Another disappointing die purchase

[Kaldor]

Yes, this is true. The real test is or will be how well their CS deals with this. I have friends that have Hornady dies that really like them.

Personally I probably would have tried polishing them myself. Depending on how fast I planned to use them after they arrived.

I put a couple small scratches in my Hornady 308 set over the years, which then caused some galling on the cases and brass on the walls of the inside of the die.
I cleaned the die thoroughly with Brake Clean and copper remover, and then used toothpaste on a Scotchbrite in the drill to buff out the very light scratches causing the galling. Still going strong after probably 10000 cases with no issues.
If it came new like that? Id call Hornady, and they would just send you a new die.

 

[hdwhit]

Love my (now discontinued) "Lee Speed Dies". Still using them 30+ years later to load 38 Special and 45 ACP.

And I still cherish my Lee Universal Decapping Die.

Beyond that, I have never been satisfied with a set of Lee dies. I have bought them because of price and have ended up replacing them with RCBS dies.

 

[MonkTx]

I am slowly replacing all of my hornady dies. I ran my Hornady and RCBS 9mm sizing dies along side each other and the difference in force required and burnishing of the brass is night and day different. The brass is harder to size and comes out kind of smeared looking with the Hornady. Same with both sets in 45 acp.

 

[GW Staar]

I have many RCBS die sets and several Lee die sets. No scratches. I became the owner of a converted FN Mauser target rifle converted to a wildcat .22-243 Middlestead and went looking for a custom die set for it. There was two choices at Grafs......an RCBS set and a Redding set. I thought, here's the perfect opportunity to try a Redding die set....custom made wildcat .22-243.....ordered it.

So when it came in, I cleaned it up as I always do, grabbed several recently sized Winchester .243 cases and sized them down to .22-243. Result? Cases that looked exactly like the O.P.'s!!!

How ironic that the first badly polished sizer I ever experienced was a REDDING custom die set. Blew me away! Point?

Not going to bad mouth a company known for quality. But just pointing out that nobody and no company is perfect every day. Things happen. We are mortal. Manufacturing steps get left out, factory tools wear out and have to be refurbished or replaced. The real test is how they take care of customers lucky enough to get the last product from a tool that wore out, or one where a worker missed a step. Sounds like Hornady is doing what they should. Enough said.

 

[Ks5shooter]

RCBS only for me....never an issue.

 

[thump_rrr]

When I started reloading I wasn't sure if I would enjoy it so I bought a Lee Challenger Breechlock Anniversary kit for $88 and a set of .45 ACP dies for around $25.00 and started reloading.
I liked the powder through expander and have kept buying Lee dies to this day.
My Challenger Breechlock press occupies the left side of my bench to this day and is used for priming and powder through expanding.
I also like Lee factory crimp dies.
For my Hornady LnL AP Progressive I like using Hornady dies because they have more threads so they work better in the progressive.
I have purchased RCBS dies several times when that was all I could find or when I was in a hurry.
I was given a set of RCBS 460 S&W Carbide 3 die set when I purchased a used 460V.
I don't see any difference in performance.
I had already purchased my Lee 460 S&W dies at the time.
I keep going back to my Lee dies due to ease of use.
I never saw any scratches on any of my dies.
As for rifles I use Redding Custom Competition Dies.

 

[ReloaderNoob]

Love my (now discontinued) "Lee Speed Dies". Still using them 30+ years later to load 38 Special and 45 ACP.

And I still cherish my Lee Universal Decapping Die.

Beyond that, I have never been satisfied with a set of Lee dies. I have bought them because of price and have ended up replacing them with RCBS dies.

How do you like the Lee speed dies? I have several after seeing them for sale on eBay and then reading about them on the Lee website. Perfect for a newbie with a single stage press.

 

[FROGO207]

I see everyone kinda piling on Hornady here, but everyone seems to forget that every company has an occasional QC issue slips thru the cracks. That includes the almighty Redding and Forster, and even the lowly Lee.
The real question everyone should be asking here is did Hornady stand behind their product? Yes, its a PITA when it happens, but it does happen. And it appears the issue was resolved.
My dies are a mix of Hornady, Redding, Lee, RCBS, Sinclair, Mighty Armory, Lyman,and Ive never had an issue with any of them, but I know for a fact if I called any one of those companies they would replace/repair anything at anytime for just about any reason.

I agree completly! It could have been me authoring that post. Personally the few times I have had a problem with any reloading item the manufacturer has taken care of it with one notable exception. My Dillon 500 tumbler developed a bad motor. Parts were no longer available and the fix was an upgraded motor assy that cost more than the new tumbler of theirs. Purchased a Frankfort Arsenal and after 15 years it is still chugging along. YMMV

 

[RockRat64]

Could you shine a light inside that sizer die & take a photo. Very curious

About half of the die looks rough which correlates to half the brass being scratched. Maybe I will try to polish since a new one is supposedly on the way.

 

[ReloaderNoob]

Love my (now discontinued) "Lee Speed Dies". Still using them 30+ years later to load 38 Special and 45 ACP.

And I still cherish my Lee Universal Decapping Die.

Beyond that, I have never been satisfied with a set of Lee dies. I have bought them because of price and have ended up replacing them with RCBS dies.

I've been collecting the Lee Speed dies for a couple years, have 7 now, just out of curiosity. They work fine, and I could see a new reloader getting a carbide speed die (about $25) and the Lee challenger press and start the journey very inexpensively.

 

[Eugen]

Op, sorry to hear about your disappoint with your Hornady dies. I trust Hornady will take care of you. Most of my dies are RCBS, but I do have two Hornady dies in 32acp and 380acp, and they have served me well for years. In fact, based on my experience with them I would consider buying other Hornady caliber dies.

 

[RockRat64]

Still waiting. I have received the free bullets which I submitted after the die warranty claim.

 

[IWAC]

Have a 357 on the way. Sheels is having a sale on reloading stuff so I picked up everything to reload 357 including some Hornady “custom grade dies”. Deep scratches on one side of my brand new Starline brass after running through the FL sizer. Between this and Whidden having a similar issue, I’m very disappointed. Lee seems to give me zero problems! Tried different lubes with the same result.
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Wow! That's awful! Return it to Scheels, showing them a sample case! They have a great return policy. I'll bet they will replace or refund. Good luck!