 30-06 in rifle.

[KCcactus]

I use a Lee Auto Breech Lock Pro. It replaced a Lee 3 hole turret that I used for more than 30 years. One completed round per cycle of the lever is really nice.

[bmortell]

I use turret for when i load 38's in decent numbers. I have a turret on my left single stage on my right. I have the size and bell in the turret and seater in the single. I grab a case to the left press pull size, rotate, pull bell, go to the right press prime, case to powder dropper in the middle, look at the charge while i grab a projectile and seat in the right, drop it in container.

I dont know if thats normal but its what i do

I get a bullet every 25 seconds roughly, certainly not as fast as other things but this is the fastest way i figured out where i can physically feel each primer go in and feel it flat on the way to next step, also look at each powder, seat in a solid single stage.

So it gives me the same "insurances" i get doin single stage only

[Green Frog]

First, I would need to know what kind of ammo (rifle or pistol class) and what level of accuracy (Bullseye or Run-and-Gun) you are talking about. With the volume you describe, I assume you are talking about either IPSC or similar "combat" style pistol events where OK accuracy is good enough... ORRR... you may be loading for an AR-type semi-auto rifle or carbine, again probably not for F-class long range accuracy.

If for a pistol for IPSC etc, I would unlimber my Dillon 650 and keep everything clean, lubed and well adjusted to give high volume, reasonably good ammo. For the AR duties as described, a turret press would be my choice, probably the Lyman All American that currently stays set up for 327 Fed Mag (don't ask, it's illogical!)

Sooooo, I need more info to vote intelligently, but based on the limited info available I'd go with the turret press as a happy medium. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Froggie

[RED BEAR]

I have thought about getting a turret press from time to time. But have stuck with my lee classic single stage its over 40 years old and going strong. I weigh every charge so not sure about a turret. Between the wife and i we use between 500 , 1000 rounds a week usually. All loaded on that old lee. I don't work anymore so i have all the time in the world to load up. Since i have more time than money i will just stay with my lee a while longer.

[David2011]

I use a Dillon 650 for USPSA and a 550 for most other handgun rounds and fun rounds for my Garand. Low volume pistol like .44 Mag and most rifle loads are loaded on single stage presses.

[dverna]

My choice is what works for me. I have two single stage presses, two 550’s and two 1050’s. Each has a place.

I see no application for a turret press in my reloading needs. Might be a good choice for someone with lots of spare time or who does not reload a lot. And that is the question....what is “a lot”?

A lot of .308’s is 50 rounds for me.....a lot of .223’s is 500....a lot of pistol ammo is 2000.... Loaded at one sitting. YMMV.

IMHO, the turret press is for 200 rounds at a sitting....something I do not need.

[Three44s]

I could not vote either as I have and use examples of each category as well.

A big shout out for the LCT. I did retire it from my accuracy rifle work however as I saw the turret tipping a small amount on sizing and seating operations. I was leery about bullet alignment and found a compound leverage Redding single stage (Boss I believe). My RCBS Jr was getting a little worn after 35 years in the linkage.

I also have and use a LNL progressive.

I think for handgun loading the LCT would work for the OP though.

Three44s

[44Blam]

My ammo requirement went up a bit when I started shooting local steel matches. Now I'm starting to get into the IDPA type matches. So, each one of these takes 70-100 rounds and I'm doing 3 or 4 a month at this point... AND I still go out to the range and plink maybe a couple times a month.

I think the most time consuming thing I do when reloading is I weigh each charge on a beam scale. But I figure if I'm reloading ammunition that is specific to my firearms, so I want it to be the load that I found to be accurate.

So, I'm wondering if going to a turret is really going to help...

Anyway, I timed myself loading some 44 mag and it took a little over 2 hours to load 100 from primed brass. I loaded them with my Lee hand press at my dining table and was listening to TV and wasn't really in a hurry.

[M-Tecs]

I load almost everything on my progressives. For 600 to 1,000 yard ammo I do weigh the powder charges for dropping on the progressive. I have tested weighting verse non-weighting out too 600 yards and I just does not make a difference in my 10 shot groups until I get to past 300 yards.

Basically the same technique I use. http://bulletin.accurateshooter.com/2018/02/load-winning-ammo-with-progressive-whidden-shows-how/

[JBinMN]

My ammo requirement went up a bit when I started shooting local steel matches. Now I'm starting to get into the IDPA type matches. So, each one of these takes 70-100 rounds and I'm doing 3 or 4 a month at this point... AND I still go out to the range and plink maybe a couple times a month.

I think the most time consuming thing I do when reloading is I weigh each charge on a beam scale. But I figure if I'm reloading ammunition that is specific to my firearms, so I want it to be the load that I found to be accurate.

So, I'm wondering if going to a turret is really going to help...

Anyway, I timed myself loading some 44 mag and it took a little over 2 hours to load 100 from primed brass. I loaded them with my Lee hand press at my dining table and was listening to TV and wasn't really in a hurry.

I was not going to comment on this topic, but I am happy to see it has not devolved into a "this press" vs "this press" vs "this press" P-ing contest topic. I also did not participate in the poll, as I do not currently use a progressive. I also weigh each & every charge thrown, throw powder from a separate measure not attached to the press, as well as I use a "Go-NoGO" check each & every round as it is put into the box. Sometimes, about every 5-10 rounds I do an OAL check.
That said, I offer the following...

