Turret Press

[goose]

Hi all. I have been reloading for some time now with a RCBS single stage press and I'm ready to take the jump up to a turret press to reload rounds for my revolvers. 200 rounds or so a hour would satisfy the amount of shooting I do so here is my question. I like the quality of RCBS products but I know a lot of people out there like the Lee Classic Turret press and I'm having a hard time with my decision. The auto index feature is interesting but I'm concerned about the reviews I have been reading where the turret does not align itself properly after a few hundred rounds. I'm aware that you have to weigh the cost of one verses the other but I'm stuck. I will be loading 357 and 44 magnum with maybe 223 in the future. So far I'm leaning towards the RCBS. Your thought? Thanks.......goose

 

[loaded round]

If you want to move up to a ''turret style'' press and buy a Dillon 550B. You can reload almost any metallic cartridge made (except the 50 BMG case) and will easily load 300-400 rounds an hour if you do your part. You would be hard pressed to beat Dillon's quality, excellent manuals and customer service and their ''no nonsense'' lifetime warranty. You might as well buy now for what you'll end up with anyway.

 

[DeletedMember275]

The big downside I see to the Lee turret press is that it only has four stations/die holes. RCBS and Lyman offer six; Redding offers seven. Any of those gives you quite a bit more versatility than only four stations. Granted, you could conceivably buy two Lee turret presses for the cost of one of the others.

If you're interested, I have a Lyman Spar-T turret press for sale.

 

[sandman228]

I started out loading 9mm on a lee auto indexing turret press then moved up to several mostly handgun calibers on it . I ended up buying a turret for each set of dies I owned so change over was as simple as lifting 1 turret out then dropping another in with the dies in it set up ready to go ,it was a nice little set up .the auto indexing feature does have its faults I got in the habit of just bumping the die with my thumb the last 1/4 inch or so every time I ran the handle up . theres a small plastic bushing on the linkage rod that wears out quick . also the linkage rod is adjustable.it was an ok press I just learned to live with its faults . I used it a few years then later on upgraded to a lyman t mag 2 turret press and sold the lee and all the extra turrets to another just starting out reloader . the lyman is built much heavier and has no auto indexing feature but its not much slower indexing it by hand im not sure what there going for now but I know mine was under 200 when I bought it from midsouth a few years ago . so the lyman might be another option for you to consider .

 

[loaded round]

In my area, read two gun clubs, most Lee owners eventually switch over to Dillon and end up using the Lee presses as boat anchors or 100 yard targets.

 

[sandman228]

In my area, read two gun clubs, most Lee owners eventually switch over to Dillon and end up using the Lee presses as boat anchors or 100 yard targets.

to each there own I don't think the lee's are that bad yes I did switch over to a lyman for my turret press .but I do still have a lee challenger that I do all my decapping/resizing on and all my cast bullet sizing is done on it also with lee bullet sizer dies .lee products are hit and miss in my opinion I did switch over to almost all rcbs dies ,and the old style lee hand primer leaves allot to be desired after breaking I dunno how many handles I switched over to rcbs for that tool also .but most of my casting equiptment is lee

 

[loaded round]

If I were to go to a non progressive turret press, I would strongly consider the Redding T-7 turret Press. More money I agree, but Redding makes the best non progressive press and dies on the market today. I have the T-7 along with my two Dillon 550B's.

 

[Clovishound]

I have been running a Lee classic turret for a couple years. I have no issues with the auto indexing. It was spot on out of the box, and I haven't had to touch the adjustment of it since. Get a couple of the plastic bushings, they are very inexpensive (less than a buck each), and act like a fuse to keep you from over stressing other components when indexing. When they wear out, the indexing will get hinky. I have worn one out trying to back up the turret the wrong way. Once I figured out the right way to do it, the current bushing has been in there quite a while.

The only issue I have had with mine was the primer arm was titchy about adjustment and the top of the primer would occasionally hang up when the arm entered the ram. I made a very small spacer out of wood and put it where the arm pivots. No problems since I did that over a year ago.

