Reply With QuoteI started with the Lee classic cast turret. Could not be more pleased with it. Being able to leave the dies set is priceless
I am looking at getting into reloading. What kit should I buy? Lee? Rcbs rock chucker? The lee kit is considerably cheaper than the rcbs.
I started with the Lee classic cast turret. Could not be more pleased with it. Being able to leave the dies set is priceless
Lee is what I started with and still use.
A classic cast or classic turret would be worth looking at.
I would not buy a "kit".
Your scale/powder dispenser and your case prep tools are the most important pieces and most kits give you a press and a bunch of cheep tools to surround it with.
When in all reality the press is the least significant, got to have one but which one will impact your time and effectiveness less than the "other" components. Any good strong press is capable of reasonable speed and high quality ammo, not every scale is.
Research your peripheral equipment carefully before you buy, so you don't have to "upgrade" every little thing over the first few months.
I agree with the post above. I started with a lee kit and the only thing I'm still using from that kit is the press. I hated the scale and the powder drop was really inconsistent and the de-burring/chamfering tools were just not great. The press is nice for what you pay though. Take care of it and it will last
Buy a rockchuker press and add on from there. Get someone who knows what they are doing for a mentor and will help you pick out good tools to go with it. BTW I have bought at least 75% of my dies at gunshows and or on line used. Learn to use ebay if you don't already and last but certainly not least but a really good scale(electronic)
There are 3 kinds of people in this world. Those who can do math and those who can't
Start by Reading ABC's of reloading and any other manuals you can get you hands on.
[QUOTE=fgw_in_fla;256183]We told you so...[/QUOTE]
FIND YOURSELF A MENTOR. it will save you hundreds of wasted dollars and wasted effort. It might also keep you form doing some real damage to yourself or one of your rifles.
There are 3 kinds of people in this world. Those who can do math and those who can't
First - what do you want to reload? Do you go through hundreds or thousands of rounds of semi-auto pistol/rifle or a couple dozen hunting rounds?
Second - Invest in some reloading books and read them.
Third - Find a mentor near you and help them (or at least watch them) reload on their equipment. Ask what they like about it and what they would like to change - and why.
Fourth - establish your budget.
Rick_W
CPO-USN(Ret)
You don't know what you don't know.
^^^pretty solid advice
[QUOTE=fgw_in_fla;256183]We told you so...[/QUOTE]
IMO, you have to start somewhere... If you don't have a mentor then you just got to buy a kit and start, you will figure it out... As you progress, you will develop your own way of doing things that work for you. You will add tools all along to make things easier and faster. You will probably not save any money until at least 3-5K rounds of rifle have been loaded, even more if we are talking handgun. So don't think you are going to see immediate savings.. Reading the load manuals is very important and will provide good information, but it helps to have your press and stuff on hand when you do so you can feel and see the equipment you are reading about. That is just my opinion.. Anyhow, best of luck to you...
Unless you will be loading top end benchrest or heavy magnum cartridges I would opt for the RCBS JR press. Plenty stiff for what we really need and lots lighter and cheaper than the Rockchucker. You NEED a reliable scale, a case trimmer, case neck chamfering tool, and a primer arm for your press or (preferably) a priming tool. Depending on what you use it for a powder measure may be useful. Primer pocket cleaner is a good idea but not essential. If you only have one reloading manual I would opt for the latest Sierra version, but that's just me.
Read.............................................. .......Read....................................... .....Read
The Lee anniversary kit I received as a gift got me started a couple of decades ago.
An excellent way to start and the Modern Reloading by Richard Lee is a good manual to start with.
Read it from the front cover up to the load data and keep it handy for reference and you're ready to start.
The kit is fairly complete and only things beside the kit you'll need are dies and the lee caliber specific case length gauges for the cartridges you want to load and then your consumables.
Just my opinion but This is an excellent place to start and you can easily spend a lot more without getting more on a starter kit.
A good wife and a steady job has ruined many a great hunter.
