Hornady Custom Grade vs. Lee Pacesetter .308 Dies

The Hornady has the drop down sleeve in the seating die to straighten/align the bullet up, and keep your fingers clear of being pinched.

Lee’s work well but don’t have the more refined details that Hornady or rcbs dies do. While I own a few Lee sets I’d suggest stepping up from them. Buy once cry once, fortunately in this case they don’t cost too much more.

Not cosmetically. More refined as in better able to set the dies just right. For example the lock ring on the Lee uses a rubber oring to secure it instead of a set screw to lock it in place like on the rcbs dies. I’m sure others will be better able to articulate the difference.

Scout21 said:

Are the more refined details simply cosmetic, or do they add to the usefulness of the dies?

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I have some Lee and Hornady dies.
Will they make good ammo? Sure thing
Are they as nicely machined as Hornady? No. Lee dies tend to just not have the level of finish, but as I said, they do work
Does the sleeve in the Hornady seating die work well? Yes, must work, Redding and Forster use it too
Is the ring on the Hornady die better? Yes, I hate that rubber oring
Can you can add a micrometer seater to the Hornady die? Yes, and its stinking handy

$15? Buy the Hornady set and the $6 Hornady shell holder. In the grand scheme, its efff all in a big ship for that bit of cash.

If you are loading them rounds on a progressive like the 750xl, I doubt you will see a difference in the quality of the dies. If you load on a Single Stage, like a Classic Cast or Rock Chucker, you might see a difference. But on a progressive, I think the Lee dies work smoother.

I know it’s fun to bash Lee, but they work. And I don’t call Hornady a step up from them at all. I do like the Hornady seater dies, they seem to have the plugs for different types of bullets in their lineup when other do not. And I have a tons of Hornady die rings because they “get it” by not having that set screw on the side. Either brand makes a good basic die, but I think Lee is a better value. I think RCBS dies are better than either of them, and Redding dies being what I pull out when I want to really impress folks. LOL

Just went through this. My pick, Hornady for sure:
https://www.thehighroad.org/index.p...ding-room-today.830858/page-583#post-12320818

The Lee Universal Crimp die is the only Lee die I would recommend.

I use mostly Lee dies. They work for me. I make hunting ammo, and fooling around shooting at targets ammo. I do not compete with anyone but myself and they work for me. There are better dies, Will you notice or do you need the difference, that’s the question.

Jeff

All the time, every time: buy features, not names (or colors).

I like the Hornady sleeve seater, and it's easy to add a micrometer to (and so very worthwhile), so I choose the Hornady here. The Hornady lock rings are also notably better at holding set point. The .308Win shell holder will serve you for all .30-03 descendents (.30-06, .270, .308, etc) and .45ACP.

There's nothing wrong with Lee, it just lacks a couple features I have come to value in rifle dies.

Not sure what the OP's goals are for this reloaded ammo. Benchrest stuff, or something to go bang.

I joined this forum over a year ago, and one of the first questions I asked was about which dies to buy. My question was if it was worth it to go to high end match type dies with micrometer adjustments for bullet seating. I was told no. Unless and until I got into high end competitive target shooting, with guns to match, it wouldn't matter. Any dies would be good enough for my purpose, which was to provide a source of reliable, accurate ammo for hunting rifles.

My first set of dies were Hornady American series dies in 308 Win......because over a year ago, that was all that was available. Die sets were selling for 2X retail on ebay. You bought what you could find, so I was happy to get them. Then they arrived. Two die set, with shell holder (good), spare decapping pin (good), and all that contained in a clamshell plastic package........no die box (bad). But I used them and they worked. I also had to scramble to find a box to store all that in.......about $10 with shipping. Combined, about double what a set of Lee dies would cost. Also have a set of standard RCBS dies, and as dies go, they are similar to the Hornady. Got a box with those. Also have a set of nearly 40 year old Pacific dies. All three work fine.

Since then, have picked up several of the Lee Pacesetter die sets. All are capable of loading 1 MOA or better ammo if the gun and shooter are equally up to the task. I'm also using a Lee breech lock press, so have replaced the rubber O ring lock rings with the clamp on style breech lock bushings. So for my purpose, Lee is good enough and as good as the others.

