[mastiffhound]

Yesterday while decapping (depriming) my .223 shells I was having problems. I had got 3 shells stuck the prior day. 2 to 4 shells every time I used it. The rotating tray kept getting stuck where the primers feed. It was awkwark to pull the lever and took way more force than necessary to pop a primer out of a shell and size it. I cleaned it the day before and almost every time I used it. Yes I was using case lube, I am not asking anyone to tell me how to fix that piece of hog crap. I am just listing problems the day before.

Yesterday was the final straw. Things were going ok. I hadn't had a stuck case in 20 rounds or so. Then one stuck, and it was bad! I couldn't pull or push the lever even an inch. I tried to unscrew the die with the hope that turning the case might loosen it. No dice. I then decided to push up on the handle with considerable force, I had torn the bottom of a case up before but I at least got it out of the press and took the die out. That was when the ram decided to disconect itself from the rotating shelf:cuss:. I was done, I removed the case from the die, boxed everything back up, and took it back to Cabela's. I had only had it since 5/22/12:mad:

Cabela's is only 35 to 45 minutes away so not a big deal. I had only run 102 shells through the Lee Pro 1000. When I got there they said that since I still had the box, receipt, and had it less than 90 days they would return it. When talking to the guy who works in the reloading section he told me that the Lee Pro 1000 didn't have a very good reputation and gets returned alot. I then got a Lee Breech Lock Challenger press and the parts to start back up when I got home. I was very angry, if it didn't work then Lee was going to loose a customer. My dad has used their products for around 30 or so years now.

I set up the new Lee Breech Lock when I got home. In about an hour and 45 minutes I had decapped almost 200 cases! The handle was easier to push and pull, and in general felt much sturdier. I am glad I took it back. I would recomend any other Lee loader than the Pro 1000. It is poorly manufactured in my opinion and is not worth 3 times as much as the Breech Lock. With the Breech lock it is faster to reload shells than my dad's old Lee too! All you do is set up your die in the lock and tighten it down. After that you just push a button and twist, the die comes out the new one goes in and you are on your way. Has anyone else had these kinds of problems with the Pro 1000?

[bds]

Has anyone else had these kinds of problems with the Pro 1000?
Yup. Although you can load .223/7.62x39 on Pro 1000, it is more suited for high volume pistol loads. I load .223 and .308 along with several pistol calibers but load .223 on C-H single stage or the Classic Turret press ... much more pleasant experience, especially depriming crimped primer pockets and resizing thicker walled military .308 cases.


The rotating tray kept getting stuck where the primers feed.
Pro 1000 uses gravity based primer feed system and relies on the weight of the primers in the feed ramp/primer tray to push the next primer into station #2. If you get any powder flakes in the feed ramp or feed ramp is not full of primers, you will not get reliable primer feed.

[Miata Mike]

I have 2 and would like at least one more. I have one setup strictly for 9mm and another I had dedicated to .45acp until I decided to load .38 special on it too. I am having a slow go on converting it to run smooth, but the problem I had was due to not having the ram seated deep enough before setting up the dies.

I tried to do all steps from decapping to seating all at once and had the tool head seat all the way on the ram messing up all of my die settings. I got them all reset but ran out of time. It was my fault and not the presses on that one.

I personally doubt that I would decap .223 on a Pro1000 since I trim, debur, chamfer, swage and clean primer pockets before loading. I wouldn't ever try to prime on that press without being 100% sure that there were no crimped primer pockets.

I will use the Pro1000 to decap ice cream pails of 9mm at a time, and then hand sort out all crimped brass before loading. I then prime on press with the sizing die removed and crank'em out. Nothing worse than not seating a primer and dumping powderall over the place.

My .45acp press I have been hand priming like a thousand at a time to make sure I don't get a small primer case mixed in by mistake.....another buzz kill. ;) Not my fault that manufacturers at will change their specifications. Man does that press crank'em out with the shell feeder and collator!

I guess I am far enough off topic by now.

[jmorris]

Lee makes some good stuff, their progressives and bullet feeder are an exception.

