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44magsam

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I want to try my hand at reloading and looking at a Lee “Load Master” for less than $250 complete, set up for my new Model 29 s&w. I know some of you guys hate anything with Lees name on it but wouldn’t it make more since to start with this than rinky-dink around with a one stage. I may shoot and reload maybe once a week and then I may not shoot and reload for a month. My last question: is this thing a pile of junk like I have read about?
Thanks for the good help and answers
 
Single stage is what every one starts with. I have about 1 of each manufacture. They are all pretty good.. Now as time has already passed, arthritis says 6 strokes per shell ain't gonna happen. I just ordered 2 Lee progressive out fits complete with dies, 1000 model. for $250.00, ( repeat---2--complete progressive presses-with dies--250.00) I ordered 9mm, and .45acp, already had a 1000 and wasn't that much more to order a complete set-up vs. a conversion Set-up. Wife, agreed that arthritis was why I needed more stuff. Check out leeprecision.com closeout specials. oh,everybody, wait till my stuff gets shipped.
Mike
 
My brother and I started reloading this year using a Loadmaster, and have used it very successfully for 9, 38 spl., and 45's. It was a little frustrating for us to get it set up correctly, due to our inexperience, and it took a while for us to figure that out the fact the ram bolt needed to be tightened. Once we got over that hurdle it has been flawless. Utube videos are your friend here for setup and operation.

As we ordered the Loadmaster setup for the .45 and separate 4 die sets for the other calibers, the setup does not come with the factory crimp die, and you need to get that we found out.

Check out Titan Reloading for what seems to be the best pricing. Also do not overlook Ebay for new/used equipment or components.
Good luck, it has been fun for us, and as they will tell you, you will end up shooting more.
 
I own a Lee Challenger Breech Lock and Lee Deluxe turret press. Also am waiting for delivery of my Hornady LNL progressive tomorrow. I would have bought the Loadmaster until I stumbled across a good deal on the LNL.

Spend some time here: The Load Master Zone - reloading with Lee presses - videos and forums and you'll get tons of information and set up tips to make the LM run flawlessly. I don't think it is trash, and after looking at all the information around the web, don't think it would take too much to set it up and keep it loading forever. I was going to use it for 9mm and 45acp.

If you want to start out on a Lee press that's pretty much bulletproof, consider the Lee Classic Turret press. Assuming you have all the other equipment needed, this is only about $100 plus dies. Unless your anticipated volume of reloading justifies a true progressive, the turret may serve you better and allow you to retain your sanity!
 
My friend got one back in 2004. I learned to reload and do press maintenance on his machine, about a 50/50 time share.

I bought the Hornady LnL a few months later. Five years later he bought the LnL. He wonders why he spent Five years doing press maintenance.

Start with a progressive, get the auto index. Load one bullet at a time until you are comfortable. Load two at a time until you are comfortable. Add another until you are at full production.

Buy a single stage press. Perform one function on all your cases. Retool, repeat.

One of my other buddies asked my how long it took me to load .45 or 9mm. I said 200-300 per hour average with no rush. He bought a LnL last year. He uses his single stage for reloading 20-30 rifle rounds at a time.
 
1000

Hi 44magsam,
I am a Lee fan. I have three 1000's set upon my bench and have had two of them for a long long time.
I have found them to be a better press than the Loadmaster in my opinion.
Either one will need to be mounted on a bench that can't be rocked by two guys trying to shake it. That will help more than any other piece of advice I can give you. After that it is a learning curve. Get the feel for the machine and you will know what is going on by feel.
Also,I keep mine covered when not in use. I raise the ram at the start of each session and hit it from below with a little WD-40 on the ram and indexing rod. Keep the priming system clean and good luck.
I'm not knocking Dillion stuff (It's good) but they make a couple of machines that I would not trade my Lees for.
Remember ROCK SOLID!
Good luck
Mike
 
Lee makes good stuff. It is usually entry level and that is a good thing. As has been said, and, let me qualify this statement as I have never owned a Lee progressive, if you want to spend half of your time reloading and the other half dinking with the press to make it work, have at it.

