Rookie help

Might as well break down and buy a Hornady, Speer, or Lyman reloading manual. You will need it anyway.

They offer about the clearest step-by-step instructions of any book I am aware of.

rcmodel

I too am a rookie. I decided to go with the Lee Classic Turret. Find a kit that has the following: Press, dies & measuring device. I then purchased the following: Scale, Caliper, brass tumbler (AND MEDIA!), storage bins and components. I would also suggest a bullet puller.

I believe you can get started for under $500, but its closer to 1k if you want to get the best deals on bullets, primers, powder and brass (if you dont have any).

I know I am still missing some things but this will at least let me start my reloading. If you can find someone locally to show you the ropes or help walk you through the concepts as well as share their experiences with certain loads, it will be a huge help.

Hi coloradokevin,

I just got started several months ago. I got the RCBS Rockchucker kit. It's awsome. There were a few other things I needed:

1) Tumbler/case cleaner - I use my kids rock tumbler. It works great for small batches.
2) Case trimmer - Still need one. I've done a couple batches of .223, but to do any more I need to trim. Not sure what kind to get.
3) Dies and shell holders - These are all caliber specific. Wherever you get your kit, they can help you. The shell holders will work for multiple cals.
4) Components - Cases, primers, powder and projectiles. For .223 I have only used Varget.

*For .223, get a primer pocket swager. Some of the brass has a crimp on the pocket, and we don't want to do that thread again!

I believe you can get started for under $500, but its closer to 1k if you want to get the best deals on bullets, primers, powder and brass (if you dont have any).

Click to expand...

You should be able to get started for under $300 with the classic turret. Check out www.kempfgunshop.com, they seem to have the best price on the classic turret. It doesn't come with the scale but I would suggest a different scale anyway. I own a classic turret and load 9mm, 38/357, 45 and 223 and it has been a great press for me. I am very happy with the quality of the ammo and the quality of the press. If you buy it from Kempf then I would suggest you upgrade to the Pro Auto Disk and the Lg & Sm safety prime. Here are some things you will need.
Rifle;
Dies,
Trimmer,
Chamfer/debur tool,
Case lube,
Double disk kit,
and of course components.

Pistol;
Dies and components.

You will also want a bullet puller, caliper and some way to clean the brass. I find a vibratory tumbler to be the easiest. If you buy an extra turret for each caliber then you can change quick and leave your dies set up.
Rusty

Have a look at the RCBS Beginner's Kit. Gives you everything you need less dies and shell holder. I think Lee makes a beginner's kit too. With either kit you'll need a set of dies and a shell holder for each cartridge.

and you can get started for as low as 20.00 if you wanted a lee classic loader. However check out the links below.

http://www.leeprecision.com/cgi/catalog/browse.cgi?1206579282.3208=/html/catalog/anivers.html

http://www.leeprecision.com/cgi/catalog/browse.cgi?1206579282.3208=/html/catalog/rlpress2.html

+1 on a good manual. A kit isn't a bad idea. The ideal solution would be finding someone who is getting out of reloading, or has been in for a while and has extra goodies. Several of my buddies have started, and I have made it a point to find extra gear I have and pass it along.

Post what your shopping list looks like, and we'd be glad to point out what's missing.

Also, the NRA runs reloading workshops, here is the nearest one in CO (assuming your name is a hint):

http://www.nrahq.org/education/training/find.asp?State=CO&Type=MetalCart

Check the local papers, internet auctions, places like craigslist.com, etc., for local deals. Garage sales are sometimes great time investments (Saturday morning workout: take your bike for a ride around the neighborhood - get exercise, save gas, easy to park, and stop frequently for sales. A backpack would be a good thing to have).

Caveat about buying used via Gunbroker, etc: shipping WILL eat your lunch.

My 2 cents: decide what you "eventually" want to have and go for it, or at least, work towards it. I got into this by nickling and diming myself. I bought one piece here and another there. Thought I was making good deals and saving money until I realized the S&H was killing me. I would have been much better off had I just bought the Lee Turret Press Kit to start with.

Q

Quoheleth makes a good point... I picked up my entire setup off of craigslist for $250 under the premise that I unbolted everything myself and swept the garage when I was done.

Good idea.

be really carefull on internet ads. what sometimes looks like a good thing is not. take ebay for instance. at one time that was a really good site to go to. prices were really good. However lately if you check the price of stuff being sold. Compare it to other sites you will find that people are just trying to rip people off. there are peole who will get sale ads from cabelas or midway then post stuff on ebay at maybe 15-20 dollars higher than the adds with a high shipping. you see it then buy it. or bid on it. when it closes the guy pays cabelas then has them ship it to your house. thats the latest scam out there.

