Thanks for all the input, folks, I do appreciate it. Here's a bit more info, for the record, and some assumptions I'm working under:
I shoot a little (one range trip per week), but would like to shoot a lot.
I'm a pretty careful guy and will do what it takes to be assured of valid, safe loads.
Reloading is also an effort to be more self-sufficient, you know just in case there's another ammo availability crunch.
The decision to go progressive is an effort to be more efficient.
I know me, and if I start with a single stage, I'll eventually get a progressive and the single stage will gather dust - not a wise use of money or space.
Not so, I think. As pointed out before, a single stage for your rifle caliber (unless a high-round-count semi-auto) will always be desirable.
Assumption: (I've heard this over and over) I won't save money by reloading, but will be able to shoot more for the same money.
Probably true. However, I save money over what I would have spent retail. I shoot 2 or 3 times as much as I would if not loading, but still spend less. The general rule is a pretty good truism, though.
Assumption: A turret press combines the throughput of a single-stage (4 pulls per round) with the complexity and cost of a progressive.
Not true. A turret combines NEARLY the throughput of one of he slower progressives with the simplicity of a single stage. (Caliber swaps are simpler than on a single stage and a LOT cheaper than on a progressive.)
Assumption: A progressive can be used one round at a time to tweak settings until full production is appropriate.
True, but not as conveniently as a turret or single stage. But the distinction is not all that great.
Hopefully, this clears some things up, and please let me know if I'm mistaken with any of these assumptions.
Lee makes the only two auto-indexing turret presses on the marked today. The Classic Turret is superior to the Deluxe turret.
Using a Single stage, I can produce 50 to 70 rounds per hour in batch mode.
On a turret without auto-indexing I can do (estimated) 75 to 100 rounds per hour (in continuous mode, which features a reduction in manual case handling over batch mode, but still requires one stroke of the ram per operation/multiple strokes of the ram per cartridge). I did 100 rounds in 47 minutes my first time out, including filling the components up, which a lot of loaders reporting their throughput do not include, throwing their reports off from reality). I have not clocked myself lately, but estimate that 150-175 rph within the realm of possibility. This includes boxing the finished product and starts with my powder measure already calibrated, but all components staged on my bench but not filled in hopper/bowl, primer feed etc).
Using a progressive, if you want to do less than 200 rounds before swapping calibers, you may want to re-think your choice of press. Caliber swaps can eat up a lot of time and small batches are simply not efficient considering the set-up time. That is, unless you have one progressive set up for each caliber or easily swappable pre-set cartridge carriers (expensive, but worth it if if suits your style).
Single stage: Really good for high accuracy, large case rifle calibers.
Turret: Nearly (99.5%) as good as a single stage and more convenient. Potentially faster.
Auto-indexing Turret: Definitely faster than single stage (in continuous mode). Equally as convenient as single stage.
Progressive. MUCH Faster than single stage, depending on maker/model somewhat to MUCH faster than turrets. Suitable for high volumes in large production runs. For small production runs, not so much.
Single Stage
Turret
Auto-indexing Turret
Progressive
Single Stage: 50-75 rph
Turret 50-100: rph
Auto-indexing Turret: 100-200 rph
Progressive:200-1000 rph
Single Stage: Old reliable
Turret: the new reliable
Auto-indexing Turret: reliable and faster
Progressive: takes tuning and much faster
Single Stage: economy (Lee) to moderately expensive (Redding and Forster)
Turret: a little more expensive than a single stage
Auto-indexing Turret: (Lee is the only maker and they are actually less costly than standard turrets)
Progressive: moderately expensive to stratospheric. But if they fit your needs, worth every penny.
Lost Sheep