lee loader 22 Hornet

[barberx]

I'm getting my first handi in 22 Hornet, I have loading stuff except dies. however I'm tempted to get a Lee Loader- seems to fit into the idea of handi rifles. has anyone else used that setup ? any problems with thin rims of hornet cases distorting ??  I also saw several recommendation as to use of collet dies with Hornet,  any opions on this as opposed to partial resizing with regular dies ??
Richard TX
www.barber@axs4u.net

[MSP Ret]

I have used Lee Loaders in .38 Special/.357, 30/30, 45-70, .340 Weatherby Mag., 7x57 Mauser, .35 Remington and several others. They all work great!!! Since they use nothing that touches the rim there is no problem with distorting it....<><.... :grin:

[barberx]

Thanks for quick reply,  I was referring to the force needed on head when driving into size die .  The only lee Loader I tried I used a small pc. of hardwood rather than hitting case directly, I guess this is good practice.
Richard

[Paul5388]

I think you would be better served by getting a bench press and dies for it.  I use Lee collet dies that are included in the Lee Deluxe Die Set.  Collet die use will probably extend case life and seems to provide good accuracy.

I'm still using the same press and accessories I bought in 1973, so it's pretty much a one time purchase if you get something besides the cheapest Lee setup (I like the looks of the Lee cast iron Classic for a lot less money than my RCBS Rockchucker).

[Steelbanger]

I haven't got a Handi Rifle but I do use two Contenders in 22 Hornet and only load using the Lee collet die. I haven't full length sized a Hornet case in years and yet they continue to work in my Contenders. I recommend the Lee Collet Die.

[AZ223]

I started using the Lee Loaders recently, and they work fine on small rifle calibers like my .223. More effort to resize the .30-06, but not unreasonable. The problem I ran into was resizing thick .357 brass; I needed a heavy hammer to get them flush in the die, and that's just more work than I want to do. Plus I hit my thumb once, so I said forget it. :oops: For $60, I ordered the Lee cast press and added the necessary die set for .357 for the time being. If you're thinking of reloading for bigger calibers in addition to the .22 Hornet, go for the cast press.

[ScatterGunner]

i use a lee loader on my hornet all the time, almost exclusively.

i have to keep the cases trimmed otherwise i get a lot of cracked necks, but that may be a quirk to my barrel.

sg

[Leftoverdj]

I tried that many years ago. Had trouble. Now I like Lee Loaders, used them in half a dozen calibers. All I am saying is that I had trouble with one particular Lee Loader in .22 Hornet.

Hornet brass is very thin and very delicate. The flaring tool in the kit barely flared. Improvised methods flared too much. I got a lot of crumbled cases when the corner of a bullet caught on the neck. I got more when I tried to crimp the overflared cases back to straight.

In this one case, I would not try the Lee Loader again.

[ScatterGunner]

if you are using gas checked cast bullets with the lee loader, you will probably run into lots of problems.

i crumpled a lot of shells when driving the bullet home because the corner caught the case. even chamfering the case mouth didn't help because it was so thin. expanding the mouth shortens case life in my experience.

we, being cast bullet hornet shooters,  should lobby hornady and lyman for boat tail gas checks, we would also need special anvils for our sizers too.

sg

p.s. - lyman makes a great 37 grain mould that i shoot almost exclusively.

[cheatermk3]

"...Hornet brass is very thin and delicate"

Why I don't shoot/load for the Hornet.  

I think that the long 12 degree shoulder has a lot to do with it also--the crushing/folding of the neck.  I swithced to the 218BEE and never looked back.

I guess it just takes more finesse than I've got to handload the Hornet.

[barberx]

Cheatermk3, did you rechamber a 22 hornet to 218 Bee or
has anyone done this in order to use stronger case ??
Richard

[cattleskinner]

I've been using Lee loaders for about the last year, and I like them alot.  I'm using one for .223, and another in .44mag.  Like was said before, the .223 is easy to neck size with, but the .44 is a little more troublesome.  The key that I've found, is to use plenty of case lube for the pistol brass, and after the first three rounds or so, they pretty well slide into the loader without much effort.  Use a one of those rubber two sided hammers(one side yellow, and the other black), and you shouldn't have too much trouble.  Some say that they are kind of cheap, but I just think that they are like the rifles we all like...they have a few quirks that need to be learned before they are a joy to use.  It's slow, but that makes it so that you can inspect the brass, as you handle it and get it prepped to load...reduces chances of accidents.  Needless to say, I like them.

~~~Cattleskinner

[cheatermk3]

Cheatermk3, did you rechamber a 22 hornet to 218 Bee or
has anyone done this in order to use stronger case ??
Richard

Richard, I was offered a Topper Hornet for $100 by my friend/gunsmith.  I said "if it was a BEE I' take it in a flash".  Next time I stopped by his place, he'd recut the chamber and I think he had to cut the extractor a bit too.  Naturally, I snapped it up.  I already had a 218 in a Marlin 94 and had a bad taste in my mouth from my experiences with a Hornet many years previously.

It worked out great except that I had to F/L size my brass so it'd work in all 3 of my rifles(Ihave a #1 ruger too).  Knowing what I do now I'd keep the brass for each rifle separate but I went the lazy route and wound up losing cases from excessive stretching after only 5-8 loadings.  Neck sizing only they should last a lot longer, but that's a guess.  Someone I knew wanted that little rifle bad and offered me $200 for it so I sold it.  I killed thousands of PDs with that rifle shooting max loads of IMR 4227 and
40gn vmaxes.  That load was good for about 2900fps out of the Handi.  Modern powders would probably improve the velocity.