Show us a picture of your reloading bench
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Ben Shepherd
Member
44and45- Why so many presses? 1 dedicated to each different load you run? Or do you load in a volume I can't imagine?
My bench-No pictures so use your imagination here:
4X8' foot white 1 1/2" countertop material with the 8' side attatched permanently to a wall. Dillon 650 on one corner facing the wall. RCBS rockchucker supreme on the oppisite side, but facing toward the dillon press instead of towards the wall.
You guys with non white surfaces:
You may want to consider getting scrap linoleum or something similar in white to cover your bench top. I loaded for years on dads bench with a plain particleboard top. The diffrerence in visibility is amazing.
My bench-No pictures so use your imagination here:
4X8' foot white 1 1/2" countertop material with the 8' side attatched permanently to a wall. Dillon 650 on one corner facing the wall. RCBS rockchucker supreme on the oppisite side, but facing toward the dillon press instead of towards the wall.
You guys with non white surfaces:
You may want to consider getting scrap linoleum or something similar in white to cover your bench top. I loaded for years on dads bench with a plain particleboard top. The diffrerence in visibility is amazing.
44and45
Member In Memoriam
I bought them because I could afford to. Had a lot of this stuff for years, there is another Dillon 550-B next to the RL-450, not shown in picture.
The RL-450 is set up permenately for .45 Colt caliber.
In the second picture on right, the brown presses are Herter's, set up for bullet swaging. They, and the red Lee Classic, are for bullet swaging, they also have automatic apparatice to eject the processed lead bullet after swaging. (my invention)
The other presses are for working up loads, or just collector items.
Pretty bad, when you show a picture and someone still can't imagine their purpose...its a hobby. Do you have more than one rifle or handgun...that's a hobby too.
Jim
The RL-450 is set up permenately for .45 Colt caliber.
In the second picture on right, the brown presses are Herter's, set up for bullet swaging. They, and the red Lee Classic, are for bullet swaging, they also have automatic apparatice to eject the processed lead bullet after swaging. (my invention)
The other presses are for working up loads, or just collector items.
Pretty bad, when you show a picture and someone still can't imagine their purpose...its a hobby. Do you have more than one rifle or handgun...that's a hobby too.
Jim
44and45
Member In Memoriam
But hey, if I can have over a dozen 357 wheelies, you can have that many presses right?
__________________
Now that is something I can't imagine, a dozen .357 wheely guns...but, if they were .44 special, or .45 Colt, or even .45 acp...I could redly accept that premise.
Jim
Not one magnum among these ancient wheelies. Couple are nearly on the century mark. The youngest made during WW-2.
__________________
Now that is something I can't imagine, a dozen .357 wheely guns...but, if they were .44 special, or .45 Colt, or even .45 acp...I could redly accept that premise.
Jim
Not one magnum among these ancient wheelies. Couple are nearly on the century mark. The youngest made during WW-2.
Liberty4Ever
Member
I was surprised when I started reloading just to be able to afford to shoot the 10mm, and immediately discovered that reloading wasn't a way to enjoy the hobby of shooting as much as it was another all new hobby in and of itself. I'm a Dr. Science geeky kind of guy, and I like to tinker, so I thought I'd enjoy developing loads and testing stuff, but I really had no idea that reloading was a hobby until I was already doing it. That's not fair. There should be a warning label on all addictive substances.
In my reloading addiction, I like having one press and a quick change turret for each caliber, but if you have the space, the ultimate quick change caliber is one press per caliber and slide the office chair two feet down the bench to the next press.
I just placed a $270 order at MidwayUSA yesterday, and it was almost all reloading stuff, including .380 dies for the LAR-10 rifle I probably won't be buying for several months.
Speaking of addictions and collecting... those wheel guns are nice, but you really should be buying 10mm pistols.
My latest addiction is Kel-Tecs.
PLR-16 - I thought .223 was a poodle plinker until I actually shot one
SUB-2000 - Folding pistol carbine that's tons of fun
PF-9 - I'm anxiously trying to find this new single stack 9mm
In my reloading addiction, I like having one press and a quick change turret for each caliber, but if you have the space, the ultimate quick change caliber is one press per caliber and slide the office chair two feet down the bench to the next press.
I just placed a $270 order at MidwayUSA yesterday, and it was almost all reloading stuff, including .380 dies for the LAR-10 rifle I probably won't be buying for several months.
Speaking of addictions and collecting... those wheel guns are nice, but you really should be buying 10mm pistols.
My latest addiction is Kel-Tecs.
PLR-16 - I thought .223 was a poodle plinker until I actually shot one
SUB-2000 - Folding pistol carbine that's tons of fun
PF-9 - I'm anxiously trying to find this new single stack 9mm
44and45
Member In Memoriam
LAH, howya doing.
