single stage press selection question(s)

If I didn't already have a Rockchucker I would buy a Lee Classic Cast SS press. The Rockchucker is a great press but the way RCBS handles the spent primers annoys me.

I would not waste money on the Lee breech lock system either. It's an additional cost of a breech nut for each and every die you want to mount. It's really not hard to screw the die into the press.

^C'mon, now. The press comes with a bushing. And you can leave that bushing in it, 24/7. Then screw your dies in/out of the press like normal. The bushings are just an option.

I only purchase bushings for my most commonly used seating dies.

One of the benefits of Lee "squish" rings, compared to set-screw lock rings, is that they are very quick, precise, and easy to make minor adjustments on. You can really dial them in. The downside is they are not easy to put the die in/out to exactly the same spot. (They also never let the die work itself loose, unlike a set-screw ring die, which I find need to be torqued on with a wrench before they will reliably stay put!) But if you keep the seating die with a Lee O-ring in a bushing, you get all the pros with none of the cons.

++++Forester++++

O.k. I have owned several and here is my take. The Hornady press is made from aluminum, but its' a big overbuilt press. The rockchucker has a lifetime warranty, but the press will likely outlast you anyway. The Lee classic cast and redding big boss two are basically the same press with Minor differences (major differences in primer attachment) thee Lee classic cast has the strongest linkage of the two. The Rcbs has a lot more meat around the ram. The single stage I have left is the Lee classic cast. No lost scattered spent primers, simple cheap primer mechanism. It's the best value Ina single stage today and it's heavy cast iron and steel. Get the non breech lock version and if desired you can buy a Hornady conversion kit to change it over to the LNL feature.

I've found a small piece of foam between the primer catching tray and the press body virtually eliminates primers on the floor from my Rockchucker. As for priming on the press, I prefer to hand prime.

^ No offense, but of course you (and everyone else with a Rockchucker) prefer to hand prime.

GLOOB said:

^ No offense, but of course you (and everyone else with a Rockchucker) prefer to hand prime.

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He does have a point here! lol

The Lee is an excellent choice! I have had mine since they were introduced and have severely abused it. I used it for swaging bullets, even forced it to swage Linotype and if you have ever attempted to swage linotye especially with jackets on them it takes brute force! I've also loaded a few thousand round on it and it's main use today is clean depriming and it's done many thousand's of rounds. It's pretty beat up and just keeps on kicking! When I bought mine they used a different type of powder coat and it cost only $49 new!

Yes they are $110.00 now, but when it was only $49.00 the rcbs was only $89.00! The redding was like only ten bucks more. So as you can see it's still a great bargain.

GLOOB said:

^ No offense, but of course you (and everyone else with a Rockchucker) prefer to hand prime.

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No offense taken......kinda the point I was makin'. If one prefers to use the press to prime, than I would suggest something else. Hand priming fits into the way I batch my ammo. I load several different loadings in the same brass, using powders that may take either a standard or magnum primer. I like to clean, deprime and resize all my same caliber brass at one time(2-500 cases) and then reload in smaller batches(50-200) to meet my needs as time goes by. Handpriming works well for me in this scenario.

I'm not sure of Lee's repair / replace guarantee policy, but I don't think they treat you the same as the green machine manufacturer.

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They dont. Technically it's a "if it breaks within 2 yrs we'll fix it for half price" deal I think. Or maybe they'll replace it if it breaks within 2 yrs, but if after 2 yrs they'll replace it for half of what it costs. Something like that...but it's not quite as tip top as the other guys IMO.

Potatohead said:

They dont. Technically it's a "if it breaks within 2 yrs we'll fix it for half price" deal I think. Or maybe they'll replace it if it breaks within 2 yrs, but if after 2 yrs they'll replace it for half of what it costs. Something like that...but it's not quite as tip top as the other guys IMO.

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I dont think you will break a Lee Classic single stage press, breech lock or not. Unlike the Challenger (which is a sturdy unit) they are way way overbuilt. The decapping pins...I have destroyed my fair share...usually when in a hurry. They are dirt cheap and come quick, keep a few spares on hand. I keep spares for the size/decap dies as well as the Universal decapper.

To original poster, you could just pull the pin on your Lee Classic Turret and use it single stage style....many prefer this for "turret" operation and just hand rotate.

I have the Lee Classic Turret Press as well as the Lee Classic Breech lock presses.

Russellc

Currently I single stage reload with a Rock Chucker which does fine. Gave my brother a RCBS starter kit a few years ago for Christmas and he loves the thing. That said the Lee Breech Lock Challenger Press is a great press that is full of features. I also have one of those tucked away. They both work fine and have lasted a long time.

So for what it is worth I can imagine wearing either out but I would just refurb the Lee press.

Ron

oldreloader said:

As far as I'm concerned it's matter of personal preference. All the presses will do an excellent job. I prefer the Lee classic cast. I sold my RCII and bought one after I tried the Lee Classic Turret. I like the priming system and the spent primer disposal system on the Lee Classic series. Some say the Safety Prime looks "cheap". It works better for me than any other. I have 2 sets, one each for small pistol and rifle and one each for large pistol and rifle.

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I agree, bought one of classic cast iron when caught on sale for $72.00. It is one of the best SS presses I have ever seen. I have two Dillon presses for volume reloading, but seem to use the Lee SS more for a lot of things.