Question: RCBS or Lee

[bpimwheel]

Hello,
I need to get a manual reloading press, but Im not sure which is the best for the money.
Ive looked at RCBS, and Lee. Are there anyothers that I should look at.
Which is better for a beginner for reloading.
Thanks

[Elroy]

You need to be more specific in what you need from,and expect from a press..There are things to be considered such as material that the press is made from, ram diameter ,and ram stroke,as well as how they catch spent primers. Lyman would be in the mix with RCBS, and Lee.. I bought a Lyman TMag II last year,but considered a Frankford Arsennal MPress coaxial that was on sale for around $150. You will pay more for an iron press,but you will get a much stouter unit.

[William Yanda]

Ford or Chevy, green tractor or some other color, this manufacturer or another. Try one, it will be a learning curve. I doubt that you will wear it out. If you are annoyed by it's quirks try a different one.
Both of those mentioned have fans, both will do the job. Only you can decide. Do you take pride in owning the "best"?
Or do you favor frugality, saving your reloading funds for components or other toys?
Let us know where you come down.
Regards,
Bill

[Cast_outlaw]

Well if you deciding wether you want to reload or not I say lee if you going to do some heavy work rcbs

[Winger Ed.]

They're both good, and have huge followings.

I like the Hornady press because it has an offset opening.
For me its more comfortable to use, I don't feel like I'm reaching around a corner to get cases in & out of it.

[Harter66]

Written many times on other pages .

Lee makes a tool to do a job and it does the job .
Is this a completely new to you try it out see if it's for you thing ?
Are you seeking to start as inexpensively as possible and build on a kit ? Are you more of a buy once , cry once type ?
If you answered yes , yes , no AND you don't mind a little bit of putzing , polish , and cleaning before you use the gear and or to get started then the Lee kit is a great starter .
If you answered really any other way or you have a strong distaste for fidgeting to get things running step up to at least the RCBS Partner kit or best yet the RockChucker kit .
The RockChucker is never a mistake .

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

"best for the money"
hands down is the Lee Classic Cast, I don't think anyone can dispute that.

Also, I think the Lee classic cast is not only the "best for the money", it's better than the RCBS without concern for price. It has the features I like, over the features of the RCBS. That's my opinion.

Good Luck.

[poppy42]

I have a lot of Lee equipment. Including a classic turret, a Lee challenger, a Lee hand press, the new App press, and the very basic c press. I also have a Lyman Spartan press. I like, and use them all. Here’s the thing I have a lot of Lee equipment not because I think it’s the best but because it’s inexpensive and it works! I’m poor, and on a fixed income. When Richard Lee started his business he wanted to make equipment that worked and it was available to the average person that didn’t have tons of money to dump in other equipment. In my opinion, for a new reloader that doesn’t have a ton of money for an initial investment, you can’t go wrong with Lee products. Is there better equipment? Definitely. But it’s also considerably more expensive. Lee has a great customer service department (i’ve had stuff break and called Lee, expecting to have to pay for something that was my fault it broke and much to my surprise they sent me a new one). You can always upgrade down the road once you get more reloading experience. If you have a lot of expendable income and you want to go with the top-of-the-line I would recommend buying Dillon! I would love to have a Dillon progressive press. The fact of the matter is I simply can’t afford one. And for what it’s worth that’s my story and I’m sticking with it.
Oh and if you go with Lee or have any questions about any any of the presses I mentioned or there powder measures feel free to pm me. Not saying I’m an expert but I’ve used enough of their stuff that there’s a good chance I have an idea.
Anyway hope any of this helps.
Take care,
Poppy42

[trails4u]

I'll second Poppy on this one.... I got into the hobby 10-12 yrs. ago and bought Lee because it was what I could afford, expecting to 'upgrade' once I could afford 'better'. My Lee Classic Turret still gets more use than ANY other piece of equipment I own, and I stay pretty busy with the hobby these days. I can absolutely afford to 'upgrade' now, but choose not to as that little press does everything I need it to do, from .380 to 45-70, and everything in between, including case reforming....so I choose to spend the 'upgrade' money on components, new toys, other improved tools, etc. It's been a workhorse through 10s of thousands of strokes, never broken, and the targets/critters sure don't know the difference.

