Press choices

[spar1790]

I am looking for a press to load 45LC. I want to do it faster than I can with my Lee single stage press, but I dont know which type to go with. Also if someone has some dies. other reloading components for 45LC I would be interested in purchasing them for a reasonable price. Finally, what is your favorite cowboy load you have worked up so far?

 

[inkdaddy]

Lee Pro 1000 for the press.....good price, good speed, hard to screw it up....

 

[Chuckdog]

To pickup any appreciable amount of speed, you'll likely need to go with a progressive.
Some folks like the auto indexing feature on the Lee Turret?

What type of powder measure are you using?
The Pro Auto Disk combined with Lees' powder through case mouth expanding dies make
handgun loading much faster for me. Combining mouth expansion and charging makes a
big difference in the time taken for loading.

I've had several progressive presses, and they just aren't for me?
I can't make myself not do all the case prep?

I use Universal from Hodgdon for my 45 Colt loads. It meters great, gives good load
density, and burns very clean.

 

[spar1790]

Lee Pro 1000 for the press.....good price, good speed, hard to screw it up....

Awesome, thats exactly what I was looking for.

 

[spar1790]

Lee Pro 1000 for the press.....good price, good speed, hard to screw it up....

Can this be changed out to all pistol calibers with just die purchasing? I do not want to have to buy another one to shoot 9mm or 45ACP. I keep seeing people saying they are purchasing another one for another caliber.

 

[Chuckdog]

It's a pain in the ass to change calibers. Changing the shell plate takes a bit.
The presses are inexpensive, and it just much easier to buy another press and leave it
set up per caliber. That's why people just buy another press.

A Pro 1000 is capable of loading good ammo, but it ain't the most user friendly press on the market.
It can try your patience? If I were going to go with another progressive, I believe I'd look a little
further before jumping into the 1000, especially if loading for more than one caliber.

 

[spar1790]

It's a pain in the ass to change calibers. Changing the shell plate takes a bit.
The presses are inexpensive, and it just much easier to buy another press and leave it
set up per caliber. That's why people just buy another press.

A Pro 1000 is capable of loading good ammo, but it ain't the most user friendly press on the market.
It can try your patience? If I were going to go with another progressive, I believe I'd look a little
further before jumping into the 1000, especially if loading for more than one caliber.

Which press would you recommend? I will mainly be loading 45LC but I like having the option to load others.

 

[Gun Guru]

IMHO you can't go wrong with Dillon. A Square Deal B is excellent for one handgun caliber but if you're gonna be doing more than one caliber consider the 550B. That's the one I use.

 

[spamcastle]

http://www.cabelas.com/product/Lee-Pro-1000-Progressive-Press/731758.uts?Ntk=AllProducts&searchPath=%2Fcatalog%2Fsearch.cmd%3Fform_state%3DsearchForm%26N%3D0%26fsch%3Dtrue%26Ntk%3DAllProducts%26Ntt%3Dlee%2Bpro%2B1000%26WTz_l%3DHeader%253BSearch-All%2BProducts&Ntt=lee+pro+1000&WTz_l=Header%3BSearch-All+Products

I have a Pro 1000 in 9mm and like it. It has it's overall flaws but it is what it is. I still use it slow as I'm pretty paranoid about my loading. I have read alot of review about switching up the set up for a d ifferent caliber and most people and reviews say it's a royal pain in the rear. With this being said I only load for 9mm right now. When I expand into loading other caibers I will mopre then liekly get a more user freindly model like the lee classic turrent. Take a look at the following link. Maybe a better alternative if your looking to load for more then one caliber to start off with and spped isn't an issue. Good luck.

https://kempfgunshop.com//index.php?page=shop.product_details&category_id=190&flypage=shop.flypage&product_id=630&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=41&vmcchk=1&Itemid=41

 

[tas6691]

Dillon 550B. Yeah it costs a bit, but it will last the rest of your life and load any caliber you want with minimal time to change.