Help with Lee Pro 1000 press

[BOB FRONSEE]

I was reloading 9mm and after about 50 rounds this happened.
Not sure why the picture is sideways. (Pic fixed by mod.)

[Bib]

Raise the ram up into the toolhead and tighten the screw. I've had this happen lots of times. Nothing is broken

[BOB FRONSEE]

Good, I was afraid I busted something.
Thanks

[MyDads38]

Only had that happen once, troubling until you figure it out :-)

[David Sinko]

Speaking from experience, I can assure you that this will be the least of your problems with the Pro 1000.

[Skeet 028]

Well we've had all the owners of the Lee Peo 1000 make a post. I could never get a Lee progressive press work consistently.

[Tex1001]

Originally Posted by Skeet 028

I could never get a Lee progressive press work consistently.

Many people share your experience.
My loadmaster has given me 27 years of good service, but I have an extensive engineering background.
I'm sure that Lee could design their equipment to be more user friendly.
But then it would cost as much as a Dillon.

I should add- in the mid 90s when I was looking for a progressive, one of my serious needs was ability to reload 32ACP.
At the time the only system available was the Loadmaster,
therefore it's what I ended up with.

[gjgalligan]

Just for my education can somebody explain the problem with the OPs press?
I have never seen a Lee progressive press so I don't understand the problem.
I picked up my laptop and turned it sideways to view the picture but still don't understand the problem.
I have a Lee turret press and have had a couple of hick ups but the Lee tech people have always been very helpful when I call them.

[Tu_S]

Originally Posted by gjgalligan

Just for my education can somebody explain the problem with the OPs press?
I have never seen a Lee progressive press so I don't understand the problem.
I picked up my laptop and turned it sideways to view the picture but still don't understand the problem.
I have a Lee turret press and have had a couple of hick ups but the Lee tech people have always been very helpful when I call them.

There's a bolt that holds the ram and shell plate carrier together as you work the handle and the thing moves up and down.

What happened is the bolt was not tight enough so when he pulled up on the handle to lower the thing the ram got disconnected, and the shell plate got left at the top of its travel, probably because of a case in the sizing die.

It's not a problem you'll have with your turret press.

[Sevens]

The Lee Pro-1000 has a unit called the shell plate carrier that performs the bulk of the moving tasks. This unit feeds each case in to the shell plate, holds each case for it’s manipulation in each die, allows for priming and advances these cases stage by stage and ejects each case when finished.

So the shell plate carrier is the heart of the design for the Lee Pro-1000. And the shell plate carrier affixes itself to the ram with a collar and a hex bolt. When tightened down properly, the machine works to create a loaded round with each pull of the press handle.

And if that hex bolt works itself loose, the ram pulls out of it and leaves it hanging at the top with brass in each die, and that’s what has happened in this case.

Nothing here as broken, it is working as designed. These two parts coming apart are exactly what you should expect if you don’t have the fastening bolt snugged properly.

[Skeet 028]

Originally Posted by Tex1001

Many people share your experience.
My loadmaster has given me 27 years of good service, but I have an extensive engineering background.
I'm sure that Lee could design their equipment to be more user friendly.
But then it would cost as much as a Dillon.

I actually have a new Junkm...er... Loadmaster out in the grudge. Never set it up. Don't even remember where I got it. I think I took the powder measure off to use on a Lee Classic Cast Turret press. .Even got that somewhere. I kinda got turned off Lee back a few years. Got a set of 500 S&W dies. Didn't load 20 rounds and the carbide ring broke. They wouldn't replace or fix it either. I have a classic cast turret I just got on ebay(70 bucks) to load 32 S&W/32 H&R mag. I'm gonna hunt that Loadmaster down and put it on ebay. `

[Sevens]

The Lee Pro-1000 is taking a bit of a beating in this thread, but that's to be expected. It is the cheapest progressive press that I believe has ever been on the market. It's made from the lowest cost materials and has always been targeted to the budget market.

On the other hand, some of us have found serious merit in this press. I got mine in the spring of 2011 and I bought it used. I didn't care for how it handled powder and I had ideas that I could use this machine to prep brass for me.

I wanted to use it for sizing, depriming, priming, and the flaring of case mouths. I also knew that not having to pull pieces off of it would speed me up, as the machine auto ejects.

I also had another -BIG- idea, and that was to outfit my Pro-1000 to handle multiple calibers.

Now I would never make the argument that a Lee Pro-1000 matches up with any Dillon progressive press because it cannot. That would be like comparing a Chevy Cavalier to a Corvette. However if you look at what it costs for each and the utility of each, you'll find that each of them can have it's place.