Lee's BEST press offered today is the intermediary Classic Cast Turret Press that I personally believe is the BEST press for a newbie to start with.

All 4 operations are done on one case at a time and the production rate is good for 90% of all shooters out there. Another advantage of it is that it can be used as a single stage press very simply and the dies are "stored" in the head and setup ready to use. Just manually index.

Yet another advantage is the fact that you can reload rifle on it as well.
I have one of these presses and HIGHLY recommend them. Very little to "fool with" and they are rock solid presses.

Now, let me qualify another statement, Dillon. I don't have the Hornady LNL, um, yet, BUT, I do have 3 Square Deal Bs, an RL450B & 1/2 (partially converted to an RL550B) and 2 XL650s.

I recommend Dillon to folks that have a good grip on "righty tighty, lefty loosey" and need lot of bullets for some kind of competition. You will get super discouraged if: #1 all you do is work on your press (no matter how cheap it was in the beginning), #2 it takes you a gazillion hours to get the ammo you need to shoot for one 5 minute match. ;)

Get the Lee Classic CAST Turret press and then, if you really like reloading, go crazy and buy and sell, trade up or what have you.

Folks seem to think once they buy a reloading setup that they are married to them and it is a "till death do we part" kind of thing. No, that is meant only for marriage, not reloading!

Ever bought a gun and then sold it? Um..................... ;)

One thing nice about buying "blue", you will get almost what you paid for it if you do resell it.

Just me, my opinion, yours may vary, that is fine. If all of us were the same, there would only be one press made and man, what a boring world that would be! :)

The biggest thing to say to you now though is, GET STARTED NOW!

Get a single stage if you can have it NOW. Don't wait another day, GET STARTED NOW!

:D

(Then you can move on to the next step, casting! ;) )
 
the rinkydink single stage does a few things very well that a progressive does not.
your just getting started, that means you have no loads developed.;)
all load development should be done on a single stage press as there is no extra mechanics to get in the way of this process.
... and your new to this, which means you know little about setting up dies. again the single stage outshines a progressive as there are no complex mechanics to get in the way of your academic development.
Now after you have the dies all figured out and you have a load worked up and singing like Beverly Sills, THEN we go over to the progressive set up the dies like the single taught you too, brew a pot of coffee, and make a day of it.

Now a few things about the LEE brand name ... honestly, we dont care about what color a tool is, how the name on it is spelled, or even if it looks like something out of a horror movie. What we DO care about is how that tool does the job it was made to do.
Lee singles are good presses, we also love many of the Lee dies, even a good many of their molds have a following. they make a lot of good stuff ... a progressive press is not one of those things ... even a careless short stroke on a lee progressive can screw it up enough to see what kind of service and support you'll get from them when you twisted critical parts into new and interesting shapes.
Hold out for a Dillon .. they have the progressive press thing figured out.
 
New to reloading + .44 magnum + progressive press = Danger, Will Robinson...

I don't mean to sound like a troll, hater, or whatever. It just sounds like you are about to leap into the deep end of the pool when you only have the idea of swimming involves some arm flapping and leg kicking.

Buy and read the "ABC's of Reloading" first before you do anything. Then figure out what your goals are in your reloading. Do you want plinking ammo, hunting, long distance target, or what? Figure that out and you will know what manuals to buy since you can figure what bullets you will need. Many of the manuals are made by the bullet manufacturer. So if you want 300gr XTP’s in your loads then you will need the Hornady manual as your primary with at least two back up manuals to use as references. I like to use either the Lyman or Lee manuals and have a copy of the Hodgdon/Winchester/IMR book on hand as well since I use several of those powders. As for a press, I half agree that we should all start out on a single stage press, and I half disagree. It’s up to the user’s discipline level in my opinion as to what they can start with. If you can buy a Lee Classic Turret and take out the auto indexing rod while you learn or buy the Dillon BL 550 and load one case at a time then I don’t see why you couldn’t start with a turret press that can have all the added options to make them much faster once you are ready. But only the user can define if they have the wisdom to start slow and not rush into production and end up as the latest Darwin award recipient. But starting with a progressive is like taking the learner permit and your first on the road experience is on the busiest stretch of interstate during construction rush hour traffic. You can grow into either the Lee or Dillon and you may never feel the need to upgrade to another press, or they will at least be easy to sell used. But I still like to use my single stage for loading rifle so it’s not to say you will never use your single stage ever again if you start with one. Just my two cents.
 
