My Lee 3 hole turret press broke!

[sigma 40ve]

Like the title says. The connector piece broke. However, I am by no means complaining. This press has been GREAT. I got it used from a friend back in the mid 80's who literally abused the crap out of it. I have loaded thousands of rounds on it since. Today at the end of resizing 1k 9mm rds the handle shifted and got real loose. I took it apart and found the connector had broken. A quick search on the net and $10 later the replacement part is ordered. Got to like this press, all those years of reloading and only having to spend $10 on it now. Lee makes a great product IMO.

 

[ColtPythonElite]

Lee does make great products.

 

[rondog]

My first press was one of those. I somehow managed to snap the aluminum handle right in half. Don't remember if Lee gave me another, or if I had to buy one, it was 30+ years ago. But I DO remember making two steel plates, drilling holes and using bolts to splint the handle back together to get it working again. AFAIK, my brother is still using the dang press, I gave it to him back in '85 or so.

 

[HOWARD J]

Many years ago I was using a Lee 3 hole turret press--loading primers into new winchester 30 carbine brass --I snapped the handle in half.
Lee sent me a new handle--no questions asked.
Today I use a Lee classic turret press--great primer catcher.

 

[RandyP]

Like I always say - Lee products are JUNK!~ I mean really ... a lousy 30 years of service out of an economically priced reloading press and the thing breaks!?!?!?!

I am appalled!

LOL

 

[gamestalker]

I like Lee products, but RCBS makes an almost indestructable press in comparison. And what I mean by comparison, is the bottom shelf Lee doesn't compare to the bottom shelf RCBS for strength and rigidness(is that a word?). Now the upper shelfLee is no doubt a strong press, by any standard I feel.

 

[rondog]

Today I use a Lee classic turret press--great primer catcher.

Yeah, that IS one of their better ideas, ain't it? If I'm depriming a few bucketloads of brass, I'll just take the cap off the hose and poke it into an empty milk jug to catch the primers. Put a little piece of tape over the slot in the ram to keep the odd ones from jumping out.

 

[evan price]

@ Gamestalker:

iirc, Richard Lee thought that for general reloading activity, the trend towards bigger and heavier and stronger presses was a silly advertising war. He wound up taking a Lee turret and putting the vertical risers in a lathe and turning them down to well below half the diameter and then putting them back in the press and full-length sizing various large rifle calibers with it and nothing broke.

If you are doing what RCBS originally stood for "Rock Chucker Bullet Swager" or doing some wildcatting with radical reforming, then sure, a ginormous press is a good thing.

But for doing most normal reloading duties...all you are doing is spending more money with no gain.

If it floats your boat, it's your money, by all means go ahead. There's nothing wrong with that.

I recall recently checking out the Hornady Lock-&-Load progressive, the RCBS progressive and another big name press. The frikking ram is as big around as the hydraulic cylinder rods in my forklift.

Yeah, it's not gonna break, but wow, that's huge.

If one were a professional reloader or a competition shooter, loading thousands of rounds weekly, sure, maybe. Lee's stuff is lighter duty at a low price point. You get what you pay for.

 

[MtnCreek]

I wonder how many people got into reloading because the Lee budget products made it possible. If the only option available when I started was a high price setup, I might still be shooting factory loads (and shooting a lot less). I spent about $100 for everything less powder, bullets and primers. Still have the equipment and still use most of it.

 

[shootinxd]

Wife got me a Lee kit 5yrs ago for Xmas.Thousands of 9mm,40cal,and 223 and 40 bucks keepin it running.I don't think you can go wrong.I would have never been able to get into reloading without the budget price.

 

[45Frank]

I wonder how many people got into reloading because the Lee budget products made it possible. If the only option available when I started was a high price setup, I might still be shooting factory loads (and shooting a lot less). I spent about $100 for everything less powder, bullets and primers. Still have the equipment and still use most of it.

I started out with one of the specials on the cover of a midway flyer in the late 80's early 90's. I think the set up kit was $69.00 and I still have it and even use it sometimes.
When I upgraded should have stuck with the Lee but was talked into something else.

 

[RandyP]

I always preach the notion that a prospective reloader match their realistic ammo needs vs their realistic hobby budget and buy hardware that matches. IMHO nobody out there is making 'junk'.

If the only way one 'could' reload was by spending the better part of $600-$1000 of all Dillon super machines? There would have been mighty darn few reloaders. It is my opinion that had Lee products not been out there creating a large customer base since the late 50's reloading would not be as popular as it has become and Dillon would not have a marketplace to tap with their excellent machines beginning in the '80s.