Reloading Buy Checklist... how did I do

[wv109323]

A single stage press is not a bad idea for other reasons not mentioned yet. Bottleneck rifle cases will eventually need to be trimmed to length. They grow in length with usage. I do all case prep off a progressive press. So I deprime/resize, trim (if needed), clean before i start to reload.
Digital calibers are a pain due to dead batteries when least expected. Get analog.
It sounds like you are going to wet tumble your brass. I have found you need to deprime your brass before wet tumbling. If you wet tumble before depriming , the primer/primer pocket is the last thing to dry out. It is possible to put in a fresh primer before the primer pocket is completely dry. The moisture/water left in the primer pocket will kill the new primer. Next if you deprime after wet tumbling, it is very likely that the primers will not come out as a whole. Many,many times I have deprimed and just the end of the primer is broken off and the round circumference stays in the primer pocket. For unknown reasons this happens frequently when wet tumbling before depriming. Recently I was depriming after wet tumbling and had 16 primers where just the end was dislodged. This was most common with Winchester primers in Winchester cases. Go figure. Also wet tumbling after depriming will allow the primer pockets to be cleaned.
I have found Hornady's case lube to be superior to others used in the past. Also you will need some neck brushes to lube bottleneck rifle cases while resizing.
With wet tumbling there is no need for special case cleaning powders or liquids. Some dish detergent and citric acid( Kool-aid, lemon juice, Lemi-shine, etc.) is all that is needed.
There is a ton of reloading videos on youtube. Many are from vendors about their specific products.
There is no need for special lighting for a 550 press. With pistol cases you can see down into the case without special lighting. Just my .02 cents.

[David2011]

Two things that were touched upon that are very important are the potential need for a single stage press and a rigid bench.

Progressive presses are not good for pulling bullets. The direct in line pull and far more robust shell holders make a single stage a much better bullet puller. I have and like the RCBS collet bullet puller. Many lead boolits require an inertia/hammer style puller. I watched a video on the spring loaded inertia puller and wasn’t overwhelmed. The hammer style works well for a small expenditure.

There are a couple of benefits to a very rigid bench. The first is that any flexing of the bench is wasted energy that could have been used to resize or otherwise operate the press. It just makes you work harder with no benefit. My benches span 8 feet and I found it necessary to put a compression post in the middle of each to control the flex. They’re 3/4” ply with a 2x4 perimeter. I attached 2x10s front to back that are tied into the front and back framing and the presses are through bolted to the plywood tops and the 2x10s. It’s not 100% rigid but it’s not bad.

The problem is greater with progressives. Vibration in a progressive promotes primer issues; particularly that they go into the pockets crooked/sideways/upside down.

[414gates]

That is a terrible article, not worthy of a read. Many inaccuracies, too many to make it worth reading. Sorry, but I'm calling this one as I see (read) it.

45_Colt

Please highlight the inaccuracies. If there are too many, perhaps pick just one.

[fn1889m]

The debate between starting on a single stage or a progressive press comes up whenever someone asks about how to get into reloading. First, people tend to recommend a course of instruction that reflects their own path. Second, the reloading world is divided into two camps: slow and precise versus fast and efficient. Each type fits into one of these categories. But in general, people learn to use tools in small steps, and a single stage works best for most people at the beginning of their reloading career. The tools are cheaper, allow a high level of precision, and force people to scrutinize their work. And while a progressive press is more efficient, it can produce either good or bad ammo with efficiency.

I inherited an RCBS Rockchucker Jr for my first press. My second press was a Lyman Mag II turret press I bought on sale, which I use exclusively for pistol. There is not much difference between a single stage and a turret press. If you’re reloading pistol ammunition, I would probably recommend that you get either the current production Redding or Lyman turret press. Either will outlive your entire reloading career. But you’re going to need a single stage press eventually for precision rifle. The RCBS Rockchucker has gone through a lot of iterations. But it’s a reliable lifetime press that you will never outgrow. If that is your first press, you are also well served.

The goal now is safety, precision, repeatability, and aesthetics of your ammo. It needs to be safe, consistent, and “look good”. Efficiency is secondary at this point. I want to recommend a book titled: Top Grade Ammo by Zediker. It focuses on rifle ammo, but its principles are equally applicable to pistol ammo. It reflects a philosophy of precise reloading that works. “Recommend” is an understatement.

[dverna]

I am guilty of recommending what works for me. What is important is what works for you.

Give some serious thought to these items:

How often do you want to sit at a bench?
How many hours to you want to spend reloading?
How many rounds of each caliber do you shoot?
How many rounds of each caliber will you produce at a time?

Just some WAG's based on my experience.

