OK, I know, I know... "Get a Dillon" is the mantra... but:
I just couldn't spend that much on a press. So I bought a Lee Loadmaster set up for .45ACP, factory crimp die, and the case collater.
It arrived yesterday, so let me give you a brief overview of my night:
7:45 PM - off to the workshop to set it up
8:00 PM - It is bolted to the bench
9:00 PM - Dies are set
9:30 PM - Powder feed and case feed set up, adjusted, and functioning
9:45 PM - The primer feeder is set up and adjusted to correct primer depth
10:00 PM - ~20 rounds loaded, going very slowly, checking each case at each stage (primer, powder, expansion). Had to tweak the case feeder 2 times to get it right (a little lube helped allot too).
10:15 PM - 75 more rounds loaded up and in boxes without incident, all else cleaned up (powder + primers), me astounded at the speed and ease of the loading (very satisfying to see complete cartidges popping out of the press every few seconds!).
So, I'm a pretty satisfied customer. There was an initially quality issue on the powder measure. I'll have to get it replaced, but fortunately I had one from my turret press to use.
Lee gets a bad wrap, and it is no doubt deserved, for the terrible "manual" if for nothing else. This is not a machine for those who are not mechanically inclined, if only because of the directions that come with it. If I had not watched the videos on You-Tube about how to set it up, I'd have been screwed, and I am an engineer by trade and training.
I'll give another update after more rounds are through it, but for $215 for the press with dies, powder measure, and case feeder my initial impression is this thing is a steal for the mechanically inclined. The $10 case collater is amazingly efficient. Works just as advertised.
I just couldn't spend that much on a press. So I bought a Lee Loadmaster set up for .45ACP, factory crimp die, and the case collater.
It arrived yesterday, so let me give you a brief overview of my night:
7:45 PM - off to the workshop to set it up
8:00 PM - It is bolted to the bench
9:00 PM - Dies are set
9:30 PM - Powder feed and case feed set up, adjusted, and functioning
9:45 PM - The primer feeder is set up and adjusted to correct primer depth
10:00 PM - ~20 rounds loaded, going very slowly, checking each case at each stage (primer, powder, expansion). Had to tweak the case feeder 2 times to get it right (a little lube helped allot too).
10:15 PM - 75 more rounds loaded up and in boxes without incident, all else cleaned up (powder + primers), me astounded at the speed and ease of the loading (very satisfying to see complete cartidges popping out of the press every few seconds!).
So, I'm a pretty satisfied customer. There was an initially quality issue on the powder measure. I'll have to get it replaced, but fortunately I had one from my turret press to use.
Lee gets a bad wrap, and it is no doubt deserved, for the terrible "manual" if for nothing else. This is not a machine for those who are not mechanically inclined, if only because of the directions that come with it. If I had not watched the videos on You-Tube about how to set it up, I'd have been screwed, and I am an engineer by trade and training.
I'll give another update after more rounds are through it, but for $215 for the press with dies, powder measure, and case feeder my initial impression is this thing is a steal for the mechanically inclined. The $10 case collater is amazingly efficient. Works just as advertised.