How many here started

btrumanj

Single-Sixer
Joined
Jan 29, 2005
Messages
490
City & State/Province
Louisville Ky
with one of these modest little tools yrs ago? Slow but it worked.

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I started with 2 of those sets. One in 45 Colt for a revolver and the other for my XP100 in 35 Rem. Still have that one today. Didn't have a lot of brass and would take the set to the range to work up a load for the XP.
 
Yep. 21st birthday. Went to Gibson's department store in Stillwater on my 21st birthday in 1982 and bought a Ruger Security Six. Stainless, six inch. One box of .38 Special wadcutters. One box of Federal 125 grain .357 Magnums. And that was all the ammo I was ever going to be able to afford. So went to the gun store and bought one of those Lee loaders and some primers and a couple of pounds of powder. And some bullets.

Used to sit on the kitchen floor with a hammer. (Only floor besides the bathroom in that house that wasn't carpeted.) Hammering away but happy. Reloading ammo on the cheap. Never would have learned to shoot that revolver otherwise.

Gregg
 
Yes sir, it was my first "foray" into reloading a long time ago! :)
 
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Yep.

Bought a used .357 LEE LOADER from the "cheap bucket" at my local dealer's place and was able to afford shooting my brand-new "low back" Security-Six.

Later bought one for my .41 Mag Blackhawk.

Good times . . . even with the occasional tap, tap, tapBANG scenario.

;)
 
I started with one of those in our first apartment. I loaded fifty rounds before my wife put an end to the hammering and made me buy a Lee C-press.....
 
Yep, 1969, one Lee Loader in 38 Special, 1 lb Bullseye, 100 CCI primers, 100 generic lead bullets, 100 cases from previously purchased/shot. Oh,yeah, a yellow plastic mallet. I could only afford primers at 100 each, and lead bullets were really cheap, but this kept me in ammo for several months...
 
My poor parents ! Got one of those for the .44 SBH when still living to home back in 79- '80. Quality control checks involved opening the bedroom window and lettin' fly. just lately bought a complete set of them little yellow dippers too. stevemb
 
Hi,

Had loaded shotshells by the 10s of 1000s before ever loading a metallic cartridge. Still have the little Lee loader for .38 Spl that got me started in that part of the hobby.

And, to keep Ale's kit company, mine would go "Tap, tap, tap, BANG" now and again, too... ;)

Rick C
 
Yup, I started loading 9mm for a WWII Walther P-38 with a Lee Loader. I graduated to an RCBS Rock Chucker pretty quickly, but I still own a couple of Lee Loaders.
 
I started loading shotshells (under supervision of course), on a Mec 600jr when I was about 12, but I got one of those for my Win Model 70 in 30-06 that I bought when I turned 21. It worked just fine for what it did.

My first *real* handgun cartridge handloading setup was a Lyman 310 tool, the "nutcracker", in 38/357. I included that when I sold the 357 Blackhawk I used it with so I could get a Redhawk in 44Mag, since by then I had moved up to a Rockchucker press and thought it better for loading 44 Mags. I kinda regret giving it away now, especially considering what those go for these days. They are good tools for some cartridges, but tough on the hands for bigger cases and the thicker, harder magnum ones.
 
Didn't take me long to decide I didn't like the way the tool handled primer seating. So I went back to the gun store and bought a Lee hand primer. So I guess I avoided some interesting stories!

Gregg
 
Yeah, seating primers definitely kept your attention after you experienced the first "unexpected detonation".

I, too, moved to a LEE hand primer rather quickly.

;)
 
Around `82 sittin on the front door steps ,should`a seen the wife when I popped my first primer , `bout tore the hinges off da door !!
 
Yep. Got my first set from Gander Mountain for the 222 almost 30 years ago. I bought a set for the 41 Mag and a couple Lyman Mould blocks for the 41 (for $5 ea) from Cabelas shortly thereafter.
 
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