The Lyman has an original long wooden handle for that model, the powder measure is an old Herter's No. 45 model with a long shaft to clear the turret dies. It works pretty good for such old technology, quite accurate as long as I keep it clean out between sessions of loading.
The AA press also has Lyman Universal shellholder, that's why the strange set screw, it will take any standard modern shellholder regardless of make. The knurled knob below the shellholder set-screw is for holding the orange plastic brass frame tray setting on the press base right side.
The All American turret press is one of my favorites, I use it for working up new loads, or small amounts to be loaded.
It came down from BC in Canada, that's where I bought it from some guy on an auction site. It was originally some faded out puke red, but I like the Allis Challmers orange, that Lyman of olden days use to use.
The other Lyman orange press is a real ancient antique, a Tru-line Jr. turret, its set up for .45 auto rim caliber. But haven't loaded anything on it for over a year, too busy loading and shooting other calibers.
The knob handle on the C-H black press, is not original equipment. It's off an a Dillon extra handle I once had.
Jim
The Lyman has an original long wooden handle for that model, the powder measure is an old Herter's No. 45 model with a long shaft to clear the turret dies. It works pretty good for such old technology, quite accurate as long as I keep it clean out between sessions of loading.
The AA press also has Lyman Universal shellholder, that's why the strange set screw, it will take any standard modern shellholder regardless of make. The knurled knob below the shellholder set-screw is for holding the orange plastic brass frame tray setting on the press base right side.
The All American turret press is one of my favorites, I use it for working up new loads, or small amounts to be loaded.
It came down from BC in Canada, that's where I bought it from some guy on an auction site. It was originally some faded out puke red, but I like the Allis Challmers orange, that Lyman of olden days use to use.
The other Lyman orange press is a real ancient antique, a Tru-line Jr. turret, its set up for .45 auto rim caliber. But haven't loaded anything on it for over a year, too busy loading and shooting other calibers.
The knob handle on the C-H black press, is not original equipment. It's off an a Dillon extra handle I once had.
Jim
Last edited:
Redneck with a 40
Member
- Joined
- Jul 26, 2006
- Messages
- 2,273
Here's mine:
Since my auto disk powder measure won't meter my Unique powder worth a damn, I'm having to manually charge my cases with the scale. On the flip side, this is far more accurate and consistent, albeit slower. I'm doing about 50 rounds/hour, this is fine, since time is not an issue with me.
Since my auto disk powder measure won't meter my Unique powder worth a damn, I'm having to manually charge my cases with the scale. On the flip side, this is far more accurate and consistent, albeit slower. I'm doing about 50 rounds/hour, this is fine, since time is not an issue with me.
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Liberty4Ever
Member
I'd think 50 rounds an hour would be a slow rate for precise finely tuned match target rifle ammo once you were in full production instead of development. It looks like you're reloading .40 S&W?
You could drastically increase the speed by using a powder dipper. If you want a precise amount that isn't available from Lee, you could dribble a little epoxy into the next larger dipper to fine tune it. You could also use a cap screw to make a slightly adjustable dipper, or make your own dipper with a brass case soldered to a copper rod and sand down the case mouth to reduce the volume. A squatty .45 case makes a good dipper. If you make any modifications to a standard dipper, be sure to permanently mark the dipper with its new volume.
The Lee Safety scale works very well to be so inexpensive, but fast it is not. I use mine sometimes to double check a critical weight and cross check calibrate my digital scales (which are inexpensive on eBay).
I was not aware that the Auto Disk powder measure had trouble dropping Unique, but I've never tried. Did you try the $30 Pro Auto Disk with the elastomer wiper and Teflon coated body, or just the original Auto Disk? Sometimes it helps to cycle the Auto Disk through half a pound of powder to coat the walls of the disk and the powder measure body with graphite. It makes the measure operate more smoothly (graphite has lubricant properties) and also reduces static cling (graphite is a conductor).
It also helps to tap the powder measure when the bottom is open so it drops the entire powder charge with some extruded stick powders that tend to bridge. That's a bit of a hassle, but MUCH better than using the Safety Powder Scale to slowly measure each load. My progressive presses have been pretty good about shaking the powder measure when charging so I don't need to tap them.
Whatever you do, remember that powder charging is probably the most critical part of reloading, and you must ensure that every powder charge is correct. Weighing each charge does that, but it's a major hassle. I think it can be done safely with the Pro Auto Disk, but any time I make any change, and at the start of every reloading session, I check several consecutive powder charges to make sure the powder measure is not only dropping the correct charge weight, but is doing so in a repeatable and reliable manner. I also visually gauge the powder height as I manually insert the bullet as a final rough safety inspection for each powder charge. That's probably the main reason I don't use an automatic bullet inserter. It'd still be possible to check the powder height, but I'd probably get lazy and stop doing it.
