i am just curious how many good rounds anyone can load an hour on a single stage press. i mean good quality loads well done. i am just curious more than anything. iknow there is personal preferance over what kind of press, and procedure each person uses. this just a topic for each ones ideas and preferance. not to start a range war. scooter-2

I can get 100 pistol rounds (44 mag and 45 LC) in an hour, start to finish.

I have an RCBS RockChucker press and a RCBS Little Dandy Power Measure which speeds things up a great deal.

I started on a RCBS single stage press in 1975, and I've never had a reason to switch.

I get about 20 well crafted .30-06 rounds in an hour on my single stage. All the time weighing trimming and fussing over every little detail of the loads helps my old M70 shoot sub MOA. I can do about 50 .45-70 in an hour and 100 .357s in about an hour, I don't take as much care with those as I do for the 06.

The Dillon 550 can do about 200-250 .45 acp per hour and the Lee 1000 will crank out about 350-400 rounds of .38 wadcutters in an hour.

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Regards,
Guy-Harold Smith II

We loaded for many yrs on A Rockchucker & using the RCBS powder thrower, but after the youngest daughter got into centerfire pistol & service rifle competition we bought a Dillon 550B set up.

The first night we used it, with me loading the primer tubes for them, my wife watching the powder level in the charged case & putting the bullets on , with my daughter running the press, they loaded 485 rds in about 1 hour of .38spec ammo...........& we've never looked back on using the RC'er for any pistol ammo, & use it for .223, .30-06 & .308 Win.too. Only rifle ammo intended for 1000 yd shooting is loaded on the Rockchucker.....

If the brass is already preped I can load about 80 or more 30-06 rounds on a RCBS Rockchucker batch style loading. Remember though, that's only priming, dropping the powder and seating the bullets. The brass prep time will add to the loading time if you are asking about start to finish. That would drop the number down to maybe 30.

Like said above, for handgun rounds you can do about 100/hr safely...

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Freedom is never free!!
SWCA #3437

Your press speed depends on how fast you can load powder. When I was able to I could load an easy fifty handgun rounds in under an hour with a powder measure. I have had three single stage presses in my life, an RCBS Rockchucker, an RCBS Jr, and a Lee Challenger and I have gotten the most speed off of the Lee believe it or not. I will tell you that while alot of people have used the bigger and better stuff, and I have but the Lee really works well for me.

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Vaya con Dios

About 50 rifle rounds per hour and 75 .357 Magnum rounds per hour.

Nothing at all wrong with Lee products. I have and use a Lee Classic Turret Press along with the RCBS press I mentioned above. Most of my dies are also Lee.

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Freedom is never free!!
SWCA #3437

I use a Lee 3-hole turret press, and prime with a hand tool. The press is neutered to single-stage, and if I start with prepped, primed brass (cheating, I know) I can crank out 300 rounds an hour. The dies stay in the turret so they never need to be adjusted and the flaring die also drops the powder charge. For such an economical setup, it's a very good system. I have dedicated turrets and powder measures for every pistol caliber I load, and I can change calibers in about 15 seconds. When my poor old tired Lee Turret finally got too loose after 30 years, I replaced it - with another one just like it.

I have never consider a single stage press as a press for speed. I consider it more as a precision tool and my progressive machine more for speed on less demanding rounds.
My single stage RCBS press that I have had since 1970 is used for single loading long range/precision rifle loads and the Dillon progressive machine is used for my IDPA pistol type loads and general pistol plinking loads. That is my choice and does not apply to everyone.

I have loaded some very accurate loads both rifle and pistol on the Dillon.

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Semper FI

I tend to agree with beans opening comment, however with a smaller caliber like a 380 or 9mm, just doing my normal routeen stuff, I guess I can put out around 100 rounds, sometimes more sometimes a bit less.

Single stage press... I have a LEE Classic Single Stage press, works just fine for me.

Last weekend I loaded 300 rds of 45 ACP on a RCBS turret press.The brass was new so it didn't need tumbled. It took me 5 loads of laundry. Only 3 loads got to the dryer. Rifle cartridges take much longer as I really get fussy on the RCBS Rock Chucker.

Actually I relax and enjoy sitting at the loading bench and I never time myself. Wifey doesn't complain when I gun shop, go shooting, buy shooting stuff etc. so I help by loading the washer and dryer.

