Lee Presses

[backstrap]

Can u use rcbs dies in this press?

[stimpylu32]

backstrap

Lee uses the standard 7/8-14 threads as most other companies so your RCBS dies should work just fine .

stimpy

[backstrap]

thanks for the info stimpylu32

[roger460xvr]

Why not just use lee dies ? cost a lot cheaper and just as good as rcbs if not better also comes with factory crimp die.

[Reed1911]

Why not just use lee dies ? cost a lot cheaper and just as good as rcbs if not better also comes with factory crimp die.

I beg to differ. Lee dies for pistol or straight cases are okay, not great but will work. I have not seen too many problems with their carbide dies, but the rifle dies are plain terrible. I've seen more defects from Lee than anyone else, RCBS is a little better, Hornady dies are pretty good, Redding takes the cake for most calibers. Don't get me wrong, you can certainly load good ammo with Lee dies it just takes a little more time and adjustments. Of course on a Lee press, well they are good for decapping....

[DDelle338]

Why not just use lee dies ? cost a lot cheaper and just as good as rcbs if not better also comes with factory crimp die.

I beg to differ. Lee dies for pistol or straight cases are okay, not great but will work. I have not seen too many problems with their carbide dies, but the rifle dies are plain terrible. I've seen more defects from Lee than anyone else, RCBS is a little better, Hornady dies are pretty good, Redding takes the cake for most calibers. Don't get me wrong, you can certainly load good ammo with Lee dies it just takes a little more time and adjustments. Of course on a Lee press, well they are good for decapping....

  That's one opinion, but I use alot of LEE Dies, never had a problem. Fact is, the only problem I ever had with dies was RCBS forgot to put a vent hole on a rifle die that caused me some minor problems. My LEE rifle dies make some darn good acurate reloads.

[Questor]

Reed1911:

I agree. The only truly horrible experiences I've had with reloading equipment has been with Lee and Hornady. The most recent of which was a defective Lee die. Considering the low cost of top quality RCBS dies, it makes no sense to me to pinch pennies by buying products with spotty quality that may or may not work. 

Back to the original question, I respect the opinions of many on this board who claim that the Lee presses are working well for them. I wouldn't buy one, but I believe that if they say they are getting good results, then they are getting good results.

[Savage]

The Lee dies work as well for me as the RCBS/Hornady/Lyman dies I use. In some cases better. Richard Lee has been responsible for introducing more persons to reloading that probably all the other big names in reloading of the last century. His entry level innovative equipment being both functional and affordable to the average hunter/shooter. No doubt his innovative approach has sparked industry development that would have not been otherwise seen in his time. Being the innovator that he is, his new cast single stage press is as good as any on the market. His new turrets and progressives actually work, and at a fraction of the cost of the competition! I own equipment from a couple of his competitors that I have been using for years with good result. Should I find need to replace any of it in my lifetime, you can bet I'll be looking closely at Lee's products. I would suggest that anyone in need of reloading hardware do the same. By the way, I do own one of his Classic Cast Turret presses that I use more than any of the presses I currently own.
Savage

[Lloyd Smale]

I agree with savage right up to the point where he started talking progressives. Ive had two pro 1000s and a loadmaster and wouldnt give you 50 cents for either of them anymore. i dont think i ever loaded a 100 rounds is a sitting with either without some kind of a hickup. funny thing is i bought the loadmaster figureing it would be a better press and actually it was even more troublesome then the 1000s. Save your money and buy a dillon or hornady if you want a progressive. As to dies heres my opinion. Ive got a ton of money invested in loading and casting equiptment and am not afraid to spend a little more to get quality but in my opinion lee pistol dies are probably the best ive used and though i prefer redding rifle dies ive yet to have a set of lees that didnt work properly. Just no lee progressives or casting pots or two cavity molds in this house again.

[Catfish]

I`ve been loading for more than 40 years and in the far distant past used some Lee equipment and was disappointed in every piece of it. It just won`t hold up with the amount of ammo I load. It is the cheapest stuff on the market for a reason. If you only load a couple of hundred round a year it will last for several years but I load several thousand rounds a year. I don`t care for their dies and have owned several sets in the past. I`ve loaded as high as 1,500 rounds in a day and I doubt that the guys that are in love with Lee have loaded that many in their life.

[JustaShooter]

I've only been loading for a little more than 10 years, so in comparison with some of you I'm still new at the game (and freely admit it).  I also only load for a few calibers (9mm - .45 ACP - .38 SPL - .30-06 - and soon .243 WIN).  But I have to say that, as with others, my experience with Lee produces has been very positive. 