Having a 5th hole in the turret would be nice for one of the calibers I use. I like to have a powder check die in the mix, and I use a factory crimp die on one of my handgun calibers. That doesn't leave room for both. Of course, with a 5th or 6th hole, that means one, or two more pulls of the handle when loading in continuous mode. I don't use an FCD for my revolver rounds, so I have enough space to accommodate all needed dies.

If I were to go back to batch mode for all my reloading, I would still load on my turret. The hassle of changing out each die with each operation change, would be a royal pain for me now.

For right at $100, it is an awesome machine. It is not perfect, but then even the big buck machines aren't. If you must have the be all, end all press, then probably best to look elsewhere. If you want a sturdy machine that works well, I highly recommend it.

 

[sailorb]

I have been using a Lee Pro 1000 for a number of years. It's only a 3 holer, so I crimp in a separate step on revolver loads. I load about 1000 rounds a year on it and as long as you pay attention and know it's eccentricities it works just fine. For the price difference between it and a Dillion including the Dillion caliber change costs, I can buy a couple more guns. If I were a real high volume loader, it would be different, but for a few hundred rounds each of 5-6 different calibers a year, it works fine.

 

[okie44]

You said you were leaning towards the RCBS, just grab it. You will like it, priming system even works well.

 

[modrifle3]

The Lee classic turret is a good setup for lower volume loading. Yes it's no Dillon, but neither is its price point.

I have the 550 and the Lee, both are nice but the Dillon is far more press. As it should be because it was 3 times as much.

I have said this many of times to people who lee bash. Not everyone can spend a truckload of cash of reloading and don't be ashamed of what you can afford. A smart man buys what he wants and needs, not what his buddies want or think is cool.

Although I would recommend staying away from Lee progressives. When you are at the point you need a progressive, save your money in a jar and get a Dillon. In my opinion you are past the frugal point when you are loading this volume.

 

[modrifle3]

The big downside I see to the Lee turret press is that it only has four stations/die holes. RCBS and Lyman offer six; Redding offers seven. Any of those gives you quite a bit more versatility than only four stations. Granted, you could conceivably buy two Lee turret presses for the cost of one of the others.

If you're interested, I have a Lyman Spar-T turret press for sale.

The user experience for the Lee and the more precise turrets are not the same. Lee is a low to medium volume unit with easy caliber conversion that is a semi progressive style. Lyman, redding, RCBS turrets are low volume with much higher tolerances.

 

[Clark]

The Lee classic turret is a good setup for lower volume loading. Yes it's no Dillon, but neither is its price point.

I have the 550 and the Lee, both are nice but the Dillon is far more press. As it should be because it was 3 times as much.

I have said this many of times to people who lee bash. Not everyone can spend a truckload of cash of reloading and don't be ashamed of what you can afford. A smart man buys what he wants and needs, not what his buddies want or think is cool.

Although I would recommend staying away from Lee progressives. When you are at the point you need a progressive, save your money in a jar and get a Dillon. In my opinion you are past the frugal point when you are loading this volume.

Best advice so far on this entire thread.

I'm a low volume shooter and reloader but I can crank out 100 rounds in an hour on my Lee turret. For what I paid, I'm delighted. Spending more money and reloading more in the same amount of time would not lead to more happiness for me. Lee fit my needs perfectly.

Clark

 

[cityslicker]

I also started out with a rcbs rockchucker single stage. Worked great! Last year I wanted to streamline the process and cut some steps. I bought a Redding T-7 turrent press. I like it a lot! This works good for me.

 

[loaded round]

Nice purchase. I can see how intelligent minds think alike!

I also started out with a rcbs rockchucker single stage. Worked great! Last year I wanted to streamline the process and cut some steps. I bought a Redding T-7 turrent press. I like it a lot! This works good for me.

 

[led]

I've owned my Lee Turret for 22 years. Got it when I was 16. I don't load enough to justify anything more expensive. It works just fine.

Later,
Stephen

 

[Galaxiedan]

I have the Lee turret and it works fine for me

 

[6gun]

In my area, read two gun clubs, most Lee owners eventually switch over to Dillon and end up using the Lee presses as boat anchors or 100 yard targets.