Dillon 550B = 450-500/hr 9mm, 38 Special, 357 Mag, 10mm or 44 Mag
Pacific single stage = maybe 50-60/hr

Needless to say, the 550B is the express ramp to turning the contents of your wallet into loaded ammo.

Just for the heck of it, I timed myself once, to see what I could do w/a SS press "from scratch", trying for speed. But, safety was always first and foremost. Cleaned, un-prepped brass. I did 200 complete rounds in 2hrs, 15 minutes. Checking the powder drop every 25 cases.
With prepped cases, primed, belled...
I load about 200 an hour.
I don't load from scratch any more. I always have between 100 and 500 prepped cases in any given caliber.

Using my Bonanza single stage and processing my brass in batches I get about 100 rounds per hour.

I hope the video is good enough tto figure it out.
SDC11208.AVI - YouTube
Lee resizing die, old lyman c press

Gee, I never considered reloading a race, never had pressure to make so many loads in a limited amount of time.
Then again, I don't shoot 200/300 rounds of pistol ammo every week.
More like in a month or six weeks

With a Lee Challenger Single Stage, I can do 200 rounds of straight wall (ie...9mm, .40 & .45) ammo in about an hour.

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USPSA TY-59035
GSSF

I get about 50 357 rounds in one hour on my Lee. I weigh each round with my digital scale. Retired, relaxed, and not wanting to work up a sweat......decaping and sizing already done on the day before...

I reload .45 Colt.

I bulk inspect, prep, and hand prime my brass in batches ahead of time so its ready when I go to reload.

I use a Lyman T-Mag Turret. I've got a Lyman Multi-Expand and Charge die in it with a Lyman Acculine Powder Measure screwed into it so expanding and charging is one step. I seat and crimp in seperate steps. All three steps are done in batches using reloading blocks. I take a split second each time I handle each piece at each step to make sure it is correct. I also look over each charged case in the blocks with a flash light and visually re-verify the charge level of each case before setting a bullet on it and moving on to seating.

Using that method I'm good for 100-150 rounds of excellent never gives me a lick of trouble always goes bang never had a squib ammo.

I've never timed it exactly. When I reload I'm not on the clock or a quota, I'm looking to make good quality ammo.

It also helps that I reload through the winter so that by the time shooting season rolls around I've got all my ammo done and ready and there's no need to rush if I am planning on going shooting.

Volume pistol ammo is loaded on my Dillon 550, but when I am developing a load, or any rifle load, it is loaded on my 50+ yr old Texan 7 hole turret. I load from a 50 rd block, and every step is for all 50 rounds. I prime with a Lee auto-prime, and for rifle loads trickle the last teeny amount in for absolute accuracy. Loading should never be a race, but an endeavor to produce the best, most accurate ammo.

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H Richard
SWCA1967 SWHF244

I have no idea! I "batch" load; one day I may deprime/size 200-300 cases. Next time I may prime 100. Next session I may size/deprime 100. Next time I may charge and seat 100, or fifty. I can't remember the last time I went from fired brass to finished ammo. Depends on what I feel like and how many ready to shoot rounds I have on hand. I have on hand fired brass, cleaned brass, sized/deprimed brass, and primed cases ready to charge. Fired brass is in bulk containers or boxes, sized/deprimed are in shoe boxes, and ready to stuff are in cartridge boxes. Works for me...

Same here. But when I start lading the prepared and primed brass, I figure around 50-75 pistol roundsw/ poor metering Unique and close to 100 when using AA #9. I do a whopping 20 rifle rounds (I throw under theintended weight and meticulously trickle the rest in by hand).

From start to finish (sizing, priming, adding powder, and seating the bullet) I can do about 75 .357/.38s an hour with my RCBS Jr. Tried to rush things and do 100 an hour the other day and forgot to move my hand when I was depriming/sizing. I ran the deprimng rod right through my index finger . The worst part is that my immediate reaction was to pull my finger out (while the rod was still in it) instead of backing the lever off ......ripped an inch long gash right beside my fingernail. Just some proof that it pays to take your time.

It's fast enough that I've never had a Squib or Kaboom, just great ammo. I too load in batchs and prep my brass and by doing that I can easily keep 4 or 5 boxes of made ammo for each caliber I shoot.

Not Enough!!!

I used to load on an old Hollywood turret press. It has a date of 1935 stamped on it. I processed my brass in batches. It took forever. I now use a dillon 550 with a casefeeder for most of my ammo. I sometimes use it as a single stage as I make test loads. I don't really have a use for a single stage now. I also run a dillon 1050 and bullet feeder for 9mm. It is a far cry from single stage at a cyclic rate of 2000 rounds per hour. I don't have the patience for a single stage press.

