Lee Hand Press $40....worth it?

[Ripon83]

Hello, I recently got a nice Rossi 92 in 357 to go with my M 27 Smith, and I'll spend 3 to 4 weeks in the desert back country with them this summer. We pack into the mountains and have limited capacities for ammo. Do these things work? Would I end up being better off packing as much live ammo in as it and the components would weigh? I'll be in rattlesnake infested territory, and I hate them...they get shot on sight! I don't like running out of ammo....

http://www.cabelas.com/product/Shooting/Reloading/Presses-Dies|/pc/104792580/c/104761080/sc/104516280/Lee-Hand-Press-Reloading-Kit/1172297.uts?destination=%2Fcatalog%2Fbrowse%2Fshooting-reloading-presses-dies%2F_%2FN-1100195%2B4294771221%2FNe-4294771221%2FNs-MIN_SALE_PRICE%3FWTz_l%3DSBC%253Bcat104792580%253Bcat104761080%26WTz_st%3DGuidedNav%26WTz_stype%3DGNU&WTz_l=SBC%3Bcat104792580%3Bcat104761080%3Bcat104516280

[Ripon83]

PS...I've always packed in a 22 revolver as well to make sure I don't run out, but this year I can leave the AR behind and just take the 357's

[Stryfe76]

Is there a reason you can't just bring the live ammo and save weight? Are you planning to recover your lead and cast new rounds or reuse your spent brass while on the trail?

I have one and it works but it is more labor intensive than a mounted press.

I've got a whole kit in a duffel bag that I joke about using to cast bullets and reload hunkered down behind a barricade while the others hold back the zombies.

[Ripon83]

Well in the past I took about 100 rnds rifle ammo, 50 pistol and a brick of 22's. We obviously didn't go for the joy of shooting. Dumping the AR and maybe the 22 ( doubt that ) I thought. 200 rnds of 357, this hand press, and bullets, primers and powder for a couple of hundred more? We have time to reload and it's easy to recover the brass. Or am I better off with just 400 rnds?

[gunboat]

I think you would be better off with the extra ammo --
Weight and volume of bullets, primers, powder, dies, hand press, lube, and scale or scoop far exceed weight and volume of 200 extra rounds.
The lee hand press is a nice light tool but not tiny.
A lyman 310 tong tool might come closer to meeting your needs.
My ha-penny

[XDRoX]

The only weight you'd be saving is the brass. And the weight of the reloading equipment would be more than the brass.

Not worth it from a weight perspective IMO.

[hk91666]

Check on line those were selling for a lot less. if you really want one. Try midway and natchez.

[sonnyt650]

I just picked up two bags of .45 Colt brass (for one brother-in-law's rifle) to guage how much 200 complete rounds weigh versus 200 components without brass, and the reloading setup seems promising. If we were talking about .308 instead at 200 rounds the reloading setup wins for weight.

On the other hand completed ammo is more durable than the reloading setup so you'd want a more rigid structure than a backpack. I also would think that getting 50 rounds an hour done via the Lee tool would be a realistic pace -- are you really able to set aside 4 hours worth of your time?

I bought my Lee Hand Press for loading the best results out of ladder testing when at BLM lands. The one time I tried the wind didn't allow the scale to settle and I just couldn't get an accurate reading. I think it's a tossup between the brass and the tools, though in your situation I'd rather have finished ammo since I don't get much enjoyment out of reloading for handguns.

[Ripon83]

Thanks, in looking at the space and weight issues I guess more live ammo makes since....of course we are also talking about bringing the brass out too but that's ok....i leaning towards 250 to 300 rnds and the 22

[Which Way Out]

Where are you going?

[Ripon83]

Near the Idaho border with Nevada....my family bought one of those rail road sold discharges back in the 70's about 5100 acres. We like to do some gold mining, survey the area for hunting later during season, fish, and basically be 3 days from anything.....including cell phones The four sections around our property are all BLM so we rarely see anyone - in 20 + years we've seen 2 sheriffs and 2 game wardens. Never once another private party.

[Which Way Out]

Near the Idaho border with Nevada....my family bought one of those rail road sold discharges back in the 70's about 5100 acres. We like to do some gold mining, survey the area for hunting later during season, fish, and basically be 3 days from anything.....including cell phones The four sections around our property are all BLM so we rarely see anyone - in 20 + years we've seen 2 sheriffs and 2 game wardens. Never once another private party.

Sounds fun. Are you tent camping there or an RV ?

[Ripon83]

One of the things we like to do is build rough shot cabins. We have built 3 in the last 10 years....it's fun. It's also hard to do with what limited materials you can carry in by horse. This year we are going back to our first cabin and see if we can improve it. We got almost an ounce of gold out of that area 10 years ago, and are hoping we might get another ounce this trip. Were taking 3 nephews on this years outing so six of us total. We carry in what we eat, add some fish and rattlesnake meat. We want to check out the deer population, explore, mine, pan for gold, build shelters and just have a good time....

[wyattearp]

Sounds like a little bit of heaven.

[migz]

that sounds like a great vacation. I say go for the reloader, kill some time at night