Single Or Turret press ?

[eyeluv2fish]

Looking for some direction here..

I am entering the world of reloading for the first time and I'm trying to decide whether to get a single or a turret press. I will probably only load 500 - 1000 rounds per year and probably only 200 rounds at any one sitting.

Does anybody have an opinion on which type of press would be best for a beginner?

I like the turret because you don't have to re-set the dies every time but I can pick up a used single press for a lot less money. Either way, I want something that will use standard dies and has parts readily available.

Any recommendations on brand? Leaning toward a a four hole turret kit from LEE for $120.00.

Also, if anyone has used equipment for sale let me know!

[Divernhunter]

"I" would suggest a single stage. "I" am not a big fan of the lee stuff in general. I have been loading since the early 1960's and have 2 RCBS presses and a Hornady press for my 50BMG. I load for 35+ different cartridges and if you use dies with real locking rings(not lee rings) once you set them to your press you will not need to"RE-ADJUST" them. I have dies that were adjusted in the 60-70's and have not been touched since. They have loaded many,many rounds. I shoot over 5000-10,000/year. I batch reload and often turn out 500-1000 at a time. So a single stage(or turret will work fine. I can use a Dillon if I need but never do.
A turret is fine but not needed. I suggest an RCBS or Hornady kit myself.
If you plan to load straight walled cases be sure to get carbide type size die sets. That will save you lubing the brass. Get a good spray lube for bottleneck cases and forget the messy pad type lube. Get a hand primer and hand prime all your brass. It will make more accurate ammo. I often prime when I watch TV.

[gemini05]

Personally, I would just stick with the single stage. It sounds like your not planning to reload a lot anyways. As for brands, everyone has their own opinion, but I just stuck with the cheaper brand when I first started. I bought a lee single stage press and it seems to be working fine. I do plan on upgrading to a progressive press sometime in the near future. Have fun and be safe reloading.

[Fjold]

I'll be the voice of dissent then. You say that you're only going to shoot a thousand rounds a year but that could change at any time.

I like turret presses. I use a couple of Lyman turret presses with six die stations that I can set up for three rifle calibers or two pistol calibers each and never have to change them out. I have an old Lee three hole turret that has loaded 100,000+ rounds on it, in about six or seven calibers also. I've given away all my old single stage presses.

[Evil Dog]

Over the past few decades I've used several single stage presses, a turret and a Dillon 650. The Dillon was great for putting out a lot of ammo in a short amount of time. Unless you are shooting hundreds of rounds a month though it probably isn't worth the expense. Also, I prefer to have complete control over every single step of the reloading process... not something that a progressive press easily allows for.

Currently I am using one of the 6 hole Lyman turret presses. I'm only reloading 1 caliber now (38 Special) and a single turret works for 3 different bullets plus the Lyman Ram Prime Die thing for priming. Has been working really great for going on 6 or 7 years now.

Not much of a Lee products fan... they are good for holding down the initial cash outlay but eventually you end up buying a little higher up the quality/durability chain.

Just my 2 cents worth.... your mileage may vary.

[guns]

i think it depends on why you are reloading. is it for accuracy,cost,ammo hard to find, and what u are reloading rifle or pistol. also look toward the future if your reloading rifle now and might reload pistol later get the lee turret press its a Progressive Press and will save u allot of time on pistol ammo. if your going for accuracy get a single. as far as dies rcbs dies have a set screw and you wont have to reset them and will work in a lee press, also in the lee press u have to pull out the dies to change calibers or buy a extra turret.

[wellfedirishman]

Get the Lee Classic Turret press, it is the best reloading investment ($100) you will ever make. It is built like a tank, virtually unbreakable, and makes great quality accurate ammo. I use one to load about 15 different rifle calibers and 4 pistol calibers.

It makes great ammo at a rate of about 120 rounds an hour (plenty fast), and IMO is safer to use than a progressive since it is very hard to double charge. You can use it as a single stage if you want by just disabling the turret rotation (simple to do).

Some people don't like Lee gear because it is cheap, but I have over a dozen Lee reloading die sets and they work very well. Lee's customer service is very good too, I have personal experience.