Speed and Reloading can cause you some big problems.

I find reloading just relaxing, I'm to old to worry about speeding anything or anywhere.

Stop and smell the roses.

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NRA Pistol/Rifle Inst. RSO

Here's some numbers for speed loading: Running 2 Ammo Load auto presses, my friend and I loaded non stop one day, 8am till 5pm with a lunch break. He ran 30,000 9mm and I produced 28,000 38spl. Spent the entire next day packaging those rounds. Prefer the pace of my 550 Dillon now

Speed & safety do not mix in reloading on any type of press. I enjoy my
reloading and strive for precision, accuracy and safety in any rounds I reload.
I've been loading for about 60 years and wore out an RCBS Rockchucker
doing it. I've never felt the need for anything other than a single stage press. If you have your components set up right & a good, accurate powder measure, speed will come naturally.

There is never any need to be in a hurry.
I ususally resize, deprime & flare-neck all my brass and then sort it by headstamp in lots of 50 or 100. Then loading is a simple (read: liesurely) straightforward process to prime, charge, seat & crimp. I do all my work on a single stage or with hand tools. I check the charge every 10th round or so. I have an assortment of Lyman Tru-line and 310equipment. The dies are the skinny fine thread ones and are obsolete, but they work perfectly. I do the heavy resizing on an RCBS jr. I have had a couple problems with misfire due to the primer being seated too high, and had a squib that lodged in the barrel of a revolver once. I have had more ammo related malfunctions with factory new ammo than with my handloads.
If you have to be expeditious in loading, a progressive and a sharp- eyed crew will get you a lot more ammo in less time.
What's the rush, anyway?

With the exception of the initial polishing step, which is however long I forget about the vibrator running,
a box of 50 .44 rounds takes me about 1 football game.

...Nemo...

It is not uncommon for me to engage more than one target per second while competing. A match of 6 stages takes a couple hundred rounds and then I practice afterward. 300-400 rounds of 9mm is my average per competition. Multiply that by three 9mm shooters in my house, and up to 3 matches per month. Sorting head-stamps gains me nothing. My brass gets checked for obvious flaws/cracks about 7 times during the process of loading, even on the dillon 1050. Two of the three guns run minimum loads to work the action of the gun. The other one is loaded beyond max according to the book, but well within the limits of the gun (1911 comped race gun).

I aim for quality and safety with my ammo. I used to have enough time to load on a single stage, and I didn't shoot as often. I had a bit more patience then and less money for progressive machines. I like reloading, but it can get quite tedious and boring.

Everything, other than 9mm, that I load is on a 550 and done at a more relaxed pace. I may spend a few hours at one time working up a 460 load at times. When I am going for production I will often times setup the press and run only a hundred at a time when I have a little bit of time to spare. 15 minutes here and there on a progressive adds up pretty quick. I keep a close eye on my powder weights and check every shell as it gets a bullet for powder level. Most of the ammo I shoot also gets case gauged before it goes into boxes. The 1050 with a bullet feeder only requires me to look at the case receiving the bullet and focus on making full strokes of the handle. Now that the press is dialed in, I usually have no more than 1% loss due to rounds not passing the case gauge.

While I agree that consistency and safety are very important, I will have to disagree that ammo shouldn't be loaded quickly or that it would be less safe (at least in my case). I have been loading for 20 years and have yet to have a squib or damaged gun. Knock on wood. I am also a perfectionist and very detail oriented and a technical person.

I enjoy both my monster 460 that I shoot slowly and my XD limited gun that I run as fast as I can while hitting targets. Reloading is the same. Sometimes I feel like smelling the roses and sometimes I don't.

Happy reloading.

We don't normally use the word "speed" when talking about a single-stage press. Sort of a verbal gaffe, like "soaring like a fly".

There's a big difference in speed between a single stage and a progressive.I've used a single stage for rifle and pistol rounds for years and at my fastest,maybe, I can load 100 in an hour.Back when I did a lot of clay target shooting,I bought a mec 650 and I seem to remember producing 300-400 rounds an hour quite easily.Trying to go fast with a single stage is trouble.Go for rhythm.

A lot depends on how many loading blocks you have. When I was reloading, I had 10 blocks and would load 500 rounds of pistol ammo as a batch. That speeds things up considerably.