My time averages from 60/75 - 100 rounds per hour for handgun calibers on a LCT using the indexing rod. That is going from cleaned & tumbled case to completed round, priming included "on press". I have developed a "system" for each step & once I established that system, the only thing that may slow me down is having to make some adjustment as I go due to my discovering something that I do not like. Example being some lube build up on the seating die stem, making my OAL change slightly & I have to deal with that issue, or whether or not I have to adjust powder throws for some reason or trickle in due to powder type in the measure, etc.. Other than my deciding to stop & take a break, that is how my system works & suits me just fine for the needs I have.


I do my .380ACP on a separate Lyman Truline Jr. turret which I turn by hand, but mostly just like a SS press doing batches in "steps" rather than turning for each round over & over. I also have another Lyman turret, a Spar -T, but have not decided just what caliber to dedicate it to yet. I am thinking .357mag or 44 mag.

For rifle, I use SS presses, either a RCBS R3 or a Lee O-press ( I don't remember the name of it, but it is an older one.)

I also have a convertible up or down Lee C- press for doing odd separate things that help out like testing lead hardness, removing/installing rifle primers, sizing, etc.

I also use a Lee hand press for range duty.

I mentioned them all because while you are looking at the time used which I addressed in the first part of the post, I also wanted to have you be able to consider that adding a press to your line up of any kind can be an asset to your reloading, as well as a possible time saver. So, consider that if you do get a turret, that is is just one more in your "line up" to use when you wish to use it, rather than as just having a single dedicated progressive or turret press & your SS as a "back up".

You can compare the times mentioned above that I use with the extra steps I take, and compare it to the ones who are achieving 100-150+ per hour on their turrets. No one of us is doing anything wrong, just different. I would like to gain some speed, but I do not wish to give up any of my personal "checks" I perform on each round. ( Yes, I am "that" picky & concerned for safety, but that is another story... ;) )

Anyway, I just wanted to offer a bit different viewpoint to add to your decision making process.

Lastly, I am thinking that you are likely going to want to jump to a progressive to do what you want, considering your description of your shooting & some of your lifestyle, "family/kids etc."... You can go with a auto indexing turret first & keep the cost down & progress to a progressive in the future if it seems more necessary to keep up & either keep the turret & just get another press, or sell the turret/ gift it away, etc.. If you jump to progressive, then you will likely fulfill your needs for a time until you decide you want to add another caliber & depending on which progressive you have chosen, may have to either get a turret, or another progressive if the progressive press you start with is a single caliber type.

You can likely tell that I chose "my" path, by going with turret from single stage & now I will next have to decide if I want to get into a progressive, but I do not shoot in regular competitions, so as of yet the need "for me" is not there.

You, on the other hand, have a "different path" than mine, so your needs will be different as well.

G'Luck! on whatever you decide! I hope I helped ya out like the others...
:)

[dtknowles]

Going from a single stage to a turret won't buy you much time. If you want to load in volume you need a progressive. The benefit I see with a turret press is you don't have to change dies as often. I keep a couple sets of rifle dies setup in my turret press. I load my 9mm and 357 mag. in a lee progressive. Swapping die sets in the progressive is quick and easy if you don't change bullets or load.

Tim

[cat-mechanic]

I didn't see a turret as a benefit to me over a single stage. I thought the concept seemed beneficial and you might gain some increase in speed. But overall, I believe you would be best served by a progressive.

For me, I went with a Dillon 550.

[Gtrubicon]

Don’t dismiss a turret press, I have lots of press’s, including a Dillon 650, once you find your system a turret press is in a whole different league than a single stage, very consistent product.

[44Blam]

I was not going to comment on this topic, but I am happy to see it has not devolved into a "this press" vs "this press" vs "this press" P-ing contest topic. I also did not participate in the poll, as I do not currently use a progressive. I also weigh each & every charge thrown, throw powder from a separate measure not attached to the press, as well as I use a "Go-NoGO" check each & every round as it is put into the box. Sometimes, about every 5-10 rounds I do an OAL check.
That said, I offer the following...

My time averages from 60/75 - 100 rounds per hour for handgun calibers on a LCT using the indexing rod. That is going from cleaned & tumbled case to completed round, priming included "on press". I have developed a "system" for each step & once I established that system, the only thing that may slow me down is having to make some adjustment as I go due to my discovering something that I do not like. Example being some lube build up on the seating die stem, making my OAL change slightly & I have to deal with that issue, or whether or not I have to adjust powder throws for some reason or trickle in due to powder type in the measure, etc.. Other than my deciding to stop & take a break, that is how my system works & suits me just fine for the needs I have.


I do my .380ACP on a separate Lyman Truline Jr. turret which I turn by hand, but mostly just like a SS press doing batches in "steps" rather than turning for each round over & over. I also have another Lyman turret, a Spar -T, but have not decided just what caliber to dedicate it to yet. I am thinking .357mag or 44 mag.

For rifle, I use SS presses, either a RCBS R3 or a Lee O-press ( I don't remember the name of it, but it is an older one.)

I also have a convertible up or down Lee C- press for doing odd separate things that help out like testing lead hardness, removing/installing rifle primers, sizing, etc.

