RCBS Rebel "KIT"

[L4D]

Good press. Need a better Beam Scale. The RCBS Hand Priming Tool is far from the best/easiest to use one out there, in my experience. The thing about kits is they try to do one size fits all and most experienced reloaders end up with several brands of gear for different tools and accessories, precisely because certain brands excel at certain items.

Downside, your $500 budget is going to go higher almost no matter what you do, especially once you start hunting for components, unless you already have a stash of powder and primers?

Tom made a good point so I picked up a turret press. Piecing everything together for now. Pretty close to my budget minus components so far. It helped that everything was on sale.

[Capybara]

What did you have in mind ?

I like the RCBS M1000 if you plan on getting into large calibers or want to weigh bullets.

I have not tried it myself but have heard good things from a friend about the Lyman Brass Smith 500.

I have the old RCBS 1010 (discontinued), which I really like. A good scale should last you many years, they really don't wear out unless you knock them off your bench or something.

It can be nice to have an inexpensive digital AND a quality balance scale. You end up using one or both for different tasks and you have two references you can use to check each other. You'll want to get a set of good check weights too.

To me, your powder measure and scale are pretty crucial pieces of gear to reload safely and to know how you actually charged a round for your log book. If you think about it, brass cleaning and prep, piece of cake for pistol, much more involved for rifle but overall, pretty straightforward. Seating primers, very straightforward.

IMHO, it's really measuring that charge that is probably the single most crucial operation in reloading, you have to do it accurately, working in conjunction with a good powder measure that will meter out those charges consistently once it's set. Bullet seating, crimping, measuring OAL, all pretty straightforward.

[sigstroker]

Tom made a good point so I picked up a turret press. Piecing everything together for now. Pretty close to my budget minus components so far. It helped that everything was on sale.

A press like the Rebel is a lot stiffer and stronger than a turret press.

[TomReloaded]

The turret is stiff enough to load rifle cases. 9mm isn't even slightly stressing a Lee turret, he's good to go and made a great choice.

[Capybara]

Tom made a good point so I picked up a turret press. Piecing everything together for now. Pretty close to my budget minus components so far. It helped that everything was on sale.

I've been using my Lee Classic Turret for 8 years, great press. Lee stuff is inexpensive so people tend to get snobby about Lee but they make good stuff in my experience. The Turret is a good step to slightly speed up single stage reloading without committing to complexity of a Progressive press.

I also bought the Lee Classic Cast Press to do rifle, I was told (don't know if it's true?) that this press was/is crafted from Railroad track section steel, which I liked, since I actually had a chance to be part of a rail crew in New Mexico eight years ago and laid down track for a few days and drove spikes the old fashioned way. Gave me a ton of respect for the workers who had to make a living this way in the old West, some of the most taxing physical work I've ever done. You can easily do rifle on the LCT but I prefer doing rifle on my single stage, there is a lot more going on loading bottle necked rifle rounds than straight walled pistol rounds.

[L4D]

I've been using my Lee Classic Turret for 8 years, great press. Lee stuff is inexpensive so people tend to get snobby about Lee but they make good stuff in my experience. The Turret is a good step to slightly speed up single stage reloading without committing to complexity of a Progressive press.

I also bought the Lee Classic Cast Press to do rifle, I was told (don't know if it's true?) that this press was/is crafted from Railroad track section steel, which I liked, since I actually had a chance to be part of a rail crew in New Mexico eight years ago and laid down track for a few days and drove spikes the old fashioned way. Gave me a ton of respect for the workers who had to make a living this way in the old West, some of the most taxing physical work I've ever done. You can easily do rifle on the LCT but I prefer doing rifle on my single stage, there is a lot more going on loading bottle necked rifle rounds than straight walled pistol rounds.

All the other equipment that i've bought so far has surpassed the cost of the LCT. All that equipment wont change if the LCT doesn't do a good job with reloading .223. If it doesn't, ill just buy a beefier single stage. Then i'll have two presses and I can put my son to work on the LCT with 9mm. He's the one blasting through all the factory ammo.