Boat anchors :lol: aint that the truth, but it might break and set you a drift, the Dillon is very good advise if he has his mind made up and is set on a turret I'd do RCBS or Lyman can't go wrong with either of those.

 

[Rick Courtright]

Hi,

CH4D is perhaps not the best known company out there, but is among the longest lived in the business. I've known a number of old timers who "grew up" on CH equipment, and are as passionate about it as are those today who swear only blue or green equipment's worth buying!

That said, they have a somewhat different approach to a "turret" type machine, the 444-H. The current incarnation has four holes and is all steel best I can tell, while earlier versions, dating back to 1960 or earlier, had one or three and used aluminum. I don't need to spend that kind of money just to scratch the curiosity itch--a poster on another forum said they're built one at a time to order, so the price is understandable--but wonder if any of you have ever used it, and if so, what are your thoughts?

http://www.ch4d.com/products/equipment/presses/044000

Rick C

 

[goose]

Hi all, goose here. To those interested, I went ahead and ordered a rcbs turret press from midway USA. Thanks for all the advice and ill let you guys know what I think of it. Goose.

 

[6gun]

Very good decision!

 

[Cholo]

This thread, and this one concerning progressive presses http://www.rugerforum.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=218493 couldn't have come at a better time for me. Since '77 I'd done all my reloading on a RCBS Rockchucker press. I'm looking for faster and all I've heard about was Dillon. My problem with Dillon is they show a press for $359 but then state it's $4,359 with the accessories shown I know Dillon makes fine presses, but I don't think it's for me.

I believe I'll go with the Redding T-7 Turret. I know exactly what I'm getting for X $'s. I like the extra turret set up. If I'm not mistaken, I can set up one for .32 long and .32 mag., another for .38 Special and .357 mag, another for .44 Special and .44 mag. I do like the ability to charge my cases as I've always done and still speed up the entire loading process.

Is the priming system on the T-7 really that much of a PITA? Should I buy separate priming tools dedicated for Lg and Sm primers? I have no problem priming using my Rockchucker and prefer it to the RCBS hand held unit.

 

[Clovishound]

I'm not familiar with the Redding press, but my I have three different calibers set up for my Lee turret. It only takes seconds to switch the turret plates. The only time consuming issue is switching the powder measure, which really isn't that time consuming. I could remedy that by buying another powder measure. I use a stand alone for my rifle reloading.

I really love the ease of switching calibers. I also like not having to set up the dies every switchout. I can chose between running in continuous mode, or batch mode. It really makes life easier than a single stage, without the everything happening at once of a progressive.

 

[loaded round]

The Redding T-7 Turret Press is the best on the market, albeit the most expensive. Quality does not come cheap.

 

[Three50seven]

I load using two Lee single-stage presses. I decided to move up to a turret press last fall and ordered the Lee. After setting it up and working some loads through it, I boxed it up and sent it back. Too much of a headache, and not any faster than my pair of single-stage press. JMO...

 

[Rick Courtright]

I load using two Lee single-stage presses. I decided to move up to a turret press last fall and ordered the Lee. After setting it up and working some loads through it, I boxed it up and sent it back. Too much of a headache, and not any faster than my pair of single-stage press. JMO...

Hi,

Just out of curiosity, what problems did you encounter?

Somewhat in line with your practice, a buddy loads a majority of his handgun ammo on a "line" of four of the little Lee Reloader presses set up in the middle of his bench. At one end of the bench is a Bonanza Co-Ax for rifle use, at the other end is a Dillon 550 set up for 9mm, more cuz he's pinched his fingers loading that caliber one too many times on a single station press than for extra speed. His ammo from that line's as good as anyone else's, so to each his own...

Rick C

 

[Three50seven]

I didn't so much have "problems" as much as it just seemed really awkward and slow to me. I can move the shell from one press to the next just as easy as indexing the turret. I prime in batches using a hand primer, and charge powder through the Lee expanding die, so the turret really wasn't an advantage for me. Guess I should have though about that before buying...