I also use a Lee hand press for range duty.

I mentioned them all because while you are looking at the time used which I addressed in the first part of the post, I also wanted to have you be able to consider that adding a press to your line up of any kind can be an asset to your reloading, as well as a possible time saver. So, consider that if you do get a turret, that is is just one more in your "line up" to use when you wish to use it, rather than as just having a single dedicated progressive or turret press & your SS as a "back up".

You can compare the times mentioned above that I use with the extra steps I take, and compare it to the ones who are achieving 100-150+ per hour on their turrets. No one of us is doing anything wrong, just different. I would like to gain some speed, but I do not wish to give up any of my personal "checks" I perform on each round. ( Yes, I am "that" picky & concerned for safety, but that is another story... ;) )

Anyway, I just wanted to offer a bit different viewpoint to add to your decision making process.

Lastly, I am thinking that you are likely going to want to jump to a progressive to do what you want, considering your description of your shooting & some of your lifestyle, "family/kids etc."... You can go with a auto indexing turret first & keep the cost down & progress to a progressive in the future if it seems more necessary to keep up & either keep the turret & just get another press, or sell the turret/ gift it away, etc.. If you jump to progressive, then you will likely fulfill your needs for a time until you decide you want to add another caliber & depending on which progressive you have chosen, may have to either get a turret, or another progressive if the progressive press you start with is a single caliber type.

You can likely tell that I chose "my" path, by going with turret from single stage & now I will next have to decide if I want to get into a progressive, but I do not shoot in regular competitions, so as of yet the need "for me" is not there.

You, on the other hand, have a "different path" than mine, so your needs will be different as well.

G'Luck! on whatever you decide! I hope I helped ya out like the others...
:)

This is why I really like this message board. There is so much knowledge here and people really like to talk about what they do and most of it is from experience and / or learning from others.

Thanks!

[bullseye67]

Good evening,

This is a topic I really like to discuss with our club members. It is kind of like religion and politics......seems every one has an opinion and they are right!!

As a dedicated Bullseye League shooter, shooting about 20K rounds a year in 32 S&W Long and 5-6K in 45ACP. I have and use all types of presses.

I have a dedicated Progressive(LEE LOADMASTER) for loading 32’s on. Runs absolutely flawless and my reloads consistently score better than several of the factory brands I have tried. I don’t switch caliber on it. I had it dedicated to 38’s when I used a Model 52 and a K-14. 45ACP I load on a LCT. Works as slick as can be. Obviously slower than a progressive but way faster than a SS. I also have turrets set op with dies for, 32, 9mm, 38, 357, 44 special and Magnum and 45 Colt. I also have the AutoDrum powder measure and a bunch of drums all set for the loads I use in each caliber. I can load 200 45ACP and remove the powder measure empty the powder and switch the drum to the 9mm and fill with the right powder. Install the 9mm turret, small primer arm and start loading however many I need in about 5 minutes.

I also have the Turrets set up for 223, 308, 30-06 and 303 British. I shoot all cast boolits and with the 4 hole turret. I can load as a SS or as a turret. With most of my old military rifles I have worked out a load that gets as good of accuracy as the rifles can deliver. We shoot a lot of 50 and 100 yard off hand at bowling pins and round 8” plates. So the ability to load up 500 308 or 303 sometimes both in a couple of evenings makes LCT an awful handy machine.

I also use a SS and an Arbor press to load long range Ammo for rifles like 260 Rem, 6.5x 47Lapua and 6mmBR Ext. I have tried to load rounds on the Turret press but I can’t get the same results as I can with batch loading with SS and bullet seating with an Arbor press. It also takes 2 of us working at different stages to get 50-60 rounds an hour. Mostly slowed down by using a AND scale with auto drop and auto trickler. But most of those rounds are 1/2MOA or better all the way to 1000 yards.

To sum it up, I would get a LCT as my first press and get good at making the best possible Ammo I could for a single caliber. Then branch out to other styles of presses and reloading. You may find that a LCT might do 99% of what you need. Several of the league members load only with 2 presses. One progressive or turret set up for their high volume load and a turret or SS for the lower round count.

The best part of what we do is choice!!!

Make a choice and if you aren’t happy choose again. Just like ice cream....there’s no bad choice only different flavors of GOOD!!!

[Spector]

[QUOTE=Three44s;4619810]I could not vote either as I have and use examples of each category as well.

A big shout out for the LCT. I did retire it from my accuracy rifle work however as I saw the turret tipping a small amount on sizing and seating
__________________________________________________ ________________

I understand your concern. Since the Lee turrets are fully supported what l chose to do was to simply hold the turret against it's top limit.

I think l used a long 5/16" bolt and cut the head off so it was the same lenght as the square shaft that advances the turret. I screwed a square nut on it. It causes the turret press to function as a single stage without having to buy a single stage. I put a spring above the square nut that bears against the turret forcing it against it's upper limit. You can finger rotate the bolt which will advance the nut further into the square recess in the bottom of the turret increasing the upward pressure on the turret. You can eliminate all of the tipping of the turret using this method.

A large portion of the round bolt is unthreaded so it does not wear on the nylon piece that normally advances the turret. I would imagine you could just screw a 2nd square nut on the standard Lee part and lock it into place in line with the lower nut. Both nuts will fit into the square recess n the turret now. File or grind the top nut until the turret will just drop into place and rotate without binding.