Buy once, cry once...........if you buy low end light crap the first thing you will do is wish you had bought the best. Not everything needs to be new but it does need to be good quality.
I have a rcbs jr. it's good for resizing 223 and little more. I do however use it to seat bullets with in any cartridge.
There are 3 kinds of people in this world. Those who can do math and those who can't
Thanks for all the advice. I am not doing this for the savings on ammo. I doing it bc I want to build a rifle in a wildcat caliber and I want the accuracy associated with reloading.
+1 I sure as heck haven't saved anymoney since getting into hand loading, but have loaded 1,000's of rounds and learned a heck of a lot about shooting and accurate builds, etc. Also have a butt-load of powder and primers and other components now for the future. I learned first hand what they say... once you start you will find yourself shooting MUCH more than you ever did before. It ends up costing less per round, but I shoot 10x more rounds... I do enjoy it, though.
When we consider reloading to save money we must remember that the money we spend on equipment is not an expense, it's an investment.
My financial health consultant says it's probably the worst investment I ever made.
My mental health consultant says it's probably the best investment I ever made.
There are two things in life that make me very happy...catching a good fish on a fly that i tied .....and making a great shot on an animal with a round that i loaded out of a gun that i built.Originally Posted by JTCrl
When we consider reloading to save money we must remember that the money we spend on equipment is not an expense, it's an investment.
My financial health consultant says it's probably the worst investment I ever made.
My mental health consultant says it's probably the best investment I ever made.
There are 3 kinds of people in this world. Those who can do math and those who can't
+++1
++++++2
I'm going to steal that quote.
I just started reloading myself, fired my first twenty five rounds of 308 this morning. I am ecstatic, happy and learned a lot today. I am using the Lee anniversary kit, really pleased with it. However; I would recommend reading a few books first, it was a full 9 months till I gave birth to the first round. I created 5 different loads starting low and working my way up. Time to load some more with what I've learned and start tweeking.
I agree with most of what has been said. Reading manuals is a very good place to start. I like the Lyman , the Hornady, the Lee and Sierra books. The Lee has a lot of info the others don't. Lead bullets mostly.
They all are good books. You may find some through your library.
I have been loading since the mid 70's. I have used tools of many brands. I have had an RCBS Rockchucker press, A Lyman Trueline JR press, Dies of many makers, RCBS, Lyman, Redding, Lee. Lyman tong tools in several calibers. Lyman loaders, the kind you use a hammer with. Lee hand press.
I currently load on a Lee Challanger breech lock press. I'm using mostly Lee dies. I load for just a few cartridges, 44mag, 270 Win, 280 REM, soon to be 250 savage, currently rebarreling a savage 11.
On the Lee powder measure it seems accurate enough, but seems to leak more than I like. I picked up a Lyman #55 measure for a good price off Ebay. The Lee scale is not a bad scale just not very big. It only weighs 100 grs, ok for powder but not bullets in the 180 to 300 gr range. I picked up a Lyman pro 1000 of Ebay.
I agree that the Lee deburring tool is crap, so get a good one. I do like the Lee ergonomic hand prime tool. Better than any press or bench mounted primer tool. I like their case trimmers, can't screw things up with one.
So shop Ebay for your Reloading tools you can save some money. Don't go over board at first, stick with the basics. Once you learn the basics you can try some of the fancier tools.
Just a few things to think about.
Leo
Speaking of saving money. I am going to send you a pm with a link to get a RCBS Rockchucker reloading press for a great price. If I posted here they would be sold out in 30 minutes.
Get yourself a Hornady or RCBS loading manual, the Rockchucker kit will get you started but you do need a top end powder scale as a RCBS 1500 will never need any other.
Hornady has a kit too change a rockchucker press from a single stage to a press you can change out dies in sceonds with no resetting setups look for hornady #04409 conversion kit,remove the large nut on top of the press and spin in the kit pieces if needed get #044093 die bushing kit if needed for more rifle or pistol calipers should get you started on your way.
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