Rcbs Supreme- OR Hornady Lock-n-Load
- Thread starter jeffrice6
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Cortland
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Lee Classic Cast?
It'll be stronger than the Hornady, maybe equal to the RCBS, you can use the LnL bushings, and it's a whole lot cheaper than either. Don't get sucked into the kit thing. IMO the only thing of Lees worth buying is the classic cast press, dies, auto-prime, and probably a few others things I'm leaving out. So my advice is get a Lee Classic Cast, and Hornady accessories.
It'll be stronger than the Hornady, maybe equal to the RCBS, you can use the LnL bushings, and it's a whole lot cheaper than either. Don't get sucked into the kit thing. IMO the only thing of Lees worth buying is the classic cast press, dies, auto-prime, and probably a few others things I'm leaving out. So my advice is get a Lee Classic Cast, and Hornady accessories.
Jeff;
T'were me, & I had to stay within your given guidelines, I'd go with the RCBS kit.
I've been reloading for over 30 years now & have an older Rockchucker active on my bench. All the rifle ammo, with the sole exception of .223, is run through that press. The Dillon RL550B gets all the pistol ammo & the .223.
There's a lot of 'color' on my bench, which is to say I'm not married to any one brand. But, there's very little Lee equipment represented. IMHO they have good ideas & poor execution. The hand primer is a gem though.
If you're just getting into reloading, here's another couple of sites you may wish to check out: www.handloadersbench.com or www.baitshopboyz.com.
900F
T'were me, & I had to stay within your given guidelines, I'd go with the RCBS kit.
I've been reloading for over 30 years now & have an older Rockchucker active on my bench. All the rifle ammo, with the sole exception of .223, is run through that press. The Dillon RL550B gets all the pistol ammo & the .223.
There's a lot of 'color' on my bench, which is to say I'm not married to any one brand. But, there's very little Lee equipment represented. IMHO they have good ideas & poor execution. The hand primer is a gem though.
If you're just getting into reloading, here's another couple of sites you may wish to check out: www.handloadersbench.com or www.baitshopboyz.com.
900F
BluesBear
member
jeffrice6, it appears you have done your homework well.
Of course there will always be someone who has to chime in with an alternative suggestion. And for those who can't tell the difference, cheap is a valid alternative.
Go ahead and spend the few extra dollars. You'll never be sorry.
You can't go wrong with either. The RCBS is the standard by which all others are judged.
The Hornady is desended from the old Pacific line which predates RCBS and is also a solid choice.
Unless radically abused, either press will long outlive all of us.
Hornady also makes a Lock N'Load conversion kit should you choose the Rock Chucker and desire the quick change option.
Welcome to the wonderful world of reloading. Life, as you know it, will never be the same.
Of course there will always be someone who has to chime in with an alternative suggestion. And for those who can't tell the difference, cheap is a valid alternative.
Go ahead and spend the few extra dollars. You'll never be sorry.
You can't go wrong with either. The RCBS is the standard by which all others are judged.
The Hornady is desended from the old Pacific line which predates RCBS and is also a solid choice.
Unless radically abused, either press will long outlive all of us.
Hornady also makes a Lock N'Load conversion kit should you choose the Rock Chucker and desire the quick change option.
Welcome to the wonderful world of reloading. Life, as you know it, will never be the same.
What do you intend to reload for? I favor Redding equipment. Here is a link that shows a lot of equipment in use for a 45-70.
http://www.beartoothbullets.com/tech_notes/archive_tech_notes.htm/49
http://www.beartoothbullets.com/tech_notes/archive_tech_notes.htm/49
Master Blaster
Member
Thats an interesting link, I'm not sure I would consider using Hoppes copper solvent gun cleaner and a brush to clean my cases though. 
You deo want to get a tumbler and corn media if you will be reloading a fair amount, properly cleaned cases are important to proper reloading, and to the life expectancy of your loading dies.
The rock chucker supreme is a good press, I load my rifle rounds on one and my handgun rounds on a Dillon 550B.