I use a Lyman 55 to dispense powder and a Lee Classic Cast to seat and crimp.

I have now been using my Pro-1000 for a full 12 years to prep brass as I described above. And I use this one machine to prep brass for .32 Long, .32 H&R Mag, .327 Federal, .380, 9mm, .38 Special, .357 Mag, .40 S&W, 10mm Auto, .41 Magnum, .44 Magnum, .45 ACP, and .45 Colt and .460 Rowland. I also use it to prime .223 rifle brass.

I keep a strict round count of what I produce and since I got that used Lee Pro-1000, I've processed over 152,000 rounds of ammo with it.

I have less money in to my Pro-1000 and different shell plates and extra shell plate carriers to process the above 14 different calibers then what it costs to set up one Dillon XL-750 for one caliber. This is obviously never going to be a direct comparison, because loaded ammo doesn't get kicked from my Pro-1000, but it has been the key to advanced production at my bench and I've done it on a shoestring budget.

My ammo is fantastic -- I believe this is mostly because I'm handling the powder and the bullet seating in the way I most prefer.

[Tom S.]

Originally Posted by Sevens

That would be like comparing a Chevy Cavalier to a Corvette.

More like a Yugo to a Rolls Royce. I had two Lee Pro 1000 presses and ended up selling one and giving the other one away to a friend, who also ended up getting rid of it.

I bought a Dillon 650 back around 1989 IIRC. I've never regretted it one bit. And now as I see an end in my reloading days approaching, I know I can sell that 650 for more than I paid for it. Seems like a good investment to me.

[Tex1001]

Originally Posted by Sevens

My ammo is fantastic -- I believe this is mostly because I'm handling the powder and the bullet seating in the way I most prefer.

^^This^^
I load for 19 calibers with my Load Master. I have perfected, for me, procedures which work perfectly. I belittle no one who uses a more expensive system.
I pity those who have tried to humiliate me and those like me because of their perceptions of my using equipment that is somehow "Substandard".
My system works and I am very happy with it. Others use more expensive systems that work also. More power to them.

[Skeet 028]

I have an extensive background in many progressive reloading machines. Reloading equipment was my business for about 40 years. As some have said here they have good experience with the less expensive presses. Yep sometimes the stars and planets align for some. I've seen good ammo come from all kinds of progressives And I can also say there are some machines that just take too much tinkering to achieve good results. The other side of the coin...there some people that are patient as Job and they get great results. Then there are the people who shouldn't be allowed near any progressive press. I have seen my share of those. One was a good reloader till he got a P-W 800 press. Being an engineer he just couldn't leave that press alone...."improving" it. I have seen a few progressive machines that should have never been invented. Thankfully they are almost all extinct these days. The first thing we want to have is a press that will work great in the hands of reloaders. What we also want to see is reloaders that know their limitations. Some can seem to get anything to work. Wish I was that person...but still feel I do better on getting recalcitrant presses to work correctly with a reasonable amount of time getting 'em to work. BTW I bought Lee APP for some case prep and it does a surprisingly competent job. Sometimes cheap does work! Sometimes expensive...doesn't! Good grief that got longer than I intended

[MDF4]

Originally Posted by Skeet 028

I actually have a new Junkm...er... Loadmaster out in the grudge. Never set it up. Don't even remember where I got it. I think I took the powder measure off to use on a Lee Classic Cast Turret press. .Even got that somewhere. I kinda got turned off Lee back a few years. Got a set of 500 S&W dies. Didn't load 20 rounds and the carbide ring broke. They wouldn't replace or fix it either. I have a classic cast turret I just got on ebay(70 bucks) to load 32 S&W/32 H&R mag. I'm gonna hunt that Loadmaster down and put it on ebay. `

I started out with the Loadmaster but found it to be too tempermental. I went with Redding equipment and the LM is in a box.

[David Sinko]

The idea of using a Pro 1000 to process brass is interesting but you are still dealing with what I considered its two greatest flaws: the auto indexing and priming system. The plastic parts in the auto indexing mechanism were always causing problems for me and the gravity operated priming system was also very unreliable and problematic. My idea of processing brass is quickly and efficiently trimming cases and swaging or reaming crimped primer pockets. A Pro 1000 can not accomplish any of those tasks. Belling the case mouths, dispensing powder and seating bullets were all tasks that the Pro 1000 performed very well. I have suddenly become motivated to study the carcass of my old Pro 1000 to see if it really has any redeeming value but I don't know if I still have it.

[Mike, SC Hunter]

Originally Posted by Skeet 028

Well we've had all the owners of the Lee Peo 1000 make a post. I could never get a Lee progressive press work consistently.

