Anyone care to school me on the reliability of the Lee's 4 holes turret press? Will be loading .223/300 BO/9mm/10mm

I will be picking up a set of dies for each caliber.

Beside the kit, is there anything else i need to properly and safely reloads?

Never reloaded in my life

Lee turret is a good press. Before using, you need to study the front section of a good reloading manual or three to get the fundamentals in hand. A class is valuable, a mentor is gold.

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Science plus Art

I have the basic 4-hole lee turret press and wish I'd saved up for the classic cast just because of the primer catcher. The classic cast has a tube that fills up with spent primers and can be emptied out the bottom. The basic one just catches them in a hollow base and you have to dig them out. No bueno.
Other than the spent primer handling, though, I've been happy with mine. Loaded over 6000 handgun rounds so far with no press related issues.
Read up, be cautious, go slow, and enjoy your reloading!

I own one, good press, hardly buy ammo anymore. It's a great starter press. Read instructions carefully and don't get in a hurry when reloading.

I have the classic cast and love it. Buy a die plate for each caliber. Saves readjusting dies when you switch. I'm so lazy I have two sets of 357/38 dies so I can switch between them without readjusting.

I have used the Lee Classic press for several years and have run countless rounds through it. The only problem that I have experienced is that the turret would not fully index to the next station. Fortunately, the instruction manual gives simple instructions to correct the problem. Reloading is an enjoyable and rewarding hobby that will enable you to enjoy shooting all the more.
Other items needed might be an extension tube for the powered measure to allow it to clear the priming tool. I would recommend the Pro powder measure rather than the base measure. You should invest in a power scale to verify your power charges. Do not trust that the powder measure is correct, it measures by volume rather than weight. A bullet puller is a necessity because, you will make mistakes. A good caliper will be needed for measuring cases and completed cartridges. I recommend carbide pistol dies to eliminate lubricating cases. You will need case lube for your rifle cases. As others have stated, you must get a good loading manual. Lyman makes an excellent manual with plenty of information for the beginning reloader. There always seems to be something that will make the process easier or quicker. Study your manual, be safe, and have fun!

I have a 4 hole lee turret and use 4 carbide dies for pistol and 3 carbide dies for rifle. I charge my rifle loads by hand.
As Pondoro said-buy a turret plate for each caliber.
Have fun!!

It is a good press. I have 20 + turrets and just swap out dies for the calibers that don't get much use.

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Front sight and squeeze

I'm also a Lee Classic 4 hole Turret Press owner.
I have Lee 4 die sets in the turrets with a Pro Lee Auto Disk Powder Measure and Lee Riser mounted on the expander die.I have 5 turrets with dies and Lee Pro Auto Disk powder measures

If you're an Amazon Prime Member they often have the Lee hardware at special prices including the Classic Turret Press for $100 with the free shipping.

For light powder charges>less than 3.3gr of Titegroup,less than 2.6gr of BE,small amounts of Clays etc I would recommend using a Lee Auto Drum powder measure instead.

Some powders don't drop consistently in smaller amounts.

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NEVER GIVE UP YOUR GUN

It is a nice press, and a good upgrade from the single stage for little more money. You did not say if you got the "Kit" or just the press. As others have said you will need the extension tube to use a powder measure. I have not had much luck using the Auto Drum measure for lite loads. It works well for medium and up loads. Read the instructions and heed what they say. It is not a hard press to learn. Most reloading manuals have very good instructions on what you need to do, in sequence. Almost all of it will apply, the Lee is not really any different in the basic sequence. Priming tends to be brand specific. Ask here if you have any questions or issues.

A couple more thoughts:

I suggest that you also get several spare square ratchet gaskets (Lee #TF3567; around $0.50 each); the little square, polymer wearing gizmos that transmit the lever motion to rotate the center spindle. Mine wore out after around 5-6K pistol cartridges; had to rotate the die plate by hand until my replacement order arrived from Lee.

Other than using the LCT for priming 223 cases, I've not used it for reloading rifle cartridges; I'm still using an old single stage press for those. I think that a stuck rifle case in the LCT could be problematic.

Also, make sure that your reloading bench has good lighting to allow you to visually inspect each cartridge case after your powder drop. Be aware of the dangers and actively work to reduce the possibility of producing either squib loads or double charged loads. -S2

There's a bucketload of good advice here. And welcome to reloading--I haven't bought ammo since I started. My thoughts:

--Make sure you get the one with the primer drop and auto-index. The indexing makes a huge difference.