[mastiffhound]

That is what I was told right after I bought the Lee Pro. I decided to give it a try, a fair chance if you will.

[Sport45]

I won't defend the press as I've never used or even seen one. But the problem you described of cases being stuck in the sizing die doesn't sound to me like it's related at all to the press manufacturer. That was a lube issue, plain and simple.

Instead of the breech lock, did you consider the Classic Turret? It has the same mechanical advantage of their big single stage press and keeping 4 dies locked in a turret makes for very quick changes. I don't use the auto index feature on mine, never have and don't plan to start.

[ranger335v]

Cases don't 'stick' in a die because of the press, they stick because of poor lubrication and nothing else.

[mastiffhound]

I was just decapping by the way, not loading or putting primers in. I only used it single stage. That makes the Lee Pro seem worse, It couldn't even do one thing right let alone three! Maybe it just doesn't do well with rifle cartridges?

[mastiffhound]

Your right they stick because of the die. I put 3 sprays of case lube per 10 rounds in my gladlock bag directly on the cartidges. I then rolled them around to make sure they were coated. I went from that to 5, to finally 10 sprays. I still had the problems. So now that that is settled my guess is a bad die? The press had numerous problems on it's own. I follwed instuctions on assembly to the letter. I'm just glad that it is gone. I am overjoyed with the new one. Its like trading in your old 1993 Buick that keeps breaking down. Every time you turned the key you would wonder if it will leave you on the side of the road again. Or even start for that matter!

[mastiffhound]

The new press and dies are working just fine with 3 sprays of case lube per 10 rounds.

[Ken70]

"I was just decapping by the way, not loading or putting primers in."

You're resizing during that decapping operation, if you are gonna stick one in the die, that's when it will happen.

What kind of lube? I've tried the spray stuff, went back to cream, applying with my fingers or squirt some on cardboard and roll the brass on that. You can tell if you have the right lube and applied it right by how hard it is to resize a case. Night and day difference between a greasy one and something that is pretty much dry.

[kingmt]

I had problems when I first started using it but found out it was crimped primers so the problem was me not the press. This is a very nice press.

[Lost Sheep]

Sorry to hear of your troubles. I had problems with the Lee Pro-1000, but mostly it was the trouble I had trying to monitor multple simultaneous operations.

I switched to the Lee Classic Turret and am much happier.

I wish I had known of your complaints earlier. I recommend it over the Challenger, though if you will be doing only batch processing, the difference is not very much. If you want to do continuous processing, the difference is staggering.

Good luck.

Lost Sheep

[mastiffhound]

Hornady One Shot case lube is what I use. Again, I haven't had problem one with the new press or dies. I am decapping and sizing with out so much as a squeek or hard pull on the handle.

[Sport45]

Hornady One Shot case lube is what I use.

That particular lube is the one used in probably 80% or more of the stuck case stories on internet forums. YMMV

[NeuseRvrRat]

get you some imperial die wax

or just about anything other than that one shot

[mastiffhound]

I do have some Cabela's case lube but I never tried any? I thought for sure Hornady would be a better lube. I still haven't had a stuck case with the Hornady case lube though since switching the press and dies.

[franke1951]

I recently purchased a LEE Classic 4-hole press along with ancillary products that came with it. I love the auto indexing. Probably will only use my 25 year old 3-hole LEE press for larger rifle calibers.

I’ve bought several kinds of non-oily case lube, but the best I have yet used for resizing 556 mil brass is Lemon Pledge with moisturizer. It’s crazy, but it works great.

I hold about 10 cases and spray it down the necks, then just start rolling them around in my hands.
Thanks

[rem1858]

I use RCBS lube soaked into a pad.
Roll cases over pad and use cutip to apply inside case mouth.
never a problem.
Just saying...

Clarence

[Eb1]

the best I have yet used for resizing 556 mil brass is Lemon Pledge with moisturizer

WOW! Another use for pledge. You can clean Harley's with it, and also lube brass. Cool!

[Dakotared]

The Lee Pro 1000 is a great press for pistol. Well at least 9mm, 10mm, 45 acp, and .380 as I load these on a pro 1000 with no problems what so ever. So maybe it does not like 223 but I will find out soon as I will start 223 within a year.