You could drastically increase the speed by using a powder dipper. If you want a precise amount that isn't available from Lee, you could dribble a little epoxy into the next larger dipper to fine tune it. You could also use a cap screw to make a slightly adjustable dipper, or make your own dipper with a brass case soldered to a copper rod and sand down the case mouth to reduce the volume. A squatty .45 case makes a good dipper. If you make any modifications to a standard dipper, be sure to permanently mark the dipper with its new volume.
The Lee Safety scale works very well to be so inexpensive, but fast it is not. I use mine sometimes to double check a critical weight and cross check calibrate my digital scales (which are inexpensive on eBay).
I was not aware that the Auto Disk powder measure had trouble dropping Unique, but I've never tried. Did you try the $30 Pro Auto Disk with the elastomer wiper and Teflon coated body, or just the original Auto Disk? Sometimes it helps to cycle the Auto Disk through half a pound of powder to coat the walls of the disk and the powder measure body with graphite. It makes the measure operate more smoothly (graphite has lubricant properties) and also reduces static cling (graphite is a conductor).
It also helps to tap the powder measure when the bottom is open so it drops the entire powder charge with some extruded stick powders that tend to bridge. That's a bit of a hassle, but MUCH better than using the Safety Powder Scale to slowly measure each load. My progressive presses have been pretty good about shaking the powder measure when charging so I don't need to tap them.
Whatever you do, remember that powder charging is probably the most critical part of reloading, and you must ensure that every powder charge is correct. Weighing each charge does that, but it's a major hassle. I think it can be done safely with the Pro Auto Disk, but any time I make any change, and at the start of every reloading session, I check several consecutive powder charges to make sure the powder measure is not only dropping the correct charge weight, but is doing so in a repeatable and reliable manner. I also visually gauge the powder height as I manually insert the bullet as a final rough safety inspection for each powder charge. That's probably the main reason I don't use an automatic bullet inserter. It'd still be possible to check the powder height, but I'd probably get lazy and stop doing it.
44and45
Member In Memoriam
Redneck with a .40, try a Dillon PM with a slide bar. They come with rifle or handgun.
In the picture of my C-H black press, it has an old Dillon RL-450 manual push knob PM. This unit can handle just about any handgun flake, or extruded rifle powder with ease.
The only PM in my stable that is really cranky, is the Lyman Tru-line Jr. No.55 model. Its shown on the little turret press.
Jim
In the picture of my C-H black press, it has an old Dillon RL-450 manual push knob PM. This unit can handle just about any handgun flake, or extruded rifle powder with ease.
The only PM in my stable that is really cranky, is the Lyman Tru-line Jr. No.55 model. Its shown on the little turret press.
Jim
LAH
Member
Redneck I love that desk/bench.
44/45 the local gunshop has a Tru-Line Jr. for sale.
44/45 the local gunshop has a Tru-Line Jr. for sale.
44and45
Member In Memoriam
Well, recomend the Dillon for handgun flake powder, or extruded rifle powder, does a good job with its metering slide bar.
The Lyman Tru-line Jr. uses only small 5/8X30 threaded 310 dies. These little dies can be used with a Lyman tong tool that slightly resembles a nut cracker.
However, and this is pretty weird, the little 310 seating die does a beautiful job on roll crimping my big bore handgun brass.
Even with a tong tool, a guy can crank out (slowly) excellent ammunition.
Jim
The Lyman Tru-line Jr. uses only small 5/8X30 threaded 310 dies. These little dies can be used with a Lyman tong tool that slightly resembles a nut cracker.
However, and this is pretty weird, the little 310 seating die does a beautiful job on roll crimping my big bore handgun brass.
Even with a tong tool, a guy can crank out (slowly) excellent ammunition.
Jim
Liberty4Ever
Member
Lee Precision makes a big deal about some pretty amazing shooting (even by today's standards) that won a major shooting competition, and the ammo was manufactured using a Lee Loader, which is a very simple aparatus that started the home reloading market in the 1950s. The entire Lee Loader was very inexpensive and shipped in a cardboard storage box not much bigger than a deck of cards. I believe the customer did request a slight modification to the die, though, to increase accuracy a bit. The Lee Loader didn't use a press at all. Instead, a hammer was used! It was noisy, but effective. Hard to believe such precise ammo was made by hammering on it.
caz223
Member
After using a lee loader for a few years, there's nothing about that I don't believe.
The leel loader makes great ammo, esp in the magnum calibers.
The .41 mag ammo it was was every bit as good as any cranked off in any press, using any dies, provided the components are good.