[EDG]

A huge heavy press is not needed for pistol ammo. The longer stroke of the press handle can be a disadvantage.
The same goes for the 5.56.
For larger rifle cases a bigger heavy duty press is nice and the longer stroke of the mechanical linkage is needed to ease full length sizing of bottle neck cases.

[Walks]

RockChucker .
I use mine every time I get in front of my reloading bench.
The Lee is under the bench collecting dust.

[poppy42]

They're both good, and have huge followings.

I like the Hornady press because it has an offset opening.
For me its more comfortable to use, I don't feel like I'm reaching around a corner to get cases in & out of it.

Ed, I just read your post ( I missed it when I posted earlier). I have no experience with Hornady presses. I did not realize they had that offset opening. My old ( and I mean old for a Lee press) Lee Challenger press has the same option. I love it! For some reason they abandon it long ago never to be offered again! I have no idea why. I’ve looked and can’t even figure out when it when it was made. 70’s or 80’s I suspect. I even called Lee. The response I got from the technician was “huh I never heard of that” lol! Anyway I love it! it’s so much more convenient to be able to slide the casing on the side like that without having to reach around! For the life of me I can’t figure out why the stopped making it. Just figured I’d share that little bit of useless trivia with you.
Poppy42

[bpimwheel]

Great response and wonderful informative information from everyone here.
Thanks much. Today a friend of mine gave me his rockchuker supreme as he bought a dillon progressive press. I want to start out on a single stage for rifle reloading only.
Again thank you all for your input.

[SweetMk]

I want to start out on a single stage for rifle reloading only.
.

Just for grins, I thought I would reply,,
To me, a Dillon progressive press produces the most accurate rounds possible,,
that is why I switched to reloading rifle on my dillon 550B,,

The Dillon remanufactures the rounds so fast, that they are much more consistent than what I can do on a single stage press.
In just a few minutes, the Dillon will have 50 rounds of 300 Win Mag reloaded,,
The Single stage press seems to take hours to make the same 50.

It just seems that it is difficult to be accurate over a 2 hour period,, where the Dillon makes every round the same.

I do use a single stage press for load development,, and now that I am trying to learn to cast boolits,, I will use the single stage even more.

A few years ago, I even bought a second single stage press,, a RCBS Summit press.
I have not used it , yet, but, I expect that my reloading will cause me to setup the Summit press,, soon.

If you want to buy a truly unique press, consider the Summit,, many reviewers claim it is the ultimate tailgate press,,

[onelight]

Great response and wonderful informative information from everyone here.
Thanks much. Today a friend of mine gave me his rockchuker supreme as he bought a dillon progressive press. I want to start out on a single stage for rifle reloading only.
Again thank you all for your input.
I don't think you could find a better deal than that !
Enjoy your press it will serve you well.

[Castaway]

I won’t enter the fray about which press, but if you get a single stage press, I highly recommend Lee pistol dies and their powder disk dispenser. Saves a step in the reloading process by belling and charging a case simultaneously. There are enough disk sizes to adjust your loads, allowing you to find what works with your pistol, bullet and particular powder you’re using. I’m all about being time efficient (lazy) when end results are the same. If you’re tweeking a hunting load, you can always do both steps, but for everyday paper punching, I don’t find that necessary.

[gnappi]

I have yet to personally know a person who loads buy their first press and stay with that one model or brand.

That said, Lee is a perfect starter setup in the event a shooter decides that reloading isn't their cup of tea. Not being heavily invested in a setup does two things. On one hand if you really like reloading, you're not too heavily invested in it to explore other maker's models, on the other hand if reloading is a chore, you can stow, sell, or give it away.

[Petrol & Powder]

Great response and wonderful informative information from everyone here.
Thanks much. Today a friend of mine gave me his rockchuker supreme as he bought a dillon progressive press. I want to start out on a single stage for rifle reloading only.
Again thank you all for your input.

That is a good friend and a great outcome.

[dverna]

"best for the money"
hands down is the Lee Classic Cast, I don't think anyone can dispute that.

Also, I think the Lee classic cast is not only the "best for the money", it's better than the RCBS without concern for price. It has the features I like, over the features of the RCBS. That's my opinion.

Good Luck.

I have both a nearly 50 year RCBS Rockchucker and Co-Ax. Very good presses, but I agree with the above.

Nearly any single stage press will last a couple of lifetimes of reloading. But if you will be loading mostly pistol ammunition, they are the wrong choice if you shoot more than a couple of boxes a week....unless you are one of those guys who loves to reload at a snail's pace.