If anything if your looking at lee. just buy direct. the shipping charge is only 4.00 with that you can buy a good kit. then you also need to get the dies. maybe even a lee modern reloading book. Then have it all shipped to you for only 4.00. if you compare to midway or cabelas you will wind up paying more money or about the same as they always get you on the shipping charge. Especially midway. they are about the highest on shipping. Instead of charging you a shipping charge that it cost to send you the items they charge you a lot more to make money off of that too.

In addition to the good advice you'll get here on THR, hopefully you're relatively close to a sportsmen's or shooting club. You can usually find some members there that roll their own that might be helpful "in-person" in setting up the system you eventually get.... and could be valuable helping to resolve that shell plate that just isn't behaving or the auto-primer that's flipping the primers upside down and needs adjustment.

Welcome to THR. No such thing as a silly question if you don't know the answer. Lots of smart folks here very willing to help you.

Coloradokevin........I live in SW Denver.

Send me an email.......we can talk about some stuff that'll be useful to get your new program off the ground. Maybe avoid breaking your bank.......

FJ Lee Denver CO

Since you want to do BOTH pistol AND rifle, and several calibers of each, my best advice to you is a turret press. The single stage presses like Rockchuckers require you to do each step individually in batches, and then change dies for each batch.
For example, first you resize/deprime 100 cases. Change die. Hand prime 100 cases. Then you flare and charge the powder for 100 cases. Change die. Then you seat bullets and crimp 100 cases. (unless you crimp in a 4th die, then, change die again, and crimp 100 cases!)

The issue is that you have to physically change dies each step. This means you need to run a lot of cases through each step to make it worth the time. Thus, you don't have any finished ammo until all the cases have gone through the previous processes. (Or, you change dies for each case three times... tedious!)

A turret press mounts the dies in a single metal turret plate that holds all the dies, to change calibers, you have a turret plate for each caliber, then you just pull off the turret and put on the turret for the different caliber, change the shell holder, and away you go.

Some turret presses automatically index the turret around for you, others you move it yourself, but what that gets you is a finished round of ammo after 3 pulls of the handle.

I am partial to Lee's Classic Cast Turret press because I like Lee's powder through expander setup that is case actuated- means it automatically dumps the powder for you, and it won't dump unless there's a case there.

A turret is a good compromise between a progressive and a single stage, and you can get a Lee Classic Cast Turret press for a good deal with a kit setup.

Check out Kempf's for a nice package deal.

You will need:

Lee turret press reloading kit- this includes the autodisk powder measure and reloading scale.

Dies of appropriate caliber plus a turret plate for each caliber of dies.

Kinetic bullet puller, also called a mistake-eraser.

I strongly advise a tumbler because clean brass loads so much better and does not tear up your dies and equipment.

Also an inexpensive stainless-steel caliper for measuring your ammo.

I wrote this with the hope that someone could write a companion piece on what you need for single-stage reloading. The Classic Turret is probably the most recommended press on the forum, but posts addressing new reloaders are often a bit of a mess with regards to recommendations. I appreciate and anticipate your feedback, and I hope this becomes a sticky, much like DaveInFloweryBranchGA's has. Dave's post is great, but it is ambiguous and I know it left me with just as many questions when I started.


One question that pops up constantly is "what do I need to start reloading?" There are dozens (if not hundreds) of threads like this and everyone has their own opinion and advice is generally very good. One of the most commonly recommended presses is the Lee Classic Turret Press. This thread is specifically for people interested in starting out with that press, along with specific item recommendations. The specific items mentioned are geared towards those with a limited budget. They may not be the cheapest choices, but they are not the most expensive and represent in an excellent value. All of the items described are available from MidwayUSA.com, but they are not the sole vendor and it would be wise to shop around.

Stuff you Need for pistol:

-Reloading Manual (Modern Reloading, by Richard Lee)
READ THIS FIRST. Read it before you open all of the other boxes. In fact, you might want to purchase it before you get everything else. The first part of the book deals with the mechanics of reloading. After reading it, if reloading doesn't sound good to you, send your stuff back. This manual also has a vast amount of load data in it. As a beginning reloader, you should follow the load data as gospel. A reloading manual is an important safety item. Speer, Lyman, and Hornady also publish excellent manuals, but I included the Lee manual here since it focuses a lot on Lee equipment and will make things a little easier for a novice.

-A sturdy reloading bench
A heavy work bench is ideal, but a portable "Work Mate" bench can be used if space is tight. If possible, bolt the press to table and bolt the table to the floor.

-Lee Classic Turret Press (4-hole)
The focal point of your reloading setup. This is an auto-indexing press meaning that the turret head will turn with each stroke, bringing a different die in line with the ram. On older single stage presses, you only had one die in the press at once, requiring you to readjust the die every time you placed it into the press. In my hands, I can turn out approximately 175-200 pistol rounds per hour with the Classic Turret.

