Which single station press is best for the money??? RCBS? Lee? I'm looking into reloading as a hobby...so, which direction should I go?

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Take your pick - I would say that hte Lee set is the way to go for hobby work. If you search this topic, you will find all kinds of comments.

Get the LEE "NEW" cast iron "CLASSIC they just came out with. Its very heavy duty and has great features for a single stage press. I have RCBS and a few others,but for the Money!!! ($59 - Midway) its unbelievable value!!!! Great PRESS!!!!!! Its all I use now.

I know I need dies, but what else will I need to begin reloading (other than brass, powder, and bullets!)? I will be reloading 45/70, 450 Marlin, 35 Rem, 30-30, and 270 Win...

Which single station press is best for the money??? RCBS? Lee? I'm looking into reloading as a hobby...so, which direction should I go?



Or, you could toss in an extra 20 for the Lee Turret (3 or 4 hole) press. I was going to go single stage but wanted to avoid the resetting of dies for each stage of reloading. I have the four hole and it works great, quite precise....and if it's too "cheap" I can always upgrade to a mega-buck, ultra-espensive unit later on ;)


Firebrand

Rifle 25 -

Scroll down the forum and look in the archives for answers to any and all questions on reloading equipment.

As has been repeatedly stressed on this forum, the very first thing to acquire is a good reloading manual. Read it thoroughly and it too, will answer a bunch of your questions. Never even contemplate reloading until having read through the manual.

Kdub, is right. Reloading knowledge is everything, read and learn everything you can on the subject and make it an exacting science that is extremely fun and satisfying as a hobby too.

Then go out and buy yourself a Lee Classic cast iron press. Wonderful price at Midway.com about $59.95 though I got mine on sale there for $55.

The Lee 4-hole turret is pretty nice too, though I've never owned one.

However, not too found of Lees plastic powder measures. The Reddings are some of the best, and RCBS Uniflow are very reasonable at ebay auction.

Jim

Give a look at the Hornady Lock-n-Load Classic single stage. Once3 the dies are set, they change out without haveing toi reset them. this is absolutely the fastest cangale Press on the market. I have ther autoprogressive and the single.

When asking a question like this you get opinions based on the experience and experiences of others which form personal opinions. Opinions are like belly buttons everone has one.

Heres mine, based on the fact that I have been loading for somewhat over 20 years my advice on all reloading equipment is to buy blue or green equipment and you will never have to buy again and you can hand it down to your childrens children.

I'm speaking of Redding, RCBS and in progressives Dillon, I may be starting a flame war here but this is my 2 cents on it.

I don't buy Lee.

I'll say again, just my opinion Joey S aka 308

Joey - Had to edit your post a bit to avert a flamming war. Please understand we agree with your statement of everyone having an opinion and we thank you for expressing yours. However, the slamming of a product will surely ignite outraged resposes from those proud owners of that product. Something we would just as soon aviod here on the forum.

Thanks for your understanding - and, Welcome to the board.

Kdub
Moderator

There are many single stage presses and they are all about equal - other than the hand one that I think is made by Lyman. However, I urge you to consider a turret press.
If you are only loading one type of cartridge you can put all your dies in a turret press and simply rotate the wheel to the next die. You can even put a powder measure as one of the 'die' stations. This eliminates all the setup for each die. Face it, you might enjoy the hobby of reloading but who wants to play around getting each die set up every time you switch to the next step in the process.

Zero complaints with rcbs. In fact, IMHO thier customer service is second to none. I have the Rock Chucker supreme press and although it can be a bit of a pain to set up the dies but once you get the hang of it, its not that bad. I reload maybe 150 rounds a month if that helps you gauge my usage against what you would be using.

Which single station press is best for the money??? RCBS? Lee? I'm looking into reloading as a hobby...so, which direction should I go?

I load for the 45-70, 30-30, 7mm Rem Mag, and 300 Win Mag. Taking the 30-30 off the table, the others are best handled by a sturdy single stage press, expecially if you full-length resize. You said you will be loading for 45-70 and 450 Marlin. Both will require full-length resizing of the brass.