--I like the Auto Disk Pro. I think the Pro's upgrades are more than worth it. And the auto-disk is very simple to use. It's more reliable, I've found, for dropping consistent charges (because all the cavities are uniformly circular), so long as the charge you want is covered by a cavity. Sometimes it can be annoying to have to bump up a charge more than you want because there's no in-between size (unless you get crazy with some epoxy and a drill). That said, I've heard a lot of nice things about the Auto-Drum.

--You'll need the riser. And a plate for each die set is well worth it.

--I like digital scales over beam scales. A beam scale can be more accurate, but once you calibrate it, there are less mistakes to make with a digital. I also think that a digital is a bit easier to use and more bench-friendly, meaning you're more likely to actually use it.

--Get a good reloading manual. Lee's 2nd Edition is alright, but I like the data in Lyman's 50th a lot better. While you're at it, grab the ABCs of Reloading, and/or Reloading For Handgunners.

--A box of nitrile gloves is great for keeping lead and gunk off your left hand, the one that picks up and seats bullets. They're also great for cleaning guns. They're also good for when you're sifting bullets from cleaning media.

--Speaking of sifting bullets from media, you have two options. One is a strainer-type deal that fits over a 5-gallon bucket. I consider this to be a messy, dusty pain in the neck. The other is a big, deep kitty-litter scooper. This takes more time, but involves pouring less media and inhaling less god-awful toxic dust.

--Depending on your age, gender, how much you reload, and so on, you may want to consider a face mask for sifting media. I don't bother, but it's a thought.

--If you don't have a spare pair of protective glasses, get some and keep them on your bench. Otherwise you won't use them.

--Your reloading area should be comfortable. It's not comfortable to reload in a garage in February. You should also count on a lot of errant powder and other stuff getting all over the floor. Carpet is not a good option for this, and neither is an area where pets and children can get at. No distractions, either.

--Get good lighting. I've got a pair of incandescent 65-watt bulbs over my bench.

--You can never have too much storage. If you haven't been saving plastic jars, about coffee-can size, start now. If you can get square containers from somewhere, they make significantly better use of shelf space than round. Why the hell isn't everything sold in square containers?

--Set aside a container for your spent primers. It's fun to save them, and periodically drop that sucker on the bench when somebody asks you how much you reload, or if it's worth getting into.

--Label your containers. Make sure to differentiate between "clean" and "dirty" brass. Ask me how I know.

--Get a notebook to record what you loaded, how much, and so on. Nothing's worse than peeling off six layers of box labels to figure out what you loaded that worked so great with X bullet 4 months ago. Go on, ask me how I know.

--Music is okay for reloading. Especially if it helps keep you focused. A movie or TV show is not--eyes on the press. Ditto for talking on the phone while reloading, or chatting with a buddy in-person.

--The little plastic boxes for reloaded ammo are great, so long as they have real hinges and snap shut. For bulk storage, I like sandwich-size resealable bags. They hold 100 rounds of 9mm without popping open when held upside down (but not if you just grab one side or the other at the top). Again, a coffee can can work, but the sandwich bags hold just enough to be convenient to grab and drop in a range bag, and keep track of.

--Buy in bulk, buy on sale. Getting 5000 primers for $28/1000 might only save you $6/1000, but that adds up. Wait till there's a big holiday sale at Midsouth or someplace, order the 5000 primers, and then toss in a few pounds of powder. Unless you really only need a pound of this or 1000 of that, there's no reason to shop local (either that, or everybody around me is trying to rip me off).

--Ditto for bullets. Xtreme runs huge sales on each holiday, you'd be a sucker to buy any other time. Remember--shipping is usually about $14 whether you buy 15 pounds of bullets, or 60. If you feel bad for your mail carrier, make arrangements with them.

--Save your brass. Save all the brass. Save brass for cartridges you'd never think of reloading. I always skipped scavenging 9mm, because I never thought I'd get one or bother reloading for it, and because there was always 9mm lying around. Then I got one (and then another...). You can also always trade your unused brass for things you can use.

---

You are not going to save a single dime reloading. Fact of life: this is going to cost you money.

Yes, I save 50% on 9mm, 55% or so on .45 ACP, 66% on .38 Spl, and a whopping 76% on .44 Magnum. This much is true.

I also shoot much, much more than if I was paying factory prices for ammo. And I wouldn't have even spent the $800 my .44 Magnum cost me out the door if a box of ammo cost me $36 instead of $8.50.