I do not shoot a lot of rifle, and when I do, I am anal about reloads. The only rifle "blasting caliber" I have is the .223 in AR's that I do not shoot much anyway as I hate chasing brass. I typically reload less than 100 rounds at a time in rifle calibers. I weigh every charge and it takes me about an hour to load 50 rounds on a SS press.

With pistol rounds I typically reload 300-2000 at a time. I use a Dillon 1050 or 550, with the shorter runs on the 550. On a 550 it takes me about 10 minutes to change calibers using dies already set up on separate tool head. Most of that time is spent checking powder drops. If you do not have separate tool heads figure about double that time. And if you have to change primers size another 10 minutes. I get about 300 rounds an hour on the 550. The change over time is why I do not use the 550 for rifle reloading. If I reloaded over 200 rounds of the same rifle loads at a time, I would set it up the 550.

There are plenty of YouTube videos showing how long a caliber or primer change takes. I may be a turtle so see what others are doing. Those videos will give you an idea of speed as well. Just do not try to go like a bat out of hell until you gain experience. And remember that it takes time to load primer tubes and most people do not factor that in when bragging about how fast they are. Plus, every press will have a hiccup now and then that few people show on videos.

My guess is 75% of your shooting will be with the pistol calibers...maybe more. But it is something you should consider. BTW Lee makes some affordable SS presses and this is the one I would recommend. The link below takes you to a "factory second" and it likely no more than a cosmetic issue. A decent press for under $100.

https://leeprecision.com/product.php...at=6309&page=1

[Bmi48219]

…I'll add Don't get married to any one brand name and see if there's someone in your area that reloads…..

If OP isn’t already married I’d suggest purchasing his entire wishlist plus powder, primers and projectiles before he starts courting.

[45_Colt]

Please highlight the inaccuracies. If there are too many, perhaps pick just one.

I'm not sure this is a good way to go. Just end up as a pi$$ing contest. But here is one that is so obvious. From the article:

" .. or why a progressive press is not the best choice for rifle reloading.

All progressive presses have a shellplate. The shellplate is bolted to the ram, and rotates in fixed increments with every cycle of the handle. The shellplate is designed to function under compressive stress, and can handle a degree of tensile stress. When a case enters the sizing die, the force bears down on the shellplate, compressing it. "

False, the head of the cartridge bears down on the base plate. Which is solidly attached to the ram, and does not rotate. The shell plate is only used to locate the cartridge at each station.

45_Colt

[Mint]

Hey guys, from this thread I actually just picked up an RCBS Rock Chucker. One comment really stood out (in addition to all the comments suggesting it), which is that at some point I WILL need both.

So... I also really want the Dillon 750 now as well. So I decided instead of starting on a 550 and not having a SS press, I will start on a SS which I can use later, and from there better decide between 550 and 750. I like the idea of a 5th die, but I've also heard the tool changes are a lot more annoying, so it's hard for me to decide with no experience at the moment.

I suppose my next few questions before I get started are...

1. Where is a good source for powder coated lead boolits? There's literally so many to choose from it's overwhelming. Maybe a good kind I "cant go wrong with" (like the Alliant 2400 powder) would be helpful as a place to start.

2. Is this an OK die before I buy? It's a Cowboy .357 RCBS. I'm assuming this will be what I need for cast lead. https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1011720846?pid=428643

I will find the brass and primers, and then really go over the book! I'm excited.

[15meter]

You've been blasted with a whole bunch of info, some of it conflicting. You're going to have to sort that out to find out what works for you.

A couple of things on my scanning of the responses:

Powder, be aware there are different shapes of gun powder, some that flow through progressive presses like water, 2400 being one, some that bridge and stick and are NOT progressive friendly, like the old SR4759.

Closest I ever came to blowing up a gun was with SR4759 in a cast boolit load loaded on a RL550. SR4759 is no longer produced but there are old stocks out there and there are several "stick" powders that are still available that will bridge and cause you more grief than you want.

Dial VS digital caliper, I have both a Mitutoyo 6" digital and a Starrett 6" dial. I can't tell the difference in accuracy between the two and they are checked against my gage blocks on a regular basis. I use the digital way more that the dial just because it is easier to read. Quality counts in measuring tools. The digital dates from about 1994. It gets a new battery every other year.

I would never load up a hundred rounds before testing for feed/chambering. More like 2-3. I have used my RL550 as a semi progressive, two or three dies in it, do two or three operations, change dies and finish reloading. I did this when I was doing a multi-step reforming of brass then loading. Never have used it as a pure single stage but it would certainly work.

