Question about Lee single stage presses

[lrrifleman]

Good morning!

I am contemplating getting a Lee single stage press to help with preparing cases for reloading and sizing PC bullets.

My question is, do these presses have some method of catching spent primers when you are depriming fired cases? Or do the spent primers just fall all over the place? This is the one issue that I don't see addressed in product descriptions or on YouTube videos.

As always, thanks in advance for your help!

 

[Bruce C]

I don't know about the newer Lee presses but I had a Lee O frame press that had a catch box on it. It is around 44 years old and my son uses it now.

Just looked at Lee's website and the aluminum O frame still has the side box with the plate over the side to catch spent primers. The cast one drops the spent primers straight through the ram into a trash can.

 

[Engineer1911]

Any press you buy will put primers on the floor to some small extent. The percentage varies between 0.1% to 5% . If you load 100 rounds of ammo, it is not a big deal. If you run 2K at a time, you need a broom and dust pan.

My experience is with 1974 RCBS Rockchucker (poor catcher), Dillon 450 & 550 (2% loss but 1K at a time), and Dillon 650 (1% but 3K at a time) .

My one Lee press, (link works) Access Denied, is a nightmare. The primers are caught very effectively, but the press is a nightmare to empty. Primers are caught in the body of the press not a removeable cup or bottle.

 

[Rule3]

Spent primer collection tube ( a section of vinyl tubing)


https://leeprecision.com/files/instruct/BP3318.pdf


same with this one


https://leeprecision.com/files/instruct/OF1219.pdf

 

[pasound]

I have one of the Lees like Engineer1911 has, but I use it solely to hold my powder dispenser. My main press is a four-station Turret, which uses the vinyl tube. I take the cap off and let it drop the primers directly into a trash can.

 

[gmarshall99]

My single stage Lee press works fine, spent primers wind up in a clear tube easily emptied. A few do get away and wing up on the floor.
I split my reloading. Deprime, resize and prime on the single stage. Flair, powder load, bullet seat and crimp on my 4 stage turret. This works faster for me than using all four stages of the turret press.

 

[TJm15.38]

I bought an improved primer catcher for the RCBS Rockchucker from a seller on EBay. He uses 3-D printer to make them. Keeps 98% of the primers in the tube. Rarely it will put one on the floor because of popping out the top, but it is a lot better than the one that came with the press.

 

[STORMINORMAN]

A small piece of plastic inside the ram can direct 99% of the primers into the tube...

I heartily recommend the LEE Classic CAST Press.

Cheers!

P.S. I deprime my brass prior to wet tumbling & resizing, prime off the press...

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

I have a 25 year old bottom of the line Lee press it is cast aluminum, and the primers are captured inside the press. I use this set-up like the OP's described intention. I remove it and store it after each use.

I also have the handheld press that's like a giant nutcracker. It spits primers everywhere you can think of, and a few places you thought were safe!

I been loading since 1979 and found that the distance the decapping pin sticks out the bottom of the shell holder controls the force of the flying primer. Adjusting that length makes a huge difference in all presses!

Ivan

 

[mikerjf]

My Lee Classic Cast has a plugged vinyl tube on the end of the ram to catch primers… holds a lot and works really well.

Every now and then a primer will bounce out the hole on the side of the ram, but I’ve never had this happen when the priming arm is in place in that hole. I deprime and reprime in the same cycle and so never have an issue.

 

[Old&Retired]

the real issue i think is going to be the hole in the side of the ram that spent primers come out of. Got a challenger and still need to set it up. The spent primer tube, lolz, is about 1/4"interior diamter, so not going to be much issue.

Have had the Challenger press for years. Tube is about 1/2" not 1/4 and you must have the ram prime placed in the slot for the primers to fall down the hole inside the ram instead of out the slot.
Use mine for depriming and occasional powder drop.

 

[Jaco1234]

The press has a primer collection area that can be attached to a vinyl tube. The tube is long enough to allow it to empty into a suitable container. In my case a bean can.

 

[Rule3]

You have to have the primer feeder arm in the ram for it to eject the spent primers into the tube

 

[cfplinker]

My one Lee press, (link works) Access Denied, is a nightmare. The primers are caught very effectively, but the press is a nightmare to empty. Primers are caught in the body of the press not a removeable cup or bottle.

This is the Lee Breechlock Reloader press. I made a wood sub-base for mine so I could clamp it to my bench. I drilled a hole through the sub-base and covered the bottom of the hole with duct tape. All I have to do ito enpty the primers is unclamp it, hold it over the trash can, and remove the tape.

 

[Brooks]

I have the Lee Breechlock Hand press, although an older one without the adapter for the dies. The dies just thread right into the press.
It does capture the spent primers. Holds about 50 spent primers and then you have to empty it over a trash can.

 

[Rule3]

Spent primer collection tube ( a section of vinyl tubing)


https://leeprecision.com/files/instruct/BP3318.pdf


same with this one


https://leeprecision.com/files/instruct/OF1219.pdf

Be sure to buy the correct primer arms for whatever press you get. They have different ones!

 

[SGT ROCK 11B]

My RCBS Rockchucker step up. I empty the used primers as needed.