That will absolutely minimise the tipping of the turret when operating it as an automatic indexing turret press. Use the round bolt and turn it until the nut and spring are holding the turret tight in it's uppermost limit when you want zero tipping using it as a single stage press without having to purchass a 2nd press.

Mike

[Three44s]

Mike,

Thanks for that tip!

A friend and fellow member assured me he checked his run out of his loaded ammo and watched the turret and the runout was fine and that in fact the turret rises to the top of the press head on each stroke. I still have my doubts.

A good example was a few minutes ago I just finished loading some 223 for one of my bolt guns for coyotes. I seated the jacketed bullets using a Hornady New Dimension seater die. I use a technique I learned many years ago from Rick Jameson who wrote a handloading column in Shooting Times.

The technique involves just barely starting the bullet, rotating the cartridge approximately 120 to 180 degrees and just barely seating the bullet ever so slightly deeper, and rotating again and pushing the bullet “home” to it’s desired seating depth.

I feel the New Dimension seater with it’s sliding bullet guide gives me an advantage over other traditional seating dies and yet I can measure less run out with my loaded ammo by adding the Jameson technique.

Here is where I depart from my friend’s assertion about the Lee Classic Turret leveling off during bullet seating.

I find that the Jameson technique works far better as the bullet is seated ever so shallow in the mouth of the case. The deeper it is already seated, the harder it is to affect the misalignment. Now it is logical that the greater the force of the ram acting on the turret, the more reliably the turret will level off.

But it is at relatively light force levels that a bullet begins to enter the case mouth. Especially with a boat tail as I was loading tonight.

By the time the force level rises to the point the turret will be uniformly seated at the top of it’s raceway, the bullet misalignment will be “baked in” to the just seated round.

That is why your system is interesting because it works around the above problem.

Thank you much!

Three44s

[Three44s]

44Blam,

I load my share of 44 Mag as well but I learned to live with thrown charges early on.

I do not know what you are loading for powders but I suggest you think about adapting to thrown charges to a greater degree. I know you are being safety and acccuracy conscious but the right charge level or switching powders in some instances will get you to a better place.

Here is what I do:

I load and shoot several power levels in the 44 Mag. Powders that throw less accurately are either loaded at more modest levels or are shelved and not used.

A good example is Unique .... it is a grand powder but is a pity to throw. A lot of manuals suggest loading into the 10 gr range pushing a 250 gr boolit. Now a small error with a thrown charge of Unique will get you into the red zone from there. What I do is use Unique the way Skeeter Skelton did. I load it at 8.5 gr and even with a powder measure swing of a few tenths there is no way I can get in trouble. If I want more power than the Skelton load produces, I switch powders.

My powder I switch to is HS-6 and there are few powders that will meter better. I use the Hodgdon’s #26 manual load range for 250 gr lead of 10-12 grs. and settled on 11.8 gr for my magnum revolvers.

This gives me a very accurate load that is authoritative on the front end but mannerly on the back end and beats Unique at this power level without the risk of an overcharge such as Unique presents when you push it.

For my 2400 loading I load mostly at 20.0 gr and find throwing there to be reasonable as well. If I want more juice I would likely weight the charges above that.

Now full house and addressing H110/WW296. These powders are like HS-6 in that they throw very well. I could see angst but weighting at intervals should suffice. I uses the business end of an unsharpened (new) pencil to measure a block ful of freshly charged cases waiting to have boolits seated.

Measure the powder level on a couple of properly charged cases and take a sharp pocket knife and make a shallow scoring mark around the wood of the pencil at the mouth of the case.

This pencil becomes your “dip stick” for that load.

Sorry for the thread hijack!

Three44s

[Moleman-]

I've owned all three press types and currently have one of each. If one were to go, once again I'd get rid of the turret press and keep my single stage and progressive presses. Even without a case feeder or bullet feeder you'll be easily able to hit 400-500 rnds an hour and likely more if you prep everything well or get the case and/or bullet feeders. I also 2nd using powders that will meter well enough through your measure (within a tenth or if a larger case on up to two tenths of a grain) so that you don't have to trickle.

[Domino300]

I hate screwing dies in and out. Have 2 LCT's and a rockchucker in a box somewhere. With 19 four hole turrets set up with dies ready to go. I don't shoot competition, so just reload whenn I need to. My usage is to resize/decap and bell for handgun cases, and tumble them, hand prime or press prime later, and powder charge with a RCBS Chargemaster , then seat and crimp. It fits for me.

[44Blam]

I hate screwing dies in and out. Have 2 LCT's and a rockchucker in a box somewhere. With 19 four hole turrets set up with dies ready to go. I don't shoot competition, so just reload whenn I need to. My usage is to resize/decap and bell for handgun cases, and tumble them, hand prime or press prime later, and powder charge with a RCBS Chargemaster , then seat and crimp. It fits for me.

The worst is when you go to make a dummy round and you seat it too deep. Then you have to pull it, put your bell die in, bell, put your seat die in and seat and then your crimp die in and crimp... Then test and *DARNIT* it's too long. Pull the boolit and repeat screwing in dies ad nausium...

