Powder scoop set or Auto-Drum?

[Dudedog]

Ahh, here it is
https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?media/remove-it.571/

If you don't like the Autoprime you might consider the Lee hand primer. (used to be about $30, probably more now, uses shell holders special to it, if you need more than 2 it's better to by the assortment if it has the sizes you need)
I like to deprime and clean my brass then hand prime. I can prime cases while watching TV or sitting in the house where it's warm/cool. (reloading stuff is in a shed outside) This also lets be check the brass while priming and discard any I don't want to load. Then I store primed cases in a plastic containers I got from Wally World. Then when I am ready to load I just feed the press primed cases. (Lee turret or Hornady LNL depending on which I am using)
Uses up a little more time but lets me clean the cases with the old primers removed.

 

[Gadawg88]

Get the Autodrum and Autoprime and never look back. It will speed-up your process 10 fold with no compromise for safety. The Autoprime works great for me and many/most others.

 

[Reloadron]

I am not at all a fan of using the dippers because I find them to be inconsistent or non-repeatable. Here is an example of using a dipper with H335 powder:

The numbers reflect both skimmed and non-skimmed. The nominal weight should have been 43.4 grains and as can be seen that never happened. If you are happy with a standard deviation of about 0.4 grain the loads will be close enough.

This is why I prefer a good powder throw. I have a few of the old plastic Lee powder throws and while they do work and work well enough to load I much prefer the RCBS Uniflow powder throws. Especially with those "crunchy" stick powders like IMR 4895 or AA 2495 types. No limit to what you can do especially with a powder through die. Eventually you will find what you like and what works best for you and run with it.

Ron

 

[someguy2800]

The auto prime works great for me. I do drop mabey 1 out of 50 or 100 primers on the floor but that doesn't really bother me. If you are loading using the auto index feature of the lee turret then it is the fastest way to prime cases. If I am loading single stage with pre sized brass then its faster to use the hand priming tool.

 

[mdi]

FWIW and sorta an aside; I started with dippers and found rather quickly that they are just as consistent as the "dipee". When I was "warmed up" and on a roll I did every move as exactly the same as I could and with Unique I could hold about .1 grain variation. A dipper has no moving parts, the capacity does not change from dip to dip, so the only variations are caused by the user...

 

[Reloadron]

FWIW and sorta an aside; I started with dippers and found rather quickly that they are just as consistent as the "dipee". When I was "warmed up" and on a roll I did every move as exactly the same as I could and with Unique I could hold about .1 grain variation. A dipper has no moving parts, the capacity does not change from dip to dip, so the only variations are caused by the user...

Yeah, the volume of the dipper is a constant. However, I believe powder manufacturers allow themselves +/- something like 15% lot to lot on the actual VMD (Volume Measured Density) of the powder.Additionally the energy per density likely changes a little. So while the volume of the dipper does not change the actual charge weight can. Not that it matters much I guess. Most of us started with a dipper and a "whack a mole".

Ron

 

[mdi]

The dippers are consistent, and with the same lot of powder no problems. But I don't know anyone who would not check their dipper performance with a scale. Not going to get into the "volume vs. weight" discussion...

 

[Slinger]

I've heard mixed things about the Auto-Prime. Some reviews say it jams or drop primers a lot, is that true in your experience?

Putting individual primers into the on-press priming arm is a bit slow, but tolerable to me. The powder measuring step is where I really want to speed things up.

Thanks

I didn't find that to be a fact. I guess it depends on how many rounds you load in a sitting whether its worthwhile for you.I find handling the tiny primers awkward.

 

[FROGO207]

I have never liked any type of on the press priming. I have used a hand priming tool almost exclusively for most of my reloading career. I have the "touch/feel" down so that I can tell when the primer has set the housing and is properly preloaded. I have not had any primer failures in years for any reason. For the WSM ammo the Lee hand primer I use (old round one) will not allow the case head in so I use the Ram prime unit I got from CH4D in the kit with the primer pocket swage tool. It works almost as well but it is harder to feel the preloading IMHO.

 

[Cemetery21]

When I first switched to the Lee turret, I fed the primers by hand and pulled the case out of the rotation to drop powder with my RCBS measure. Then, as I got comfortable with the turret, I added the primer feed and auto-drum (can't remember which I added first). Now, I wouldn't go back.
I still hand prime and drop powder separately for rifle calibers since they have to come out of the press for trimming or cleaning off lube anyway.

 

[someguy2800]

I use the auto index feature on everything I load except for 30 and 357 herrett, and I occasionally prep bags of primed and sized brass for rifle calibers to keep on hand. For those few instances its nice to hand prime. When your actually using the auto indexing feature which is the whole point of having the lee turret press, it is way way way faster to just use the auto prime. For smaller pistol calibers I use the auto drum powder measure on top of the flaring die. For rifle calibers and magnum handguns I measure powder using a lyman electronic charge dispenser and either dump it in the flaring die or for bottleneck rifle calibers I use a rifle charging die to dump the powder in the case while on the press so you never have to take the case in and out of the press. The neat thing about using the charge dispenser in this way is that the timing is almost perfect. You dump the powder in and put the pan back on the scale, then seat a bullet, crimp, put in a new case, resize, prime, flare, and just about this time the next powder charge is ready. Its an incredibly efficient and accurate system. I really think its the best of all worlds. You have full control of every stage and you do all 4 stations in the same amount of time it would take you to do one on a single stage. Not quite as fast as a full progressive but I have more control and I can switch calibers in about a minute which is a huge advantage to me since I load a lot of different stuff mostly in low qtys.

 

[Joshboyfutre]

For pistol I use lee auto disk with an adjustable charge bar and the extender, for rifle I use the Lee perfect powder measure. I would definately stay away from the scoops, just seems inaccurate and u cant do any adjustments.

 

[NoirFan]

Hi all, thanks for the great advice on the Lee auto drum. I installed it yesterday and hot damn it is convenient! I'm weighing out every 10th load as suggested and it is pretty accurate, with occasional +- .1 grain drops. Using the turret is a lot more fun now, before I knew it, my box of bullets was empty ... I feel like I'm going down the reloading rabbit hole pretty quick ..

 

[Load Master]

Hi all, thanks for the great advice on the Lee auto drum. I installed it yesterday and hot damn it is convenient! I'm weighing out every 10th load as suggested and it is pretty accurate, with occasional +- .1 grain drops. Using the turret is a lot more fun now, before I knew it, my box of bullets was empty ... I feel like I'm going down the reloading rabbit hole pretty quick ..

Thanks NoirFan for the feedback. Good to know you are up and running. Next you will be going to the range to empty the brass just so you can reload them. Happy Reloading!

 

[Tacoma]

As mentioned, don't forget the riser IF your going to mount a Safety Prime System (which I don't see on your press but also highly recommend.). The riser will keep the powder measure from hitting your safety prime tray as it swings around.

p.s. Love the LCT. Great little press. I run two of them.