New to reloading, review my purchase before I buy

[someguy2800]

Horrible advice imo. After trying wet tumbling, I'll never go back to a dry tumbler. You do have to wait for the brass to dry or dry it in the oven or dehydrator. However, it cleans much better, much faster and cleans the inside of the cases which dry tumbling doesn't. Best of all, you don't have to deal with all of that dust getting everywhere like you do with a dry tumbler. I remember blowing my nose to get that dust out of my nose after emptying that thing. I sure don't miss that.

Its not horrible advice. A dry tumbler works for some, doesn't for others. You can put stuff in the tumbler that makes the dust almost non existent.

 

[BigBlue 94]

A novice reloader needs very little. A press and dies are most crucial, obviously. The Lee powder dippers are sufficient if used properly. One manual is enough, when combined with what's available from powder manufacturers. A priming tool, even if its included on the press, and a loading block make things easier. A primer pocket tool and a deburring tool are cheap enough, and are worth the buy. Other items would be funnels, safety glasses, calipers, and some small brushes for cleaning inside the cases.

From there, if you enjoy it, you can get more things and better things.

A vibratory tumbler with corn cob and polishing compound work best for me, and is dust free. A quality scale, case trimmer, bullet pullers, more manuals, powder drops, etc can all be purchased down the road. Just like anything, the amount you can an spend is only limited by your wallet. No need to go hog wild before knowing if it's something you really want to do.

 

[DWrso]

Horrible advice imo. After trying wet tumbling, I'll never go back to a dry tumbler. You do have to wait for the brass to dry or dry it in the oven or dehydrator. However, it cleans much better, much faster and cleans the inside of the cases which dry tumbling doesn't. Best of all, you don't have to deal with all of that dust getting everywhere like you do with a dry tumbler. I remember blowing my nose to get that dust out of my nose after emptying that thing. I sure don't miss that.

I must be doing something wrong. There is no dust with my dry tumbler. The material sticks to the inside cone of the tumbler and I wipe it off. The polish additive makes all the difference.

 

[thomas15]

A novice reloader needs very little. A press and dies are most crucial, obviously. The Lee powder dippers are sufficient if used properly...…..

In all honesty did you even read the OP?

The dude has a list that totals over $300 almost $400 He lists a kit with a "scale" and a tumbler. While I personally think he should spend a little more and get a good solid scale, it is obvious that he isn't trying to do this on the absolute smallest cash layout in the history of reloading.

If someone is simply trying to make ammo that goes bang then ok on the LEE dippers. But as far as load development goes unless you know the weight of the powder in your particular LEE dipper then you are making this considerably more difficult than it has to be just to save 70 or 80 bucks.

 

[George P]

Looks like you have everything you need to get started covered. As others said a digital scale and a kinetic bullet pullers would be good future additions.

I personally prefer dry tumbling, its a lot less mess and hassle. But thats just personal preference. You'll also need a media seperator for whatever tumbler you get.

Media separator equal dollar store colander and a small pail

 

[thomas15]

Its not horrible advice. A dry tumbler works for some, doesn't for others. You can put stuff in the tumbler that makes the dust almost non existent.

I think you are 100% correct.

In the history of hobby reloading, wet pin tumblers are a jonny-come-lately. 50 years ago, while some here were cleaning their brass with a Handi-Wipe on the drive out to Camp Perry, my Dad who didn't have a lot of money laying around used a vibratory tumbler. Worked then, works now. I have three (3) of them and at times all three are humming away. The beauty of the thing is it doesn't require plumbing and is a lot less work and mess. I know some handloaders like perfect looking brass and I don't begrudge them of that but 2 hours in a vibratory tumbler is good enough. The guys that are winning matches are not bragging about how shiny their brass is.

 

[kmw1954]

Guess I'm still trying to understand this obsession everyone seems to have with tumbling brass. Makes no difference to me which way the OP has decided to do it, they all work. This subject rates right up there with do you prime on or off the press. Again, I don't care which way you do it and it's not going to change the way I do it. I've explained the way I clean my brass here in post #15; https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?threads/primer-dust.846682/#post-11033182 it works for me and I do not expect anyone to follow suite,

When I first started reloading in 1980 there was no internet forums to go to. We had to rely on books, magazine articles and fellow reloads for advice and instruction. I started with a Bonanza 68 single stage press, RCBS pistol dies, RCBS 505 scale, Lee dippers, Speer #10 manual, a funnel, powder trickler and a loading block. I still have the same dial caliper in use today as I did then. I loaded 38/357 like this for over 2 years. No tumbler. no fancy powder measure and boy did I enjoy myself and my shooting experience.