[Capybara]

All the other equipment that i've bought so far has surpassed the cost of the LCT. All that equipment wont change if the LCT doesn't do a good job with reloading .223. If it doesn't, ill just buy a beefier single stage. Then i'll have two presses and I can put my son to work on the LCT with 9mm. He's the one blasting through all the factory ammo.

Nice you have a helper. I have had my son de-prime quite a few thousand pieces of brass while watching TV. Reloading is a great thing to teach your kid, it requires you to be disciplined, methodical and organized, all great qualities to teach our kids.

That's exactly what I do, 9mm, 9x18Mak and .45 ACP on the LCT, .223, .30-06 and I used to do .30-30 and 7.62x39 on the single stage press. I have the Inline Fabrication mounting system so it's child's play to swap the LCT for the single stage (highly recommended if you don't have enough acreage to keep multiple presses mounted permanently).

[golfish]

I like the RCBS M1000 if you plan on getting into large calibers or want to weigh bullets.

I have not tried it myself but have heard good things from a friend about the Lyman Brass Smith 500.

I have the old RCBS 1010 (discontinued), which I really like. A good scale should last you many years, they really don't wear out unless you knock them off your bench or something.

There really isn't much of an upgrade these days. I have a RCBS 505, Its been a really good scale for me. There just isn't a lot to choose from these days and I don't know why.

I worked in a coke lab for 17 years. We used some high dollar dig scales that worked very good, and then we used some sub $500.00 scales that didn't. We used to calibrate the digital scales with a bean scale. It's been a minute since I retired, they might have better stuff these days.

[Capybara]

There really isn't much of an upgrade these days. I have a RCBS 505, Its been a really good scale for me. There just isn't a lot to choose from these days and I don't know why.

The likely culprit is digital. The world has gone digital with phones, apps and computers. An analog tool like a beam scale is an anachronism, hence, why would they be coming out with lots of cool new ones? The trend I've seen that I have not participated in is the digital powder trickler/scale with Bluetooth and an app.

We had one of the early RCBS ones at our reloading club and I found it noisy and slow but it did work. I'm sure the latest ones that are out now are faster and quieter. I'm just old school. I like reloading manually, I don't mind the slowness of using my beam scale. I don't mind hand priming. I enjoy brass trimming and want to get into annealing. It's different for comp shooters who need to reload 1,000 rounds per session or more. I usually do 50-100 rounds at a time and that's fine. I enjoy trying different powders and different projectiles. That's what makes it fun, at least for me.

[Capybara]

What I dont like about my beam scale is that it reads different if I move my head. That slows me down. Otherwise, its just as good.

Yes, you need to have it situated with an unencumbered, straight-on view. And HVAC/air circulation can be an issue too.

[Cowboy T]

Like Capybara, I also like the Lee Classic Turret Press. It is my go-to press for my .45 Colt Magnum load. The wife also uses it for her .38 Special loads.

The prices may vary a little based on who you buy your stuff from, but it should still be right around $400.

1.) Lee Classic Turret Press, $153
2.) Set of three dies (Lee Precision) for your cartridge, $40 (standard shell holder is already included)
3.) Lee Auto-Prime XR, $18
4.) The special shell holder for Lee Auto-Primes for your cartridge, $2.00 or so
5.) Beam scale, either RCBS 500 or Dillon Eliminator ($90) (Note: I do *NOT* like or recommend the inexpensive digital jobs--too unreliable)
6.) Set of analog dial calipers, $25 (the digital jobs go through batteries WAAAY too fast--I've already been there)
7.) Kinetic bullet puller, $15
8.) Vibratory tumbler, $35
9.) Brass cleaning medium, fine crushed walnut or corn cob, $11 at PetSmart or PetCo ("Lizard Litter")
10.) Good car polish, e. g. NuFinish, for helping the crushed walnut--DO NOT USE BRASSO or anything else with ammonia in it, though!
11.) Colander-type sifter to separate the brass from the cleaning medium once the brass is clean (mine was $7.00)

Total: $396. This is a complete, functional setup, and the same thing I used to make my first 1,000 rounds.

Note: if you get the Lee Challenger Breech-Lock Press (a quality single-stage press), subtract about $70 from the above total.

The reloader can then go from there if he/she wishes. It's been 12 years since I bought the LCTP. It continues to get plenty of use, even though I also have two progressive presses on the bench.