[diddlyv]

I use a lyman T-Mag or Mag-T can never get it right!!. My original Circa 1994 press snapped the bolt that holds the turret on. They no longer make said bolt so I ended up buying the then current model about 5 or 5 years ago.
I actually use a rather hybrid approach. I size my cases on the Lyman, tumble to remove case lube and prime on a cheap lee single stage with that Lee Auto Prime thing that lee no longer sells. If loading jacked bullets I then charge all the cases using a lyman powder measure that came with the original T-Mag Kit. Then seat and crimp at same time on the press so essentially I end up using the turret as a single stage.

If using cast prior to charging the cases I usually expand case mouth one at a time and charge with powder place in a loading block and visually inspect for powder in every case. Then seat bullet and crimp In a single step. If I am loading black a compression die step goes in between the expanding and charging case step and I dont use the loading block and 100% visual inspection of the powder charge as even I can tell if there is no powder in the case when I start to use the compression die.

I have 4 turrets my most commonly loaded calibers .308, 3040Krag, 45 pistol, 44 spec/mag and 45 70 usually remain in the turrets and the caliber of the day swaps in and out of one of the turrets


When Charging Seating Bullet Crimping using the press as a turret press I would sometimes forget if I actually added powder either using a thru the expander die or manually moving case over to powder measure and putting back on the shell holder. I have grown to like the 100% visual powder check even if efficiency suffers.

[JimB..]

I could never get used to a turret, so I sold it.

My first progressive was a Dillon SBD bought used. Took a little time for it and I to agree on things, but after the first couple thousand rounds we became flawless. Also have a Hornady LNL and a Dillon 650, but if you’re looking to produce straight wall pistol cartridges the SDB is great at it.

[Dutchninja]

+1 for lee classic turret, do yourself a favor (as stated) get inline fabs reverse kit with case kicker. Really helps with production.

[Baltimoreed]

239527
I have 2 Dillon 550s and 2 Lyman T2s. I dump powder and prime on the presses. The T2s needed to be tweeked and some edges removed from the priming system and shell holders but now work flawlessly. I modded Dillon powder measures [450 but prefer 550 measures] to work on both the lymans. Progressives are ok but I’ve seen too many locally remanufactured squib rounds loaded on progressives. I personally don't trust them [not trying to start a range war]. Here’s my Dillon and Lyman setup, the Dillon drops loads to the right while I built a case kicker to kick loads to the left on my Lyman. Enjoy whatever you decide on.

[fredj338]

With todays affordable good progressives, I just do not see the point of a turret anymore. With a turret, you are still pulling the handle the same amount as a ss press, so same work load. With a progressive, you are doing about 75% less work for handgun loading. Go fast or slow, you are still doing a lot less work. So it isn't just about speed or volume but a lot less work.
Never the tools fault for poor results, always the operator. I am well over 300K rds on a 550 & 650, never had a squib or double. Just pay attention to what you are doing, not unlike ss press at all in that respect. A ton of guns have been blown up from reloads put together with a ss press.

[Baltimoreed]

While there’s a ‘work’ improvement over ss press there’s no real difference between the amount of handle pulling between a turret, progressive or an auto indexing progressive. The only thing different is the ‘work’ you do turning the turret or shellplate manually. You still have 4 pulls per loaded bullet. When you load up the progressive you pull 4 times before producing a load and at the end you pull 4 times to mty the shellplate. When a turret press seats your last bullet its done turning. If you used a through the expander powder measure you could eliminate a pull. Plus with a turret you can feel what’s happening, split case, sideways primer ie. It’s just a matter of choice, move the work to the tool or the tool to the work.

[Gatch]

While there’s a ‘work’ improvement over ss press there’s no real difference between the amount of handle pulling between a turret, progressive or an auto indexing progressive. The only thing different is the ‘work’ you do turning the turret or shellplate manually. You still have 4 pulls per loaded bullet. When you load up the progressive you pull 4 times before producing a load and at the end you pull 4 times to mty the shellplate. When a turret press seats your last bullet its done turning. If you used a through the expander powder measure you could eliminate a pull. Plus with a turret you can feel what’s happening, split case, sideways primer ie. It’s just a matter of choice, move the work to the tool or the tool to the work.

No that's not entirely accurate. You "lose" the first and last few pulls of the handle on a progressive while the shell plate fills and empties, but every pull in between produces a loaded round.

I've never tried rifle rounds in the dillon, but for pumping out bulk 9mm I would never use anything else now.

[LAH]

For what you're loading a turret would be fine. I can do 150 an hour on my Lyman All American.

[David2011]

I hate screwing dies in and out. Have 2 LCT's and a rockchucker in a box somewhere. With 19 four hole turrets set up with dies ready to go. I don't shoot competition, so just reload whenn I need to. My usage is to resize/decap and bell for handgun cases, and tumble them, hand prime or press prime later, and powder charge with a RCBS Chargemaster , then seat and crimp. It fits for me.

Welcome to Castboolits!

This is the perfect application for Hornady’s Lock and Load bushing system. Die changes take less than 2 seconds and adjustments remain unaffected. Sure, there’s some up front investment but it makes a single stage press almost as fast as a turret but retains the precision of a single stage. Just pull the bushing adapter out of the RC and screw the Hornady adapter in. Al of my single stage dies are so equipped now and I’m very happy with the system.