You said you have a couple of people where you shoot that will let you look over their shoulder. You will probably learn more in an hour watching a progressive in action then reading all the manuals in the world. And I'm a hard core reader, my loading manual collection takes up 5+ feet of bench space.

A Square Deal B is going to do all the same operations in the same order as the RL550, just pistol rounds and auto-rotate the shell plate. It would be a great primer for using the 550. I have never used the Hornady, I suspect that the same logic applies to that press.

I load 90% on a Rockchucker, but I do a lot of short run kind of loadings, which colors my thinking about progressives.

This week has been 160 220 Swifts and 22-250 with a third of them being test loads looking for the best load with a number of different components. 80 rounds of 30-06 for deer season. A batch of plinking .303's. Three boxes of .318 Westley Richards. On deck for this evening is 8 test rounds of 450-400 for a buddy's cape buffalo hunt in the spring and probably a small batch of 500-450's just for plinking.

The Dillon's will get mounted when I run out of blasting ammo for the M1's, carbines, the 1873 Winchester and Ruger revolvers in 45 Colt and the 1911. The Dillon's are usually used for the 200-2000 round type reloading.

Good luck, just take it slow and easy.

[Mint]

Excellent suggestion of calipers, thank you. I just picked up Mitutoyo 6" digital after reading about them. Looks like a winner

[georgerkahn]

Ha ha... really great question. No, I don't. I was hoping on buying primers in the short term price gouged amounts (ie gunbroker), just while learning. I also wasn't aware powder was hard to get, but that's also good to know.

Then I planned to just keep checking sites daily longer term, unless you have a better idea.

"Better idea" is really subjective . If it was me, I'd go to the Powder Valley web-site and select some powder and primers. BEFORE, though, do some serious reading in either name (e.g., Lyman) reloading manuals, or on-line from Wolfe Publishing's LoadData or AmmoGuide -- and see if you can find a "common to most/all" powder. Why buy five different powders when only a couple -- maybe three -- different ones will nicely work? Same with primers...
Good luck!
geo

[oley55]

Since this thread has taken on a life of it's own, I'll avoid the SS versus progressive discussion.

In the OP's original post he mentioned stainless steel pins and wet cleaning, but I did not see any mention of a depriming die. Although some folks will wet pin clean without first depriming, most deprime first (faster drying time and primers not getting corroded in place). So I would highly recommend getting a Lee Universal Depriming Die and a couple extra pins. Although I have never broken or bent a depriming pin under normal use, I have suffered the occasional brain fart that resulted in a pin failure.

On a more general point I'll offer this: For years I was of the mind that I should only have to touch/handle my brass once (maybe twice) during the reloading process or I was doing something wrong. In reality that was a pipe dream, especially when reloading with cast bullets. They require a Lyman M-style case mouth expander (IMO) and the M-style options for your Dillon powder funnel are quite limited (Mrbulletfeeder).

To meet my needs I have come to grips with the reality I will have to handle my brass more than twice/thrice and that's where a SS (single stage) is handy to go along with your Dillon. I deprime, wet pin clean and then size using only station one on the Dillon (actually I use a standalone SS so I don't have to keep swapping dies out of station one). Then I put my m-style case expander (I use NOE expanders in the Lee Universal Expander) in station number one (expand and install primer) and then complete the reloading process on my Dillon 450 (just an early 550 without all the whistles). So I've completed my depriming, cleaning and sizing before I use any of the Dillon's progressive features.

I'll likely get flamed as there are so many options/ways to get it all done.

[Mint]

Since this thread has taken on a life of it's own, I'll avoid the SS versus progressive discussion.

In the OP's original post he mentioned stainless steel pins and wet cleaning, but I did not see any mention of a depriming die. Although some folks will wet pin clean without first depriming, most deprime first (faster drying time and primers not getting corroded in place). So I would highly recommend getting a Lee Universal Depriming Die and a couple extra pins. Although I have never broken or bent a depriming pin under normal use, I have suffered the occasional brain fart that resulted in a pin failure.

On a more general point I'll offer this: For years I was of the mind that I should only have to touch/handle my brass once (maybe twice) during the reloading process or I was doing something wrong. In reality that was a pipe dream, especially when reloading with cast bullets. They require a Lyman M-style case mouth expander (IMO) and the M-style options for your Dillon powder funnel are quite limited (Mrbulletfeeder).

To meet my needs I have come to grips with the reality I will have to handle my brass more than twice/thrice and that's where a SS (single stage) is handy to go along with your Dillon. I deprime, wet pin clean and then size using only station one on the Dillon (actually I use a standalone SS so I don't have to keep swapping dies out of station one). Then I put my m-style case expander (I use NOE expanders in the Lee Universal Expander) in station number one (expand and install primer) and then complete the reloading process on my Dillon 450 (just an early 550 without all the whistles). So I've completed my depriming, cleaning and sizing before I use any of the Dillon's progressive features.