Had also been on the hunt for a high end press, and have found the little Lee gets it done too. So for my use, the Lee press and dies get it done.

The Hornady rifle dies in particular are worth it for the bullet sleeve alone. That sleeve makes a difference when seating something besides a BT bullet... at least in my experience. Their lock ring is the best design in the industry, I've actually retrofitted all of my older dies with the Hornady lock ring.

I bought a set of Lees when I got, briefly, into .44SPC... I was not impressed with them, not enough to pick them over a set of RCBS or Hornadys, even at additional cost.

I’ve been loading since the 70’s and I load a lot of different calibers and have multiple brands of die’s including RCBS, Hornady, Lyman and Lee. The Lee dies are my favorites by far. The Lee Carbide Factory Crimp die for pistols is an amazing die and I use them for all my pistol loads even with other brands of dies. They produce perfect rounds that chamber and fire every time.
Are there truly bad dies produced today? I don’t think so. They all get the job done with VERY similar results.

I love the RCBS customer service, if you ever break or ruin anything they replace it free of charge and free shipping. I had an issue with a Lee product and called their customer service, then sent me a catalog. Which went directly in to the garbage can. Most of my dies are RCBS followed by Hornaday and a couple of Lee dies. If anything happens to a die in a Lee set I toss them and go with either RCBS or Hornady.
If you will be loading up 223 for the AR platform do yourself a favor and buy the RCBS small base die set.
One on my grandsons AR rifles will not cycle ammo that was reloaded with full length dies.
Also on 223 cases alot of them have crimped primer pockets that have to be dealt with or you will have problems seating primers.

Lee's dies are easily capable of 1". And of .25". The accuracy or lack thereof is likely not going to come from the die, but rather the barrel and shooter.

Lee's dies have a higher tendency to rust than some others.

I like lees sizing die a lot. The tapered plug and collet system work well for me.

The seater works well enough, but it will deform soft point tips some. ( The still shoot fine)

I have mixed feelings about the lock ring. The new ones work better than the old hex rings. On the one hand, getting exactly the same die position is harder, on the other, the o-ring keeps the die from backing out in use. And the depth really only matters if
1) your die is adjusted not to touch the shell holder
2) you're after an unreal level of precision for bullet seating. A 20th of a turn in or out isn't going to change seating depth much.

I use both and enjoy the sleeve on the Hornady seater die but if this will be used in a bolt action I would look at the Lee set that also has the neck sizer die, they also have a set that includes a factory crimp die if you are going to crimp. I like to polish all my new dies no matter the mfg, it might take an extra minute or so on a Lee set.

I use nostly rcbs dies, customer service is fantastic. I did buy a set of Lee Rob dies and a universal expander die for loading cadt lead in a 30-30 lever action and am considering Lee dies for my 6.5x55 sweede. One thing I don't like about Lee dies is that the decapper pin is integrated with the expander ball so if it breaks you need a whole new stem. If you decide on Lee dies buy an extra sizing stem.

I replaced all my Lee rifle dies with RCBS. I do have some Lyman and Hornady dies that i use too. Happy with all 3.

Scout21 said:

I'm sure my rifle is capable of it.

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I am in no way doubting it but what evidence is this based on? Does it already shoot that well with premium factory ammunition?

I'm not sure how much difference the dies make in accuracy potential.

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They will make less difference than the shooter, rifle, projectile and probably a few other variables.

I’ll go as far as to say, the process is probably more important than the brand of die. In some cases (no pun intended) the lube and how it is applied is more important than what brand of die is used.

as a Lee Fan Boy… Lee is cheap and rough

Hornady dies are silky smooth to the press and eye’s. That drop down seater will keep you from pulling your hair out!

[QUOTE="stillquietvoice, post: 12323618, member: 238429"
If you decide on Lee dies buy an extra sizing stem.[/QUOTE]

Like I read on another post, when buying lee, buy an extra for parts.

Lee's customer service sucked when I had an issue with one of their products.

I do like some lee products
The older round Lee Auto priming tool.
The Lee bench auto prime.
The Lee Universal deprimeing die

If you spent the money for a dillion press, what's another $15 for a set of dies.