Scotter-2
Reloading is not a timed event, coming in first won't get you a gold medal. The idea is to produce safe accurate ammo.
Sometimes rushing thru it causes things like double or partial powder charges , upside down primers and bullets seated cockeyed. My goal is to load the absolute best ammo I can and I strive to produce better than factory loads . Like a lot of people I batch load also. Resizing , trimming, priming brass in lots of 100 and having everthing ready so all I have to do is throw powder, seat and crimp bullet .
My advice is not to rush, take your time and prep cases in lots, when you have time, and save the charging and seating as a last and final step.

On a good day I used to do anywhere from 90-100 rounds for hour of handgun ammo using a Rockchucker and Lee powder scoops. Last year I switched to a Lee Classic Turret (the all cast iron, four position). Now I can do 250-260 an hour. I REALLY like this little press. It is fast and easy to change calibers thanks to the replaceable turrets. I have a powder measure mounted on my bench next to the press, so I remove each case to charge powder and then visually inspect it before seating a bullet.

My buddy has a Dillon 650 that goes much faster, but 1) also cost a lot more, 2) takes longer to set up and change calibers and 3) costs a lot more to set up multiple tool heads to allow you to change calibers more quickly. It is great once we have loads worked up, but the little Lee Classic Turret is much easier to work the loads up with.

So. Need a little advice. I'm loading 10MM in a single stage. I'm shooting IPSC (for the first time in years) and finding that HOLY **** I'm shooting a lot more.

I batch my reloads. I.E. I deprime a bunch. I prime a bunch. I flare a bunch and then I load a two or three hundred at a time. This is over several days/weeks.

I'm looking at moving to a progressive but the cost is making me gulp a tad.

However those folks at Lee have a caliber specific press set for cheap money. Much less expensive than Dillon etc. The reviews are pretty reasonable and I wanted to know if anyone here has had any experience with these things. For $180 I don't expect a world beating press but I'm wondering if I should go this way or just bite the bullet (if you'll excuse the expression) and spend $750 on an RCBS or Dillon.

I figure I'll load around 1200 to 2000 per year.

Any and all suggestions welcome

If you are really organized & use a powder measure, handgun, 75-80rds/hr on a single stage. THat is hauling *** though, 100, not so sure it can be done from scratch but with prepped brass, sure. That is really adding time to the process though & should be counted.

scooter2,
Just for kicks, I thought I'd actually time myself... Now this is with brass cleaned and in trays, powder already set up and metering to exact charge, scale balanced and set, all other toys & tools set out.

With 9mm/124g RN FMJ, checking the first 5 then every 5th one after that - I ran 80 complete rounds. Not quite what I thought I could do, but not too shabby for a single stage.

Now as Fred pointed out, if you walked into your shop area and hit the clock, than started setting up and running your loads... perhaps 1 box of 50???

All I do with my ss now is test runs and work up loads, no real "hurrying" going on these days on that press.

One summer during the early 1970's I prepared for a friend's visit by loading a total of 600 to 650 handgun rounds. I recall 232 .45 Auto rounds, about 100 .357 Magnum rounds and the rest were .38 Special rounds. Starting with fired empty cases, I decapped each one case using a Wilson decapping base and decapping punch, powered with a plastic-faced hammer. I cleaned each primer pocket with an RCBS Crocagator and then carefully inspected each case. I washed the cases in a dishwashing detergent and water solution, taking care to wash each caliber separately. I put the cases into a plastic one-gallon milk bottle, squirted in some detergent, filled the milk bottle with hot water, screwed on the cap, and shook each batch for about 15 minutes by turning the bottle upside down and back, over and over. I rinsed by dumping the filthy wash solution, and then I rinsed with hot water several times, using plenty of the same kind of agitation with each change of rinse water. When no more foam formed in the rinse water, I dumped the final rinse arranged the clean wet cases on paper towels to air dry, and then did the next batch. I carefully inspected the dry cases. I loaded the cases using my RCBS Junior press, RCBS adjustable powder measure, RCBS Carbide dies, Flambeau loading blocks and RBCS Case Lube. Then I carefully wiped off all the sticky RCBS Case Lube from each and every round, one round at a time. I spent at least 30 hours on that project. I did not load any maximum loads. All the .45 Auto rounds worked perfectly in the M-1911; the .38 Special and .357 Magnum rounds functioned perfectly in S&W revolvers. All rounds were expended during one afternoon at an unsupervised informal range. Is it any wonder that the .22 Long Rifle is my favorite handgun and rifle cartridge? I know about progressive presses, I just can't afford one yet. I have also taken note of Hornady's One-Shot spray case lube.