 

[George P]

Guess I'm still trying to understand this obsession everyone seems to have with tumbling brass. Makes no difference to me which way the OP has decided to do it, they all work. This subject rates right up there with do you prime on or off the press. Again, I don't care which way you do it and it's not going to change the way I do it. I've explained the way I clean my brass here in post #15; https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?threads/primer-dust.846682/#post-11033182 it works for me and I do not expect anyone to follow suite,

When I first started reloading in 1980 there was no internet forums to go to. We had to rely on books, magazine articles and fellow reloads for advice and instruction. I started with a Bonanza 68 single stage press, RCBS pistol dies, RCBS 505 scale, Lee dippers, Speer #10 manual, a funnel, powder trickler and a loading block. I still have the same dial caliper in use today as I did then. I loaded 38/357 like this for over 2 years. No tumbler. no fancy powder measure and boy did I enjoy myself and my shooting experience.

Same for me, except I did have the RCBS powder dispenser (and still do and use it). One bought manuals put out by the bullet makers and followed their recipes with great success.

 

[thomas15]

Because I learned how to drive using a car with a standard 3 speed transmission everyone who learns to drive, till the end of time must do the same, nix that automatic transmission. That is what this thread is teaching me.

 

[George P]

Not at all; but like most hobbies, folks have different ways of accomplishing the same thing.

 

[Olympus]

Horrible advice imo. After trying wet tumbling, I'll never go back to a dry tumbler. You do have to wait for the brass to dry or dry it in the oven or dehydrator. However, it cleans much better, much faster and cleans the inside of the cases which dry tumbling doesn't. Best of all, you don't have to deal with all of that dust getting everywhere like you do with a dry tumbler. I remember blowing my nose to get that dust out of my nose after emptying that thing. I sure don't miss that.

Just because it's not what you would do doesn't make it "horrible advice". Go check out the thread about switching back to dry tumbling after wet and just count the number of people, like myself, who tried wet tumbling and then switched back to dry. I think you'll quickly rethink the "horrible advice" comment.

And dealing with dust? Tells me you must not have done a lot of dry tumbling to know what you're talking about. I've been dry tumbling for many years and never had a single problem with dust. Most dry tumblers come with lids ya know? How much dust do you think you get from a bowl with a lid screwed down? NONE! And if you happen to have an old dry tumble or you lost your lid....throw a dryer sheet in with the brass and it captures all of the dust! Or apply some liquid car wax and that eliminates dust. Or better yet, set your lid-less tumbler outside or in your garage if you think you might encounter dust.

 

[Dudedog]

Because I learned how to drive using a car with a standard 3 speed transmission

On the tree.....

Lots or ways to clean brass, wet or dry.
I prefer wet with pins others prefer dry no right or wrong answer.
If the OP want's to budget for a wet setup nothing wrong with that.

I agree with skip the ABCs of reloading and get Lyman 50.
The Lee manual has a decent how to load section but the charge data is a gleaned from other sites. (nothing wring with that)

 

[BigBlue 94]

In all honesty did you even read the OP?

The dude has a list that totals over $300 almost $400 He lists a kit with a "scale" and a tumbler. While I personally think he should spend a little more and get a good solid scale, it is obvious that he isn't trying to do this on the absolute smallest cash layout in the history of reloading.

If someone is simply trying to make ammo that goes bang then ok on the LEE dippers. But as far as load development goes unless you know the weight of the powder in your particular LEE dipper then you are making this considerably more difficult than it has to be just to save 70 or 80 bucks.

In all honesty, yes, and the first two pages that argued about Lee scales vs others and that the Lee's were garbage. Then all the tumbler talk. It got rather off track, which can confuse a person just getting into the hobby.

The Lee dippers come with a slide rule showing the weights of different common powders. Or at least they used to. I know I used them a lot when I started loading around 12. Never had an issue. But I wasnt loading for accuracy. I was loading because it was something my grandpa did and I wanted to be like him. It's also cheaper for a kid who doesn't have much ammo money...

Not all posts have to 100% correlate to the original poster. Some kid may stumble on this and see all the money you guys are throwing out. It's just nice to show that it doesn't have to cost a bunch.

 

[thomas15]

Imagine a guy has a 1911, shoots it at his local club from time to time, maybe shoots 50 rounds at a time at paper targets. He does this maybe 5 or 6 times a year for a few years. He enjoys shooting his 1911 but gets this crazy idea that he would like to be a better marksman. Maybe he stumbles on a discussion on a web forum or facebook or gets to talking about it with someone at this club but he ends up registering for a small semi-local action pistol match.

He askes the question and receives an answer for what stuff (gear) he doesn't have that he needs. The guys are so nice to beginners that they tell him what ever equipment he doesn't have we will lend you. Just pay the registration fee and bring plenty of ammo, say 200 rounds.

He shoots the match and although he finds out he isn't anywhere near as good as he thought he was, he had a great time and is now totally hooked on this sport.

Cost for the day:

ammo $60
Entry fee $20
Travel $10
Lunch/refreshment $10

Total for the day $100.00

So here he is, he shot a small local match, realizes he needs to buy 4 extra magazines, a good holster, mag pouches, belt, pistol rug, good/comfortable eyes and ears and...a lot more range time.