[mastiffhound]

I just got done decapping and resizing some more 5.56, still haven't had a stuck case. I am up to over 400 done. I have taken the die out and cleaned it about every 200 shells. I couldn't get more than 40 or 50 tops without a stuck case in the last die. I also don't have to worry about the carousel getting stuck or indexing problems.

[ArchAngelCD]

Both presses are Lee and you said you changed dies. Which dies did you have and what do you now have?

Like said already, the press did not cause the stuck case problem, the lube did. Hornady One Shot is the problem. Buy and use Imperial Sizing Wax and your Lee 1000 setup would have been just fine... You really shouldn't bash a product because you made a mistake.

[kingmt]

Most people that don't know what they are doing blame there tools instead of looking to find the problem. I always look at myself first & that is where the problem is most of the time.

It is to late to teach the OP anything now because he already took the press back. He also said in his first post he didn't want to learn anything. You can't teach someone that doesn't want to learn.

[Scimmia]

Hornady One Shot case lube is what I use.

And did you let it dry as per instructions? Being faster, the Pro1000 won't let it dry as much as a single stage. Adding more and more would just exerbate the problem. The Pro1000 has it's problems, but stuck cases has nothing to do with the press. One-Shot's reputation is just as bad as the Pro1000's.

[ErikO]

I stuck a case on my Lee Cast Turret after I cleaned and DID NOT LUBE the RCBS dies that I have for .223. When you have new dies, a little wipe with low-weight oil goes a LONG way.

[mastiffhound]

Yes I let it dry per instructions. I think you missed the point of indexing problems, the primer feed sticking, the ram coming apart. That has nothing to do with the dies! I didn't even install the automatic powder charge assembly. Too many people had problems with the chain snapping. I didn't trust it. I don't blame my tools. I'm a mechanic by trade, I've had few problems with tools. I've even made tools. I do think that if I buy something it should work as advertised. I have had few problems with Matco, Snap-On, or Mac Tools. When I do ( like a impact wrench I bought and returned in the first week ) the tool is taken back and I'm credited on my account.

To answer the question about the dies, I was using the dies that came with the Pro 1000. I returned them with it. I then bought a new set, went home and proceded to never have a problem through over 400 cases now. If I had problems with this press or this die set then yes, it would logically lead me to believe it was operator error. I haven't had problem one though? So what does that say?

I am all for protecting a company's good name. But if something is faulty or subpar then others should be told. That is what consumer reports are about. If you love your Lee Pro 1000 then great. I'm not some stodgy old man that hates change. I bought the Lee Pro 1000 thinking it has to be better than my dad's old press. He told me that new fangled thing will be junk. I said you'll see I'll be pumping out rounds faster than you ever could. He called me today and I had to eat a nice big piece of humble pie.

I'm willing to bet that I'm not the only one who had problems with it. A quick search shows the Lee Pro Has a multitude of problems. All of those can't be (in reality, not fanboy or I work for Lee and will defend them to the death) operator induced can they? Don't get me wrong I like Lee, American companies are a dying breed. If you make junk you should pay. Ask Toyota how the last few years have been, recalls hurt. Faster and cheaper has become the norm, well built and long lasting has become something that is hard or impossible to find. A quick search on Lee Breech Lock problems shows alot of people asking about them and being recomended but not having alot of problems. Go figure..

[mastiffhound]

I did learn something, Don't buy the Lee Pro 1000.

[ZXD9]

I had problems with .223 in my Pro 1000 too when using Hornady One Shot. Changed to Lee lube and never had an issue again.

[zxcvbob]

I like Lee products. I would not buy one of their progressive presses (just don't trust 'em) but have just about everything else.

The stuck cases were not a press problem, it might have been bad dies but more likely was a lube failure -- you either used the wrong stuff or didn't apply it properly (or at all.) Don't worry about it, everybody does that at least once.

Get some Dillon spray lube -- and make sure you let it dry -- or Kiwi Mink Oil.