[Greg S]

I have all three types, (single, turret and progressive) and when shooting competitively, the nod goes to the m progressive. A buy once, cry once type of thing. For the price of a turret, it'll put you halfway or more to a progressive.

If loading a single calibler, look at the Dillion square deal or a 550. They cane be had cheaper than retail on the used market.

The turret is good for loading a few shells quickly i.e. 15-30 pistol or rifle shells that are used frequently for practice ect so you don't spend time changing and adjusting dies. You still have three or four strokes to complete per shell (i.e. size & deprime, mouth expand, seat and crimp) as compared with a progressive were you have four activities occurring per each stroke of the handle.

[Boolseye]

my first and only press, other than a little Lee reloader press (their most basic single stage, retail about $25)
is an RCBS turret that my first mentor sold me. It has reloaded probably 20 different calibers and thousands of rounds of all types. A good press, I happen to like its priming system too. I can crank out the volume if I need to, but I like the ability to change calibers pretty easily and have control over every stage. Have lately been considering progressives or maybe a Lee Classic Turret, after reading this thread.
-BE

[44Blam]

So... My birthday was yesterday and my wife KNOWS that want my charges to be exact and that I complain about how sometimes it takes a long time on the beam scale.

She bought me the RCBS Chargemaster Lite 120... My wife is awesome. Tomorrow, I think I'm gonna do a trial run of 40 S&W to see how it runs... So maybe a single stage is gonna be fine?

[JBinMN]

Well, Happy B-day!
:drinks:

I do know that when I went to a Hornady power trickler, I sped up some, just due to not having to turn the little arrow shaft tube on my homemade trickler, but instead just had to press a button to make it trickle fast or slow depending on powder. So, you will likely see at least some improvement int time spent with your new B-day present!
:)

G'Luck!
:)

[sfcairborne]

Dillon 650 for my 9, 380, 357, 300bkl and 223, Redding T7 for 308, 6.5 ,30-30 and 45-70

[RIHP]

All three!
Single stage for precision rifle.
Turret for special limited run pistol.
Progressive for high volume competition pistol.
That's what is on my bench!

[Echo]

I have three. An RCBS RC I've used for over 50 years. A Dillon I've had for several years, set up for 38 Spec, 9mm, 45ACP, and 40 S&W. And a Lyman turret. I've got a 38/357 carbide sizing die mounted on the turret, a 38 expander/beller, and a 357 expander/beller. If I want to do a few 38's with a load different from the one the 550 is set up for, I size & deprime, take in and watch TV while I use an old Lee priming tool to re-prime, come back to the bench and expand & bell, put into a loading block, then go to the RC & mount seater. Use a Pacific/Hornady powder measure to dump powder into the waiting cases, then sit boolits on top and start seating. I timed all efforts once, and spend a trace over 20 seconds per case...

[pakmc]

I finally went to a Dillon 550B and at one time I loaded over 40 different calibers.(pistol and rifle) it's a very quick, versatile press! and it's pretty quick to load a batch of ammo. but the warrenty is as good as it can be. I broke my press.(it's a long story)I mean the main frame!, they replaced it! but it's now a little expencive for a retire shooter to change calibers. If I was working I would buy another one or the different calibers that I needed.

[Ozark mike]

I'll take a turret anytime over a single or progressive. Faster than a single and I still handle and measure every case

[fredj338]

While there’s a ‘work’ improvement over ss press there’s no real difference between the amount of handle pulling between a turret, progressive or an auto indexing progressive. The only thing different is the ‘work’ you do turning the turret or shellplate manually. You still have 4 pulls per loaded bullet. When you load up the progressive you pull 4 times before producing a load and at the end you pull 4 times to mty the shellplate. When a turret press seats your last bullet its done turning. If you used a through the expander powder measure you could eliminate a pull. Plus with a turret you can feel what’s happening, split case, sideways primer ie. It’s just a matter of choice, move the work to the tool or the tool to the work.
What? Of course there is a diff. I pull the handle 103x for 100rds. On a turret, you pull the handle 300-400x depending on die setup. Yeah, a lot more work, simple math problem.

[Crowkiller]

I started with a single stage, then bought a Lee Classic Cast Turret.
I used it for a year before finding a deal on a used Dillon 550b.
The Dillon is much easier to use and faster. That being said, the Lee Classic Cast Turret is a good press. With the auto index it is reasonably fast in production. It is a Lee, so it takes some time to figure out and more fiddling to keep it running well.
Now I use the 550b for anything with small primers, and the Lee for large primer. I need fewer large primer reloads, and it keeps up with my demand just fine.

You might look at Lee's new Auto Breech Lock Pro. It looks like it is a progressive based on the Classic Cast Turret frame.

[charlie b]

I started with a Lee Turret press when they first came out, 30 or so yrs ago. Very good press that works well. I never used the auto rotate system but that would be nice to have. Not a high volume system but it works and is reliable. I would not consider the other turret systems as I consider them overpriced and not as good as the Lee. FWIW, I have tested the strength of the original Lee Turret Press and it will take a lot of abuse. I have swaged small lead 'bullets' with it although I would not recommend that as a regular practice.