Our friend buys a few things at a time and after a few months has all of the equipment he needs. He also finds that there are plenty of matches to attend and while his fixed hardware cost has diminished he still has a 800 round + ammo appetite a month and he also finds out that by handloading his ammo he can save some money but better yet can develop a load that works better in his gun than factory.

So he asks his friends that shoot these matches what does he need to start reloading ammo. He gets a variety of answers but those whos opinions he values most are flat out telling him that regardless of the brand or type he needs to plan on putting $1,000 worth of hardware on a bench in his garage. They say sure you can do it for less, a lot less but unless you want to be a slave to that bench it's gonna cost. He thinks this is a lot of money and it is but it is pointed out to him that he now has more than that in his 1911 plus the investment in the other bric-a-brac plus the associated cost for entering these competitive get togethers.

So with all of this in mind we are debating the worthiness of a case tumbler and a decent reliable powder scale. To some it seems to make sense to skip a $50 case tumbler and a $70 powder scale but I'm not one of them. I guess that if I were back at the beginning of the story shooting 50 rounds at a session, 5 or 6 sessions a year, for years on end I might think that buying anything more than a classic cyclops press and die set, a pound of Bullseye and 300 primers and some cast bullets a lot of money to spend also. But after 3 local matches that amount of money becomes just a small part of the overall fun.

Or another way to put this...these people that find it nearly impossible to spend a couple of hundred dollars on quality reloading equipment, what kind of guns are they shooting and how often do they shoot them? Back in 1761 you might need a rifle to put a rabbit in the stew pot but in 2019 shooting is basically a recreational endeavor. Those that have firearms for personal protection are, in my view, doing themselves no favors by not spending quality time improving their skills. In a perfect world given the number of carry permits out there, there should be long lines at the range. Time acquiring skills costs time and money and require ammo.

 

[jameskelliott]

Unique or 2400 powder

 

[forty_caliber]

I started with Lee presses in the beginning and have owned both singles and progressives from that manufacturer. A couple of decades in and my Lee presses have gone the way of the DODO. Lee makes tools that are capable to accomplish most reloading tasks but may have a lower intended duty cycle than other choices available on the market.

Some things to think about while your money is still safely in your wallet:

• How many minutes of every hour do you want to spend tinkering with the press to get it to work?
• How many minutes of every hour do you want to spend actually producing ammo?
• How many rounds per hour do you need to load?
• How many minutes of every hour do you want to spend loading bullet, case, and primer tubes?
• How many rounds do you want to load in a year?
• How many calibers will you be loading for?
• What is the cost of a caliber change over?
• Are you planning on creating plinking rounds or match grade rifle rounds?

I'm not saying that Lee is a bad product and I'm not going to recommend another brand to look at. I'm suggesting that you do a little research. Watch some videos. You might find that there are other better tools to get the same job done. You might spend a little more money up front, but in the long run getting a higher quality press will save you headaches and you will have a tool that will last you a lifetime. Pick a press that matches your intended duty cycle and intended purposes.

.40

 

[CerberusRagnar]

So I am late to the party here and I just started reloading myself so please take my advice with a grain of salt. I know your spreadsheet has a turret press on it. Most people recommend starting on a single stage due to the simplicity and attention to each step vs. a turret, so if you are open to that then this advice applies. I have the RCBS Rock Chucker Supreme Master Single Stage Press Kit. This kit is a little higher than your price range on the spreadsheet but it only needs a set of calipers (why they don't have one in the kit baffles me), dies, and tumbler(optional). So far it has worked great for me. I also have a Lyman wet tumbler. I like it because the lack of dust. It came with a sorting tray so the pin issue isn't one with mine. Wet tumblers are expensive and not necessary. Like others have said anything from rinsing off in the sink, dry tumbling, or wet tumbling will work. Just depends on your budget and what you want. Hope that helps.

 

[Dudedog]

I have a old Lee 3 hole "Deluxe" turret, maybe 30000 rounds loaded with it.
As I recall I paid about $75 for it. I would say I have gotten my moneys worth out of it.
So .002 per round and it still works fine so the cost per round goes down.

On the Lee turret you can remove the index rod and use it as a single stage.
Since you are talking about loading pistol I think it is a good choice.

Titan Reloading has good prices on Lee equipment.

 

[RandyP]

My Lee Classic Turret, which I've used for 10 years now, with its Inline Fabrication case kicker system, will easily churn out 175-200 rounds per hour at MY relaxed pace. For MY realistic ammo needs and desire for a fun pastime hobby, it is truly a perfect match. The LCT is also one of the few, if not the only, auto-advancing turret on the market in any color. Auto-advancing greatly reduces the chance of a double powder charge, reduces manual 'handling" steps which increases comfort, still allows attention to just one case at a time through the entire reloading process, and makes the turret a solid mini-progressive choice between single stage and a true full-boat progressive.

Caliber changes are super swift and extremely affordable, like the press itself, and the Lee machine is built strong enough to last a lifetime. NO it will NOT push out 500+ rounds per hour but a whole lot of us reloaders don't need or want to make a year's worth of ammo in a single day - lol