Any reloaders in the house?

[Jaepheth]

I'm thinking of getting into reloading my own ammo.
I'm currently looking at this kit: http://www.ebay.com/itm/LEE-Deluxe-...d-Rifle-Reloading-Kit-LEE-90928-/290830117821

Would that allow me to load my own:
.40S&W
.357 sig
.223/5.56 Nato
7.62x39
7.62x54r

given that i buy the required dies separately?

In general, how do I know how large or small of a round a given press can load?
Any additional equipment that I'd need (tumble polisher?)

EDIT: Also, I see these 3 die sets and 2 die sets for various calibers. What's the difference? I'm guessing I need the 3 or 4 die Lee sets because they come with the shell holders, right?

 

[Tsavo]

http://www.dillonprecision.com/

 

[OutHouse]

i have been thinking about getting into reloading for my 9mm and 357's. been watching a lot of videos on youtube about it. the thing is I shoot just enough that its not any cost savings for me.

i can not answer your specific question just adding to a interesting topic.

 

[midwestfisherman]

I use to reload a lot (.357 .45 ACP, .38 Special, 22-250, 12ga., 20ga.) The biggest and best advise is to buy quality components and equipment AND FOLLOW THE MANUAL!! DO NOT rely on the internet for load specs.

 

[rommelrommel]

Most presses can handle magnum rifle rounds so you're not likely to have an issue there.

Lee is solid stuff but is "entry level." That thing you're looking at is not a real progressive, you do one round at a time and spin the turret for the different stages. It's fine, but it's very slow. You might do 100-150 rounds an hour.

Dillon is great but ends up being quite expensive by the time you buy into their caliber quick change systems.

RCBS, I like everything they make except their wannabe progressive.

Hornady Lock n Load is the best deal on a progressive IMO. It's not quite as polished as the dillon but changeovers are quick and easy.

7.62x39 is hard to justify reloading unless you don't like shooting corrosive.

If you're a volume shooter you're going to want a progressive press, a tumbler, a micrometer, TWO good load books (speer/hornady/lyman/etc) and probably a bunch of other little stuff I'm not thinking of. Case trimmer maybe, need a bullet puller... it ends up being more than you think it will be. But, not like tools go bad.

 

[gorobei]

it depends how precise you want to get about your loadings and how many rounds you intend to go through.

single stage presses are straightforward, all the brass goes through a single stage in 1 run then you switch out a die to do the next stage. typically 8 or 9 stages with a fair bit of readjusting each time(some stages dont require the press). main advantage, very hard to screw up the final product and better quality control in that you can more or less visually check each round to make sure everything is in place (primer, round, crimp, lube). secondary advantage is that it is better if you are trying to make precision loads for match shooting and are tweaking the formula for small batches. downside is that it is slow and you need a bunch of shell holders to organize the shells while you switch dies if you do large batches.

multi turret presses: keeps the dies in a fixed plate so when you are good with all your settings you never have to mess with them again(better for single caliber shooters). can come in manual or automatic indexing.

progressive presses: mini factory line(or circle really) where each case moves to the next stage/die with a pull of the lever arm. very fast and easy to do large volume of rounds. downside is that it can be hard to tell if there is a glitch in the settings (primer not seating right, bullets not at right depth, crimp not tensioning enough) until you run through the whole cycle. also auto primer feeders and motorized casing feeders need alarms to tell you when the hopper is empty or running low. typically cost in the 3-500$ range. the more dies you have the less operations each one has to do, ie single taskers. 3 or 4 die presses require a die to do 2 or 3 more things in one lever action: so one die will deprime, ream the case mouth, and deburr the mouth. if something goes wrong it can be harder to troubleshoot. you will also have get feeder tubes for the respective calibers if the sizes are too different.

each of the brands usually has a version of each type (single, multi, progressive). some of the progressives are just multi with some attachments that dont index automatically like a true progressive.

by the time you are done it will be very close to 600$ or more depending on how much of the components(primer, brass, bullets, case lube, gas checks, case polish, polish media, gunpowder blends) you buy. so it is only worth it if you intend to shoot a lot for many years.

 

[velillen]

I have the lee classic turret press and can tell you its a great press for the money. You can buy extra 4 hour plates so you can change out whole sets of dies in seconds (and the plates cost like 12 bucks)

It all comes down to how you like to prep your brass. I deprime mine, then stainless steel tumble. After clean i size and expand the neck. Then the cases go into bins for storage till needed. When i do need them i like to use a lee ergo prime primer and i sit and prime however many cases i want while watching tv. After that when im completely ready it goes to the powder thrower and finally the bullets get seated and rounds get crimped. Much more relaxed and hands on and more in 15-30 minute "bursts" instead of doing it for hours all at once

A progressive basically just takes all those steps and does it in one but you lose a bit of the hands on. Still great once you get it all setup, i just do things in to many different steps in stead of everything at once.

And as stated if you are playing with differently loads or OAL's the turrets/single stages are a bit easier to just churn out 5-10 rounds with than a progressive (in my opinion).

As for dies everyone has their opinions but id go for either a 3 or 4 die set. I use all lee dies with no problem and get the 4 die set (which includes the factory crimp die). For rifle you have to get it separately . But crimping is one of those things everyone has different opinions on. Guy i learned to reload from crimped everything so i just do it as well



On that kit it is only ok. The powder measure is kind of crappy in my opinion. The scale is ok but nothing special. Its not a bad deal cause you get everything but i would go with a RCBS uniflow powder thrower or similar and possibly a bit better scale. But for a cheap way to start reloading itll do just fine.

Its a fun hobby but expect to spend a good chunk of change initially to get quality parts or youll end up just replacing things down the road, especially if you get into it a lot.


Id checkout thefiringline.com (reloading area) and brian enos's forums to get some additional reading

 

[adairusmc]

I would not start with a single stage, I would start with a turret press. The convienience of being able to have six dies in at a time is just too nice, and they arent that expensive. I use a lyman turret press myself, and I really like it. Amazon has them for a good price too.

I also have a Dillon XL650, I cannt recommend that to a beginner.

The best thing to start with is to get a copy of Lees Modern Reloading 2nd edition, that will cover all the basics.

Most presses can handle anything up to 460 weatherby, and beyond. I use my Lyman turret press to load .38 special, 357, 44mag, 454casull, 500 S&W, .223, .243, .25-06, .308, .30-06, .338 win mag, .350rem mag, .416 rigby, .45-70, .375 H&H, .458 Win Mag, and .460 weatherby.

I use my Dillon for 9mm and .223 only, only cause I hate doing small batches on it and setting it up for different calibers. I do my precision .223 stuff on the turret press, one at a time.

If you want to get a kit, I would suggest this one. http://www.amazon.com/Lyman-Reloadin...+reloading+kit

It costs some money to get set up with reloading, but you will get better ammo in the long run and save some money if you shoot a lot.

Oh, and stockpile powder and primers. I keep about 150k primers on hand (got the initial hoarde from my grandfather when he passed), and when you find a powder that you like its good to buy in bulk if you can find it.