If you will shoot 5000 rounds a year, get your SS press and buy the Dillon 550 after a couple of months.

BTW, look for used SS if you can. Sometimes presses come on sale here, or post something at the gun club. Lots of old guys like me are downsizing and a used press is almost no risk at all.

[1hole]

A still perfectly performing 35 year old Rock Chucker is bolted to the middle of my 8' loading bench but I know price and snob appeal are poor guides to performance. If I had to replace the old RC 2 tomorrow I'd get a Lee Classic Cast; it's every bit as strong, precise and durable as my RC and it has some much better user features.

I often get a chuckle when web experts post as if Lee only makes "pot metal" (aircraft grade aluminum actually) presses; Lee's "Classic Cast" single stage and "Classic Turret" presses are iron and steel.

[MUSTANG]

I would opt for the RCBS Rock Chucker; simply because the one on my reloading bench has worked well for me over many hundreds of thousands of Pistol and Rifle since 1975. (1hole, Sorry about upstaging your 35 years with my 45 year machine - I am sure someone on the site will report an even longer use of a Rock Chucker).

For my 50BMG I use a dedicated Lee Classic Cast 50 BMG Single Stage Press Kit.

For swaging I use a Corbin CSP-1 S press (since 1989 or so). Also use this for reloading pistol and rifle ammo when I have the Rock Chucker set up with BT Snipers Auto Eject apparatus and 5/16 Copper Tubing Jacket maker dies and do not want to take it apart.

[RC46]

MEC Marksman Press, Lee Pistol dies can't go wrong with that set up. No buyers remorse.

[MOC031]

I need to get a manual reloading press, but Im not sure which is the best for the money.

How do you want to approach it?

Get into reloading as inexpensively as possible to see if you like it? And then if you do, upgrade your press later if it has characteristics/shortcomings that annoy you? Or decide reloading isn't for you, sell your inexpensive equipment even more inexpensively as used equipment, and it didn't cost you much.

Or subscribe to the buy once, cry once philosophy? Where you may never sell it, and you start where you end up being happy with your equipment. Or again, deciding it isn't for you, and get a pretty good return on the sale of your barely used more expensive equipment. You end up having the trial of reloading costing you a bit more money in the end.

But perhaps not having the minor and major aggravations of the less expensive equipment didn't become part of the reason you decided reloading/bullet casting wasn't for you.

No guarantees either way. After Dad told me it was time to buy my own press rather than always borrowing his Black Bair press, I started out with the cheapest Lee press(es) I could find back in the 70's for hunting. On the metallic side, that escalated to a Rockchucker. Which within a very few short months of starting to reload for handguns as well as hunting rifles, became a Bonanza Co-Ax, purchased at the White Elephant in Spokane in 1973 or 1974 (the original dirt cheap source of reloading equipment and components). The co-ax has been in constant use ever since then. Other than mass production of handgun and 5.56 rounds on a Dillon 650, all cast, jacketed, hunting, development reloading goes through the Co-Ax.

On the shot shell side, it shortly became a Ponsness Warren 375.

You probably won't like the price on the Co-Ax press, but the utility of changing calibers/different dies as quickly as you can slide them in and out of the slot in the press is a marvelous thing, particularly while fiddling around doing load development. And if you decide it's not for you... you won't have it for sale very long unless your asking price is nearly that of a new press.

My opinion only of course, but that Co-Ax has saved me many hours in just changing dies and shellholders during the intervening years. If I had to start selling my reloading presses, the Co-Ax would be the last one to go. BTW, after my Dad borrowed my Co-Ax to try it out, he made a trip to the White Elephant and bought his own Co-Ax, relegating the Bair press to something or other. I never asked, it had been moved to the end of his bench and was mostly gathering dust every time I went in the basement, but it was still there.

Whatever you decide to choose, if you buy used you can further minimize your initial cost in comparison to buying new, of course.

https://www.opticsplanet.com/forster-co-ax-press-model-b3.html

[Murphy]

If reloading gear wasn't flying off the shelves right now, I would advise a LEE CLASSIC. All too often, people will invest heavily in a fully set up of gear. Press, dies, scale, etc. I have nothing against buying a quality product from the beginning if a person wants to. On the other hand, if a lesser expensive item will get them on the path of what they are wanting to do, I feel they would be better off. One can always upgrade later. I have nothing against LEE products. Without LEE, many would have never gotten into reloading or casting. Many, are still using the same gear they originally purchased long ago and it fits their needs. If a person is mainly looking at 90% of the loading to be handgun ammunition, then I would definitely say start with a LEE press. Keep it well maintained and it should last you many years.

