Russell,
I applaud you for doing your homework -good man. One thing I always try to keep in mind is that each person, and his circumstances, are different. An error we often make when offering advice is to think that "one size fits all"; that the way we do it will work well for everyone.
Not so. We differ widely in our reason(s) for loading, the time available to do it, whether we actually enjoy doing it, etc. It sounds like you've been sorting all that out.
For instance, I have but one reason for reloading ammunition: to be able to afford to practice enough to become a reasonably proficient marksman, especially in defensive shooting; so that I'm adequately prepared for an encounter which I hope and pray never happens.
Many will say that money is not saved by reloading, because the reloader will just shoot more and end up spending just as much as he/she would have with smaller amounts of the factory stuff. I'm sure that is true for some, but it's not true for others. I am among the 'others'. The amount of shooting I do is governed by time. I have only so much time to shoot; when that time is up, I stop and go home. This means that I save loads of money by reloading.
All of the above considerations, and more, helped me determine which press, etc. I would go with. Because I shoot a limited amount, and probably won't ever shoot much more than I do now, and because of my need to save money, it made no sense for me to go with the expensive equipment, particularly the progressive press. I also live in a northern climate and have access to an outdoor range only, meaning that there are a few months out of each year which I shoot very little if at all. During that time I can load enough to keep me shooting the rest of the year. Consequently I started with the Lee Anniversary Kit, which has a single stage press. I discovered after awhile that this wasn't the best solution for me, since I didn't like changing out and adjusting the dies so often. Therefore I eventually bought the Lee Classic Turret Press, which you mentioned. This is probably what I will stick with indefinitely. All one needs to do is buy the same number of turrets and die sets as the number of calibers one intends to load. Once the dies are installed and adjusted, you don't have to mess with them again unless you change bullets, decide to crimp more or less, etc.
I will readily concede that Lee equipment generally is of lower quality than other brands. Here is where one just has to decide how important it is to have top-of-the-line machinery. In my case, as mentioned earlier, I determined to make do with the less expensive products.
Having said that, let me hasten to add that the Lee Classic Turret is the best piece of Lee equipment I've owned. I've had no problems with it to date; it does what I need for it to do. That's good enough for me. If it ever starts to give me trouble or wears excessively in some way, I may change brands.
There is one item Lee makes that I simply had to replace, and that was the powder scale. Setting that thing was maddening to me. Maybe it would work OK for you, but I couldn't tolerate it.
I've become aware that this post rambles a good bit; that's what happens when I do this late in the evening. I hope in some small way I've assisted you in your decision-making process.
I wish you well.
Andy