But starting with a progressive is like taking the learner permit and your first on the road experience is on the busiest stretch of interstate during construction rush hour traffic, In a 458 Ferrari.
Click to expand...
there .. fixed it for ya:D

another thing you might want to know is how many stations you'll need.
A single stage will illustrate this for you rather well.
Lets say your loading for 45 auto later on.
three stations might be fine and dandy or maybe not.
for some guns that seat and crimp die just cant get it right forcing you to seat, then crimp in separate steps requiring another stage or two in your progressive.
the single stage press will illustrate this before you drop cabbage on a progressive ... twice
 
You two are too funny! I wish I had the literary skills of either of you two gentlemen!

Oh, the world couldn't handle all that I would be saying then! hahaha
 
venomballistics said:
there .. fixed it for ya:D

another thing you might want to know is how many stations you'll need.
A single stage will illustrate this for you rather well.
Lets say your loading for 45 auto later on.
three stations might be fine and dandy or maybe not.
for some guns that seat and crimp die just cant get it right forcing you to seat, then crimp in separate steps requiring another stage or two in your progressive.
the single stage press will illustrate this before you drop cabbage on a progressive ... twice
Click to expand...

I always see vids of the Loadmaster with a Universal depriming die in station two. Is this required and makes this five station press into really a four station? If so then I really prefer my LNL AP even if it cost a little more.
 
Maximumbob54 said:
I always see vids of the Loadmaster with a Universal depriming die in station two. Is this required and makes this five station press into really a four station? If so then I really prefer my LNL AP even if it cost a little more.
Click to expand...

Ive not allowed one to frustrate me personally.
It could be a timing trick so that sizing and seating occur on alternate strokes to avoid the forces and flexing of one operation messing up the precision of the other.
 
Might as well close this thread, the OP had gone and bought a 550b and started a new thread on that.
 
john16443 said:
Might as well close this thread, the OP had gone and bought a 550b and started a new thread on that.
Click to expand...

Yeah, that went from wanting to save money to spending $500 in a heartbeat! $0 to $500 in 3.5 seconds!(actually about 2 hours from first post to this one but, hey, he did get started!
 
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And that may not even include his thread about the Lee Loadmaster, the second press under consideration.
 
Alright, here goes-alengthy reply. My First reloader I bought was a used Lee as you described. The gentleman that owned it before me is a VERY ANAL person that is ex-military and kept everything in tip-top shape. He probably reloaded well over 100,000 rounds on this machine prior to me purchasing it. I got it for $50.00 with quite a bit of extras-no dies though. After a couple hours I had it up and running with no problems and reloaded probably 25,000-50,000 rounds on it myself. They are not the most elaborate or problem free presses, but function reasonably well. I will say this for Lee, they definetly stand behind their products. I can't tell how many times I sent in damaged/worn out primer assembly pieces and received new peices with no charge! WOW! If Dillon, RCBS or Hornady had the same customer service as Lee then it would be a no holds barred fight. Lee dies are just as good as everyone elses. You can use them in all the progressive presses except the Dillon Square Deal B which uses a proprietary die set. Alas, the Lee Dies are half the cost or less than the "name" brand. Also, You can use their powder measures in other presses as well. Go ahead and buy $60-70-80 dies if you want, but the Lee dies work just as well. Even in the Dillon650. So to sumise, the Lee is not a Dillon or Hornady but you will get a servicable press with amazing customer service at a more than fair price!
 