I started reloading with a 2nd hand Lee Pro 1000 press I got for $50 that was set up for .45 ACP.  I added a set of 9mm dies and the small pistol shell plate carrier soon after, and have probably loaded 15,000 rounds of 9mm and .45 ACP combined.  I don't load nearly as much .38 SPL, so it hardly counts, and my .30-06 I load on a single-stage RCBS Rock Chucker.

I have had the occasional glitch with the Pro 1000, sure.  Generally, the problems were self induced during a switch from one caliber to another (although I had a nightmarish primer feed problem I caused once...  but that's a different story). 

I compare my experience with the Lee Pro 1000 to a couple of my friends that have Dillon presses, and have to say that I'm not at all displeased with the comparison.  The Dillon presses can be difficult to set up and tweak, and are occasionally finicky - much like my Lee.  Once they are set up, they tend to run well - much like my Lee.  Sure, on a Dillon with all the bells and whistles you can crank out a good many more shells in less time than I can with my Lee, but I've never needed to do that level of production.  Besides, I spent about one tenth the money...

As to the dies, all my dies are Lee, and I couldn't be happier.  I started with Lee dies for the .45 and 9mm, and borrowed RCBS dies for the .38 and .30-06 until I could get my own.  Not that I didn't like the RCBS, but I bought Lee dies since they were somewhat less expensive and I had good experience with my other Lee dies.  Never had a problem with any of them.  Granted, I'm not loading for bench rest competitions, but I think I'm doing OK.  I have loads for the 9mm and .45 that are more accurate than I am, and a load for the .30-06 that holds 1.5" at 100 on a bad day and under 1" when the wind, the rifle, and I are all in synch.  Someday I'll spend more time in load development to see if I can find a better one, but for now my time is better spent on other things.

I guess what I'm saying is that, as others have said, I've had good experience with Lee products.  Frankly, if it weren't for the reasonable price and quality of the Lee products I've owned, I probably wouldn't be reloading as much as I am.  I simply couldn't have afforded a high-end reloading setup until recently, and it doesn't bother me at all that I'm about to get a new rifle, and just recently got a new spotting scope, instead of having to choose between one or the other and spending several hundred dollars on a reloading setup.

I'm Just a Shooter, and that's Just my Opinion 

[billy_56081]

  I myself have loaded tens of thousands of rounds on my Lee turret press and several thaousand on my Lee single stage press. Richard Lee has made reloading affordable and has probably sold more reloading equipment than all of the rest combined. Some of his dies, the factory cripm die and the Lee collet neck sizing dies are unmatched by other manufactuers. The other brands of dies I own are Hornady and RCBS. The RCBS seem on par with the Lee and the one set of Hornady dies I bought was terrible. Don't let the "I spent more on my equipment snobs" scare you away from Lee products, they are cost effective load great ammo and are very durable.

[beemanbeme]

"Don't let the I spent more on my equipment snobs scare you away from Lee products"
+1

I just don't think you should have to take a second mortage to get into reloading.

I have very little Lee equipmment but what I have works like it's supposed to.  I'd be lost without my Lee AutoPrime. At $10, I can afford to have one for LR and one for SR and a back up on the shelf if what the nay sayers predict comes true and it falls apart. In five or six years, it hasn't. Pretty good track record considering all the thousands of rounds I've reloaded.  Never 1500 in one day however.

I've never used anything except single stage presses.  I have four of them.  About 5 years ago, I bought one of the Lee presses just to see how they were made.  The thing seems fine to me, I like the offset entry (since I'm right handed).  I bought a RCBS Jr press 45 years ago that you could use for an anchor for the QE2. Is the new Lee press the equal to that? No. No way. But then, no modern press that cost under $100 would be.  Would the Lee press cover 99.9% of my reloading needs including light case forming for the forseeable furture? Probably, check back with me in 45 years.

[papajohn428]

I've never understood the complaints about Lee dies, I've used dozens of sets for twenty years without ANY problems.  According to my logs, I've loaded over 600,000 rounds, mostly pistol ammo, on my Lee Turret press, with Lee dies.  The only problem I ever had was a decapping die that broke the first time I used it.  It was replaced two days later, for free, and the new one works just fine. 