Learning how to reload your own ammunition is never a bad thing. Given the timing, you have picked a rather difficult time to start. I haven't been watching the market in regards to the necessary equipment to get going, but I have the components. Best of luck on your new endeavor.

Murphy

[Tatume]

Great response and wonderful informative information from everyone here.
Thanks much. Today a friend of mine gave me his rockchuker supreme as he bought a dillon progressive press. I want to start out on a single stage for rifle reloading only.
Again thank you all for your input.

Good friend.

[bpimwheel]

Again I thank all of you for your valuable knowledge.

[ulav8r]

My first press was a Rockchucker, a great press that spreads spent primers all over the floor. My second press is a Texan c press inherited from my late brother. I have used it for loading pistol ammo with a ram extension that adds about a half inch to the top of the ram. It scatters primers about the same as the Rockchucker. My third press is a RCBS Reloader Special, purchased at a yard sale for $50. It included a Uniflow measure, scale (RCBS 5??)3 sets of RCBS dies, Lee hand primer, and 1 or 2 other items. It was maybe 3-5 years old. It spreads spent primers all over the floor. Hopefully my next press will contain spent primers better than these.

[Winger Ed.]

It spreads spent primers all over the floor. Hopefully my next press will contain spent primers better than these.

Nah. But you may have the perfect reason why you NEED, the biggest bad-boy shop vac. they make.

Any project is the perfect excuse to justify buying more power tools. Try not to let this opportunity go by.:bigsmyl2:

[poppy42]

My first press was a Rockchucker, a great press that spreads spent primers all over the floor. My second press is a Texan c press inherited from my late brother. I have used it for loading pistol ammo with a ram extension that adds about a half inch to the top of the ram. It scatters primers about the same as the Rockchucker. My third press is a RCBS Reloader Special, purchased at a yard sale for $50. It included a Uniflow measure, scale (RCBS 5??)3 sets of RCBS dies, Lee hand primer, and 1 or 2 other items. It was maybe 3-5 years old. It spreads spent primers all over the floor. Hopefully my next press will contain spent primers better than these.

Well, my Lee turret drops spent primers through a tube into a garbage can or a bucket, my old Lee Challenger has a compartment on the side of the press the catches spent primers, my lee app press catches all the spent primers in a container, my lee hand press has a hollow ram that fills up with spend primers as does my inexpensive Lee C press. Soooo I can honestly say I’ve never had a problem cleaning up spent primers off the floor. Unless of course you count the time I knocked the container off the Lee APP press LOL.

[Murphy]

SPENT PRIMERS.

If you've ever used a Rock Chucker or similar style press with the slot for spent primers to drop down into the spent primer tray. Here's a little trick I read about. It's as close as it gets to solving having spent primers everywhere.

Pick up a nice sized plastic straw, any Quick Mart or whatever in your area will have them. The larger diameter the straw, the better. Cut off a piece and slip it into the recess the primers are suppose to drop down into the spent primer tray. Mine sits about a 1/4 inch below the shell holder and stops as close to the bottom of the recess as I can get it. It sure eliminated a whole lot of fuss & muss for me.

Murphy

[2A-Jay]

I started out with a Lee Partner Press kit. Came with all the equipment needed (except for the dies. I still use Lee dies for hand gun rounds). When I started reloading Rifle (Bottleneck cases) I bought an RCBS Supreme Master Single stage press. I gave a friend my Lee Press Kit to get him started. I do not Deprime or Prime on th press though. I bought an FA Depriming tool and an RCBS Universal Shell Holder hand Priming tool. I use Hornady Custom Grade Dies for my bottle neck cases.

I recommend a Lee Press for someone buying their first Press for hand gun rounds.. Less start-up cost. Unless you can find a better deal on a better press cheaper Second Hand.

[jonp]

Are you sure you want to be a serious reloader or load some rounds on occasion? In either case I'd choose the Lee first to save some money and see how you like it. The Lee would still probably work no matter what but if your like most reloaders and decide you like doing it your going to end up with a few presses anyways.

