opinions on this press? (hornady AP)

[dannyd]

I'm not a fan of the Hornady single stage press.
It has a lot of side to side movement in the handle.
I have one and it sits unused.
I also have the Hornady LnL AP Progressive which I have been using for around 15 years with no complaints.
My cheap Lee 50th anniversary press still is in use for priming alongside my Forster Co-Ax.
That tells you how much I dislike the Hornady single stage.

If a Forster CO-Ax isn't in your budget I would get the Lee Classic Cast press with the Breech Lock Bushings. (SKU:90998)
Great press and made in the USA unlike the RCBS which is now made in China.

Man it's hard to load 12,000 revolver rounds a year on a single stage press.

I use the Hornady press for sizing bullets and have two of the Lee presses, one with LNL bushing and one with Lee bushing.

 

[thunderbyrd]

OP. here...thanks to everyone for shared wisdom. i read everyone's replies and i've decided against buying this press at this time. the video i linked to makes it look easy, but, maybe i'm not so mechanically inclined.

so i will start with a single stage press. a Most Excellent Member of this forum gave me a RCBS Partner Press and i'm going to try to get it going. i am sure i'll have questions, which i'll post in a seperate thread.

a sincere thanks to all for your input!

 

[THEWELSHM]

Had mine about 9 years, great press mate,


Thew

 

[cfullgraf]

I just like to chime in on the LNL's, because people that have never pulled the handle on one, will say they are junk and you should buy Blue. Having been on both side of the tracks, the LNL's are good equipment that doesn't bankrupt you and changing dies is a snap.

My first progressive was the Hornady L-N-L. I like it.

I'm in a position that I could buy and try other progressive presses (Dillon SDB, Dillon BL550, and RCBS Pro2000) and all work well to my satifaction.

But each press as advantages and disadvantages for me.

I like the Hornady L-N-L die bushing system. I can load what dies I want in the position I want. It gives me some flexibility in doing what process I want. I do most of my case sizing on the Hornady. I like to clean cases after sizing and I prefer to prime off the press. Many will say I'm being inefficient but I find my production rates are comparable to many that load fired case through loaded rounds. I can speed through the sizing process without worrying about primer seating or powder charge and then when loading, I can concentrate of the important parts of reloading.

I like the SDB's for shorter handgun cartridges like 9x19, 45 ACP, and 380 Auto. I can visually check the powder charge level. Taller cases like 38 Special are difficult to see the powder charge level. Side note, I do resizing for these cases on the Hornady.

I load 204 Ruger on my Pro2000. It works well. I could extend that to 300 BO and 223 Remington. Most of my rifle ammunition is loaded on a single stage press.

This works for me. It does not have to work for everyone. Find a process that meets your needs and be happy.

Finally, the most "automated" loader I have is a Dillon SL900 shot shell loader. I can verify that the auto primer feed has in fact delivered the primer to the seating station. I don't get those warm fuzzies with any of my other presses which is why I like to prime off the press.

 

[9mmepiphany]

OP. here...thanks to everyone for shared wisdom. i read everyone's replies and i've decided against buying this press at this time. the video i linked to makes it look easy, but, maybe i'm not so mechanically inclined.

so i will start with a single stage press. a Most Excellent Member of this forum gave me a RCBS Partner Press and i'm going to try to get it going. i am sure i'll have questions, which i'll post in a seperate thread.

a sincere thanks to all for your input!

Glad we were able to help you make an informed a decision

I'd had a RCBS Jr press forever (came in a deal for my first AR) and never used it (didn't like the way it had to be mounted or how it handles spent primers). When I got my LNL, I donated the Jr to the local Reloading Club to be used to teach new reloaders how to load. After a couple of years on the progressive, I discovered that a single stage might be useful for different operations. After doing some research, I got a Lee Classic Cast single stage...which turned out to be a great companion press.

 

[JHTexas]

I started with the Hornady single stage and moved to the LNL after about 6 months of reloading.
As one person stated you can use a progressive as a single stage to learn but if you purchase both you will always find a purpose for the single stage press. Starting on a single stage allows to focus on your reloading process and technique and not how the press functions though. Don’t think that your first purchare will be it either. I have more equipment now than I ever thought I would purchase.

So yes, I too give the thumbs up to the Hornady LNL. I have used Dillons and for the type of reloading I do the LNL is a better fit. I use mine mainly for pistol and it’s been everything I needed. I’m somewhere north of 30k+ off of it.

I don’t think it was mentioned here but I use the bullet tubes & die which works very well for speed and accuracy of the loads. The reason it helps with accuracy is because they drop straight into the mouth of the case so your bullet seating die doesn’t have to realign it. The weight of the other bullets in the tube even set it in the case mouth hard enough that they don’t tip while index.

I don’t use a case feeder, that’s my job…

The primer system on the LNL has always worked for me without any real headaches. Just another part of the press to learn about.
I do use the primer filler that “NMexJim” listed above.

The support you’ll get from this forum will provide you with all the support you need but the Hornady Tech people have always been very good to work with too. I’ve never had anything to complain about and I have a lot of their product.

Some have mentioned that they stage their reloaded which in my opinion is an excellent way to process your rounds. But maybe when starting out do small quantities start to finish until you are confident in your process.

You have a lot of great input here…