Stress management + accuracy-Lee Classic Loading kits

[snowman]

When I was 15 or so I bought Dad a Lee Loader for Christmas for his 30-06. He never had time to use it, so I took all his empty brass he used over a number of years and loaded it up. Trouble was, I knew nothing at that time about the difference made by sizing the neck of the case only, and a lot of the brass had been fired in rifles other than his.

I still have most of those ill-fitting rounds -anyone interested?

Regards,
Andy

 

[daniel lawecki]

Stress is not in the cards for me when I get home. Case broke and stuck more then 3/4 in the case. Went to work mic brass drill brass out of die then out of neck in die. Had I let things get to me one wrong move new die. Keep calm and live longer my friends.

 

[MyDads38]

Home from work and finished loading my 50 rounds 38 Special. Add powder and seat/crimp bullets. Now for a warmer (than freezing) day to go to the range LOL.

 

[Regaj]

Ok, this thread has prompted me to go back to basics. No, not the Classic Lee Loader... my wife didn't much care for the pounding at the kitchen table back in the day. And although there no longer are any babies to wake up, I suspect she wouldn't be much happier about it now.

I'll still use my 36-year-old Rock Chucker for most anything serious. But I'm looking forward to enjoying the new Lee Hand Press which is showing up today!

 

[S&WIowegan]

I moved to Iowa in 1988. I was born and raised on a farm and spent lots of time with Dad's Winchester Model 62. Then college, Army, grad. school and serious jobs left no time for shooting.

I very quickly got into competitive shooting and handloading to feed the ammo demands. Started with an RCBS 3 press and transitioned to Lee 1000 presses. I soon realized that shooting and handloading were great stress controllers/reducers. Still doing it at age 75.

 

[StakeOut]

I started on a Rock Chucker in the late 60s and quickly added 2 Star Machines.I used them for over 25 years

In the 90s I took a job overseas so I sold everything.

After 20 years abroad in a country that all but prohibited private gun ownership for it's citizens and completely prohibited for foreigners I returned stateside.

Shooting 10 rounds of 45 hardball from a 1911 at a public indoor range cost $30 in Seoul Korea and the gun was chained to the shooting station walls.

I returned 4 years ago and quickly got back into the sport I loved dearly.
Texas was new to me so I rented an apartment before buying a townhouse.I used a Lee hand press and hand primer while in the apartment but stepped up to the Lee Classic Turret once in the townhouse with 2 car garage.
Getting the Lee safety prime to function correctly was the hardest part with getting the press set up to work the way I wanted it to.
I have 4 hole turrets set up with Lee Auto Disk powder measures to load 5 different cases for my S&W revolvers.
I buy 9mm for use in a 39-2

I'm 74 and usually shoot 2X a week at a local indoor range 5 minutes away where membership is $450/yr.

I like Lee products and their customer service.

 

[cowboy4evr]

After all these yrs , 99% of my reloading equipment is still Lee . I too like their customer service . I was given a Dillon 450 yrs ago , it still sits in a box , unused . I only have a small space for reloading so I still use my Lee single stage anniversary press . It 's just a cast aluminum press but is still doing just what I need it to do . I reloaded over 30 boxes of 38spl with my Lee Loader kit before moving up to a press .

 

[gwpercle]

After all these yrs , 99% of my reloading equipment is still Lee . I too like their customer service . I was given a Dillon 450 yrs ago , it still sits in a box , unused . I only have a small space for reloading so I still use my Lee single stage anniversary press . It 's just a cast aluminum press but is still doing just what I need it to do . I reloaded over 30 boxes of 38spl with my Lee Loader kit before moving up to a press .

A Lee Hand Press is the best thing ever for space challenged reloaders or for those whose bench is in an unheated / un air conditioned building....like me !
I can reload anywhere in my heated house without making a sound, even take it to my office and reload at my desk.... I consider reloading important work !
The things are so handy I have two of them.
Gary

 

[glenwolde]

Home from work and finished loading my 50 rounds 38 Special. Add powder and seat/crimp bullets. Now for a warmer (than freezing) day to go to the range LOL.