I'll likely get flamed as there are so many options/ways to get it all done.

Thanks, so if I read that right you run dirty brass through the dillon correct? Sorry if I am misunderstanding, but that was another thing I was trying to figure out, is how to best de-prime without getting dirty brass on progressive.

[Winger Ed.]

is how to best de-prime without getting dirty brass on progressive.

I use a LNL. I wash & polish the brass with the primer still in it.
Then load on the progressive. I get some grit/dust from the punched out primer.
When I refill the primer tube, I give a quick shot from a air hose to blow it all out from under & around the shell plate.

[414gates]

False, the head of the cartridge bears down on the base plate. Which is solidly attached to the ram, and does not rotate. The shell plate is only used to locate the cartridge at each station.

45_Colt

Correct. And corrected.

If you have time, point out more. It's not a contest of any kind. Wrong is wrong.

Information can only be as good as it is correct.

[JimB..]

Hey guys, from this thread I actually just picked up an RCBS Rock Chucker. One comment really stood out (in addition to all the comments suggesting it), which is that at some point I WILL need both.

So... I also really want the Dillon 750 now as well. So I decided instead of starting on a 550 and not having a SS press, I will start on a SS which I can use later, and from there better decide between 550 and 750. I like the idea of a 5th die, but I've also heard the tool changes are a lot more annoying, so it's hard for me to decide with no experience at the moment.

I suppose my next few questions before I get started are...

1. Where is a good source for powder coated lead boolits? There's literally so many to choose from it's overwhelming. Maybe a good kind I "cant go wrong with" (like the Alliant 2400 powder) would be helpful as a place to start.

2. Is this an OK die before I buy? It's a Cowboy .357 RCBS. I'm assuming this will be what I need for cast lead. https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1011720846?pid=428643

I will find the brass and primers, and then really go over the book! I'm excited.

Was letting this brew for a while, lots of good advice, I was going to suggest a single stage and a 650 or 750 so good to see you going that direction.
I started on a progressive for pistol and later bought a single stage to learn rifle. I do now keep a 650 set up for 223, but all other rifle is done on the single stage because it’s just not worth changing over the Dillon for less than 100 rounds plus I think a little more consistent. I also use the single stage for working up new loads in all calibers.
For speed with the single stage I did buy an rcbs electronic powder thrower doodad, forget the model number, but you simply pour in the powder, punch it a weight, and hit dispense. Some like it, some don’t, but it’s one of my favorite tools.

I will say that an hour or two with someone that reloads will save you a bunch of potential frustration. You’ll still have troubleshooting feom time to time, but you’ll have the basics down. Post up a city and someone may invite you over.

[super6]

Was letting this brew for a while, lots of good advice, I was going to suggest a single stage and a 650 or 750 so good to see you going that direction.
I started on a progressive for pistol and later bought a single stage to learn rifle. I do now keep a 650 set up for 223, but all other rifle is done on the single stage because it’s just not worth changing over the Dillon for less than 100 rounds plus I think a little more consistent. I also use the single stage for working up new loads in all calibers.


For speed with the single stage I did buy an rcbs electronic powder thrower doodad, forget the model number, but you simply pour in the powder, punch it a weight, and hit dispense. Some like it, some don’t, but it’s one of my favorite tools.

I will say that an hour or two with someone that reloads will save you a bunch of potential frustration. You’ll still have troubleshooting feom time to time, but you’ll have the basics down. Post up a city and someone may invite you over.

Mint, This IS the way to go!

[super6]

I use a LNL. I wash & polish the brass with the primer still in it.
Then load on the progressive. I get some grit/dust from the punched out primer.
When I refill the primer tube, I give a quick shot from a air hose to blow it all out from under & around the shell plate.

Just remove the old primer and be done with it!

[oley55]

Thanks, so if I read that right you run dirty brass through the dillon correct? Sorry if I am misunderstanding, but that was another thing I was trying to figure out, is how to best de-prime without getting dirty brass on progressive.

NO, I was trying to avoid implying a Single stage was a necessity, it isn't. I do however deprime on my Forester Co-Ax. No doubt a 5 station press would be helpful, but at my age my two RL450's will have to do.

[Winger Ed.]

Just remove the old primer and be done with it!

Nah,,, for me it would add an extra step of handling each case.
Doing handgun ammo in increments of a thousand, compared to a 2 second squirt of air every so often- it ain't worth the trouble.