CH Tool No. 444 H press?

[spartan00054]

I am looking to branch out from my single stage operation, but due to being a a little bit of a control freak, I am not ready to give up as much involvment in the process as going the full progressive would require. So, I've settled on a turret of some sort. People seem to like the Lee 3/4 die turrets as well as the Redding, but I came across this "H" press made by CH Tool. I've never seen anything like it, and forum searches turned up a few positive comments but not very much else. What do you guys think? Is there an obvious disadvantage with this thing that I am overlooking?

http://www.ch4d.com/

 

[GP100man]

I don`t like the notion of moving the case from station to station , I opted for a Lyman turret.

I size & prime in batches on a single stage , then set the dies side by side on the turret , drop powderwith lees powder thru & auto disc, move the turret 1 notch set a boolit then back.

Although I`ve eyed the CH 444 for yrs. I have`nt got the $$ to lay out then not like it !! Like you I`ve searched for feedback ,but found very little .

 

[Wil Terry]

The CH 333 and 444 are two of the great press designs of all handloading history !!! My CH333 has been in continuous use since 1971. I figured after I wore it out I'd buy the newer CH444 design, but after hundreds of thousands of revolver/pistol rounds the CH333 shows every sign of outlasting me.

 

[rfwobbly]

Mr 00054 -
CH is a really old name in reloading and has a fine tradition and reputation. At one time I owned several CH products. The last one, a C section press, was made about 1960 and is still going strong. I gave that press to a novice reloader who is now churning out pistol ammo with it and loves it.

Their products are built like tanks, US made, extremely accurate and handsome. The down-side for CH is that their heyday was in the late 60's right before a lot of things in reloading got standardized. Because they are such a small concern, their products have not been updated to keep up with the times. The 444H action seems to be based on an old Hollywood press design from the 50's...


Their shell holders are proprietary. That means you'll be dependent upon CH...

And, no provision seems to have been made to catch ejected primers and all the muck that comes out.


I really like turret presses and enjoy their speed and flexibility, but for my money I'd want something a little bit more up-to-date. Something with modern linkage design, which used standard shell holders, and collected spent primers cleanly. Take a look at the Redding T7, Lyman T-Mag, and RCBS Turret. And probably in that order.

 

[Kevin Rohrer]

I have owned a '444' since April, having ordered it by phone and then driving down to their factory to pick it up, and getting a tour in the process. I have also met and talked with the owner Dave Davison several times. I wish I knew as much about reloading, hunting, and machining as he has forgotten.

The '444' is a perfect press for small to medium jobs, especially pistol as it has 4-stations. It is compact and sets on top of the bench, instead of hanging down and getting in the way. It is also all-steel, and can be used for both swaging and cartridge forming. You can use their primer system or your own, and any powder measure that screws in can be used. Cycling the arm is like rubbing two pieces of glass together, and it is completely quiet.

Here's a pic of mine:



RFwobbly is incorrect on three points:

1. There is no resemblance between a Hollywood Senior and the '444', other than the fact that both are steel and as he says, "they are built like tanks, US made, extremely accurate and handsome". The Senior is a single-column, 'Super C' press; while the '444' is a dual column, 'H' press.

The '444' is CH's descendant of their Magnum H press (single-stage) and their later '333' 3-stage, both of which are aluminum. Mr. Davison told me that he doesn't like aluminum and none of CH4D's presses use it that I am aware of. And for the record, there is nothing wrong with being favorably compared to a Senior.

Here is an pic of my Senior and '444':



2. Their shellholders are not proprietary, although they once were. I wish I had some as they also fit my Dunbars and Hollywoods.
The '444' uses a universal H-Ram (pictured below) that also works with Dunbars, Hollywoods, and some Herter's (their Dunbar clone).



If you look close, you will see the H-Rams holding industry standard, CH #1 (.308, 30-06, etc) shellholders in them.



3. The '444' does have a spent primer catcher. It is a plastic bottle that attaches to the bottom of the H-Ram and is easily pulled off to empty. See pic below:



RFwobbly is correct in that CH has not kept up with the times by making their presses out of Chinese aluminum or kicking a lot of cheap junk out the door. The '444' is $265 and made on a one-at-a-time basis. Quality described by both of us is never out-of-date.

I have no knowledge of the others turrets mentioned and won't give you an opinion on them.

 

[spartan00054]

Thank you all for your information and input, that's exactly what I needed.

Kevin, what kind of powder measure do you have pictured mounted to your 444?

 

[rfwobbly]

It a newer model of the Lyman #55.

 

[Kevin Rohrer]

Correct.

You can use any measure, and I am not necessarily endorsing it as it doesn't meter stick powders very well. I am using it for ball powders, with an unpictured Quick-Measure designated to handle stick powders; the B&M clone in the background is used for load development and small runs.

 

[spartan00054]

I've been using a Lee Perfect Powder measure up to this point, so I have to think that anything is an improvement, especially for the larger flake powder I use in my .45 loads. I know that doesn't lend itself to easy measuring, but it has been the source of many near-coronaries. After the press, the powder measure is next on my upgrade list.

But, I digress. How often do you have to tear your 444 down for maintenance? What does maintenance on a 444 entail? It doesn't look like it is too difficult to take apart.

 

[zxcvbob]

I have what I guess is a model 333 that I bought off eBay about 6 or 7 years ago. It is a very strong single-stage press with 3 stations. It's made of aluminum, with steel guide rods, and it takes standard shellholders. The only thing I don't like about it is it doesn't have a primer catcher, so they make a big mess. I tried fastening a pill bottle to collect the primers but it didn't quite work.

It was my primary press until I bought a Forster CoAx.

 

[918v]

I had a 444 and sold it because the shell holder base torqued out of alignment under load due to the slop in the bushings. They are Ok for loading pistol rounds, where runout isn't important, but for rifle ammo you should stay with a good single stage press or Redding's turret which is a far better design in tems of alignment and leverage.

 

[spartan00054]

918v, what where you loading? The existence of slop in bushings doesn't seem to jive with the foregoing comments regarding quality and durability.

 

[918v]

I was loading everything from 223 to 308. The base tilts under load, there's no getting around it.