Reloading Recommendations

[sigfan]

I'm looking to get into reloading and need some recommendations on which press to purchase. I'm looking to start off with .308, then eventually start reloading .223, .45 ACP, and 9mm as I get more familiar with the process. I don't have any equipment now, is there a "starters" kit that will have everything I need in it? Thanks for your help.

[Linus]

I started off and still have a Lee Challenger 50th Anniversary kit and it is great for low volume reloading capable of Match grade ammunition.

[Air]

I just bought the Lee Anniversary Kit at Midway for 90 bucks. Here is the link.

http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=423081

I am new to reloading, and I am going to slowly purchase additional items etc...This should be a good start I think.

[Army GI]

I'm looking to get into reloading and need some recommendations on which press to purchase. I'm looking to start off with .308, then eventually start reloading .223, .45 ACP, and 9mm as I get more familiar with the process. I don't have any equipment now, is there a "starters" kit that will have everything I need in it? Thanks for your help.

I say go for a lee turret press for the following reasons:


If you're going to reload mostly pistol calibers, the turret press is much faster than single stage which you will appreciate because people naturally shoot a lot higher volume of pistol calibers vs rifle calibers. Trust me, you really don't want to load pistol calibers on a single stage press.
It is not very expensive compared to some of the better presses, but it will do the job for your 223 and 308.
223 can be loaded in turret mode (however for 308 you will have to use it in single stage mode)

[What Just Happened?]

I second the recommendation of a Lee Turret Press. I have one and can churn out a good amount of ammo on it. And then I would also suggest getting a single stage as well (you can get the Lee Manual and a basic single stage for ~$30 at Grafs.com).

[Jon Se]

I just bought the Lee Anniversary Kit at Midway for 90 bucks. Here is the link.

http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=423081

I am new to reloading, and I am going to slowly purchase additional items etc...This should be a good start I think.

Did the same thing. You basically get the capabilities of a non-indexing turret press w/ the "Breech lock" design. I've loaded about 600 rounds of .308 without an issue. The only thing you need in addition to this kit would be a die set in your caliber.

Jon

[ChrisXD45T]

I started on a rockchucker and still use it for rifle and magnum pistol rounds. If you have the money (no budget mentioned) and a want progressive look at Dillon's stuff; their dies are great too.
I don't know how good lee's presses are now, but I've broken one before and know at least one other person who has as well. I've found that if I buy cheap to start I just end up buying the expensive stuff latter on. Now I just save and get what I want from the very start.

[sigfan]

Thanks for the recommendations fellas. I taking in your considerations, I see some good points here. How much force do you have to use to pull down that lever? Where you do guys have your presses mounted? Just a normal table or did you have to build something to handle the lever pressure?

[ChrisXD45T]

How much force you apply depends on caliber; the ones you've mentioned you'll hardly need more force than just the weight of the lever. Still, You'll want to mount it to something sturdy. I like to keep each of my presses on a 1.5" thick piece of wood. That way I can move it and C-clamp it to just about any table because I like to take a press to the range with me (I work there).

[What Just Happened?]

For pistol calibers, you shouldn't need to muscle it. The only time you need a little weight is when you're crimping, but then it's only a minor amount.

[Rule .308]

I would recommend a Rock Chucker master reloading kit and follow that up with a Dillon RL550B.

[Darklyte27]

got my lee challenger for 84.50 from wideners few months ago

[thebloodsonthewall]

I would say get one of those $100 kits and get a Dillon 550b. Use the dillon for pistol rounds because it will save you hours and hours. And use the single stage for your rifle rounds.

Reloading is fun but it takes some time to get the hang of everything.

Start with pistol rounds, they are so much easier. There is almost no case prep which is what takes a lot of time when doing rifle rounds.

[scr83jp]

Thanks for the recommendations fellas. I taking in your considerations, I see some good points here. How much force do you have to use to pull down that lever? Where you do guys have your presses mounted? Just a normal table or did you have to build something to handle the lever pressure?I built a very sturdy reloading bench in my garage & tied it into the wall studs.I have my Pacific DL 366 12g progressive shotshell reloader & my Dillon RL550B with strong mounts set up to load rifle and handgun ammo.FYI the Dillon RL550B is the most popular reloader, 98% of professional handgun shooters use Dillon Presses to load their ammo.If you go on ebay you can find RL550B's discounted.I located a Dillon dealer on ebay and bought an RL550B for friends of ours for having us as guests at their new home in pennsylvania for a whitetail deer hunt on their 1/2 section(320 acres) this past December. We had a great time but neither them nor I ever saw a legal whitetail buck on their property & they still haven't just lots of forkies & spikes.

[Desertfox]

I got the RCBS turret press. That can handle rifle and pistol rounds as well, and not that costly like Dillon. Still by the end I bought the dies for 4 different caliber, trimmer, scale, uniflow powder measure, bullet puller hammer, case preparation tools, book, ect. I ended up around $500.0

[xxdabroxx]

sizing and depriming takes about the most force. When sizing your 308's you will have to put a little hmmf in it. I have experienced lee's cheapo starter press and a rock chucker. The chucker seems like it will be good for life, where the lee feels a little flimsy. If you think you are going to get more serious later, step up and get a sturdy press.

http://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/showthread.php?t=98066&highlight=reloading+rig