[ranger335v]

A quick search shows the Lee Pro Has a multitude of problems. All of those can't be (in reality, not fanboy or I work for Lee and will defend them to the death) operator induced can they?

Yeah, actually, they could; you need to understand that not a lot of people have a lot of mechanical experience or even aptitude. Progressive presses have quite a few more moving parts than Snap-on, Matco, etc, end wrenches. And saying you didn't 'trust' this or that doesn't mean it actually failed does it?

The usual reason people have those Lee powder measure chains break is because they didn't set the thing up correctly and then ignored it in operation until they broke it. But if you improperly set up the brakes on a Chevy Malibu and they don't work right it's really not a Malibu problem is it?

Cases don't stick in sizers because of the press, they stick because of a lack of lube. There's no question that 95% of the stuck cases we hear of on the net occur with OneShot. I read and follow instructions so it's never happened to me but it seems some either don't allow the carrier to evaporate OR fail to shake the can to mix the lube and carrier. Failure to shake and keep it shaken leads to most of the lube being used early and only carrier/propellent being left towards the end of the can; propellant is a lousy lube no matter how much you spray it or how long you let it dry. Does any of that sound possible to you?

[Lost Sheep]

(Edited for brevity)

I'm willing to bet that I'm not the only one who had problems with it. A quick search shows the Lee Pro Has a multitude of problems. All of those can't be (in reality, not fanboy or I work for Lee and will defend them to the death) operator induced can they? Don't get me wrong I like Lee, American companies are a dying breed. If you make junk you should pay. Ask Toyota how the last few years have been, recalls hurt. Faster and cheaper has become the norm, well built and long lasting has become something that is hard or impossible to find. A quick search on Lee Breech Lock problems shows alot of people asking about them and being recomended but not having alot of problems. Go figure..
Ever buy a gun that just didn't meet your expectations after you lived with it for a while, even though it was a good quality gun? It was just not a good fit for you. (This example is not quite analogous, but you will get the idea if you read on.)

Echoing Ranger335V, yes, they can be operator error.

A design that prevents operator error from causing problems would have fewer reports (look at the early Apple Operating System vs the early Microsoft Operating System). Apple's design was more robust and tightly controlled in development. MS was much more open and varied and crashed a LOT more.

Or take a look at pets. You don't expect a cat to come when you call it. A dog, you do. Is it the fault of the cat or is it a fault of unrealistic expectations for the DESIGN of the cat?

Certain functions of the Pro-1000 require constant attention (primer feed, for example). If you don't recognize that fact, it can be as frustrating as calling a cat to come. But don't blame the press. While it is a shortcoming of the press, it is a shortcoming of the operator not to adapt his/her operating technique to the tool. Or switch tools.

But it doesn't make the press a bad press. It just makes it a poor fit for the way you reload. I know it was a poor fit for the way I reload, so I got a Lee Classic Turret, which does fit and I am much happier.

The Pro-1000 costs one-third the price of a Dillon Square Deal and is one-third the press. To me, that's a wash.

Lost Sheep

[straitnate14]

There's nothing wrong with the lee 1000, and there is no cheap way to progressively load rifle ammo, if you have problems with the indexing you are short stroking the press or you have it adjusted wrong. The chain that the include for the powder dropper is fine, the spring is to stiff. It needs to be replaced with the spring put of a ballpoint pen. If you want to use the priming system you have to watch the chute to make sure it stays full. I have no problems with any of my lee 1000's I like to tinker with things as I am also a mechanic but I don't buy the cheapest tool I can find and expect it to be perfect the lee 1000 is great for what it cost but my rifle ammo gets done on a single stage.

[Gtimothy]

I have two LeePro1000 presses but I only use them for straight walled pistol calibers. I reload my Rifle rounds on my Lee turret press.

The dies that come with the LeePro1000 in .223 need to be used with case lube! I think the reason the OP's press started to come apart was because of the force he was applying to pull the stuck cases out of the die. The other issues are known issues with Lee presses and there are fixes for them..

