I want to reload......BUT

[LAH]

Man OBM that's great. The ole stand I used in the kitchen was junk compared to the Sinclair Stand.

Lead in system. Well I did cast for hire 'bout 4 years. Loaded for hire off & on for 20 or so. I've always "drank" while doing this. While casting the drink was 10 feet or so from the pot/moulds/vent system. I didn't suck my fingers or lick my cup like friend Bushmaster says. Guess of all I've done the thing that worried me most was shooting into the wind & cleaning the casting bench. But it seems I'm not toxic ............Creeker

 

[BigJakeJ1s]

I use a Lee hand press to deprime, and a Huntington Compac hand press to do everything else. It is more expensive, than the Lee (~$90, IIRC), but worth it IMHO.

I do every step except dump powder and seat bullets from my easy chair, and those I do at the kitchen table. Everything packs up in a rubbermaid tote when I'm done.

Andy

 

[pbhome71]

I use Lee's hand press for my pistol cartridge

Here's the picture of my set-up...

I also use Lee's PPM - mounted on a piece of wood board. but it is not in this picture.

-Pat

PS: Andy, I checked out the Huntington Compac tools. It looks very nice. I will have to check into it.

 

[Cosmoline]

I handload right here:

The powder, primers, bullets, and other stuff fit in some ammo cans and a medium size blue tote. Note the headlamp--it's invaluable for checking loads away from a shop light.

The Lee Hand Press is FANTASTIC. It allows me to "feel" the bullet and I can get away with some tight fits that would absolutely bend the necks with a bench mounted rock cruncher. I can feel when the bullet is up against the powder, as well, or if it went in too easily or is getting jammed up on something. To get more leverage you can just adjust the dies down, as I have with the factory crimper.

I use the dippers for some loads to speed things up, but the scale is an essential cross check. The little plastic measuring cup is what I use to house the powder while loading. I bring only one kind of powder to the bench at any given time, and the remaining powder gets dropped back into the main canister before it's put back in the ammo can and sealed up.

I have an even more compact setup for handloading .30-30 with a Lee Loader on the road.

 

[Cosmoline]

Lead exposure? Meh. The real danger there comes when you're CLEANING and FIRING your firearm, not when you're handloading. The little bit of lead that may rub off on your fingers is not the lead you need to worry about--it's the airborn lead or particles in cleaning fluids that will sneak up on you. The lead on your fingers is easy to wash off and poses no real threat unless you're eaing ribs or something I usually have some beverage when handloading--though not booze!

 

[LAH]

Hey Cosmoline love the type writer..........Creeker

 

[zymurgy]

Hand Press People

Chalk up another fan of the Lee Hand Press. Though I have a Challenger mounted to a Workmate clone (bolted to a piece of wood) I find myself relying on the hand press for depriming, priming, just about everything except for powder dispensing. It's the cat's ass for what it costs. It sized some .308 Winchester tonight that wouldn't work on the Workmate. The other advantage (if you're wanting to work on your thigh muscles) is that you can SQUEEZE that thing between your legs for extra leverage

 

[Jake in TX]

I also recommend the MidwayUSA portable reloading stand. I use one, with a Lee Classic Cast press, for pistol and rifle cartridge reloading. The base is wide enough to prevent tipping for all reloading operations, and I store mine in a bedroom closet. For a scale, I recommend the PACT BBK2. It is accurate, and for me beats any balance beam scale.

http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=883267

Jake in TX