Comments on Lee Products

[omgb]

I'm not trying to pick a fight here, I just want to express some frustrations. I am a 50 year veteran of reloading. I've used just about any kind of press you can imagine, including Ideal hand tools and some odd ball Russian stuff. Recently I bought a Dillon SDB which kind of prompted this post. I have purchased a lot of Lee stuff over the years. The worst of which was a Pro 1000 I could never get to run right, never. Lee has some interesting designs. They should work, and honestly, most do, but they have a high fiddle factor. That is, you have to continually tweak them to get full function. The dies are perfect, the factory crimp dies work perfectly, but the shell holders are way too generously proportioned and may not always accurately or securely, fit the case head. I can't fault their single stage press, it always works, as does their hand primer too. It's their progressives that are just too flimsy and Rube-Goldberish. Their case and bullet feeders work, mostly, but they feel cheap. Of course, Hornady bullet feeder dies feel substantial but rarely work. I guess it's relative.

Lee aims for price followed by function. Others, like Dillon, don't consider price much at all and are fully function oriented. Others are in the middle. For me, I like the form of the tool as much as the function, thus Lee never fully satisfies. That's not to say they make junk. Far from it. It's just the aesthetic factor is missing for me. YMMV

[Bazoo]

I am not a Lee hater, nor Lee lover. I am a Lee realist. Some of their items are great, and some not so much. I do not care for their dies. Their single stage presses I do like however, including the Handpress. The Lee Loaders I've used all worked well and were fun.

I couldn't do without my Magnum Melter. But I couple it with a Lyman ladle.

I consider aesthetics some when making a purchase since I'll have to stare at whatever it is for a great deal of time. A good looking tool is more enjoyable to use. I like the way the Lyman Crusher II looks, though I don't have one. My lee original challenger looks good to me.

[schutzen-jager]

jmho been using their products since early 70's - past several years [ even before covid ] quality has fallen off + the customer service is the worst i have ever dealt with - personally will never buy another Lee product -

[JimB..]

Lee:reloading::mustang:sports car

[dverna]

For many folks, they do not know any better. People that do not have a lot of money to invest can usually "make do" with Lee's more finicky stuff. Then, there is the Pro1000 et al. Basically junk and people "make do" by doing operations off the press.

But I have some decent Lee stuff and it works for my needs.

I have been struggling with the new Lee 6000. It is ok but will never be a Dillon. I think I can make it work well enough to meet my current needs but if I was shooting competitively like I was years ago it would have been down the road.

The reality is most folks do not need to load 2000 rounds at a time without a hiccup or three. Those that do, do not use Lee machines. Well, I should say, none of the people I used to shoot with. Everyone of them got rid of their Lees and bought Dillons.

BTW, it was humorous to see the positive comments when the 6000 came out and watch the videos of some of the guys going ga-ga over it. They were drunk on Lee Kool-aid or had never run a Dillon.

I just ordered a bunch of spare parts for the 6000. I am not ready to ditch it but too busy with other things to work on it.

[Scorpion8]

My very first press was a Lee, got for $1 during a drug store going-out-of-business sale. Yea, back when drug stores had gun shelves and reloading supplies. It served me well to get me into metallic reloading, but it always felt cheap. Comparatively my next RCBS Rock Chucker felt like a tank. The Lee still sees duty as a dedicated universal deprimer. But there are better presses in my book.

[schutzen-jager]

fwiw - they will not even ship there products to any state that charges a sales tax - try to buy something off them from a sales tax state + they tell you to buy off one their independents + usually at inflated prices on item + shipping - they will not even handle their 50% warrantee on any item shipped to a sales tax state -

[Finster101]

I like a lot of Lee stuff, but I will never, ever again buy a Lee progressive press. I have molds, dies, powder measures, bottom pour melting pot and other products that work fine.

[omgb]

Lee moulds are pretty good for the money. Bullet sizers work. Lee loading dies are good. My grip comes from anything even remotely touted as progressive. Give me a break. They are just too squirrely to put money into and, as many have noted, Lee warranty service is "strained" at best.

[deces]

I'm not trying to pick a fight here, I just want to express some frustrations. I am a 50 year veteran of reloading. I've used just about any kind of press you can imagine, including Ideal hand tools and some odd ball Russian stuff. Recently I bought a Dillon SDB which kind of prompted this post. I have purchased a lot of Lee stuff over the years. The worst of which was a Pro 1000 I could never get to run right, never. Lee has some interesting designs. They should work, and honestly, most do, but they have a high fiddle factor. That is, you have to continually tweak them to get full function. The dies are perfect, the factory crimp dies work perfectly, but the shell holders are way too generously proportioned and may not always accurately or securely, fit the case head. I can't fault their single stage press, it always works, as does their hand primer too. It's their progressives that are just too flimsy and Rube-Goldberish. Their case and bullet feeders work, mostly, but they feel cheap. Of course, Hornady bullet feeder dies feel substantial but rarely work. I guess it's relative.