As a side note, when using Lee Loaders for revolver rounds I found a little thing that helps improve accuracy. The biggest variable is the crimp. No way you're going to get a consistent crimp just banging on it randomly. I found a nice big thick washer that I slipped over the cartridge when crimping. It acts as a stop for the crimp die, and gives you a much more consistent crimp.

Testing ammo loaded that way against ammo off my Dillon showed little difference.

 

[glenwolde]

After all these yrs , 99% of my reloading equipment is still Lee . I too like their customer service . I was given a Dillon 450 yrs ago , it still sits in a box , unused . I only have a small space for reloading so I still use my Lee single stage anniversary press . It 's just a cast aluminum press but is still doing just what I need it to do . I reloaded over 30 boxes of 38spl with my Lee Loader kit before moving up to a press .

Dillons are cast aluminum....really you ought to give that a try.

 

[rwsmith]

Not that I'm in a hurry.....

...but I'd like to set my Lee loader up like the guy on Youtube that turns out a round in 40 seconds. It's just so neat to have all the stuff right in front of you so every motion counts for something. Because I take my rounds off of my press equipment for priming and charging and go back out handling gets to be a factor and I don't think that there would be much difference in time to make 100 round either method.

 

[cowboy4evr]

My reloading table is an old stand from Walmart used for fax / copiers . It's just particle board , small in size . I took out one of the shelves and cut it up to strengthen the sides . I found a piece of plywood and used it for a new sturdier top . I mounted my press on a piece of oak 1x4 with the powder measure right behind it on the LH end of the top . Room is at a premium for me . So you can see that I just don't have room for a bigger press (Dillon 450) . Maybe someday I'll have more room .

 

[Tom S.]

I started reloading before I started shooting! My dad, who shot competition, including the national matches at Camp Perry got me started helping him reload. So it was natural when I bought my first firearm, a Model 28 in 1971, that I also bought a press and dies to go with it. My first press was a RCBS Jr. Through the years though, I've wandered into many other brands of reloading equipment, including Lee. Lee makes some very cost worthy things, but they also make some things that I'm considerably less enthusiastic about. The Lee turret press is a good, strong unit that can speed up the reloading process, but when they turned it into a progressive press, the result was less than stellar. I had two 1000's dedicated to 9mm and 357 mag, and eventually gave up on them. Even though they were dedicated to one caliber, I was always having to dink with something. When I loaded half a doze rounds out of 300 with no powder, I gave up on them. I sold one cheap and gave the other to a friend - on the condition he remain a friend despite the gift. I went to a 650XL Dillon in the early 1990's and never looked back.

 

[glenwolde]

The Lee turret press is a good, strong unit that can speed up the reloading process, but when they turned it into a progressive press, the result was less than stellar. I had two 1000's dedicated to 9mm and 357 mag, and eventually gave up on them. Even though they were dedicated to one caliber, I was always having to dink with something.

Like you, my first press was a RCBS JR. However when it was time to get a progressive I went with a RCBS Green Machine. Now that press makes a caliber conversion on a Lee 1000 look positively simple.

Converting The Green Machine was so bad RCBS quit selling conversion kits in short order (too many phone calls for support) and they pretty much became dedicated presses except for a few of us that had conversion kits. Even with a conversion kit most owners were reluctant to ever do that again. I only did it three times myself. I ended selling mine and using the conversion kit to rebuild another. Both are long gone. Once you got them tuned up right they could load fast for their day. This was right about time the Dillon 450 started selling direct and I went that way. Still use it. Well sort of it's been converted into a Franken550.

 

[Engineer1911]

My brother gave me a Lee 30-06 Lee Loader for Christmas 1974. I bought an RCBS Rock Chucker press and dies in February 1975. That Lee Loader eventually cost me Thou$and$ of dollar$ over the years, but I was saving money.

A couple of years later I gave the Lee Loader to a friend. I talked to him 6 months ago, he still has it for reloading ammo.