Turret Press?

[gunther]

A shooting buddy has a couple of those distinguished medals (.22 and .45, halfway on revolver), and mentioned once that he never bothered with cleaning primer pockets

[OS OK]

After many years of using my Redding Boss single stage press I'm thinking of buying a turret press just to reduce having to screw the dies in and out. Getting too old for that and a lot of other things. Looking at the Lee Classic Turret Press.
Thoughts? Recommendations?

I like the Lyman T-Mag II, it is the workhorse of the press table...working up loads as it's shown here or mount a dispenser on the turret and make large batches. The turret has a snugging nut under the back of the turret across from the die station your using and adjusting that nut takes all the slop out of the turret top. Extra turrets are available too.

[Soundguy]

After many years of using my Redding Boss single stage press I'm thinking of buying a turret press just to reduce having to screw the dies in and out. Getting too old for that and a lot of other things. Looking at the Lee Classic Turret Press.
Thoughts? Recommendations?

I love my lee 4 hole classic. Buy a tool head disc for each caliber you shoot then no more shuffling dies around so much.

[Silvercreek Farmer]

Thanks all for your input. Going to go with the Lee Classic. Can't justify spending a ton of money at this point and it seems like it'll fit my needs just fine. Not really sure how I'll set it up since my current process is:
1. Universal die deprime
2. Wet tumble
3. Prime using Lee Auto Bench Primer
4. Either set aside for later or proceed to loading.

On video's I see reloaders deprime then size and prime as the next step. Don't they have primer pocket crud issues? I always cleaned after depriming even when I dry vibed.

I quit cleaning primer pockets years ago on the advice of someone here. Never had a problem. Just make sure your primers are fully seated. Doubt you could see a difference in pistol ammo. A benchrest shooter might be able see a difference in rifle ammo, but I can’t.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

Thanks all for your input. Going to go with the Lee Classic. Can't justify spending a ton of money at this point and it seems like it'll fit my needs just fine. Not really sure how I'll set it up since my current process is:
1. Universal die deprime
2. Wet tumble
3. Prime using Lee Auto Bench Primer
4. Either set aside for later or proceed to loading.

On video's I see reloaders deprime then size and prime as the next step. Don't they have primer pocket crud issues? I always cleaned after depriming even when I dry vibed.

That is how I do it with common pistol ammo. While I have had the occasional primer issue due to certain brands of brass (read primer pocket size), I have never noticed a problem that I concluded was due to primer crud...if I did ever have accuracy issues due to primer crud, which is likely...those issues wouldn't be measurable at the distances I shoot pistol.

I do also load rifle ammo on the Lee CCTP, but those cases get deprimed and pockets cleaned before they get on the press.

[lightload]

Lee's Classic Turret Press is a bargain which appears to have excellent engineering. I have it and the T-7. Eventually the T-7 will cost too much to manufacture and will go the way of other products that became too expensive to produce.

[openbook]

Thanks all for your input. Going to go with the Lee Classic. Can't justify spending a ton of money at this point and it seems like it'll fit my needs just fine. Not really sure how I'll set it up since my current process is:
1. Universal die deprime
2. Wet tumble
3. Prime using Lee Auto Bench Primer
4. Either set aside for later or proceed to loading.

On video's I see reloaders deprime then size and prime as the next step. Don't they have primer pocket crud issues? I always cleaned after depriming even when I dry vibed.

On the Lee turret and using a regular three- or four-die set, the upstroke resizes and decaps, the rocker inserts a primer at the top of stroke, and the downstroke seats the primer. With the four-hole turret you have considerable options about how to set up your sequence. You can separate the seating and crimping steps, or use an M die, or add a post-sizer, among many other options. Granted you can't fit five, six or seven dies, but I think this is an advantage in many cases. For the majority of my loading I won't use more than four dies. The extra cycles of the handle to bypass empty stations on the turret would really add up over the course of many hundreds of rounds.

I think it was in Richard Lee's Modern Reloading that I read a discussion to the effect that cleaning primer pockets is not very important. I'm not home to verify at the moment. You will experience a strong draw to the use of the downstroke-prime feature on the Lee turret (whether you use it or not is of course up to you). I have compared it to cases I primed early in my reloading when I was measuring primer seating depth with a caliper. The Lee turret tends to seat the primers slightly more shallow. There is a small amount of variation in depth if you apply considerably more force. I have not had any issue with cases primed on the turret (and without cleaning primer pockets).

Cleaning primer pockets wouldn't be an extra step if one was full-length resizing/decapping with sizing lube, and using a tumbler to clean off the lube. But with carbide and/or neck sizing dies, it's a lot more straightforward (on the turret press) to clean first and then do the whole loading sequence with one trip to the turret.

[Soundguy]

I only clean primer pockets when scrounging brass that has laid on the ground an unknown amount of time at a range. If it's my brass I just picked up..dust off or tumble if in sand.. Then let it ride the turret press.

For those that like to deprime as a separate step..use a single stage for that..them let the 4 hole do the rest.

[jetinteriorguy]

Thanks all for your input. Going to go with the Lee Classic. Can't justify spending a ton of money at this point and it seems like it'll fit my needs just fine. Not really sure how I'll set it up since my current process is:
1. Universal die deprime
2. Wet tumble
3. Prime using Lee Auto Bench Primer
4. Either set aside for later or proceed to loading.

On video's I see reloaders deprime then size and prime as the next step. Don't they have primer pocket crud issues? I always cleaned after depriming even when I dry vibed.

I deprime with a universal depriming die and process my brass off press. Then on the Turret I size and prime in station one, powder drop in station two with Lee Pro Disc using NOE powder through expanders, seat bullet in station three, and crimp in station four. This is my setup for pistol loading, I still load rifle using a couple of single stage presses but have loaded rifle in the past on the Turret with good results.

[mike_kaleigh]

I have t7 and big boss, the t7 is a tank, I love it and if you can save up the money you will never regret it, the dies never leave my press, 223 and 300blk, makes it so much easier. Also redding has great service and stand behind their products, I even need a different seating stem for 40 grain bullet in 223, they sent me one for free.

[dverna]

I do not need to be screw in dies. Either the Co-Ax, or a press that takes quick change bushings will do the job.

[deces]

I deprime with a universal depriming die and process my brass off press. Then on the Turret I size and prime in station one, powder drop in station two with Lee Pro Disc using NOE powder through expanders, seat bullet in station three, and crimp in station four. This is my setup for pistol loading, I still load rifle using a couple of single stage presses but have loaded rifle in the past on the Turret with good results.

If he went Lee he could also buy a Lee APP and still be under the Redding probably.
Decapping on the APP is really nice.

[Hondolane]

Everyone has their favorites, mine is the Redding T-7. Well designed, accurate loading, built strong and will last for generations. ,

[Hondolane]

Duplicate post.

[JSnover]

I have an old Lee on my bench next to a fairly new Redding T7 and I like them both but I find myself using the T7 more often.

[Dancing Bear]

I only clean primer pockets when scrounging brass that has laid on the ground an unknown amount of time at a range. If it's my brass I just picked up..dust off or tumble if in sand.. Then let it ride the turret press.

For those that like to deprime as a separate step..use a single stage for that..them let the 4 hole do the rest.

I plan to stay with that as brass should be deprimed before wet tumbling.
PS I do appreciate that the T-7 is a better press but at $400 and $100 per turret it's not an option. The Lee is about $135 and turrets are $11 each.
I probably only have limited shooting time left at 72 and just can't justify the investment.

[deces]

I plan to stay with that as brass should be deprimed before wet tumbling.
PS I do appreciate that the T-7 is a better press but at $400 and $100 per turret it's not an option. The Lee is about $135 and turrets are $11 each.
I probably only have limited shooting time left at 72 and just can't justify the investment.

I would try to get the Classic turret if you want a sturdy press, it is built with the classic cast in mind. the linkages are over built and stout. The budget turret is like the pro 4000, it's fine for what it does but there is flex in the linkages.
The lee bench plat is a nice accessory for Lee presses, with the twist of 4 crews, you can swap out any tool imaginable that will fit on a plate.

[Baltimoreed]

I have a pair of T-2 Lyman’s with Dillon 550 powder measures on them. Love them.

[hawkeye1]

Turret press is definitely a great way to go. It’s so handy to have turrets ready and preset. I have a Lee 3 hole turret press that I have used for prolly 25 years or more. Excellent product. I just recently added a Lyman 8 turret press. Not because anything wrong with Lee, but always wanted the Lyman. It’s everything the Lee is and more. I caught it on sale at Midsouth. Rock solid press. They are both great presses and plan to hand them down to my sons one day.

[nitro-express]

All the points seem to have been touched on, and I feel compelled to touch on those I strongly agree with. But first I've been looking at the new Zero reloading press. Even if you can't afford the press, watch the video, IMHO it makes a few very important points. https://www.area419.com/product/the-...loading-press/

The Dillon 550: very good press, priming is the best on press priming system I've ever used. VG mechanical advantage, less fatigue for the operator. The Dillon powder measure is a tough act to follow, very good measure IMHO.

I also like the old T-Mag II by Lyman. I never used the on press priming but before upgrading to the 550s, I had about a half dozen turrets all set up for my reloading. It's a friend, and i couldn't sell it. I smiled when I saw the comment of fitting it with a Dillon powder measure, perfect. I used a Dandy and an Accumeasure. Both are fine but sometimes you just need the charge that has no bushing. I own 6 Dillon measures, I fully endorse them.

Before buying the T-Mag I had a Redding 25, and excellent press but turrets for the Lyman were easier to find, and the slanted press would mes with my mind. The 25 is discontinued, but Redding presses are built really well. I have a Ultra-Mag and it is solid. I still have a single stage and eventually I think I'd like to upgrade it to a Redding Big Boss II. At present I have a 550 Dillon that I converted to a single stage. It works well, so no hurry on the upgrade.

All the presses I have listed above have one important feature. They all extend to TDC or cam over, either system is what I prefer. I've owned a LEE Classic Cast and my brother has a LEE Classic Cast Turret. Both presses hard stop long before TDC, a feature I do not like, YMMV. I modified the linkage on my CC, and that improved the operation, but complicated the primer disposal. I sold the press as the alignment was bad enough that I didn't like to use it. Dillon has a toll for their 550s that check alignment and let you adjust the base plate for perfect alignment. Once you have used a press with perfect alignment, the ones that do not align are annoying and I avoid them. Every Redding press that I've owned has had good alignment, as have both the T-Mag IIs that I have owned. One of my recent projects is the Tru-Line Jr press, again, alignment not an issue.

Because the LEE press has a two piece ram, I was able to mostly correct alignment, but it had to be the worst aligning press I've owned. Although the Rock Chucker I started with would be in the running for that award as well. LEE must use green casting because over the time that I was unfortunate enough to own mine, I had to correct alignment about three times. The LEE Classic Cast turret uses the same/similar hard stop before TDC linkage as the Classic Cast. That, and the wiggle in the turret and the plastic indexing pieces would be enough for me to avoid it. I do like that the turrets are not expensive, but they are only 4 hole and sometimes a set-up needs more than 4 holes. I even found the 6 holes on my Y-Mag a limitation. i like to run 44 Mag and Special on the sale turret and the same for 38/357 and depending on the set-up, it would need more than 6.

I suppose the point I'm trying to make is to do your research and buy the press that has the features you want and is built to a standard that you can live with. After all, perfection is a bit of an unrealistic expectation, or so I've been told.

There is one LEE press that has caught my interest, the Value Turret press looks perfect for normal production of pistol and pistol caliber carbine ammunition. It looks to be a modern version of the Lyman Tru-Line Jr. and I suspect it would work within the same limitations, but would have a modern primer disposal tube. I may buy one to put it through its paces. The bolt down uprights should allow for proper alignment.

Thanks for reading, being at the bottom of the second page, I don't expect it to get read much.