IMHO, LeePro1000s are decent entry level presses for people who are just testing the waters to see if they "really" want to start reloading. If you have the patience to get the Pro1000 working right, then it will do its job well enough until you can take the next step up in equipment quality.

Not everyone can afford a "Blue" press right from the start!:rolleyes:

[mastiffhound]

I must be typing in greek? I used lube, I followed the directions to a T and still had the problems. If it was something I wasn't doing right then the new die would have had the same problem. Guess what, it hasen't. 681 cases decapped and sized now! Not a single case was even close to a problem. I then decapped and sized 50 .45 Colt cases. Guess what, still no problem. I had plenty of lube, the same amount as I always have, 3 sprays and good to go. They were let dry like it says on the bottle. Yes I shook the bottle. NO, I do not work on tools. I use tools to work on cars, I'm a mechanic not a salesman. I'm positive a car has more moving parts than a Lee Pro 1000 press.

Maybe my expectations were too high. I must be getting old. I always expect every thing to work when I pay money for a new product and set it up per instructions. I used to by beater cars for $150 to $300 when I was a kid. Now a beater costs $1200, my niece is looking. Most needed brakes, tune ups, brake lines, head gaskets, heads, or many other things that are too long to list. When I paid for a used car I expected to have to put some work into it. When I got a little older I started buying new cars. If they would have had a problem I would have been angry. I just expected perfection when I bought a brand new car and then a pick-up.

The point is I shouldn't have to dicker around with something that is brand spanking new. If it has so many problems and quirks maybe they should put in the instructions that your going to have to use coat hangers, spit-balls, gum, and duct tape to make this press work properly. If you bought light bulbs, dvd players, safes, dead bolt locks, or lets say an AR-15 ( let me guess, you didn't use enough lube will be the answer) new and they didn't work properly (happens every day or is that all operator error too?) even though you had followed the instructions you would send or take it back. I have seen people on here ask for advice on sending an AR back just because the front sight gas block is canted by .000001 degrees. Everyone hates getting something new and even though they've followed directions something still doesn't work.

I love the new press, haven't had problem 1 with it. Maybe I just expect too much when something says "Made In America. I must just be too old, I remember when that meant well built, like a tank. Must have been my old late 60's steel Tonka Truck.

[Sport45]

I don't doubt you had problems with the first press and understand you hated it.

It's just the problem you elaborated on in the opening post had nothing to do with the press.

It could be you still have a lube problem that you are overcoming by using a press with a better mechanical advantage. You'll know for sure if you find it easier to rip the rim off the next stuck case. :)

[Lost Sheep]

I must be typing in greek? I used lube, I followed the directions to a T and still had the problems. If it was something I wasn't doing right then the new die would have had the same problem. Guess what, it hasen't. 681 cases decapped and sized now! Not a single case was even close to a problem. I then decapped and sized 50 .45 Colt cases. Guess what, still no problem. I had plenty of lube, the same amount as I always have, 3 sprays and good to go. They were let dry like it says on the bottle. Yes I shook the bottle. NO, I do not work on tools. I use tools to work on cars, I'm a mechanic not a salesman. I'm positive a car has more moving parts than a Lee Pro 1000 press.

(truncated for brevity)
Same operator working the same way, problem disappears? Different press and different die?

Conclusion: It might be the press or it might be the die or it might be the combination of press and die.

90% sure it has to be the die that was faulty.

It is nearly impossible for the press alone to be at fault. The ram goes up, the ram goes down. Simple.

It could be an interaction between the die and press (because the Pro-1000 has a rotating shell plate, it could be improperly adjusted for alignment). It is unlikely you would have missed noticing this.

Lost Sheep

[joed]

Like said already, the press did not cause the stuck case problem, the lube did. Hornady One Shot is the problem.
The biggest problem with using the One Shot is you have to shake the can before using it. Fail to do this and sooner or later you will get a stuck case.

I've used the stuff for 10 years and that is the only flaw I can find with it.

[angus6]

Hornady One Shot case lube is what I use. Again, I haven't had problem one with the new press or dies. I am decapping and sizing with out so much as a squeek or hard pull on the handle.

:banghead::banghead: