As far as die sets and what brand I will give my humble opinion.
For pistol dies I would buy the LEE carbide set with factory crimp die, the FCD fixed all the feeding problems with my .357Mag lever rifle.
For rifle dies LEE are OK, true that the decapping pin/expander is a single piece and if you break a pin you have to replace the whole thing. The expander rod/pin is only a few dollars and they are available from LEE direct, they ship quickly too. I have LEE rifle dies and they work very well, every bit as well as any other brand. The LEE rifle dies do require you to really crank the decapper nut on top VERY TIGHT or they will slip out, but once locked they stay put. I also have RCBS, Lyman, Forster/Bonanza, Pacific brand dies. In addition to those I have made my own dies for some wildcats. I'll tell you a secret...there is no secret to reloading dies. They are all basically the same with the exception of the "competion" style, and the different brands of those are all about the same too. I have made my own "competition" seater for a .17 Jet, no magic to them either.
Between standard and competition dies there is a difference, between brands of the same style you don't really get much more for the added money.
Pistol dies in carbide are VERY worth the extra money, buy the LEE 4die set, all other brands are the same but different prices that don't reflect any noticable additional quality or benefit. Rifle dies; Lee, Lyman, RCBS, Redding are basically the same story.