Mine turned blue and ALL aggravation went away. I had even threatened it will a hammer.

[glenwolde]

Originally Posted by Skeet 028

I have an extensive background in many progressive reloading machines. Reloading equipment was my business for about 40 years. As some have said here they have good experience with the less expensive presses. Yep sometimes the stars and planets align for some. I've seen good ammo come from all kinds of progressives And I can also say there are some machines that just take too much tinkering to achieve good results. The other side of the coin...there some people that are patient as Job and they get great results. Then there are the people who shouldn't be allowed near any progressive press. I have seen my share of those. One was a good reloader till he got a P-W 800 press. Being an engineer he just couldn't leave that press alone...."improving" it. I have seen a few progressive machines that should have never been invented. Thankfully they are almost all extinct these days. The first thing we want to have is a press that will work great in the hands of reloaders. What we also want to see is reloaders that know their limitations. Some can seem to get anything to work. Wish I was that person...but still feel I do better on getting recalcitrant presses to work correctly with a reasonable amount of time getting 'em to work. BTW I bought Lee APP for some case prep and it does a surprisingly competent job. Sometimes cheap does work! Sometimes expensive...doesn't! Good grief that got longer than I intended

Yes, people are different. I'm not an engineer but I do have an extensive background with mechanical devices (as an operator not a designer) and more patience than any ten people I know. I'm also stubborn and curious. I do have my limitations though. At some point the time commitment becomes onerous.

I came perilously close to my breaking point doing a caliber conversion on an RCBS Green Machine. But I got there. An RCBS engineer told me they quit selling conversion kits shortly after introduction because of all the support calls they generated.

I eventually migrated everything to a pair of Dillon 450s and sold the Green Machine. The 450s have been converted to 550 frames and are still going. But I think I've now worn out the link arms on one of them.

[Mike, SC Hunter]

Originally Posted by Sevens

The Lee Pro-1000 is taking a bit of a beating in this thread, but that's to be expected. It is the cheapest progressive press that I believe has ever been on the market. It's made from the lowest cost materials and has always been targeted to the budget market.

On the other hand, some of us have found serious merit in this press. I got mine in the spring of 2011 and I bought it used. I didn't care for how it handled powder and I had ideas that I could use this machine to prep brass for me.

I wanted to use it for sizing, depriming, priming, and the flaring of case mouths. I also knew that not having to pull pieces off of it would speed me up, as the machine auto ejects.

I also had another -BIG- idea, and that was to outfit my Pro-1000 to handle multiple calibers.

Now I would never make the argument that a Lee Pro-1000 matches up with any Dillon progressive press because it cannot. That would be like comparing a Chevy Cavalier to a Corvette. However if you look at what it costs for each and the utility of each, you'll find that each of them can have it's place.

I use a Lyman 55 to dispense powder and a Lee Classic Cast to seat and crimp.

I have now been using my Pro-1000 for a full 12 years to prep brass as I described above. And I use this one machine to prep brass for .32 Long, .32 H&R Mag, .327 Federal, .380, 9mm, .38 Special, .357 Mag, .40 S&W, 10mm Auto, .41 Magnum, .44 Magnum, .45 ACP, and .45 Colt and .460 Rowland. I also use it to prime .223 rifle brass.

I keep a strict round count of what I produce and since I got that used Lee Pro-1000, I've processed over 152,000 rounds of ammo with it.

I have less money in to my Pro-1000 and different shell plates and extra shell plate carriers to process the above 14 different calibers then what it costs to set up one Dillon XL-750 for one caliber. This is obviously never going to be a direct comparison, because loaded ammo doesn't get kicked from my Pro-1000, but it has been the key to advanced production at my bench and I've done it on a shoestring budget.

My ammo is fantastic -- I believe this is mostly because I'm handling the powder and the bullet seating in the way I most prefer.

Still you're using it for 1/2 what it was designed to do. A Rock Chucker could fill that roll. Like running a V8 with half the cylinders locked out. Buy quality once and you don't have to compromise.

[MyDads38]

I got my first Lee Pro 1000 in 2017 and started a thread about it. If you do a search you can find/read it. After buying the first in 9mm, I ended up buying 3 more in 40, 45 and 38 Special. To summarize, I can load 500 rounds with only 1 stoppage per 100 rounds (avg). Mine are the older models, not like the OP has. I have been happy with mine, others haven't had that kind of experience.

[Skeet 028]

Originally Posted by glenwolde

I came perilously close to my breaking point doing a caliber conversion on an RCBS Green Machine. But I got there. An RCBS engineer told me they quit selling conversion kits shortly after introduction because of all the support calls they generated.