You can buy a piggy back conversion for the rock chucker to upgrade it to a progressive should you so decide. You may also want to look at a Dillon 550 AT. which is the stripped down version of the 550B, its fully upgradabale to progressive reloading at a later date.
http://dillonprecision.com/template/p.cfm?maj=18&dyn=1&
You deo want to get a tumbler and corn media if you will be reloading a fair amount, properly cleaned cases are important to proper reloading, and to the life expectancy of your loading dies.
The rock chucker supreme is a good press, I load my rifle rounds on one and my handgun rounds on a Dillon 550B.
You can buy a piggy back conversion for the rock chucker to upgrade it to a progressive should you so decide. You may also want to look at a Dillon 550 AT. which is the stripped down version of the 550B, its fully upgradabale to progressive reloading at a later date.
http://dillonprecision.com/template/p.cfm?maj=18&dyn=1&
PowderKeg
Member
I would give the slight edge to the Rockchucker kit, mostly because of the 505 scale (which I have and like) and the Uniflow powder measure (which I prefer over the Hornady that I had originally). Press only preference goes to the Hornady - my old 00-7 press has a slightly larger opening than my Rockchucker (the original, not the supreme), and the press is angled @ 30 degrees or so - more room/better angle to fit the hand in to place shells than the straight-on Rockchucker. The new R/c also has a bulky/awkward primer catch tray IMHO.
Personally, handheld primer units (like the RCBS one in the kit) make me nervous (something about holding a bunch of explosive devices an inch above my knuckles while trying to sqeeze another one into a shell). Also don't care for the primer tube and arm that the Hornady uses either - filling tubes can be a pain (again IMHO). I use a Lee Auto Prime II that screws into the press like a die and seats on the top of the stroke - plenty of "feel" for a poor seating primer before crushing it. Primers do tend to jam at the top of the feeder trough, but a light shake of the trough frees them up easily.
Don't forget a few of the other essential accessories, like a tumbler and media separator, check weights for the scale (Lyman makes a good set), at least a couple additional load data books to cross check load recommendations, and a powder baffle for the Uniflow (if you go the RCBS route) - keeps a consistent weight of powder over the drum regardless of the volume of powder on top of the baffle - part of the reason I prefer the Uniflow over the Hornady measure. RCBS also has two different drums for the Uniflow, a larger capacity one for large rifle cases, and a smaller one for pistol/small rifle. Might want to find out which one comes with the kit.
Midway has the Rockchucker setup for @ $235 + shipping right now.
Going single stage when starting out is a very good idea - progressive can get expensive just for the press, and there's alot going on with each stroke to keep track of, especially if just starting into reloading. You can always expand to a progressive later, if/when the desire arises to crank out more rounds per hour, and you'll still need most of the equipment you get with the single stage setup. And you'll still find a use for the single press even after buying a progressive one.
Just my nickle's worth.
GP
Personally, handheld primer units (like the RCBS one in the kit) make me nervous (something about holding a bunch of explosive devices an inch above my knuckles while trying to sqeeze another one into a shell). Also don't care for the primer tube and arm that the Hornady uses either - filling tubes can be a pain (again IMHO). I use a Lee Auto Prime II that screws into the press like a die and seats on the top of the stroke - plenty of "feel" for a poor seating primer before crushing it. Primers do tend to jam at the top of the feeder trough, but a light shake of the trough frees them up easily.
Don't forget a few of the other essential accessories, like a tumbler and media separator, check weights for the scale (Lyman makes a good set), at least a couple additional load data books to cross check load recommendations, and a powder baffle for the Uniflow (if you go the RCBS route) - keeps a consistent weight of powder over the drum regardless of the volume of powder on top of the baffle - part of the reason I prefer the Uniflow over the Hornady measure. RCBS also has two different drums for the Uniflow, a larger capacity one for large rifle cases, and a smaller one for pistol/small rifle. Might want to find out which one comes with the kit.
Midway has the Rockchucker setup for @ $235 + shipping right now.
Going single stage when starting out is a very good idea - progressive can get expensive just for the press, and there's alot going on with each stroke to keep track of, especially if just starting into reloading. You can always expand to a progressive later, if/when the desire arises to crank out more rounds per hour, and you'll still need most of the equipment you get with the single stage setup. And you'll still find a use for the single press even after buying a progressive one.
Just my nickle's worth.
GP
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