The accuracy mostly has to do with how the case is sized. (Neck size.)
Neck sizing in combination with using the brass in one gun over and over fireforms the ammo to your gun's chamber, making that accuracy possible.
cloudcroft
Member
Redneck,
Many years ago, I used a Lee Auto Disk powder measure (standard version) and it worked fine.
Recently, when I got back into reloading, I had read that the Lee PRO auto-disk powder measure worked better due to the teflon coating that the standard auto-disk doesn't have (and I guess the elastomer wiper on it is better, too). Also, I got the adjustable powder charging bar for it so I do not use the fixed powder disks...it also works fine.
-- John D.
Many years ago, I used a Lee Auto Disk powder measure (standard version) and it worked fine.
Recently, when I got back into reloading, I had read that the Lee PRO auto-disk powder measure worked better due to the teflon coating that the standard auto-disk doesn't have (and I guess the elastomer wiper on it is better, too). Also, I got the adjustable powder charging bar for it so I do not use the fixed powder disks...it also works fine.
-- John D.
Redneck with a 40
Member
- Joined
- Jul 26, 2006
- Messages
- 2,273
Personally, I'm ok with loading 50 rounds/hour, I'm getting very accurate and consistent ammo. Plus I like being intimate with the reloading process. Yeah it takes awhile, but I enjoy the time spent doing it. Just this week alone, reloading 1 hour a day, I''ve loaded 400 rounds of ammo. Since I only shoot 50 rounds/week, this is sufficient. I'll stick to my current method, the accuracy I'm getting is awesome.
Yeah it takes awhile, but I enjoy the time spent doing it. Just this week alone, reloading 1 hour a day, I''ve loaded 400 rounds of ammo. Since I only shoot 50 rounds/week, this is sufficient. I'll stick to my current method, the accuracy I'm getting is awesome.Liberty4Ever
Member
If you enjoy 50 rounds per hour, more power to you. I agree, if you enjoy doing it, it's time well spent. I can sympathize with not wanting to mess with the primer feed on progressive presses. That seems to be the biggest problem with Lee progressive presses, and it can flat take all the fun out of it.
But I like fiddling with machines. I also like to shoot a lot. I reload 200-400 rounds an hour, and I shoot 200-400 rounds of 10mm when I go to the range. Lately I've been reloading 9mm to shoot in the Kel-Tec SUB-2000 9mm folding carbine, and it's a hungry little beast. It's so much fun to shoot that I seldom get away before firing 300 rounds, not to mention the ammo expended taking friends along to introduce them to shooting.
The differences in our reloading habits demonstrates the wide range of interests reflected in reloading. Soon, I hope to have a very accurate long range high caliber rifle. Then, I expect to enjoy slow and careful hand crafting of fire formed ammo for maximum accuracy, which is very different from sitting down to make a lot of high quality pistol plinking ammo.
Next up for me: .223 and .308. - plinking at first, then more accurate (but still progressive reloaded for semi-autos).
But I like fiddling with machines. I also like to shoot a lot. I reload 200-400 rounds an hour, and I shoot 200-400 rounds of 10mm when I go to the range. Lately I've been reloading 9mm to shoot in the Kel-Tec SUB-2000 9mm folding carbine, and it's a hungry little beast. It's so much fun to shoot that I seldom get away before firing 300 rounds, not to mention the ammo expended taking friends along to introduce them to shooting.
The differences in our reloading habits demonstrates the wide range of interests reflected in reloading. Soon, I hope to have a very accurate long range high caliber rifle. Then, I expect to enjoy slow and careful hand crafting of fire formed ammo for maximum accuracy, which is very different from sitting down to make a lot of high quality pistol plinking ammo.
Next up for me: .223 and .308. - plinking at first, then more accurate (but still progressive reloaded for semi-autos).
LAH
Member
OK JDGray what's that hanging behind the paper towells?
Duct tape & a bore snake Your probably wanting to know what that relic pinfire revolver is? Well, its DA SA, 9mm(near as I can tell) Says "systeme italie" on the frame, and a word I cant make out starting with a G and ends with Br. In other words, I got no idea
Your probably wanting to know what that relic pinfire revolver is? Well, its DA SA, 9mm(near as I can tell) Says "systeme italie" on the frame, and a word I cant make out starting with a G and ends with Br. In other words, I got no idea Liberty4Ever
Member
Can we assume that WD-40 is on the reloading bench for the times you need to deactivate primers?
JackOfAllTradesMasterAtNone
Member
No. I don't deactivate primers. I just throw them into the fire. 
LAH
Member
Some nice stuff there Jack.........Creeker
LAH
Member
Hey Arkie.........tell us about that bench? Looks great.......Creeker