And that machine is what I consider one of the presses that should not have been produced. Had two..one I got to work reasonably well...and even did a cal conversion on it. The other RCBS took back. basically they were an improved CH Mark IV. Still have one of them(CH) and it works fine...Think it is gonna go to fleabay as hasn't been used in a few years

[StakeOut]

I have been using a Lee Precision Classic Turret Press since returning stateside 10 years ago.
I set it up with several Lee carbide 4 die sets in 38spl,357mag,44spl,44mag,45acp and 45AR.
It is also setup with auto priming.
A little fine tuning and tinkering had this inexpensive press pumping out loaded ammo to the tune of 150/hr that was fast enough for this old retired guy.
Now my loading days are just about over and the press sits idle in the garage.
I have no experience with the Lee 1000.
I like the Lee stuff I accumulated.

[Sevens]

Originally Posted by Mike, SC Hunter

Still you're using it for 1/2 what it was designed to do. A Rock Chucker could fill that roll. Like running a V8 with half the cylinders locked out. Buy quality once and you don't have to compromise.

Loading over 10,000 a year and my ammo is fantastic. Averaging over 13,000 a year and loading 14 different calibers since I bought this used machine.

I’ve recommended Dillon progressive presses to three different friends but somehow none of those three turned in to obnoxious forum posters, not sure what’s different there.

[glenwolde]

Originally Posted by Skeet 028

And that machine is what I consider one of the presses that should not have been produced. Had two..one I got to work reasonably well...and even did a cal conversion on it. The other RCBS took back. basically they were an improved CH Mark IV. Still have one of them(CH) and it works fine...Think it is gonna go to fleabay as hasn't been used in a few years

I think you, me, and about four other guys successfully did caliber conversions on Green Machines. Mine was wonderful once I got it running but you really had to pay attention. Plus the primer magazine was more than a little dangerous.

[Tom S.]

I don't want to leave the impression that I think Lee products are junk. They make some excellent and well priced items, and I own and use them. The Pro 1000 just wasn't one of them. I constantly was messing with them to either make them work right or to correct settings and after about a year, IIRC, I finally threw in the towel when I discovered I had an undetermined amount of rounds with no powder in them.

No company's products are 100% great, even Dillon, and even my 650 has had to have a couple of parts replaced via their "No BS warranty". Still even though it cost 3X what the Pro 1000 did at the time, it was worth it to me to be assured that when I pulled the trigger, things went bang, and once the press is set, I never have to mess with any adjustments, even when changing calibers.

[Skeet 028]

Originally Posted by glenwolde

Mine was wonderful once I got it running but you really had to pay attention. Plus the primer magazine was more than a little dangerous.

That last sentence is not a joke. I got rid of mine finally after I had about 10 primers detonate. Luckily I have never had the problem in any Dillons or other progressives I have had. The priming station on the Lee 1000s kinda scared me too. Never had one go off but many seated sideways. The GM was discontinued and I had to make a few parts on my lathes and milling machines. Iam competent with the equipment but not a real machinist

[Mike, SC Hunter]

Originally Posted by Sevens

Loading over 10,000 a year and my ammo is fantastic. Averaging over 13,000 a year and loading 14 different calibers since I bought this used machine.

I’ve recommended Dillon progressive presses to three different friends but somehow none of those three turned in to obnoxious forum posters, not sure what’s different there.

I went blue in 1988. I still buy and use a lot pf LEE products. It's their presses don't cut it for worry free use. I load for 18 calibers and 3 guages. The Dillons and Mecs are superb in all respects. And I get a perfect loaded round with each pull of the handles. I am right with ya on round count as I keep a loading logbook. I have my own shooting range and skeet field. So Ammo is easy to burn 24/7.

[Marylander]

Originally Posted by StakeOut

I have been using a Lee Precision Classic Turret Press since returning stateside 10 years ago.
I set it up with several Lee carbide 4 die sets in 38spl,357mag,44spl,44mag,45acp and 45AR.
It is also setup with auto priming.
A little fine tuning and tinkering had this inexpensive press pumping out loaded ammo to the tune of 150/hr that was fast enough for this old retired guy.
Now my loading days are just about over and the press sits idle in the garage.
I have no experience with the Lee 1000.
I like the Lee stuff I accumulated.

Reading the above fit comfortably here. I have the same setup but with different Lee Carbide 4 die sets(9mm, 38, 45), but alas, my reloading day are over. Some brass stands empty, and bullets resting in their containers, and the scales are silenced.
I believe all the gear will be in the Classified threads shortly.
I've had a good run over the yeas, but at 83, time to take a break.....