Later on, ~15 yrs ago, I got a Lee Loadmaster, mainly cause I wanted to be able to load rifle ammo as well as pistol. I load everything on it. I set up pistols with the automatic powder measure. For rifles I weigh each charge (most of the time) and use one of the charge dies to add powder on the press. It has 5 die stations so you can do just about any sequence you want. For example, the 9mm and .45 get deprimed, sized/primed, mouth expand/charged, bullet seat, taper crimp. Hand work is putting the bullet on the charged case (that can also be automatic but the Lee bullet system has not been reliable for me so I set them by hand). I also sometimes put the cases in by hand instead of using the auto case feed.

Now I also have a Lee Breechlock Pro. Good for pistol and .223 but not for .308 and longer. Also a bit more time intensive as the primer is best done manually so it slows the process. It is a smaller press and less finicky. Probably good for someone first starting out with progressive. Fairly inexpensive as well.

FWIW, the Lee presses use std reloading dies as well.

But, if you want trouble free, no fiddling, high volume, then the Dillon 650 would be my choice. I never reloaded enough to justify one but that would be my choice. Probably the best cost/performance, IMHO, until you get to the production grade and motor driven systems.


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[pakmc]

I used a Dillon 550B for many years. I loaded over 40 different calibers on it. I load mostly pistol calibers on it but some rifle. I've timed myself a couple of times and I can turn out one box(of 50 rounds) in 10 minutes of just about any pistol caliber.(ok, this is after I have 50 cases ready to go, the primer tube with at lease 50+ primers in it.and the powder hopper full.) the powder bar is one of the greatest parts of this machine.
it stays pretty close to what you want, the whole time your loading that batch of ammo. there is no better warranty on the market, they replaced my machine because of something I did to it! no cost to me.(except to send my broke machine to them. and it very easy to change calibers.(and yes, I had to pull the rifle cases to trim before i reloaded them.I still use one for .30 caliber carbine, 6.8SPC and 300 blk out.

[30calflash]

My ammo requirement went up a bit when I started shooting local steel matches. Now I'm starting to get into the IDPA type matches. So, each one of these takes 70-100 rounds and I'm doing 3 or 4 a month at this point... AND I still go out to the range and plink maybe a couple times a month.

I think the most time consuming thing I do when reloading is I weigh each charge on a beam scale. But I figure if I'm reloading ammunition that is specific to my firearms, so I want it to be the load that I found to be accurate.

So, I'm wondering if going to a turret is really going to help...

Anyway, I timed myself loading some 44 mag and it took a little over 2 hours to load 100 from primed brass. I loaded them with my Lee hand press at my dining table and was listening to TV and wasn't really in a hurry.

You're using a Lee hand press, That's good but not meant for high production, more for using when there's no space for a bench mounted press or at the range.

If you go to any bench mounted press you should see a jump in production. Turret should be better than a single stage, progressive should be better than a turret.

Like all things there's a learning curve, the time to load will decrease when things go and flow smoothly.

[dwtim]

If I had to do it again, I would have bought a turret press. As it turns out, experience has taught me that most of the time saved by a progressive press is due to a lack of the penalty of swapping dies.

But I can't go back, so I'm sticking with my Rock Chucker. Now amortized over years of reloading, the cost of my entire reloading set-up costs a fraction of a penny per round.

[lotech]

I've had four progressive presses over many years. All were used for loading handgun ammo. For loading and shooting somewhere between six and ten thousand rounds a year, I didn't really need a progressive machine. A 60s model Texan turret that I've used for almost forty years works very well and is likely not as slow as some think. I continue to enjoy load development and experimenting with many different loads. For such work, the turret is a far more versatile tool than many progressives.

[charlie b]

That is one of the reasons I liked the Lee turret or auto lock pro. You can easily use either as a single stage or just a couple of stages. The nice thing is the dies stay in the turret and you just change out the turrets (like a bolt action). Rotate by hand to use the dies you want or activate the auto rotate feature.

I alos like using the auto feature when doing things like depriming brass. It is just one die in the turret but it is just a stroke of the lever. For pistol I use the auto case loader. For rifle I have to hand feed them.

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[trapper9260]

I did not vote because I use a Lyman T press and a Hornady single stage . One I do the size and deprime and the rest on the T press. I stated on the T press and then later got a used single stage. It works for me . The down side on the Lyman T press is the bolt of the old style in the center they do not have any replacement for it if it got broke that is why I got a single stage after. Some brass I was sizing and depriming was rough on the T press

[jimlj]

I have a single stage RCBS press and a Lee classic turret. I loaded thousands of rounds on the RCBS before buying the Lee. I can easily load 3 times the quantity per hour of anything I've tried with the Lee, even setting the primers in the press one at a time. Next time I order anything I'll add the safety prime system and hopefully speed things up even more.

One thing I'd add to this discussion is you have to pay better attention to what you are doing. I have had a few cases slip past without getting a primer or even setting the primer upside down. Be careful and pay attention.

[white eagle]

it all depends on which gun I am loading for
my rifles are normally on a single stage press where my
revo and auto pistols are loaded on a turret press

[Wayne Smith]

I did not vote because I use a Bair Brown Bair three station press, a Hollywood Sr single stage, and a TrueLine Jr that I use for .32 and .38Special. Most rifle loading is done on the Hollywood - and all cartridge forming is done on that. I have a Bair Grizzly single stage that I have set up for depriming but need to change that, primers everywhere. I bought all of these used from eBay or here on shopping and selling years ago when such were inexpensive. On the Brown Bair I can load 45ACP and have a loaded round from each pull of the handle, just need to move the cartridges myself. Need three shell holders and I don't have the primer setup for that so I prime off the press. I've been priming off the press for years, though.