Lee aims for price followed by function. Others, like Dillon, don't consider price much at all and are fully function oriented. Others are in the middle. For me, I like the form of the tool as much as the function, thus Lee never fully satisfies. That's not to say they make junk. Far from it. It's just the aesthetic factor is missing for me. YMMV

I tend to agree. 9mm & 40S&W should not be the same shellholder.

[nhyrum]

I've had a number of Lee products. Their dies, while lacking the fancy box and outside finish, a feel are the same quality as some of the larger brands(rcbs and Hornady) and almost half the price.

I had the classic cast turret, that I absolutely loved. The only thing that irks me about them is they changed from the round primer trays to the stupid triangle ones that are just pure garbage.

I've always had great customer support, when I've had to deal with them. Sure, you've got to pay postage, but either way, you're paying for it, with the other brands, you're paying for the shipping of a replacement and it's shipping when you buy it. With Lee, they just don't roll the cost of 5 replacements and their shipping into your initial purchase

I sold me Lee to a friend when I got my Dillon 650, and I'd say the Lee gave the Dillon a run for it's money. It's more fiddly than the Dillon, but not awful

Sent from my SM-S918U using Tapatalk

[barnabus]

jmho been using their products since early 70's - past several years [ even before covid ] quality has fallen off + the customer service is the worst i have ever dealt with - personally will never buy another Lee product -

Lee is the walmart of reloading tools

[jetinteriorguy]

I’ve had a lot of Lee products in the last 38 years and can at least vouch for three keepers. Number one is the Classic Cast Turret, number two is the Deluxe Perfect Powder Measure, and number three is the Pro Disc Powder Measure. I also like their die sets, nothing special about them but they’re no worse than other brands. I am a huge fan of the Collet crimp dies for magnum pistols and the Collet neck sizing dies for rifles however. As far as Dillon, I picked up a used 550 last year and had to fool with it some, not due to the design but due to some self induced issues. It was filthy so I disassembled and cleaned it. I learned a lot about how to time it properly once I purchased the tool for this, and other more subtle adjustments needed to get it running smoothly and reliably. Once I made it through this learning curve it’s been a delight to use.

[pworley1]

Lee doesn't make the best anything. They make good serviceable equipment. If you stick with the single stage loading, it is all you will need if you don't need to load 1000's at a time. I started with Lee equipment back in the late 60's and still have most of it, but it isn't used much anymore. As my needs progressed so did the quality of my equipment.

[Wag]

I've bought a lot of Lee products and eventually had to replace them all. Some sooner rather than later. Money I spent on Lee items had to be spent again.

When I first got started on loading, someone gave me an ancient Lee single stage press. Actually, it's a turret but I use it single stage. It's the only Lee item I still have and use. All of the replacement items I have now are RCBS.

I do have some carbide pistol die sets and they're okay, I suppose.

--Wag--

[ddeck22]

The Lee APP is a great little tool for doing single functions. I use it for swaging and it works wonderfully. Compared to other options, it's economical and works well

[JimB..]

The Lee APP is a great little tool for doing single functions. I use it for swaging and it works wonderfully. Compared to other options, it's economical and works well

I was just about to ask how people feel about their APPs. I use mine for depriming and it requires constant little interventions but I still prefer it to other options for this procedure.

[ascast]

I think it may be time to start a separate forum called "LEE Bashing". I can't add much here. I have a bunch of Lee stuff. I hate the shell holders as they break. All the other comments are about true. I'm going for coffee

[country gent]

I have used most of the manufacturers equipment along with some of the specialty dies and equipment. I have also modified equipment tp what I need for wildcats and special projects.

Lee like all manufacturers work to a set price point. Lees niche is the budget oriented person, the one who wouldnt be reloading other wise. Really you expect the same performance from a 400.00 lee progressive as a dillion costing over 1000.00? The same with lee dies at 50.00 compared to a top of the line redding bushing dies at close to 150.00. Lee hit some things out of the park one is the old hand primer. I also feel the same about their press mounted sizing dies, a home tun that works well and is reliable. Their chamfer tool is chatter free and does the job. I normally buy lee dies ad equipment when I need to modify it to do a special job.

[ioon44]

I started out with Lee Wack-a-mole loaders in the early 1970's and used different Lee products but it didn't take me long to go to RCBS, Redding, Dillon, NEI molds.

One thing I notice about this forum is that there is more discussion about problems with Lee products than any other brand of loading products.