Ponsness Warren Metallic Reloader

[Slahp]

I have a chance to buy a Ponsness Warren Metallic reloading press but I cant find much info on them. I know the shotgun presses

are good but I see the website is only selling repair parts. Are they any good?

[georgerkahn]

I have a chance to buy a Ponsness Warren Metallic reloading press but I cant find much info on them. I know the shotgun presses

are good but I see the website is only selling repair parts. Are they any good?

Your question is a quite subjective one, imho , analogous perhaps to hand tools in general. The "executive" who will need drill hole to install a picture frame once in his life can do with a big-box store el cheapo -- which is more than "any good" for this purpose -- versus the craftsman/worker who relies upon a drill 8 hrs/day, five or more days per week. Then there, are the OCD's (I'm kind of close ) who HAVE to have the very best -- whether they need it or not.

You posted neither the price ($$$s) of the press, nor its general overall condition. To this you need factor in the CALIBRE(S) you intend to load; the die compatibility (not all presses take the now-standard 7/8-14 thread size), and the general tightness of it in general. If, say, you are planning on exclusively loading a zillion straight-cased handgun (9mm, .38 S&W Sp., .45ACP and the like) calibres it may be fine; *BUT*, if you desire to load rifle calibres with zero runout, etc. -- will it function?

Imho, if the unit appears good to YOU, and the price doesn't put too much of a frown on your finances -- I'd perhaps be tempted. I have a Pacific press I use regularly which has to be 60+ years old and it is as tight as I'd imagine when manufactured; so just age need not be a criteria. Vis "parts" -- as long as current shell-holders and diesets will work... I can't think of much else to worry about. Note, however, I never have either deprimed (that's what I have the Pacific for) OR primed cases on my loading presses (I use a RCBS bench priming tool) -- BUT -- if you plan on either/both of these operations on the press -- this may be worth checking out, too.

Good luck! As a btw, the two VERY-BEST presses I have and use are the MEC Marksman and the Forster CoAx -- both you may wish to check out, simply to compare...

BEST wishes!
geo

[Slahp]

Thanks,
Looking for both 38 and 45 ACP price is $150 without dies and looks like new.

[Rapier]

I figure the press you are talking about is the Metalic II by PW. I have one. They are a single stage progressive. They work great for pistol cartridges. I mounted a Little Dandy powder throw in one station. They operate similar to a turret press, where the cartridge moves from station to station and the dies remain stationary. It is actually a big strong H press.
Make sure the two sizes of primer cups are there, plus the primer tubes. They use regular shell holders and dies.

See if the prees on the right center is what you are looking to buy. If so, today, $150 is fine.

[blackhawk44]

P 200 ?

[megasupermagnum]

I'm a big PW fan in shotguns, but I've never seen a metallic press from them I liked. The potential is there, but for whatever reason they have never made a metallic progressive. They are best described as a turret press, and really they are their shotgun press converted for thread in metallic reloading dies.

[gpidaho]

Slahp: I have a P200 with an extra turret. They are a very usable press but like the Lee classic they lack a little in the cam over strength. I like my Redding T7 better Gp

[megasupermagnum]

What do you mean cam over strength?

[mdi]

"Cam over" in other terms is "Over top dead center". Some believe it is more accurate/repeatable than a solid stop...

[Slahp]

Thanks for the replies. Seems like it will make a good press.

[W.R.Buchanan]

They are OK, and for $150 they are really OK! Especially if all the piece parts are there. And they are certainly faster than a single stage press.

They are essentially a "Reverse Turret" design where the shuttle takes the cartridge to the die as opposed to the die being brought to the cartridge on a Standard Turret Press. It is best to Pre F/L size on a single stage before loading as they don't have as much mechanical advantage as your normal Single Stage Press does. I used mine to load .223's, until I got my Dillon 550B which is so much faster it is not worth talking about.

Where these presses really shine is for loading 50-100 rounds of Rifle Ammo at a time. Where they really DON"T shine is loading 500 9MM's in one sitting. That is where you will see the reason for a Progressive Style Machine.

With any Turret Press you must pull the handle for every operation. You are typically loading a complete round from beginning to end. This is similar to Single Stage Presses where the work is done in "Operational Batches," where you do the same operation to all of your brass and then move to the next operation.. With a Progressive Press you do all the operations with every pull of the handle and as soon as the turret is full of cases you produce a loaded round with every pull of the Handle. IE: there is a lot less work involved!

I sold mine to Sea Giant! I wonder if he is still around?

Randy

[Blindshooter]

I like mine, its an older version, I think the main difference is priming between the old vs new. Use it mostly for smaller runs of .223 for hunting. I'd be tempted to buy another with all the priming tools for $150.