[44Blam]

So... Now I have a turret press and I load a lot of things on it. But I also use my single stage and my hand press quite a bit.

Loaded up 50 180 grain 350 legend rounds this evening with my Lee hand press. I decided that I would load up 350 legend until I run out of boolits by loading 50/night...

[evort]

I liked my Lyman Turret press. Now I'm using 2 550s, a Square Deal B, and a Rock Chucker.

[bakerjw]

We have a rock chucker that we use for more accurate loads.
But I picked up a Dillon 550 a few years back and my son and I make good use of it when punching out a lot of 45ACP, 9mm or 40S&W.

[mdi]

Hmmm. Resurrected "I burn 1,398 rounds a week so with my auto everything press I reload 1,156 rounds per hour" thread...

I've used single stage, Lee turret, and Co-Ax. I used the turret semi-progressive then hand indexed. But I only shoot 600-700 rounds per month, and I have no idea how long it takes me to make up 100 handloads. (and I don't care). I reload for fun. I shoot for fun. I like both processes, quite a bit. I reload so I can shoot and then shoot so I can reload. If I counted pennies and timed the process, the fun factor would disappear and reloading would become a chore (even might be dropped)...

[fcvan]

I use a Lee turret and have for 35 years. I use it like a single stage as it does not auto index, and I prefer it that way. I really like having my dies set, and switching calibers is fast. I only have one set of dies not in a turret disc, as the dies are for a new caliber. I have friends who swear by their whoop-di-do progressive presses, I think there is far too many things to watch at once.

I de-prime on a single stage with a universal die, I don't like the gunk getting in my turret press. I clean and size, then tumble, then prime and load. I only prime, charge and seat/crimp 50 at a time so I can drop and go as needed. Most of the time, I can load 100 before the toaster oven is cooking the PCd boolits. Everyone has a preference, my preferences were determined long before I ever became old enough to be called a 'grumpy old man.'

[gnappi]

M-tecs... THIRTY PRESSES? I'd LOVE to see a pic of your reloading cavern!

Anyway, since the late 70's I've run the gamut from single stage, turret (mostly Lee) , hydraulic, and progressives (mine and friends who needed help setting up) from just about every maker. Bottom line, nothing's perfect or foolproof... that's especially true if the user IS a fool!

I currently have an RCBS Big Max (single stage) Hyrdaulic MEC 12Ga, one 450, and two 550 Dillons.

When I was training for the four NRA Law enforcement classes I took, I'd burn a thousand rounds a week in pistol, and 400-500 in .308, and shotgun (not all caliber/gauge in the same week) and need over a thousand rounds for the class. Impractical on the single stage Big Max, but the cat's meow on the hydraulic and Dillons.

Can you make a mistake? Yup, but the same holds true for ANY press, anyone who says different hasn't loaded enough, is a liar, or a saint with a LOT of time to spend loading with the patience of JOB :-)

[LinotypeIngot]

I started with a Lee turret and then moved on to a Hornady progressive, and now I use a Dillon 1050. I can't imagine ever bothering with a single stage except for extreme precision applications.

[remy3424]

I voted for all 3. I have a 550 I recently set-up for 9mm, all other handgun ammo on a Lyman T-Mag 2, and rifle cartridges on a Bonanza Co-Ax and a couple RCBS RCs.

[gypsyman]

Started out with a Rock Chucker in'76, used that many years of silhouette shooting. When Redding bought out the T-7, sold the RCBS, but then I figured that a progressive is the way to go for quantity. So bought a 550. Use that for what I call my blamo ammo, semi auto pistol. Use the T-7 for rifle and long range stuff.

[memtb]

My first press was a little Lyman AA (I think), that I bought in the early ‘70’s. I’ve used turrets ever since. I can’t fathom constantly change dies for each reloading step, and every caliber! memtb

[Cosmic_Charlie]

I've used a Rock Chucker for most of the 25 years or so I've been loading. Had a Dillon SDB that I loaded 45 acp on and it was a real work horse too. But I was able to locate a Lee Classic Turret online a couple nights ago. Also got an Auto disc, riser and 9mm, .38 & .44 powder through expander dies for it. I will continue to size and deprime on my APP and hand prime. The Rock Chucker will be doing my rifle loads.

[Mr_Sheesh]

I've never had access to a turret press, went from single stage to an Auto Champ when I was assisting in classes and shooting mass rounds every weekend. Could try one tho :)

[waksupi]

I've always stuck with a single stage press. The majority of kablooeys I know of were the result of a progressive. As far as a turret press goes, I have no problem with those.

[koyote]

I've never used a turret as an advance. Maybe I should.

I have a pair of single stage presses next to each other that I use for a lot of my pistol loading.

I do volumetric powder - scooping. So I do the resize and deprime in large batches when I prep. then I prime off the press. I just have the powder/expanding and the seat/crimp set up in two presses next to each other.

Maybe I should try making the turret do the advance thing and see if I can improve my speed. and maybe figure out the autodisk.