-Scale (Frankford Arsenal Micro Electronic or RCBS 505 Beam)
You absolutely, positively NEED to measure the charges thrown by your powder measure, regardless of the brand you choose. Over- and under-loaded cartridges both pose serious safety risks to your gun, your face, your hand, and your life. Reloading is not cooking: eyeballing it is not enough. 1/7000th or 2/7000ths of a pound can be the difference between a safe and unsafe load.

-Calipers (Frankford Arsenal Digital)
Much like your scale, calipers are the next step in the safety equation. The OAL (OverAll Length) or COL (Case Overall Length) is important because it influences pressure (i.e., safety) as well as reliable feeding in your firearm.

-Check weights (RCBS Standard Scale Check Weights)
Your scale is useless if it's not accurate. Do not use a bullet, as these can vary in weight from one to the other.

-Lee Pro Auto Disk Powder Measure
This is how you dispense powder into, or charge, cases. It works in conjunction with a powder-through die, and dispenses powder as the case is raised into the die. The pistol die (included in the Lee 4-die set) also flares the case mouth for bullet seating. The measure uses a series of disks with small holes in it to measure powder.

-Lee 4-die set in caliber of your choice
Includes your sizing/decapping die, powder-through/expanding die, seating die, and factory crimp die. A *very light* coat of CLP or similar product on the exterior of the die will keep it from rusting.

-Lee Large & Small Safety Prime set
This device allows you to prime your cases on the press. It's cheaper to buy the large and small at the same time than to get them separately. They accommodate large and small primers, both pistol and rifle, standard and magnum.

-Lee Auto Disk Powder Measure Riser
This is necessary if you are using the Safety Prime and the Auto Disk Powder measure. This is nothing more than a tube that raises the height of the Auto Disk so it does not hit the Safety Prime while you operate the press.

-Safety Glasses (shooting glasses work fine)
In the unlikely event your pop a primer while reloading, safety glasses will minimize the chance of getting debris in your eyes.


Highly Recommended

-Tumbler and Media Separator (Frankford Arsenal)
This device will clean your brass. Clean brass can prolong the life of your dies and can feed more reliably in your firearm. Plus, shiny brass looks nice!



Nice to Have

-Plastic Ammo Boxes
The cardboard and styrofoam boxes from factory ammo wear out. For a $1 or $2 each, these make a handy addition for separating and storing loaded ammo.

-Miscellaneous jars and containers
You have to store brass and bullets somehow, right?

-Bullet puller (RCBS)
Everyone makes mistakes, especially in the beginning. A bullet puller is an "eraser" and will save you money so you don't have to discard perfectly good powder, cases, primers, and bullets just because you didn't charge or seat correctly.

-Lee Adjustable Charge Bar for Auto Disk
This replaces the disk in the Auto Disk powder measure with an adjustable bar with a micrometer-like setup, enabling you to fine tune loads that can not be obtained with the standard disk sizes.


By now you're thinking, that's great, but what about rifle? Well, here's the additional stuff you'll need/want for rifle.


Additional stuff you need for rifle:

-Lee 3-Die rifle set
Includes the full-length sizer/decapper, seating die, and factory crimp die.

-Lee Rifle charging powder die
This is not caliber specific. It enables you to charge using the auto disk powder measure.

-Lee double disk kit
This essentially doubles the powder throwing capability of your Auto Disk. You will need this to charge most rifle cases.

-Case lubricant (Imperial Sizing Wax)
You need case lube for sizing bottleneck cases. Failure to use case lube (or not enough of it) will result in cases becoming stuck in your sizing die. I recommend Imperial Sizing Wax due to it low cost and ease of use. It feels like Chap Stick on your fingers and comes off with a simple rag or paper towel. Other options include lube pads and aerosol lubes.

-Lee Zip Trim
This acts like a lathe, spinning the case so you can trim them.

-Lee Case Length Gauge (caliber specific)
Determines the trim-to length of your cases and attaches to a Lee cutter. Cases will generally need to be trimmed after a while due to case expansion during firing and sizing. Failing to trim cases can result in failures to chamber.

-Lee Case Trimmer
Attaches to your case length gauge and actually cuts the mouth of the case to length.

-Chamfer/Deburr Tool (RCBS Chamfer and Deburring Tool)
This is used after trimming to chamfer and deburr the case mouth. Can also be used to remove a primer crimp.



Highly Recommended

-Lee Primer Pocket Cleaner
Clean primer pockets enable more consistent and reliable seating of primers.

-Stuck Case Remover (Hornady)
If you get a case stuck in your sizing die, this will help you get it out. It's not much more than a drill bit, tap, and screw set, but can be very useful.


Once you are done shopping, these pages will help you get started:
http://www.leeprecision.com/cgi/cata...eos/video.html
http://www.surplusrifle.com/reviews2...ress/index.asp
http://www.realguns.com/archives/122.htm