I started with a Lee and have had no reason to change but that doesn't mean I wouldn't buy a Lyman, RCBS etc if I saw one on sale just to try it out but truth be told I think you can get just as good loaded ammo if your careful with a Lee single stage as a Dillon. It comes down to the difference between a base Dodge Ram Pick Up and the Laramie. Both will work but one has more bells and whistles. Does that make difference to you? Not to me but everyone is different.

[Rcmaveric]

The Lee would still probably work no matter what but if your like most reloaders and decide you like doing it your going to end up with a few presses anyways.


Aint that the truth.... atleast all my presses are Lee. So the Red reloading room color scheme matches. Lol might have to get some RCBS so it feels like Christmas all the time.

Owe and Luber Sizers..... wound up with two of those.



Sent from my SM-N970U using Tapatalk

[GregLaROCHE]

Don’t forget about used reloading equipment. I don’t think presses have a very big wear problem, unless abused or left to rust. You may find more for your money that way.

[ulav8r]

I've used the straws for years but still have primers on the floor. When I bought my Rockchucker, Lee did not have any presses. If I was buying a new single stage press it would probably be a Lee Classic Cast but I would prefer to spend my money on a progressive for loading pistol ammo.

[Walter Laich]

I have yet to personally know a person who loads buy their first press and stay with that one model or brand.

Hi, my name is Walter and I'm still using my Dillon SDB which I bought in '83 for the amazing sum of $129.95 ;)

I also have two Lee Classic presses for rifle, cartridge tear down and bullet sizing.

you can use Dillons as single stage presses while you learn what each station does.

You did get a great press in start on, no doubt about it

[tankgunner59]

When I started reloading I was working at one of the best places in town for a husband and father/grandfather to work, pay, insurance and benefits. I decided to start with Lee because I heard many good reviews on Lee, I liked the price per value and if I decided I didn't like the "hobby" I wouldn't be in too deep finance wise.
Since then I have purchased all the equipment I need, most is Lee, some is RCBS and some is Lyman. I have NO qualms with any other brand. Now I am on a fixed income and if I need another piece of tooling and Lee makes it, I can afford it.
You need to read the previous posts well, think about the advice you have already gotten and decide which is most important to you. Then make your decision on which equipment you want. Then get a manual, read the informational section twice. And start having fun. If you have any questions you are coming to the right people.

[kmw1954]

Thanks much. Today a friend of mine gave me his rockchuker supreme as he bought a dillon progressive press. I want to start out on a single stage for rifle reloading only.
Again thank you all for your input.

Tis a great thing to have friends that can help corrupt us and become a partner in crime.

That press will serve well and help build a good fundamental base and instill good repeatable habits. The press is but one of many tools used in this hobby and there are many differing ways to get to the same place. None being right or wrong, just different. Find a system that works for you and is repeatable and instinctive. This way when something doesn't seem right or feel right it usually isn't. Stop and investigate. When reloading as with other work do not force a tool to do something it was never meant to do. Many times people get stuck cases because they didn't follow that advice and figured it's just stiff, a little more force will fix it.

Good luck and enjoy the hobby.

[fn1889m]

Today a friend of mine gave me his rockchuker supreme as he bought a dillon progressive press. I want to start out on a single stage for rifle reloading only. Again thank you all for your input.

That’s a great press that can do almost anything, and you will have it around for the rest of your life. Heck, your grandchildren will have it around for the rest of their lives as well.

Almost all the equipment by major manufacturers will work. People tend to like what they started off with, and recommend that to others. Though the Rockchucker is slow, it will not limit the quality of your ammo. However, if you load pistol ammo, you may want to get a turret press later. I ended up with a Lyman T-Mag II turret press to supplement my Rockchucker. They are both good, and the combination fills my reloading needs.

I recommend you deprime off the press. Depriming is dirty and the crud will wear your press faster. I use the Wilson hand punch and case blocks. It’s a very manual system. There are other systems that are faster. But I like this one.

The tension between volume production and just enjoying the reloading process, tools, and ephemera seems to define reloaders. For some, it’s a race to make as much ammo as possible in the shortest amount of time, albeit high-quality ammo. For others, they just enjoy the attention to detail and the process itself. Whichever category you fall into, it will determine your second press. In the meantime, have fun, be careful, and enjoy.