Well, one man's junk is another man's treasure. If I were spending $250 for a Lee, I would save & spend another $140 & get at least a Hornady LNL. Far better machine, far ebtter resale if yo uhate reloading. Most Lee gear will work, but you have to invest quite a bit of time tinkering to get it to run. If you just want to try reloading, get the Lee Classic Turret instead. One of the better designs Lee has come out with & a better tool than any of their progressives IMHO.
 
Howdy

Howdy,
I'm with trauma1. I have three Lee 1000s, two of them very old and have been quickly rebuilt a time or two over the years.
Skip claims he has never had one. Some of the others knocking them may or may not have had them either.
I have loaded ammo on mine that was shot in several Bianchi cups,half a dozen Masters (Twice in top 20 once when it was still a big match,) USPSA limited and open nats, Area championships (3rd A in area 3) and all the practice and local matches it takes to shoot the bigger ones.All loaded on 1000s
I would have bought better equipment over the years if the Lees would have been a burden or a handicap.
The old .45 machine holds 80 rounds of components and can go from full to empty in about 4.5 minutes. I don't load at that rate all the time but it will do it.
Everyone claims the Lee stuff requires a lot of attention but I have not seen it. If I start to load and my machine is not running right I take the time to make what ever minor adjustment is needed and go back to work.
I start with a heavy bench and a maintenance routine. I raise the ram and lube the index rod and turret before I start to load. I keep the priming system clean and every now and then I might have to time the shell plate which takes seconds.
I would not trade the 1000s for 550s or Square Deals and that is not that they are bad. They are slower and when I was shooting as much as I used to extra time on the press was time I could have been shooting.
If a person takes the time to get acquainted with the Lee presses they can be a real value in every department but snob appeal.
Thanks
Mike
 
Mike<
You are right, I have never owned a Lee progressive. I have one of their Turret presses and couldn't be happier with it. All of my dies except a small few are Lee.

While it is true that I have never owned one of the 1000s, I did have a friend that did. From all I could gather watching him, very secretive individual, was that he spent a lot of time building some new part to replace this original one or vice a versa. He finally sold his and went to a Square Deal B as that met his needs perfectly.

He is a one caliber shooter, 45ACP and nothing, not even the XL650 loads that caliber any better than that little press.

No snobbery here. I use and like Lee stuff. Just not going to buy something that looks deficient when it is on the shelf. Someone asked once here on the forum: "What was the worst press you ever bought?"

My reply was simple: "Never bought one. Since I have some engineering abilities, I checked out the press' design features before I bought them and left the poorly designed ones on the shelf."

:D
 
Howdy

Hi Skip,
I bet if you came by and tried a properly set up and tuned 1000 you would like it.
I could have bought anything I wanted but I started with the Lee and it always did me a good job. I often thought about a Dillion but it always came down to "Why".
I don't think there is a thing wrong with Dillion either. I just have had lots of good service from my 1000s.
I did have a buddy who bought one, because I had them, and he went on and on about how bad a machine it was. I told him I'd come and look at it and he had it mounted on a old kitchen table. We set it up and anchored it down and it went right to work.
I have had a Square Deal and let it go. It was OK.
I had a 450/500 series Dillion on loan and I wouldn't trade a 1000 for it either. Again, not bad but I can load good quality ammo faster on the 1000.
Thanks
Mike
 
Well, Mike, I am in Missouri for the next day or two. Maybe I will set that up for the next time we come to get our "runt" from college.
This is going to be a flying trip to get her home for the holidays but I do have 3 1/2 more years to make this trip! :)
 
Yikes!

