I've been reloading since the late 1970's.
I still have equipment from those days. Why? I bought quality & they will outlast me.
A single-stage press will fit the needs you described. I still have 2 of them on my bench, along with a few progressives. BUT,,, I use my progressives for volume due to competition. 100 rounds at a time,, no problem on a single-stage.
RCBS, Lyman & Hornady single stage presses will outlast you & your grandkids if taken care of. A press can easily be bought used & save some money. (That way you can spend the savings on other reloading stuff.) The same with a few other items,,, such as dies, shell holders, & even scales.
But the very first thing you need to invest in is a couple of good reloading manuals. Hornady, Lyman, Speer, Nosler, are all very good. GET MORE THAN ONE MANUAL!!!!! You will find them very useful.
Then study the manuals!
Case cleaning,,, it should be done. Why? Well, dirty cases can wear the dies. A used press can be bought & the savings can be used to add a tumbler. Do it!
Loading hot. Ammo should be ACCURATE first,, no matter the power level. In reloading,,, start low & work up loads to find accuracy,, ESPECIALLY if long range shooting is your goal. Horsepower does nothing if you can't hit anything.
Here's what I suggest you try.
Manuals.
A single-stage press.
A set of dies (Carbide of 44 mag) with the proper shell holder.
Scales.
Loading block.
A tumbler.
A powder thrower.
A priming system. (Can be press mounted, or hand type.)
Calipers.
Here is the process;
Step one, clean the cases, inspecting them as you handle them. Discard any split ones.
Step two, set up the resizing die/decapping die & do 50 cases. (Keep inspecting the cases for defects.)
Step three, expand the neck in the second die,, after adjusting them properly. Keep inspecting the cases. And, if you have a press mounted priming system, prime as you expand.
If not; Step four is priming the cases.
Step five, set up the powder thrower & scales, at a starting load, NOT a maximum load.
Step six, load 6-12 rounds, with powder.
Step Seven, using the 3rd die, set the bullet in these test rounds. Depending upon your preference, you can crimp at the same time or do it in a separate step. If separate, crimp after seating the bullets.
Measure for OAL.
Test fire for accuracy.
Once you find an accurate load, then you can load more at a time & lock in your set-up.
When using my single-stage presses,, I handle 50 cases at a time due to the loading blocks usually have holes for 50. Now, you can do more at a time,,, such as re-sizing & decapping until you have all the cases done. You can expand the necks all at one time too. But once I begin to add components such as primers & powder, I do no more than 50 at a time.
I hope this helps a little.