I figure I'm in the hole for more than a grand, and I've only been reloading a few years. Damn this hobby.

Short answer: Get the The LEE CLASSIC 4 Hole Turret Press Deluxe Kit and get started. Here's a link to the kit:
Lee Classic 4 Hole Turret Press Deluxe Kit - MPN: 90304


Longer answer:

There's other methods and brands of reloading but it' just one guy's opinion on the internet the The LEE CLASSIC 4 Hole Turret Press Deluxe Kit is a very good compromise in cost, simplicity, ease of use, speed, and quality compared to other various methods of reloading and brands of reloading equipment for a first time re-loader.

Re: Reliability of the Lee 4 hose CLASSIC Turret press.
It's my opinion, based upon personal use, it is very reliable.

Re: Picking up a set of dies for each caliber.
That's a no-brainer. I suggest you start off reloading just one of the handgun cartridges/calibers and when you are proficient with that progress to the next handgun cartridge/caliber. I would estimate you'll feel proficient with a single handgun cartridge in a matter of hours, maybe over a weekend (?). Finally work up to the long gun cartridges.

Re: Besides the kit anything else you need to properly and safely reload?
The LEE CLASSIC 4 Hole Turret Press Deluxe Kit will have everything you need to reload except brass (spent cartridges), primers, powder, and bullets. If you follow the instructions provided with the kit you will succeed. The main individual variable for me was setting up the height of the press that worked best for me. I tried 3 different heights before I settled on what I like best. I prefer to stand while reloading. Safety glasses/goggles are recommended.

Here's a link to the kit:
Lee Classic 4 Hole Turret Press Deluxe Kit - MPN: 90304

It is very convenient to have a separate "Turret", i.e. 4-hole metal (?steel?) round disk that holds the dies, about $12 each, for each set (caliber) of dies and once set up for proper sizing, depth, crimp, etc. just remove the entire Turret with the properly positioned dies and change out to your other caliber.

Wise_A provides a lot of good information.

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Scoundrel & Ne'er-Do-Well

Hmmm. Some really involved replies I'll just relate my experiences with a Lee Turret old style (pre "Classic Cast"). I got my 4 hole Lee turret mebbe 17 years go and disconnected the auto index 16.99 years ago. The press would index when I was setting up my dies so I took the index hardware off (just a few seconds). I continued to use the press, hand indexing, for everything from F/L sizing and loading 30-06 (fired in a semi-auto) to reloading thousands of 44 Magnums and a whole bunch of 9mm. I put 4 Lee bullet sizing dies on a turret and sized many, many cast bullets. I installed a ram prime in a couple turrets (ones set up but had an extra hole) and primed many thousands of cases. I have reloaded some 308 Win. ammo that gave me 1" groups and an occasional 7/8" group. Old primers are no big deal; I mounted my press on a plate for my Rock Dock and drilled a 2" hole in the plate. When the base gets full I just remove the press from the Dock and shake it over the scrap bucket. I have no idea how many thousands of rounds I have reloaded and the most was prolly .44 Magnum (my favorite round and I shot a lot of them). I have/had no use for a semi-progressive press so I just hand indexed the turret and if I so chose, I could load as fast as with an auto-index...

So, my experience has shown me that the Lee "Economy" press will do everything a normal reloader would want from a press. I've read all the "bad" comments about the press but I could not substantiate nor duplicate those complaints. I retired my Lee a few months ago and replaced it with a Co-Ax for no other reason than "just because...".

If you really want to lose some money on a hobby, might I suggest a boat, ask me how I know:-)

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Certified Curmudgeon

I will echo what has been said about the Lee cast turret press. I have been using it for more years then I can remember. I check Titian reloading fairly often they stock all thing Lee and they offer a bevel for the powder drum, it helps with powder drops.

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Carpriver.

Boat? Check.

Lowrance Elite5 DSI Sonar/GPS Combo? Check.

Kistler Helium3 7' Medium-Light Casting Rod? Check.

13 Fishing Inception 8.3:1 reel? Check.

Sunline Sniper FC in 8# test? Check.

Four-inch thick binder full of finesse baits, Gamakatsu dropshot hooks, and Danielson pencil weights? Check.

...

Outwitting an animal with the IQ of ketchup? Priceless.

Thanks for all the feedbacks. I am piecing it together now and i will update when i have all my pieces to ask more questions.

Can you reload with my cases i saved?

advice noted, thanks....So no smoking when reloading?

what about this one?

