What Press

[cidd11]

I'm taking a reloading class this fall . I would like to get your opinion on what press to buy. I will only be doing Handgun reloads, No rifle.
The Lee loadmaster is around 200.00 $ And the RCBS Pro 2000 is about 425.00$.
What makes the RCBS so much more expensive ? I am only reloading for myself, I'm not looking to pump out 1000s of rounds a day. Maybe 1000 rounds a month.

Thanks , I'm sure I will have a lot more questions coming.

Chuck

[kodiak1]

cidd11 Any press will do the trick for you, the Lee will work fine.
The RCBS is more expensive because of the quality (this is my opinion only) In all the years I have been reloading I have only heard of 1 RCBS's being broken (major break) I have heard of probably 5 or 6 Lee's being broken.
I have a Redding Single stage
A C&H4D 3 stage my oldest 25 + years old this has been a great press.
I also have a Dillon 650 this is way over kill for the way you are talking. If you want to reload a lot of bullets in a short time it is the way to go. You have to spend a lot of time setting it up for each head.
Pick one and have fun. Ken.

[versifier]

The two biggest differences are quality and customer service, but neither one of those presses is at all appropriate for a beginner. You may not agree with my opinion, but it comes from 35 years of handloading experience and 20 years of teaching it to others.

If you are considering a progressive press before ever having loaded a single round, you are putting the cart before the horse.

When you are starting out, you need to learn the basics of the reloading process first, and you ought to be doing it on a single stage press. That way, you can concentrate on one operation at a time and gain a thorough understanding of everything that has to happen at each step in the process. While none of it is rocket science (except interior and exterior ballistics), there is a LOT of information you need to learn, and trying to learn it all at once while learning to run a complicated machine like a progressive press is not, in my opinion, very realistic from standpoints of both practicality and especially safety.

I have taught reloading for many years to many students. All of them started out on single stage presses, and many of them have later upgraded when their needs and experience called for it. Not one of them has ever had an accident. When you have the experience of more than a few thousand rounds of different calibers and case styles under your belt, and you know how much you actually need to be loading to keep up with your shooting demands, then you will be in a much better position to be able to judge what kind of progressive (or turret) press would be an appropriate upgrade, or if in fact you will need to upgrade at all. Most handloaders are well served by single stage presses for all their loading needs.

If I were you, I would look into buying a single stage starter kit from one of the big names like RCBS, Lyman , Hornady, etc. It will contain everything you need (press, priming tool, scale, powder measure, loading block, lube pad, chamfer/deburring tool...) to get started at a substantial savings over buying everything separately. One reloading manual should come with it, but a wise handloader has at least two, and three or four is even better. The reason: you will need a way to compare and evaluate loading data because test firearms and components are different for every source.

Manuals should be your first purchases, before you even think about any tools. Reading them all will give you a much better understanding of what is going on and when you take your loading course, you will get much more out of it that if you were starting cold.

[cidd11]

Thank you guys for that advice. I have watched a couple different videos on reloading so when I take the class I won't be completely lost. Now I think I will wait to get a press until after I take the class.

On a single stage press do you have to readjust the dies each time you put them in?

Thanks

[kodiak1]

cidd11 once you get your die set you lock your lock ring and you will have some minor tweaking next time you go to use it but you are very close. Always check each and every time you set up a die half a minute of checking can save you a real booboo.
Ken.

[versifier]

Once you are set up, all you have to adjust is your seater die if you are switching bullets. You might want to make a minor adjustment here and there as you learn more about what is going on, but once set, you are good to go. (If you switch presses, then you will have to reset everything.) I have several die sets whose adjustments I have not changed in over thirty years. I still double check things every time, though - it's a good habit to get into. See what kind of press your instructor recommends - he ought to have several different kinds for you to check out (I keep three, two SS and a turret). The manuals will explain things in much greater depth than the videos will and be a lot more help to you before the class starts and during it, too. I would start with Sierra and Lyman.

[dardascastbullets]

Hi Cidd,

You have to ask yourself how much time do you currently have available (and will have available in the future) to reload 1,000 rounds per month. If you have ALOT of time then a single stage press will fit your bill. If you do not have ALOT of time and you want to reload your rounds in one sitdown session then a progressive press will be the way to go.

I trust that this information will help you in your decision making.

Matt Dardas
Dardas Cast Bullets
www.dardascastbullets.webs.com

[runfiverun]

for handguns a progressive is the way to go, for about 350.00 you can get a dillon 550.
simple easy to operate and fairly fast.
these are well built machines with an awesome warranty.
if you are gonna shoot 1000 rds a month you may wanna spend time shooting and not reloading. or fighting with a machine.

[Hunter]

I agree, getting started in reloading you need to learn on a single stage.
Trying to learn reloading and operating a progressive at the same time will make it tougher.
I prefer Hornady first and RCBS second.
With the L-N-L set up you only have to set the dies up once, and with the Get Loaded promotion it is a tough deal to beat.

[reloader45]

To start out for pistol try the RCBS partner press kit,I use this press just for pistol short strok and has a very good set up with the kit. So far about 40,000 rounds from .380 auto to 45 colt and all in between.