Beginning Reloading

SamCo89

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
Im considering buying a press & starting to reload. probably 9mm,40s&w & 300wby for now.

Any press recommendations? the two guys i know that reload both use RCBS, I've looked at those as well as Hornady & Lee. Whats yalls thoughts?
 
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Eric Revo

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Can't go wrong with a RockChucker for all calibers...for pistol ammo a turrent loader can be handy too.
 

Sharps40

Old Mossy Horns
Yep. RCBS rockchucker. No need to upgrade later, no need to buy a bigger press later and no worries about it springing or wearing out like the soft alloy red stuff. I've had my Rockchucker in continuous use since I was in my early 20s.....so,...30 odd years. Ran the gamut of presses including the Fast Blue stuff....always sold them off and went back to the Rockchucker....its fast enough and dead sturdy. Heck, I even use it for an anvil over the years.....its been well abused and never fails.
 

deerhunter28

Ten Pointer
Rockchucker here for 30 plus years.
No problems whatsoever.

If you get serious with pistol reloading there are others that are way faster and a lot more expensive but will NOT produce better ammunition.


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TravisLH

Old Mossy Horns
I use a lee single stage and were i to go get one today itd be a rockchucker


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bigten

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
I guess I'm the odd man out. All I own are Lee presses, two progressives, a turret and two or three single stages. My singles are relegated to single use presses; ex: bullet pulling and depriming crimped primers. All rifle rounds and a few pistol are done on the turret with the progressives set up for pistol calibers. I really like the turret press as I have extra turrets for each caliber, so all that's needed for a change is to snap out the turret and replace with the one holding the die set needed. Change shellholder in the ram and start. Easy peasy. Oh, these have been running in excess of 30 years with no issues other than normal. They all can, and will, produce quality ammunition. I will not degrade any manufacturers product.
 
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41magfan

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
Just curious ... how many of those respective cartridges do you plan to load annually?
 
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took

Ten Pointer
Contributor
I have been using the Hornady Single Stage Classic Lock and Load for years and really like it. You can often find the whole kit on sale at Cabelas with about everything you need but the dies.

But with that, any of the major brands will work great for you - Lee, RCBS, Hornady, Dillon...
 

pinehunter

Eight Pointer
I have two Lee single stage and Lee 4 hole turret. I would start with a single stage and a rock chucker is as good as you can get. A reloading manual or three is the next necessity. Lyman 49 and Hornady make good manuals. They are a good read cover to cover. Start low, work up and be safe.
 

Guybo

Eight Pointer
Not much to add to what's already been said. I too recommend the RCBS Rockchucker press, I've been using the same one for over 30yrs with zero issues. RCBS also has excellent customer service should you ever need to use them.
 

Downeast

Twelve Pointer
I've been using Lee since the late 70's. I recently upgraded to a a 4 hole plate press and gave my old 3 holer (30 plus years old too) to a young neighbor just starting out. No complaints. I'll put my handloads up against anyone's. This past Saturday we were shooting out to 600 yards and I was consistently hitting a 3 inch bullseye with my "Lee" handloads. Not to shabby for an old fart.
 

CBD21

Eight Pointer
I use a RCBS rock chucker, Dillion 550 and 650 plus a couple lees. I recommend the rock chucker and a couple good manuals to read. The abcs of reloading is also a good read.
 

Eric Revo

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
I've been using Lee since the late 70's. I recently upgraded to a a 4 hole plate press and gave my old 3 holer (30 plus years old too) to a young neighbor just starting out. No complaints. I'll put my handloads up against anyone's. This past Saturday we were shooting out to 600 yards and I was consistently hitting a 3 inch bullseye with my "Lee" handloads. Not to shabby for an old fart.

I've used a Lee three hole turrent for well over 20 years and it's a great press, especially for pistol or straight wall rifle cases. Once you get the dies set, it's so convenient to load multiple rounds and then just set the turrent to the side, ready to go for the next round.
I sold a Dillon progressive that I was always tinkering with the get the timing just right..I never had to worry about that on my Lee turrent plates.
 

tarheelshooter

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
I have two Dillons for pistol stuff an RCBS Rockchucker and a Forster co-ax press.The reason I bring this up is that I absolutely hated the RCBS for long cartridges and that was the reason for buying the Forster. Since you will be loading a 300 Weatherby (long case) I would make sure the press has plenty of room for the case and a bullet for seating.Mine were always close to the top of the press and my fingers are a little fat so I had some issues with it. YMMV and this may be a personal preference thing than anything else.I just prefer the open front design and RCBS has one now as well as Hornady. Honestly you can't really go wrong with any of them,all have good/great customer service.
 

SamCo89

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
Just curious ... how many of those respective cartridges do you plan to load annually?

1000-2000 rounds of pistol, maybe couple hundred rounds of 300wby. I know there will be initial costs, but I like the flexibility especially with my 300.
 
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41magfan

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
1000-2000 rounds of pistol, maybe couple hundred rounds of 300wby. I know there will be initial costs, but I like the flexibility especially with my 300.

The reason I asked is because I started out loading everything on a single-stage loader and it got pretty time consuming when it came to loading for my pistols and I moved to a progressive for that stuff. I was shooting a lot more than a couple of thousand rounds a year though, so you should be OK with a single-stage at the volume you describe. I just know that high volume loading on a single-stage really isn't the way to go unless you've got a lot of free time.

I'll echo some of the advice already given and recommend RCBS products. They're CS is impeccable. I lost an essential part to my 35 year old powder measure during a move some time back and they sent me a replacement at no charge.

I've never loaded anything as long as the 300 Wby, but I would heed tarheelshooter's advice with regards to a press designed to handle the longer stuff.
 
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apexhunter

Ten Pointer
I've used a turret press for pistol ammo for years as they are faster and more than accurate enough for bulk plinking ammo. I do make sure to double check powder measure every few cases and OAL at least once every 10 rounds to assure things stay within specifications. For rifle ammo I disengage the turret and use the press in single stage mode to go through each step on all cases before switching to the next operation- basically duplicating exactly what a single stage press offers. I will grant that the turret does have a slight disadvantage to dead on accuracy from case to case but they are more than sufficient for more than 99% of the ammo I go through.
 

1SHOT1KILL

Old Mossy Horns
If you go single stage, get the Rock Chucker supreme master starter kit. That press will last you a lifetime and comes with about everything you will need in reloading, with the exception of some nice to have accessories. I've been using one for 30 years or more and between myself and my late dad, it has literally loaded over 500K rounds and is still going strong today.

If you are think about a progressive reloader, there is only one to consider, Dillon. Get the RL 550B blue machine set up in one of the cartridges you want to reload for, then get 2 additional tool heads and the 2 additional shell plates w/buttons and you are set.
 

Greg

Old Mossy Horns
If you can, find yourself an in-person mentor to show you the ropes through a few handloading sessions. It will save you a lot of time and get your questions answered and probably save you some mistakes.

Welcome, good luck, be safe.
 

PisgahBear

Button Buck
I've been using a lee press for about 20 years and have loaded everything from 22 Hornet to 300 win mag with no problems and consistant accuracy.
 

Blackwater

Twelve Pointer
There's a guy in Wake Cty. who is selling an RCBS turret press with 5 turrets, FTF for $250.00, cost 500.00. Says it's 3 months old, and in the photos it does look like new. Let me know if I can hook you up.

He does have it listed elsewhere so expediency would be of the essence.
 
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