Decided to start again

[DaveInOroValley]

I used to run the entire gamut of reloading with my Dad from casting bullets to the finished product. I'm aware of the various progressive loaders and the advantages of them vs. the single station, but I've decided to go simple and inexpensive since I likely will not approach even 500 reloads a month.

In light of that and after looking around I decided on trying one of the Lee Challenger systems, likely the one thing I'll change is the scale but we'll see.

It gets across the board 4.5 to 5 stars on people's reviews so that makes me more confident since I'm aware Lee is anything but "top of the line".

The best prices I've found are believe it or not from Lee direct as they have the system on sale at the moment for 81.98 and dies as well are on sale at a decent price. For the calibers I'll likely do this system seems to fit my needs fine and it definitely is reasonably priced.

[OHW]

Team red single stage user here. Value but preforms well.

[nine eos]

i bought my pro 1000 from lee directly. cheaper than anywhere else and they only charged me like $4 for shipping.

[gunboat]

I prefer the classic cast, but there is no doubt the challenger is a good value.

[DaveInOroValley]

i bought my pro 1000 from lee directly. cheaper than anywhere else and they only charged me like $4 for shipping.

I did the same after canceling the Cabela's order, the Lee Factory store has them on sale for 81.98

[DaveInOroValley]

Question to those of you using the Lee Challenger, what dies are used with this? Do any of the Lee die sets work or is there specific ones only??

THANKS!

[XDRoX]

Question to those of you using the Lee Challenger, what dies are used with this? Do any of the Lee die sets work or is there specific ones only??

THANKS!

Any dies will work. The 3 die Lee die sets are a good deal and work great.

[rsrocket1]

All standard 7/8-14 threaded dies work (Lee, Hornady, Redding, Lyman, RCBS etc). Lee dies are the best value and I have had great success with them in both rifle and pistol calibers. Get a bunch of extra bushings and you won't have to take them off and put them on. Much more convenient that way and the dies fit in the Lee boxes with the breech lock bushing installed, another plus.

The only thing that I've found that doesn't work with the Breech lock Challenger press is one part of the RCBS primer pocket swaging tool. The cup that knocks off the shell after you swage the primer pocket does not work because the primer catcher cup in the press gets in the way. I believe RCBS sells a different cup for that press ($7, or free if you ask pretty please with sugar on it). Otherwise you can cut a piece of wood and Dremel out a notch to make an adapter for the press where the primer catcher will not get in the way of the knock-off cup. The 3rd option is to simply roll and twist the case off the swager.

[Bigdaa]

A am happy overall with my Lee Purchases. The value is definitely there.
Though I run RCBS in press, trimmer and scale, I have plenty of Lee Dies.
These are things I bought for life, and so far, 30 years have gone by on my main stuff.

Proceed, Dave.


Dave IN Goleta

[Cowboy T]

Ain't nothin' wrong with the Challenger Press, or for that matter, any of the other Lee presses, any more than with the pricier stuff. They all have their quirks, but they all produce very good ammunition. That breech-lock Challenger Press is a fine choice.

If you're casting and weighing your own boolits, then a scale with greater capacity would be a good idea (say, an RCBS 502 or 505). But if you're just buying bullets and only weighing powder like most reloaders do, then Lee's scale works just fine for that.