Mods, this thread should probably be moved to the 'ammo and reloading' section.

[Full Clip]

I have the RCBS on the right. Simple. Just set your dies and leave 'em all in place.

[killshot44]

Well, this is great timing as I'm in the same boat as the OP.

I really like the Redding turret on the left above.....but a bulletproof Single Stage would probably me serve as well.

I'm loading .223 for accuracy using a batch process. Going with the Redding Type S Match Bushing dies.
I NEED to order the damn press!................I'm not cheap, rich or stupid.

You're logged in and you reload, what's your opinion everybody?

need this Thread moved to the regular Ammo area....

[freonr22]

I am not saying anything wrong at all w/ above. My first and only press so far is a Hornady lnl ap progreessive w/ case feeder. I kinda use it like a single stage though for the 223. I lube dump in the feeder resize and deprimer. The in a drill press, decrimp and trim (2 separate cheapy $100 presse) w/ possum hollow trimmer. Then back in case feeder to prime, powder charge with case activated powder drop, then seat bullet and crimp as necessary.... Ymmv

[gorblimey]

Single stage, any press will do the job. Getting something like a Lee Classic Cast is a no-brainer, as it offers good bang/buck and you'll probably end up with a handful of presses down the line anyway, should you want something else.

Lee collet neck dies are not to be sneezed at, though the collet and mandrel need polishing to be at their best. The die design is excellent, but the execution is, shall we say, optimized for low cost.

I suspect you'll get better neck concentricity out of a .223 (gas gun, yes?) with a Redding body die and a polished Lee collet neck die than out of the Redding type S sizer, but I have not attempted to verify this experimentally. In other words, you can get the Redding type S set, and if using it in the standard way leaves room for neck concentricity improvement, you can run the sizer without the bushing and expander, and do the neck with a Lee collet necker. I am far too crappy a shot for this sort of stuff to matter, but I thought I'd mention the option.

Just my .02 (in 2030 dollars, worth exactly zip)

[NotSoFast]

I bought the Lee Turret press as my first press and I still use it as my main press. The thing I like is that I can take out the indexing Rod and use it like a single press, then rotate the turret by hand when I am ready to move to the next stage.

And that is how I taught myself to reload, doing one step at a time until I understood what was going on and how. Then I would move to the next step when I was comfortable. And it didn't take long for me to reinstall the Indexing Rod and start loading faster.

Another thing about the Lee Turret is that if you are reloading more than one caloiber, you can buy separate turrets for each caliber and leave the dies in the turret and just swap dies. This eliminates having to remove and reinstall the dies every time.

Go for the Lee Classic Turret. You can't go wrong.

[johnrunner89]

I bought the Lee Turret press as my first press and I still use it as my main press. The thing I like is that I can take out the indexing Rod and use it like a single press, then rotate the turret by hand when I am ready to move to the next stage.

And that is how I taught myself to reload, doing one step at a time until I understood what was going on and how. Then I would move to the next step when I was comfortable. And it didn't take long for me to reinstall the Indexing Rod and start loading faster.

Another thing about the Lee Turret is that if you are reloading more than one caloiber, you can buy separate turrets for each caliber and leave the dies in the turret and just swap dies. This eliminates having to remove and reinstall the dies every time.

Go for the Lee Classic Turret. You can't go wrong.

+1!

[kmca]

I'd recommend that you get the best single stage you can afford. You'll probably keep that one forever. I've got a couple of Dillons, a Rockchucker and a Lyman turret mounted right now. I made a mistake and gave my original Rockchucker to a friend who was starting to reload. I bought another about a year later. The single stage is great for miscellaneous processing, bullet pulling, depriming, etc. The turret is good for working up loads. The Dillons are great for "mass production".

[rero360]

I started out with a Lee turret press and it worked beautifully for pistol ammo, I was able to crank out a 1000 rounds of .45 in no time at all. However I found it not to be up to par for making match quality ammo for my rifles so I purchased a RCBS Rockchucker and have been able to make ammo to my standards. I still have the Lee and all ready to go but I'm going to keep it relegated to pistol ammo only.