Jet.com - Prices Drop As You Shop

Ok, now I finally have what could be an intelligent question:

How do you folks store the extra dies and turrets while they aren't in the press?

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I'm accountable for my actions

What he said, your first purchase should be a good reloading manual. I like the Lyman and Hornady reloading manuals.

I have the Lee Classic Turret and it works as specified.

Have a blessed day,

Leon

Some will bad mouth that press because the base is not cast iron. But I have one like that and have reloaded thousands upon thousands of rounds from 9mm through 30-06, sized unknown number of bullets, and did everything on that press any knowledgeable reloader should do. No the press ain't "weak" and no there are no "variations" in my reloads from a "sloppy" press. I will admit the used primer disposal was a concern when I first got my press, but that was quickly remedied. I mounted my press on a Rock Dock and drilled a 2" hole in the mounting plate. On occasion I would remove the press from the dock and shake it over my scrap bucket. "Problem" solved...

I rarely buy KITS and never recommend them to others.

Kits often contain cheap items to keep the advertized price low and those items are soon discarded for better items.Kits may contain items you already have or may never use.

I would recommend a better scale than the one in the kit.I use an RCBS(Ohaus) 10-10 and zero it and weight check before each use.

If you are an Amazon Prime member(30 day FREE trial) there are often Lee items offered at very low prices.

Classic 4 Hole Turret Press $100
Extra Turrets $7.95
Riser $7.95
Auto Disk Pro $35
4 Die Sets $39 w/shell holder

Shooting a lot of 44s these days and saving a bundle reloading for them.

Reloading components vary greatly from different sources so shop wisely and watch shipping costs if buying online.

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NEVER GIVE UP YOUR GUN

The turret plate with the dies will fit in a round Lee die case

I shoot only aprox 500rds rifle a year on my Lee turret press.After a few years of use,the only complaint I have is that I've worn out the little rubber square that is involved in the indexing process.I bought 3 as spare(part TF 3567 at $0.50 ea)and otherwise do not have anything to complain about.
I bought extra heads for every cal I own(.308/.223/.303Br/30-06/45-70).Have fun with yours!
Qc

BZ, I store my dies and turrets on a cheap plastic shelving unit I happened to have near my reloading bench that has slotted shelves. I think the shelf was supposed to be a little stronger with all the slots

Add me to the Lee Classic Turret press fan base. It is cost effective and mine has been totally reliable. Better ones out there, probably but for the price it gets the job done just fine. I use mine for 9mm, 38spec, 357mag, 45acp. For rifle rounds I still use my RCBS Rock Chucker, just habit I guess. I have loaded thousands of rounds on the Lee without any problems. Like others have said, get a separate disk for each caliber, makes life easier. Good luck and have fun, welcome to the world of reloading!

See attached photo...

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Trucks and guns.

Let me help you spend your money. Go to here
LEE – Inline Fabrication

Numerous ideas on accessories for a LCT. I use the quick mount, and auto index from Inline on my LCT. Along with ways to store your dies/heads.

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Reg. Magnum wants/Rossi wallet

I currently load for something like 15 calibers in my LCTs. I tried various racks/trays but it took up too much room as my collection of turrets grew. I now just store each turret in a quart sized zip type freezer bag. This way the shell holder doesn't get lost nor does the sample ( unprimed ) finished round I keep with the die set. There is a nice white patch on each bag to list the caliber too. All the bagged turrets get placed in a covered plastic storage bin. Takes up allot less room and it works best for me. Your experience/preference may differ.

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Dave

I also have a Lee CCT. Only thing I have loaded with it is 44 Sp. It seems to work ok but can't get the auto primer feed to work consistently. Rounds come out just fine. Going to retire/sell it cause I just got another 650 Dillon cheap(150 bucks) at an auction set up in 44. Must admit the Lee worked ok though. Maybe I should set it up in 327 Federal. Just got one of them...

all replacement parts for lee products are usually free. just have to pay shipping

For the first two years after that it is pay their price. RCBS is free replacement if broken or warn.

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Front sight and squeeze

My Lee 4 hole Classic Turret Press set up in the garage serves me and my shooting needs well.

I'm pretty close to an all Lee loading bench.My mechanical scale is an RCBS 10-10 and I have a Frankford Arsenal Tumbler

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NEVER GIVE UP YOUR GUN

I had one set up for 9mm. Bought a Loadmaster and gave the 4 hole to my 21 yr old son for his 9mm needs. Its a great press and with a few tweaks as shown on youtube, it can really crank out the rounds.