Preparing to reload

[SwingW/theWing]

I have absolutely nothing as far as reloading equipment goes. I do have a ton of brass though. My thought was to get either a lee hand loader or just a tool for popping out primers and then a ultrasonic cleaner and a tumbler. Figured I could atleast prep the brass first. At this point the only brass I have in abundance is .223 and .45. My goal is to slowly put money into this as to not anger the wife. Any recommendations as what to get?

 

[Bfish]

It sounds like you are on the right track.. Then when you do get all of your equipment you'll be ready to go.
I would say going this route is great and in the mean time watch for deals as you go. Buying powder and primers as you see a deal would be a great way to go too, sometimes they can be hard to find. You can just buy a press whenever, and or watch for a used one.

 

[vwfred69]

I like my Lee challenger for prepping 223

 

[Mgderf]

When you do decide to start, start with a single stage press, and read at least 2 different manuals BEFORE you start reloading.
You can never have too much information.

 

[oldpink]

You can get a Lee Loader, but that would be money better spent on buying your equipment piecemeal.
My suggestion would be to get your components one at a time, first with the press, then scale, powder measure, dies, etc, one at a time.
You won't be plunking down a huge chunk all at once on it, and you can read up on exactly what you need and how to use it as you gather together your equipment.
Once you have all that you need, start out with small batches and take your time, not allowing any sort of distraction while loading.
You'll really love it once you get the hang of it.

 

[Broom_jm]

If you've got more time than money, and you're loading 223 and 45, the Lee Classic Turret is the press you want. It's inexpensive, but not "cheap".

 

[bocefus78]

The classic turret is as slow as I'd want to go, even as a new reloader. It functions as a single stage if needed and a turret style when you need to speed up.

I have one, and use it for 223 and 44mag, but I went progressive for everything else.

Imo, ultrasonic cleaned cases are overkill. Tumble and reload. Use that cleaner money for a press.

 

[SEIndSAM]

The classic turret is as slow as I'd want to go, even as a new reloader. It functions as a single stage if needed and a turret style when you need to speed up.

I have one, and use it for 223 and 44mag, but I went progressive for everything else.

Imo, ultrasonic cleaned cases are overkill. Tumble and reload. Use that cleaner money for a press.

What he said........Ultrasonic cleaning is overkill, tumbled case work just as well and are cheaper. Use the price difference for Dies, Powder,Primers, Etc...

 

[deseag007]

I have loaded tons of .223 over the years on a single stage lee press. I have never sued a ultrasonic case cleaner. I always tumble, then deprime, clean the ports, and then do my reloading. Unless you plan on selling reloads the tumbler cleans brass like a boss. After 30+ I just purchased a progressive stage press and am looking forward to putting it to work. My lee has been with me since the early 80's and I still use it today.

 

[cundiff5535]

In reply to your original post... Things are all relative. How much do your shoot and what's "a lot" of brass? I personally found a way to get brass at a very cheap rate, sometimes even no cost for assisting some local PDs. Originally I sorted the brass to find my entire reloading set up. I also used it to fund powder, primers, and projectiles while still leaving me enough brass to load what I wanted.


If by a lot you are talking about 100k plus pieces, sort it, sell it, buy top notch equipment... If by a lot you mean a few 5gal buckets, well that's a different story.

Anytime I talk with folks about reloading I tend to always mention Dillon machines... You can get a used machine for fairly cheap. I just sold a 450 for $260 in the classifieds. A know the RCBS stuff at cabellas is more than that.

For the sake of a recommendation, I'd read a few books and invest in a Dillon 550.

 

[dieselrealtor]

I loaded a few thousand rounds on my Lee Classic Turret (LCT) & when I was in a groove I could load around 200-250 per hour. I bought this when I wasn't sure if I was going to like reloading or not.

I have since moved onto a Dillon 550 & am looking to add a 650 or 1050 for my more high production calibers. I was originally plan on keeping the LCT but I don't see myself going back to it so it will probably end up in the classifieds at some point.

 

[Broom_jm]

I loaded a few thousand rounds on my Lee Classic Turret (LCT) & when I was in a groove I could load around 200-250 per hour. I bought this when I wasn't sure if I was going to like reloading or not.

I have since moved onto a Dillon 550 & am looking to add a 650 or 1050 for my more high production calibers. I was originally plan on keeping the LCT but I don't see myself going back to it so it will probably end up in the classifieds at some point.

With the perspective you have now, would you say you regret starting out with the LCT, or was it a good way to learn how to reload?

 

[dieselrealtor]

With the perspective you have now, would you say you regret starting out with the LCT, or was it a good way to learn how to reload?

I do not regret it, it was a great way to get started. If I had to do it over again I would do the same.

 

[Thegeek]

I started with the lee hand press. It get's the job done, but is very slow. The quick change collars certainly helped, but the ergonomics of the thing SUCK! I still use it occasionally, but stepped up to a single stage RockChucker. Unless you plan on reloading at the range to work up a new load, I'd say skip the hand press.

 

[SwingW/theWing]

The hand press was an option to pop out primers and take to the range if I ever got that far with reloading. It was a cheap tool to what I needed and get me started. I looked at a Franklin Arsenal tool for popping primers out but wasn't really impressed with what I saw

 

[Michigan Slim]

I just ordered my second Dillon 550. Wife was PO'd at me anyway so why not.

 

[Twangbanger]

I just ordered my second Dillon 550. Wife was PO'd at me anyway so why not.

I like the way you think.

 

[jcwit]

I just ordered my second Dillon 550. Wife was PO'd at me anyway so why not.

Sounds like a very happy home thats going downhill fast.

 

[cundiff5535]

I just listed a nice 550 set up in the classifieds

 

[Broom_jm]

My wife loves to shoot, so I never catch any crap over reloading equipment or supplies.