I use the Redding UltraMag single-stage press and I would recommend it to anyone. I paid $162 new from Buffalo Arms and I think it to be excellent value. I have mine outfitted with the Hornady Lock-N-Load bushing adapter and my dies are outfitted with the quick change bushings. It takes about 3 seconds to change out dies. Since I have gone this route my Redding turret press sits idle on the bench.

I looked at the Lee Classic press and I would have to say it is excellent value at around $60. The primer arms are an extra $13-$15 which would bump it up to the $75 range, still a very good value. Most write-ups I have read are likening it to the Redding UltraMag. Having seen it, I don't share that opinion. Maybe the Redding Boss but not the UltraMag. The Lee Classic cast iron press can be outfitted with the Lock-N-load system and to me that is a better solution than a turret.

I have Hornady New Dimension dies for my 45-70. I have the seater die outfitted with the micrometer adjust. I think Hornady has done an excellent job with that design but I still like my Redding dies better. The tolerances seem to be tighter and the price is definately higher but still good value.

I like the Lee Cartridge Length Trimmer, you have to get one for each cartridge you reload and you have to get the ball handle cutter with the shell holder lock. All total for 4 cartridges will cost under $30. The nice thing here is you don't have to make any adjustments for trimming and you can't screw it up. The Lee factory crimp dies are first rate as well and it is much easier to crimp with this extra loading step then it is to adjust the seater die to crimp. I quit crushing cases when I went with the separate crimp dies.

I also like the EJS primer pocket uniformer and flash hole uniformer, both are excellent tools.

IMO - Imperial Sizing Wax is the best case lube on the market.

All of these represent excellent value.

I have an RCBS press,lee powder thrower,lee case trimmers, dies by lee,RCBS,lyman,hornady,simplex, scales by lee and rcbs, and lee hand primer tool.I have no problem recommending any of the above brands.
I find the lee scales a little vague in use although I have no probs using it.
I think the lee primer tool is a better idea than using a primer tool on a press.
I think lee case trimmer system to be foolproof for a beginner loading for multiple cartridges
I have found my lee powder thrower superbly accurate for my reloading needs(200- 300 rounds per month)
I prefer lee,s 1 peice decapper/expander arbour in their resizer die(I have had another brands multiple peice decapper/expander break and fail)
I prefer lees price advantage over its competitors in Australia.
Yes , I lean heavily toward Lee, I have simply found it to be good value,extremely robust and works to my expectations.
There are many products on the market that will a better or worse job depending on what you want but for "genral purpose" reloading the cheaper Lee product will do the job .
I alos think it doesn't matter too much on the brand of press as long as you start with a good, solid, "o" frame press .You could progress to other styles of press later on in your hobby but a "o"frame press will serve you well for many years.

Rcbs rock chucker.

I am biased toward RCBS and have had my first RockChucker since 1971 and it still looks like new after reloading thousands of rounds. All the best...
Gil

I can recommend RCBS single stage presses. My uncle taught me on his Rockchucker and I was given an older RS2. Still use that RS2 that I've reloaded over 10,000 rounds on (reloaded over 6,000 rds during one 6 mo period). Have a Dillion 550 also for pistol but the RS2 still reloads my rifle and magnum pistol.

Lee is good for the money BUT I have the RCBS
Rock Chucker and the RCBS Rock Chunker Supreme
I have never been sorry for buying RCBS gear. I prefer single stage presses.. Due to the relatively small volume I reload for each gun I reload for..
Normaly only a couple hundrerd at a time..

Lee is good for the money BUT I have the RCBS
Rock Chucker and the RCBS Rock Chunker Supreme
I have never been sorry for buying RCBS gear. I prefer single stage presses.. Due to the relatively small volume I reload for each gun I reload for..
Normaly only a couple hundrerd at a time..

The lee Classic is on sale in Midways Flyer!!!! $54.99 Its a really good press. You will not dislike it at all , Jeff