Pacific Dies

[82nd airborne]

I dug out some 3 die sets for 300 win. mag. and 243 that look brand new, made by pacific. They appear to be high quality, and seem to work quite well. Any of you gents know anything about them, i.e. quality, current production, price and such? The seem to be quite good, so if they are still in production I would like to look into them next time I need dies for something.

[stephen perry]

If you like Hornady dies you will like Pacific dies. The quality is the same. Not sure but I feel Pacific is the die side of Hornady Company. I have a set of Pacific 7mm Mauser dies, look to be Parkerized good as the CH dies I have from the same years 50-60's. Pacific made a strong C press and shotgun loaders.

Stephen Perry
Angeles BR

[82nd airborne]

Good news. I also found a few pacific shotgun loaders and a bunch of shotgun loading stuff. But I dont load for shotguns.

[uncle joe]

I love pacific dies, have a couple of sets they are made of some good stuff, they don't rust like the rcbs and lyman ones i have

[1hole]

Pacific was perhaps the premium maker of loading equipment going back to at least the 40s.
They initiated our now standard threaded dies and the original C presses with universal shell holders. Their early shell holders were machined into the ram top, had to change rams to change the case head size; I still see them show up on eBay occasionally.

Story is, the old man died, the family had difficulties and they closed down in, IIRC, the late 70s. A few years later Hornady bought the closed company, moved the machine tools to their location and cranked back up with their own label on stuff and changing designs as time ran on.

[82nd airborne]

well, I like them enough that I'd like to start aquiring them for all calibers. Like Joe said they have no rust, and they must be from the 70's as above stated.

[Bent Ramrod]

The finish on Pacific dies was called "Durachrome." I have them in .25-20. .32-20 and .270. All the sets are very high quality.

[cheese1566]

I have a nearly new set in 357mag (non-carbide). Good quality. I'll use em with my 38 spec RCBS carbide sizer in my progressive.

My problem is they deprime on the second die when case mouth expanding; non-conforming in my progressives. I asked Hornady if parts are still available for this style and they said no, except for deprime pins.


I had a Pacific DL-105 shotgun loader that was good too. But it went in liquidation for my Star.

[Pressman]

Im my not so humble opinion the real Pacific dies are far superior to anything Hornady made or makes. That friction fit decapping rod as driven me into fits of bad words more than once.
Pacific on the other hand made real qualkity tools, right up to the end in 1971 when Hornady took them over.
The short, condensed version: Pacific Gunsite got into the reloading tool business in 1928 with the purchase of the Hueter tool. A really nice arbor press. By 1930 they had their new press design in production. It is the great grand father of all reloading presses today. After WWII one of the boys took over control of the company, moved it and offered stronger presses, the Super. By 1961 he was tired and sold the company to Deitmeyer of shotgun shooting fame. He ran it for the next ten years.

Anything made by the original company or Deitmeyer was always first rate.

Ken
Ken

[Pavogrande]

My Pacific Gun sight co catalog #7 is about 4" x 6 1/2" and 50 pages.
My guess is just before or right after WWII.

The address is 424 Balboa Street , San Francisco --

It would appear their largest line of items are the various sights, theirs and others.
Only about 10 pages devoted to reloading tools, and lyman casting tools.
There is a nice parts drawing of the dies.
The press complete with "hi speed tool steel " dies was $22.50 --
Interestingly they sold both "carbon steel" and "hi-speed tool steel" dies --

They also made some bronze bullet molds complete with handles for $3.50 --
I believe I have one in 45-70 but they do not appear to be marked --

ps -- got carried away with old guy ramblin's

My 30/06 pacific die set -- box is marked Palo Alto calif -- As I recall on the El camino across the road from Stanford University -
I bought the dies new in about 1960 for $13.50 -- Rather expensive for the time as I only made
$3.00 per hour journeyman wages then.

[Pressman]

Pavogrande, the Pacific catalogs are a bit hard to date. It looks as if they may have been issued in 9 month intervals, based upon reading the back issues of teh American Rifleman, Dope Bag. For certain your #7 is 1932/33. The Palo Alto address came with the move at the end of WWII.
Ken

[Pavogrande]

thanks Ken for the date on the catalog -- I am not sure when they moved to palo alto but I am pretty sure they were there in about 47-48 -- i used to travel from SF to san jose along the el camino real then and i think they were located right across from the stanford entrance -- I was more interested in girls than guns then so my recollection could be wrong.

[Char-Gar]

I bought a new blue Pacific Super C in late 1961. I gave it to some kid about 1980 who was starting to reload. I expect it is still in service. Last year I bought a top notch early 50's black Pacific Super off Ebay for $20.00. It was missing the handle. I turned a new handle from a length of US 1917 Enfield barrel. It is on my bench now and is a fine press.

My mentors when I was a kid all used Pacific C upstroke presses. They only owned one press and it was always a Pacific. It is really all anybody needs unless they are getting into case forming. That is when a downstroke O press really shines.

I am still using several sets of Pacific dies from the late 40's and early 50's.

All of the vintage Pacific stuff is very high quality. For several generation it was the leader of the pack.

[milprileb]

If you find a set of Pacific dies and they fit your caliber requirements, you are gaining a very fine set of dies.

Used them for 40 plus years: never a issue. Their lifetime warranty is back ed up by Hornady.

[1hole]

"The finish on Pacific dies was called "Durachrome."

Well, the later ones were Durachrome. Not inside tho, as many have presumed.

[ga41]

as I recall, my 35 Herrett dies were Pacific, might have been the trim die , but at least some portion was, back in the early 80's , fine dies indeed

[dieguy59]

How does Bair Reloading figure into the Pacific story? When were they bought out by Pacific?

[bbqncigars]

My .30 Herrett dies that I bought around '74 are all Pacific Durachrome. Fine dies that I still have and would use if I was masochistic enough to make more brass for that damned gun.

[Pressman]

Dieguy59 your question is long and complicated. Bair Machine made Pacific tools. After the Pacific board of directors split with Deitmier he went to Bair and began Bair reloading. Bair then bought Micro Precision. The last of Bair occued in Ohio in the late 1970's. Who the players were then I have not yet found out.

That is the short story version.
Ken

[dieguy59]

Appreciate the knowledge, Ken. I was not aware of the Micro Precision connection.

[*Paladin*]

Pacific is good stuff. I bought a Pacific DL-150 12 ga press a few months ago for $25 on Craigslist. Very nice old press that makes great shotshells. One of the best $25 purchaces I ever made.