You can buy sturdier equipment, but I'm not sure I need something that's fifty times as strong as it needs to be.  The Lee stuff is probably three times as strong as it needs to be, and I don't abuse my equipment, so it works fine for me.  Maybe if I did a lot of case forming and swaging, I'd want something tougher, I don't know.  My Lee Turret press broke part of the linkage after about 610,000 rounds.  I got a new part two days later for five bucks, and was back in business.  I think the Turret Press costs less now, than when I bought mine in the early 80's!

Papajohn

[stimpylu32]

Back in june i toasted my Lee turret press that i'd had for over 25 years , well it was replaced with a Dillon , long story short the Dillon is gone and replaced with 2 - LEE turrets.

Now before i catch too much heat the Dillon was a fine press but did not fit my needs as well as the lee turret does , i did replace the Lee single stage with a Lyman Orange Crusher though .

stimpy

[Old English]

The Lee classic cast press is a brilliant bit of kit. The quality and longevity are good and can be picked up for $85, it's a no brainer in my book. I have a separate turret for each caliber with all dies set up. Takes a minute to go from 1 caliber to another. I did replace the Lee scale with a $60 Dillon beam, it is just easier to use. I like the pro auto disk powder dispenser, it works very well for me. I use Benchmark and Varget for most loads and they flow well so that probably helps. I still check every one but it's very consistent with these 2 powders. Never had a problem with any of my Lee dies either, I prefer the neck sizing die whenever possible , better brass life and no lube required. I will never load half a million rounds so I guess that the cheap old Lee stuff should last me a lifetime.

[DDelle338]

  I guess what you said about never loading a half million rounds is a good point to remember. The equipment works, and the common hand loader is not going to wear it out. As I said, I have only had a problem with one die, and that was an "ooops" from the mfg. What are all these problems that people are having with dies? Are they loading so many rounds that the soft brass is actually wearing away the steel in the dies?? Are they bending de-cappers? What are some of these "problems" that I need to watch for? Maybe mine are trashed already and I need to throw them away and buy new ones.

[bulzaye]

at the risk of opening a can of worms, I have used lee for many years. I have 2 sets of rcbs dies and they were replaced with lee dies.  I also hear of all the problems with lee dies but never any specifics.  It is like spanish made barrels for muzzleloading everyone says they are junk will blow up in your face but no specifics to prove it.  I will stick with Lee and am very satisfied. And to answer the original question yes the rcbs dies will work in a lee press. 

[Lloyd Smale]

if your talking rifle dies only my preference go redding rcbs lee then horndady and lyman in a distant 3rd and forth. In handguns lees are actually hard to beat.

[Tn Jim]

I use a Lee Challenger press that I have had since 1991. It has loaded a boat load of rounds in 7 different calibers that I reload. I use RCBS and Lee dies. Both work fine. The only dies problems I have ever had was I tried to resize some military 223 cases I found at the range. The flash hole was WAY too small and the decapping pin got caught and broke off. I retrieved it out of the case and put it back in the Lee die and kept going. The press has also been used to size countless 44 and 45 cast bullets with a Lee push thru sizer. Again, never a problem. If that press quit working or broke today it has paid for itself in ammo so many times over it's not funny. My equipment is about 50/50 Lee and RCBS. All of it has worked great, even the Lee lock stud and cutter for their case trimmer that I wore out and had to replace. Bad mouth Lee stuff all you want, but I have used it with no problem and I will continue to. It does what it's supposed to do for a good price. That's all I ask of it.

[Steve in Michigan]

I can't think of a more efficient setup than the Lee Turret Press. I change calibers a lot and with the little Lee, it takes just a few seconds to change calibers and a couple of minutes change the powder measure. Plus:
1. The powder through die expander is a positive working device that totally eliminates double charges unless the uses messes with it. And, if you have a case that doesn't get charged, you didn't set it up right.
2. You get a new round every three (or four) strokes, so you can start and stop loading at any time with no half-finished loads.
3. The Lee dies have a nice open taper so the cases feed in easily (much better than my rcbs dies).
4. The Lee powder measure works like a dream and does an adequate job charging handgun and small rifle cases. I use the double-disk setup for some of my rifle cartridges. For the big stuff, you have to use a powder measure that will handle the larger charges and charge the cases manually, not any worse than some of the older Dillons.

Steve

[warrior1]

i've got a rockchucker that sits.instead i use my lee classic turret press,with the lee powder measure, and lee dies. in fact i've got rcbs dies and a powder measure collecting dust. soon, i will replace my rcbs  357 dies with lee dies.
am i satisfied with the results, definitely. i do load for a variety of calibers and when i add a caliber , i also add a lee turret,a set of dies,and a powder thru/expander die. dan