Howdy Skip,
Sounds like you need to save all the money you can! I have nieces and nephews in schools all over the state but nothing I have to pay for.
I don't see how folks do it any more.
Some time when you are coming through, holler. Maybe we can take in a pin match at 67 Gun Club or catch something at Arnold Rifle and Pistol Club.
Come on by and I'll put you on all three of the 1000s (Anybody see a Tom Sawyer moment coming?) Seriously, if you have some extra time let me know ahead as much as you can. I can be hard to locate in warm weather.
[email protected]
314-540-0305
Thanks
Mike
 
If you are new to reloading, unless you are mechanically oriented and very slow to get frustrated, you should not start with a Lee progressive. If you already know of the little annoyances in the Lee progressives or live close to someone who uses one regularly, the I would have no hesitation in endorsing either the Pro 1000 or Loadmaster (the Loadmaster is the better press). A tinkerer would not be frustrated tweaking the press in order to make it run initially and keep it running. An experienced mentor should be able to quickly find your problem and get you back running with minimal frustration.

A single stage press will never gather dust in a reloader's bench even years after going full throttle into progressive presses. There are always uses for the press whether it is decapping, swaging, bullet sizing, seating, etc. The Breechlock Challenger is a very competent press that will easily last a lifetime. The Classic Cast is comparable to the LnL Classic and the RCBS Rock Chucker and should last many lifetimes.

If you aren't sure you want to go full progressive, seriously consider a turret press. You still do one operation at a time, but you do everything on one cartridge at a time and don't have to work in batches. I would recommend the Lee Classic Cast over the Deluxe and certainly over other companies turret presses which are way more expensive. It's output is between a single stage and a progressive. You can also disable the auto indexing and run the press as a single stage.

I have a LnL AP and love it. Before using it, I picked up a used Breechlock Challenger kit and learned on it for about a month. Once I got my loads developed and knew what to look for in my reloads, moving up to the progressive was very easy. The biggest advantage of a progressive is also its greatest hazard. With one stroke, you perform 3 to 5 operations and you crank out ammo in a hurry. You can also get into trouble in a hurry if things don't work properly and you don't know it. Primers not feeding properly, powder not dropping automatically, cases not feeding can all lead to a big mess or even worse, danger for your gun and you at the range. None of the items from the single stage kit have gone to waste. I still use the press for rifle rounds and for developing new loads.
 
I am not the local LEE fanboy - - but!

I own one and am thoroughly satisfied with it and its output. BTW, I load 380ACP, 9x19, 38SPL, 357MAG, 40S&W, 45ACP, & 44MAG on it. 30-Carbine is in the works.

I bought a LEE Loadmaster fifteen, maybe seventeen years ago. Took it home and bolted it down to the bench and began cranking out top-quality ammo right away. To be sure, I have been loading since the 60's, and had previously cranked out a gazillion rounds on an old Pacific Super-C press. Experience counts, by having some idea about what is supposed to be happening.

Being mechanically inclined and used to working on precision equipment, I followed the directions in the manufacturer's literature for set-up and operation. I think that my first problem came after twenty or twenty-five thousand rounds, when I changed calibers and forgot to change the primer seating pin.

Normal preventive maintenance and the checking EVERYRTHING for proper alignment and adjustment before using it and after changing calibers, components or charge were what has made it a successful operation for me.

There are people who will tend to skip over the obvious parts of ANY enterprise, and wind up being not so much in love with the results, and will blame it on the machine or process, but will not take ownership for themselves of their own shortcuts.

Just my experience, I have turned out thousands of rounds with this precision machine since I bought it, and with no regrets. This thing works for me.

The only problems I have ever had with reloading, particularly with the Loadmaster, have been directly traceable to ME.

Flash
 
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I use an RCBS Rockchucker that I really like. It cost more than the Lee but it's definitely heavy-duty. Single stage, easy to set up and use. A friend of mine has a Lee progressive that he sometimes has some trouble with, but nothing major. Everybody says you should start out with single stage til you get some experience and that is true. It's a lot more fun reloading if you can get started and get in a groove without worrying about something jamming up.
 
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