thanks for all of the replies. it is interesting to hear all of the different opinions. i have loaded for 25 years. i know saftey is the first concern. i was just trying to see what different ideas everyone has. thanks; scooter-2

I just finished extensive research on this issue, and in so doing, have set a new worlds speed record for loading 100 quality 357 magnums on a single stage press. The procedures involved include:

Selecting 100 brass cases
Measuring 100 cases.
Tumbling 100 cases. Includes changing the media in the tumbler.
Full length sizing all 100 cases.
Re-measuring all 100 cases.
Trimming all 100 cases on a Lyman Power Trimmer.
Deburring 100 cases, outside only.
Checking the primer pockets for uniformity in 100 cases.
Deburring the flash hole in 100 cases.
Flaring the case mouths of 100 cases. includes searching for the case flaring die I haven't used in 10 years.
Cleaning surface rust from the case flaring die & oiling it.
Removing the oil from the case flaring die (oops!)
Tumbling 100 cases again, with polish to remove my paw prints
Cleaning tumbling media from the flash holes in 100 cases.
Priming 100 cases with my RCBS hand primer thingie.
Selecting 100 140 gr Hornady bullets from my stock.
Researching & selecting suitable reloading data.
Locating my old Hornady powder measure & changing the drum over to the proper style.
Setting up the Hornady measure & calibrating my equally elderly Hornady powder scale.
Charging 100 fully prepped cases with AA#9.
Changing over to my bullet seating die & adjusting said die.
Seating 100 140 Gr Hornady bullets in the prepped, charged cases- no crimp applied.
Change die to a Redding Profile Crimp Die, and adjust.
Crimp 100 loaded 357 magnum cartridges.
Search for an unused 100 round MTM box for my treasure.
Inspect & box 100 loaded 357 magnum cartridges, and label the box.

I accomplished this simple series of tasks in a blistering 4-1/2 days, pausing only to eat, sleep, work 10 hours a day for two of those days, go to the store, watch television, and talk with the neighbor a bit. And go to the gun store. I'm confident this new worlds record will stand for a long time. I have enclosed the manufacturers name for my major reloading tools, since I know there could be a major sponsorship offered at any moment.

I tried to get a lee progressive going for my grandfather. He had issues with it. I didn't have the patience. Save yourself the hassle and money and consider something like the SDB from dillon. It takes dedicated dies. I don't know if it will do 10mm or not. It is the least expensive dillon progressive.

At only 1200-2000 rounds per year (assuming only one caliber), I would just load single stage.

I load many calibers and go through many rounds a year. The dillon 550 is awesome for that.

1200 rounds of 9mm only lasts one day in my house. I use a 1050 dillon just for 9mm.

I had the Lee Progressive, I think it was called the Loadmaster.......5 die stations. I got it and loaded a thousand rounds with it, learning what to watch for. It took a LOT of tweaking, little things, constantly. The case feeder was the worst part, I'd tighten it down and in ten rounds it would work loose again. I eventually got sick of spending more time readjusting things than loading, and sent it back. I still do 250-300 rounds an hour on my Lee Turret, starting with prepped/primed brass. That's fast enough for me.

I load .30-06 rifle rounds in 100 round batches. I normally can load 100 in an hour from start to finish. Normally I have several hundred cases prepped for use. For pistols, I can load 100 .38/.357 rounds per hour if I have all my components at hand, etc. I use a RCBS Sr. press and RCBS die sets. I neck size the .30-06 rounds as I fire them in my 1903 and 1903-A3 rifles. When using my M-1 Garand, I full-length size the brass. I use a carbide die when loading pistol rounds. This makes the process go faster. I use the .30-06 rounds for vintage military rifle matches in which I usually do very well. My favorite match load averages 96.9 for the last 17 matches. My pistol loads are plain vanilla... usually 158 gr. LSWC's and 5.0 gr. of Unique. It is a load that has given excellent results in my revolvers ever since I first loaded it in 1982. JMHO. HTH. Sincerely. brucev.

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<><

I use reloading as my pressure relief valve. It is relaxing and very satisfying. Every bit as much fun as shooting the darn things. At my age, I don't speed anywhere!!

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mr mom
Fire Chief, Retired