What's the one unnecessary item on your bench that really makes life easier??

[pasound]

A magnet tipped extendable probe, and a pair of bookends for times that things need stacked and held, up on the top shelf.

 

[GypsmJim]

Without a doubt, my Lee APP. I only use it for depriming / sizing, but when I have a half dozen boxes of the same caliber I can zip thru them in minutes.

Now, y'all will say a Dillon would do the same thing, plus prime, powder and seat as well, but my own personal philosophy is that I inspect after each stage.

 

[DETROIT]

Jack Daniels…. You just have to remember to avoid files

 

[TheTinMan]

UFO led light on my 550. Makes it WAY easier to make sure everything is ok while loading.

Press mounted lights are a necessity IMHO.

Forster collet bullet puller would be my “unnecessary but super” tool. I usually only need to pull bullets from 3-6 cases as a batch - typically when setting up dies for the first time. The RCBS green kinetic hammer works OK. However, I recently had to pull 18 bullets and that collet tool was a huge help.

 

[Eddie Southgate]

Telephone.

 

[Goldstar225]

Like a couple of prior posters I have to say it's my dillon 550C. I loaded on a single stage press for 40 years and could do so again but it sure is nice to knock out a few hundred rounds in an hour and hit the range.

 

[Hair Trigger]

What have you bought, that isn't necessary, but really makes life easier for you?

Church Key; it's the last tool I use every time I finish a reloading run.

 

[toad67]

Church Key; it's the last tool I use every time I finish a reloading run.

Amen, brother.....

 

[mikerjf]

My Lee hand press. Complete reloading from an attache case!

 

[gym cat]

Peace and Quiet!!!!!!

 

[max503]

An RCBS hand primer for those jobs the Lee hand primer had problems with. Like priming cases with tight primer pockets. 9mm comes to mind.

 

[BE Mike]

I thought of something else. I have two metal coffee cans with plastic lids. I cut a large square out of the plastic lids. I use them to keep full primer tubes in. When I'm in the man cave to do something else and I have the time, I often fill up primer tubes with my Frankford Arsenal Vibraprime so that they'll be ready for my next reloading session. I keep the empty primer fill tubes on the bench next to my presses.

 

[Leonard]

A very old RCBS case kicker with a new primer catcher. The primers go down the slide with the cases. I tumble my cases before sizing and de priming, dump them in a sieve and the spent primers along with any remnant tumbling media drop in garbage.

 

[Skeet 028]

I have a Dillon primer tube filler. sits on the bench but don't use it. Like BE Mike I use the Vibra Primes to load primer tubes. One of the VPs is pre FA...the other got in a buy of an estate. They are great. I have at least 30 tubes of each size. Guess I ought to sell the Dillon

 

[socal s&w]

"For me it's the allen wrench set and bracket that bolts to the back of my 550."
I have replaced most of the screws on my DIllons with Phillips head screws, so that I don't have to find the correct size Allen to make any changes. Kind of a 'fits-all'. Only the rarely used screws such as the ones holding on the loaded bullet *****/tray and the shell plate are still Allens.
WAY easier to only need basically a single tool, especially for the toolhead changes.

 

[gjgalligan]

For the couple of guys that mentioned having alcohol products at your reloading bench I sure hope you were just joking.
That is a recipe for trouble!

 

[Just another 22 shooter]

This was the first thing that I thought of: I have three presses on my bench; I make use of all three a few times every month. Are they all three necessary?........no, but they do make most of my reloading go a bit easier.

 

[Rubone]

A helper or two.....

 

[socal s&w]

Unnecessary item:
A large, swivel base vise. I use the vise as my loader carousel.
I made a flat plate (looks like a baseball home plate shape) with an 'I' beam welded to the underside that fits in the jaws of said vise.
I then drilled holes and tapped the top flat plate to provide room for 4 Dillon SDB loaders (9mm, .38, .45, .44).
Since the vise swivels, I can load on any one of the 4 loaders by simply swiveling the vise in the proper location to put the loader needed in front of me.
Works GREAT, but unnecessary!

 

[BC38]

Satellite radio. Can't beat Frank and Sam and Dean when you are building some ammo.

Sinatra, Cooke, and Martin?
Just curious.
I'm not one to add anything I don't actually need to my bench.
I generally lean towards the KISS principle in all things - including reloading...